Detailing Faded Black Trim: Choosing the Right Trim Restoration Product
The approach you take to detailing faded black trim is going to depend somewhat on why you are detailing a vehicle and what the ultimate outcome is.
By this I mean a used car dealer may have a very different goal than a detailer being paid for a high-end detail on a customer-owned vehicle. At the dealership, the goal may simply be to make faded trim look significantly better without adding a lot of time or cost to the vehicle. On a high-end detail, the customer may be paying for the extra steps and expecting the results to last.
There isn’t necessarily one “best” trim restoration product for every situation.
We took a hands-on look at four products:
- Car Brite Bumper Kote
- 3D Ceramic Trim Restore
- Solution Finish
- Nasiol TrimCoat
We applied them side by side and compared the appearance, how well they restored the black, and how they held up to some abuse.
Car Brite Bumper Kote
I have to be upfront: the sleeper here was Car Brite Bumper Kote.
If I am working at a dealership, or if I am working at a detail shop and I’m not being paid to take that extra step, Bumper Kote was hands down the best value for the money.
The results surprised me.
Even after testing it with a strong solvent, Bumper Kote still looked fantastic. Visually, it was basically indistinguishable from Nasiol TrimCoat and Solution Finish in terms of bringing back the dark appearance of the trim.
That’s a big deal when you’re talking about production detailing.
If I’m doing 10, 20 or 30 used cars and need to make faded trim look good without adding a significant amount of cost to every vehicle, it’s hard to argue against Bumper Kote. You get a dramatic improvement without turning a relatively simple trim restoration into an expensive service.
3D Ceramic Trim Restore
3D Ceramic Trim Restore was noticeably different from the other products.
It wasn’t as dark or glossy.
That isn’t necessarily a negative. There are plenty of situations where I don’t want to dramatically change the appearance of the trim. If the plastic is still in decent condition and we’re simply trying to improve and protect it, the more natural appearance may actually be desirable.
I would utilize 3D Ceramic Trim Restore in circumstances where we want to restore decent-looking trim but aren’t necessarily concerned about bringing out the deepest possible black or adding a lot of gloss.
It does what it is supposed to do. You just need to understand what type of finished appearance you’re looking for.
Solution Finish
Solution Finish is the “restore any black trim” product.
It has earned its reputation as the gold standard in trim restoration, and it remains my go-to product when the color is really gone.
If I’m looking at badly faded, gray-looking exterior plastic that needs serious restoration, this is where Solution Finish makes sense.
The flip side is that for light to medium fading, it may simply be overkill.
If the trim still has most of its color and just needs to be brought back to life, there are other products that can accomplish the goal without necessarily going through the full Solution Finish process.
But when the trim is hammered and you’re wondering whether it can even be brought back, Solution Finish is still the product I want sitting on the shelf.
Nasiol TrimCoat
The high-end winner for light to medium fading was Nasiol TrimCoat.
It produced a beautiful, dark and uniform result. More importantly, you’re not just restoring the appearance of the trim. You’re adding ceramic protection designed to last up to two years.
That’s what separates it from the less expensive options.
The honest truth, though, is that it comes at a cost that simply isn’t built into most standard details or used-car reconditioning.
On a cost-per-vehicle basis, Nasiol TrimCoat is expensive. If you’re trying to make the numbers work on a dealership vehicle or a basic detail package, it’s probably difficult to justify using it on every car.
But that’s not really where I see this product fitting.
If I’m doing a ceramic coating, a high-end detail or another premium service, I can’t imagine not including the exterior trim.
We’re already spending the time to properly prep the paint and provide long-term protection. Leaving the black plastic with a short-term dressing doesn’t make much sense. TrimCoat brings the color back while giving the trim long-term ceramic protection to match the rest of the job.
So Which Trim Restoration Product Would I Use?
After testing all four, I don’t think there is one winner. There are winners for different jobs.
For production detailing and used-car work, Car Brite Bumper Kote is incredibly hard to beat for the money.
For trim that’s still in decent condition where I want a more subtle appearance, 3D Ceramic Trim Restore makes sense.
For severely faded black plastic where the color is basically gone, Solution Finish remains my go-to restoration product.
And for a ceramic coating or high-end detail where I’m being paid to deliver a premium, long-lasting result, Nasiol TrimCoat gets the win.
That’s really the takeaway from this test.
Don’t choose a trim restoration product based solely on which bottle produces the best result under perfect circumstances. Choose it based on the vehicle in front of you, what you’re being paid to accomplish, how long the result needs to last and what makes financial sense for the job.
Sometimes the best product isn’t the most expensive product on the shelf.
Sometimes it’s the product that delivers exactly what that particular job calls for.
