1985 300TD Estate, restoring chalky black bumper rubber. - PeachParts Mercedes-Benz Forum

LTrain0800 · #1 11-16-2013, 08:48 AM

The bumpers on my car have the typical dull chalky rubber around the top and sides of the bumper. Does anyone have advice on how to get this to look better?

I found this method, has anyone tried it?
Cleaning Car Rubber Bumpers DIY Mercedes Benz W123 Tips Quick Fixes Video Review - YouTube

tyl604 · #2 11-16-2013, 08:58 PM

On my 6.3 I just used Armorall. It made the rubber strip on the bumper shiny; looked great. Would last a week or two depending on whether or not we had rain.

Marrs · #3 11-17-2013, 02:52 PM

Save yourself time, effort and money and use my favorite old time trick... peanut oil. You may already have this in your kitchen. You may have heard of people using peanut butter, which is just a messy and slower way of applying peanut oil, but buy the smallest size jar you can as a little goes a very long way. Wipe it on any unpainted black rubberized type surface and let it sit for a bit, maybe 15-mins or more if you are patient. Buff it off with a terry cloth. It lasts mush longer than armor all, doesn't degrade plastics like armor all does, and it perfectly natural and safe. You do need to buff the excess off or dirt and lint will stick to it easily. But after a wash or two it will be pretty normal looking. The guys degreaser tip seems to be a good one to flat the surface a bit, so why not combine the two? In a pinch, just use the peanut oil when you feel your car needs a touch up and you will never use anything else. This is all I have used for the last decade or so. As I said, this works great on any unpainted surface, mirror housings on modern cars, lower body cladding, rubber trim around the glass, etc.

w123love · #4 11-17-2013, 04:00 PM

I have used Aerospace protectant 303. Does an amazing job or restoring the rubber bits.

Carpenterman · #5 11-17-2013, 05:10 PM

The 303 always restores my rubber to a deep black. Great product.