I was doing a quick wax job (Sorry, no time for Zaino without a garage during the rainy season) with some NXT and without thinking smeared wax all over my hood stripes (factory vinyl ones).

Will this cause any issue with them? They look okay, though a bit streaky.

 

Are we not supposed to wax the stripes???

 

Treat your stripes like you treat your paint. Just don't hit 'em on the edge with an orbital or a PC as they might come up.

I wax, polish and QD my stripes.

mb

 

Thanks. I just wasn't sure. This is my first car with any kind of vinyl stuff on it. The bonnet stripes seem lonely, I think it needs something else.

 

Whew! I've waxed mine too.

Has anyone taken the stripes off after a couple of years and noticed any oxidation issues (paint where stripes were being brighter than the rest of the paint)? Just curious.

 

I have waxed over my vinyl conistently(weekly or bi-weekly) for 3 years and had no problems. (and my car isnt garaged)

 

Does anyone have stripes that never look clean?

My black stripes always have water marks on them, even after a fresh washing. And worse yet, they're starting to look faded.

I fear this is because the vinyl color is actually white, with the black printed on top of it. The black is possibly "washing away" over time.

Has anyone else seen this happen?

If so, have you contacted your dealer about it? The stripes are supposedly covered under your warranty if they were installed at the factory, (or so my MA told me). He said they would replace the stripes if still the car was under warranty, but I haven't yet showed him my fading stripes.

Anyone...

Bueller... Bueller... Bueller...

 

I had a clear bra put on, then taken off because it wasn't the right size, and the paint under the bra (after a couple thousand miles) was darker than the unprotected paint. I assume the same will happen under the stripes, and if it does, a complete cleaning, polishing, waxing will be in order to even everything out.

Jonnieoh - yes the stripes are more difficult to care for. Mine get spotted from water frequently and don't look nearly as clear and clean as my paint. I just try to keep them protected with wax or sealant, and when I polish, I hit them too to make them look as nice as I can. I doubt a dealer would replace them under warantee, but you never know.

mb

 

I have a checkered top with stickers and I notice that it does take a little more buffing to make sure I get a good streak free look. Also, for some reason the vinyl looks worse at first then sems to allow the NXT to "soak in" so after 20-30 minutes it seems better.

 

Not all wax is the same when it comes to vinyl. I've tested wax on my UJ roof before doing the whole thing. NXT removed some color. Can't remember if the Meguiar's Gold Class did or not. Now I just wax the actual roof (white paint) and use detail spray on the vinyl.

Ken

 

Not all vinyl is the same either. Some of the roof graphics are printed on to white vinyl and the ink might smear when the solvents hit it. Always try in a safe location first.

All vinyl needs some sort of protection from UV. You can wax, Zaino, NXT or use a rubber/vinyl protectant like 303 (what CooperFlags recommends).

 

I removed my factory stripes after two years. There was absolutely no difference in paint colors. No fading - nothing. I am a firm believer in Mother's polishes. I polish over all my graphics every time I polish the car. After almost three years, my side window vinyl still looks new.

The factory stripes are indeed printed on white vinyl. Get some good
aftermarket stripes made of quality vinyl and you should have no fading or white rock chips showing through the black.

 

Oh, my checkers are black vinyl, not printed so no worries about rubbing the color off.

 

Vinyl stripes are the same as any lettered vehicle.Waxing will condition them and make them easier to clean.The polishing at edges is the only area for caution such as a sharp point or edge.

 

The 3M brand stripes that Mighty Stripes sells specifically says not to wax over them. I called the folks and asked if Zaino was OK and they said yes. So, I presume (real) wax (not synthetic sealant) was NOT ok. I do not know why though.

 

I put on some "static cling" style stripes when I got my car because I was undecided whether I wanted stripes or not. After 3 months there was noticable distortion. The color was darker and it you could see like a ridge in the clear coat. almost like the stripes "settled" into the clear

Fortunately I had decided that I liked the stripes and applied the OEM stripes for good.

 

You probably could have polished the discoloration right out, but it wasn't the area under the vinyl that was discolored... it was the rest of your car that was lighter!

Keeping a good coat of wax (or NXT or Sealant) on would help stop that.

 

Are you sure the ridge you are referring to isn't wax? I had a static cling meatball on my door, and removed it after 8 months. Prior to that I had waxed it several times and when I removed the meatball, there was a ridge encircling where the meatball used to be. It was was just wax, and I used the PC to polish it off. In other words, just rewax the area, and it's fine. Might need a paint cleaner like M80 to help remove the ridges, before finishing it with a good wax.

Richard

 

No, I dont think so.....I even got a mild scratch remover and polished several times, and used a cleaner when I installed the permanent stripes. the visual ridge was still there.

 

I inadvertantly sat a bottle of Rain-X on one of my stripes while cleaning windshield and the result was the a small streak with the black partcially removed showing some white. The car was only a month old at time but dealer said it was not covered under warantee.

 

I used the meguiars clear coat wax on my mini over the weekend and got the shock of my life. It easily made my black stripes half as light. Luckily, my girlfriends father installs vinyl graphics and tried some fixes. He used armorall after he used hi-solve to remove the wax. It helped considerably to bring back the color, but there is still some fading. Since I cannot remove the stripes since I have the clearbra over the stripes, I was wondering if anyone had come up with any fixes to restore the stripes to like new? any super, amazing, never seen before, limited time only, while supplies last, products that can bring back the faded bonnett stripes?

BTW, the car is 3 months old and only has 3k on the odometer, so removing and replacing the clearbra and strips is not high on my list of things I want to consider.

 

So, I am assuming the area under the clear bra did not change color?

 

thats right, the clearbra was fine, no discoloration at all. the bonett stripes were factory issue.