Care of Plastic Grill?

J

JeffW

New member
Greetings! Didn't realize this, but I guess I'm not surprised that the grill on the 06 Civic is plastic. Below is a picture of what I'm talking about (stock photo, not mine)... I'm concerned about how this thing is going to hold up to all the freaking miles I put on the car.

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Question: Do I treat it in the same manner I do the painted surface, eg, sealants, waxes, etc? I primarily use 4*, PB, WG products in case there some that work well and some that don't.

Thanks- JeffW
 
These plastic parts don't hold up well, or perfectly anyway. They start to bubble and delaminate, usually, though, from the inside. I find pitted marks from stone chips and the like don't spread--it's like the force of the stone pins the plasticy-chrome lamination into the plastic backing.
I would suggest KAIO lightly applied with some frequency, but again, these tend to bubble from the inside out. The best way to take care of it is to look for a used one in perfect condition at the junkers, buy it, and put it in your garage wrapped in a blanket. You might appreciate it in 3-4 years.
 
PEI Detail said:
These plastic parts don't hold up well, or perfectly anyway. They start to bubble and delaminate, usually, though, from the inside. I find pitted marks from stone chips and the like don't spread--it's like the force of the stone pins the plasticy-chrome lamination into the plastic backing.
I would suggest KAIO lightly applied with some frequency, but again, these tend to bubble from the inside out. The best way to take care of it is to look for a used one in perfect condition at the junkers, buy it, and put it in your garage wrapped in a blanket. You might appreciate it in 3-4 years.
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Good suggestion... there probably aren't many yet in junkyards since this is a new model, but I'll keep that in mind.

Some KAIO once in a while, check. This led me to look up KSG and it says it can be used on plastics too. This will give it a good durable external shield.
 
Jeff if you have some PwC it will also work..they key is not to use any abrasive products or cloths :)


edit...you can also use products like UGE, S&G to maintain and keep the gloss
 
Poorboy said:
Jeff if you have some PwC it will also work..they key is not to use any abrasive products or cloths :)


edit...you can also use products like UGE, S&G to maintain and keep the gloss
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Steve - To clean and/or protect? I think I have a sample of PwC, not sure. Do have PP, the EX's and the Natty's. I do regularily use PP on headlight covers - is treating the plastic grill going to be similiar since the headlight covers are plastic also?
 
yeah you can treat it like the rest of the plastic with any of your PB, 4*, or WG stuff that fits the bill. Just remember like Brenton said it's only a thin film of plastic-like chrome and will also scratch easily and eventually chip and peel.
It would be best if you could get some of the Armor Glove type stuff to put on there when it is new so that it would last longer, but I think it would only be a one time application and then wouldn't be able to be removed without removing the coating too. I guess just good maintenence is all you can really do and in the future think about getting a spare new one should you be keeping the car for a long time.
 
carnut00 said:
What about buying a small sheet of the clear bra material and covering it with that?
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I don't know much about this product but I've often wondered about price, function, etc... I'll do some searches for more info. Do you happen to know any vendors or manufacturers off hand?
 
I was looking around at Top of the Line last night and I saw that they have a clear bra type deal thats made for rocker panels to prevent rock chips. I assume that you could buy a roll and cut it to the shape of the grill and you should be good to go! It's 6 inches by 12 feet so I don't think you'd have a problem with making it work, and have plenty left over if you need it in the future :yes:

http://www.topoftheline.com/paint-chip-protection-tape.html
 
budman3 said:
I was looking around at Top of the Line last night and I saw that they have a clear bra type deal thats made for rocker panels to prevent rock chips. I assume that you could buy a roll and cut it to the shape of the grill and you should be good to go! It's 6 inches by 12 feet so I don't think you'd have a problem with making it work, and have plenty left over if you need it in the future :yes:

http://www.topoftheline.com/paint-chip-protection-tape.html
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Thanks, budman3... I'll take a look at the site. In the meantime I'm going to take PEI's suggestion and ducktape it :eek: j/k
 
The only thing about the clear bra that might hurt would be if you needed to take it off to replace it as if it is kept on there long enough it might pull the "chrome" off of the grill.
 
JeffW said:
Thanks, budman3... I'll take a look at the site. In the meantime I'm going to take PEI's suggestion and ducktape it :eek: j/k
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No, use painters tape. It won't pull the color off, duct tape might. The most it'll do is leave a little residue (maybe). Just be sure to get it on there really well, it'll want to remove itself.
 
tubafeak said:
No, use painters tape.QUOTE]

I thought the point was to see the grille clearly. I'm not sure if they make clear painters tape. If they do then great, but who wants a lime green or a blue grille when its supposed to be chrome.
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