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Originally Posted by Hatterasguy
If the anodizing is fadded I don't care what you put on it it can not be brought back. The anodizing needs to be stripped to remove the fadding.
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This is certainly true, and no ordinary chemical that you could actually use while the trim/etc is on the car will remove it, period.
I recently got a windshield replaced on my SL, and I had earlier purchased the trim around it because it was shabby, and the glass installer put this in also. I asked him to be careful removing the old trim, and he was, although he could not preserve the "corners" (they got bent somewhat). Through various means (drano, fair, the cheapest drain cleaner at wal-mart, pretty good, aluminum jelly,completely worthless for this purpose), and lots of emery cloth and 320 grit sandpaper I removed the anodization and 20 years of stone chips. Then, I buffed then on a wheel and they actually look "too good" - they are more reflective than my new parts. It's like they were made of mercury or something.
Unless you have lots of time or are really broke, I don't recommend doing this. I did this partly as an experiment and partly to increase my spares inventory (the parts aren't getting any cheaper, and someday, they won't be available new at any price).
The trim is oxidizing while I am writing this, and admittedly, without that thin layer of anodization (very hard), they will probably scratch and dent much more easily (the good news being, that the scratches and dents can be removed more easily too). The right way to proceed would be to have the parts anodized, but I've read on another web site about this product (actually, a licencee of Boeing), Boeshield T-9, that will take care of the oxidation problem. I'm going to buy a can for all the engine parts I polished also. This is available on Amazon. On a "high-wear" part of my car like above the door, this would not be a viable option, but on the windshield trim, maybe.
According to the place I found this, a retired mechanical engineer claimed that the first wet weather will strip enough ordinary wax right off to make waxing aluminum ineffective (particularly on a plane going 550 MPH, heh heh).