Faded 1990 740 bumper

The bumper on my 1990 740 GLE is in good shape for it's age but the
original color, a sort of medium brown, has faded considerably. When
it's wet the color is much like what I believe to be the original but as
soon as it dries it's back to the very (!!) light tan.

Is there a preparation that I can apply? I tried Armoral and car wax but
nothing seems to work.

Thanks very much,

Perk >)

 

Use shoe polish the kind in the bottle with sponge on the bottle

 

Sorry, I was working from memory as far as the color was concerned, I
guess it's more like a light charcoal color, but take a look at
http://picasaweb.google.com/ferrycap/VolvoBumper20?authkey=Kw0vInhnxDE&feat=directlink


I simply poured a little water on it and you can see the difference.If
one were to try the shoe polish method I'd think it would be best to use
a neutral color. (??)

Thanks again,

Perk

 

Believe it or not, it was flat black when your car was new. Don't bother
with shoe polish, it's messy and won't hold up. You can buy bumper and
trim paint meant for plastic, prep by scrubbing it real good to remove
all traces of wax and dirt. Ideally you should remove the bumper skin,
but you can put a sheet over the car and then use masking tape and
newspaper to protect from overspray. You'll be amazed at how much better
the car looks when you finish.

 

I just recently used this stuff from Meguiar's on my '88 760 (the
bumpers had faded in the same manner that yours had as shown in the
pictures you posted later in the thread)

http://www.autogeek.net/meguiars-trim-detailer.html

Both bumpers (and mudflaps) now look like NEW. Just a quick spray
across the entire surface, then wipe with a soft cloth.

Secondly, avoid using ArmorAll _anywhere_ on your car.

Thirdly, avoid using SHOE POLISH on your car! You'll just create a
disgusting mess with horrendously uneven colours all over the bumpers.

HTH.

Cheers,
Andy.

 

Use this: http://www.superiorcarcare.net/forblacbumtr.html