Is there any special precaution which needs to be taken when waxing a car with Bonnet/Boot stripes. It seems obvious to not bang up against the edges, but can you go over them at all with Mothers or Zaino?

 

I use the thinnest painter's tape on the edge of my stripes when polishing and waxing.

I use the least abrasive polish with the least abrasive pad when detailing the stripes with my random orbital buffer.

I wax the stripes by hand.

 

i wax my stripes by hand. no issues. the little wax that gets caught on the edges come off real easy with my MF towels.

i use Griot's Best of Show on my MCS.

 

Thanks!

 

Rather than start a new topic...

I have a clear front bra that came with the car and just bought some bonnet stripes. Should the stripes go on top of the clear bra (where there's overlap) or should the clear bra be removed in that area (which would be pretty hard to do - I've already taken the clear bra off the scoop because it had dirt underneath it - I used the 3M adhesive remover and boy was that a lot of work) and the stripes be applied directly to the painted surface?

 

I was told not to wax the stripes since they will fade with time and harm the vinyl material by eating away at it. By the way the stripes only have a 3 - 5 year lifespan, so don't surprised if they need to be replaced. I was myine with car soap and water and dry and never add wax to them to prevent any damage, deterioration or fading. What I want to know is if there is any whitening or cleaning liquid specifically out there for the vinyl stripes.

 

I just had my stripes replaced on warranty due to staining (almost like rust spots) from water and heat. I read on a few other threads that waxing will prevent this; however I always heard that waxing was bad for any type of decal so not sure how to maintain these new ones.

I'm a Zaino person myself, but use Turtle Wax ICE on our other vehicle that has lots of black plastic (fenders, top etc.) and it's pretty awesome stuff. Can put it straight on the plastic. Thinking I'm going to use Zaino on the paint and the ICE on the Mini's fenders and stripes.

 

I read on another thread that someone had really good results with whitewall cleaner on the stripes.

 

you're fine to seal or wax the stripes. actually recommended...

let the new stripes dry 24hrs or so before applying any wax so that the adhesive has a chance to cure.

 

Never heard of a wax/sealant causing fading

Mark

 

The dealer put my stripes on top of the clear bra. Makes sense, if you get tired of them it's easier to remove them, and if they do get scratched or pitted, they're relatively cheap to replace.

 

Just had my OEM hood stripes replaced due to stains and bubbling (warranty) and then had them covered with VentureShield film (NOT at the dealer). Best stuff on the market and only one with a life time warranty. The reflective quality is nearly that of paint and you take care of it the same way as paint. Had to be custom cut and applied and they wrapped it over the top and bottom of the hood. You have to look close to tell the stripes weren't painted on! Cost $100 and it's worth it. Had the door edges done, too. I like it!

 

Hey Dwight-

Was that Brecht that replaced your stripes? Did they give you any hassles over it? My sport stripes are less than 2 years old and look horrible (no gloss, not as black as before, etc., but no stains or bubbling).

 

Yup, it was Brecht, although not without hassles. No problem with warranty as the main thing I complained about was bird poop and bug gut permanent stains. Was supposed to take ~1hr IF parts were in stock. After 8 days they stilled hadn't called and probably wouldn't have if I hadn't gone in and pressured them to do the work. Their "service" dept. has been a POS since day one!

 

Hmmm. Makes me wonder if I should even try.

 

Hey I think I recognize your Mini---are you the one a lot in the AM around SF Hills area?

Brecht replaced mine with no questions. They did have to keep it overnight as the body shop had it all day, (but then again they ended up having it another 14 days due to tranny/warranty issue and I also had a problem getting them to return my calls. But now all is good...warranty is out now anyway so I'll probably never be back)

 

Nope, weren't me. I hang out in the San Mucous area. Mine's the DS/B MCS with the day-glow orange ball on the ant. Sounds like you're another Brecht "lover" ()! I'm history the instant the warranty's up.

Seeing as how we share two things in common (MINI's & Blech), you might be interested in joining West Coast Mini (see Yahoo Groups). Mostly local yokels and good folks. Joined in July and have had great fun on their runs. Speaking of which, we've got a dandy coming up Sat. Pauma Valley, Palomar, Montezuma Grade, a parade in Borrego Springs and then Banner Grade to finish up! Check the WCM site for details. You're more than welcome to join in. C-YA there?

Dwight
PS: you can't drive backwards in the parade anymore. Bummer!

 

We live off Las Posas but it must be another one I see in the AM that is similar to yours. Thanks for the heads up on the WCM group. I'll check it out. Wish we could go Sat but we will be out of town. Just drove down Banner grade this weekend...unfortunately it was in our Jeep. It's NOT fun to drive on the twisties--as is the Mini. Maybe we can catch the next one. Getting new tires on this week (goodbye runflats) so need to break them in anyway.

Brecht was actually pretty nice to me...except for the long period of not returning my calls. It was a short experience since we bought the Mini in May. Now we will go to All German Auto for all our needs. Need to visit them this week to get my Dinan software reinstalled since Brecht wiped it out (again).

 

I waxed my car with Prima Epic this weekend and my black stripes look horrible lots of swirl makrs like the wax didn't get buffed off. I did it all by hand. What should i do?

 

Try some QD, like Slick, to get the wax off.

I wax my stripes a few times a year with Epic when I do the rest of the car. No problems whatsoever.

 

just to confirm QD is quick detailer, right?

Maybe the stripes just need some more elbo grease. It was getting dark by the time i was buffing out the Epic.

 

Yep, quick detailer. My guess is it just needs a little help coming off, especially if you waxed by hand.

 

Is there anything i can buy locally or should i just oder the Prima QD?

 

Any QD should work. You could also use a small amount of Epic.

Mark

 

Yeah you can use any QD for that...Meguiar's would work fine and you can get it at Target, Wal-Mart, AutoZone, etc.