Pillar post covers

Green T

Green T

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Seattle
Vehicle Details
1997 Ford Thunderbird LX 4.6 Sport.
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www.ebay.com

Black Pillar Posts for Ford Thunderbird 89-97 2pc Set Door Trim Piano Cover | eBay

Ford Thunderbird 89-97 2pc set.
www.ebay.com

I got these pillar post covers off of Ebay about two years ago and I have to say that they have held up much better than I expected. I expected them to scratch easily or even come off, but no. They still look new and have held on very well. I do not think anyone (except you guys) would ever even notice.

18.JPG

Here is before:
15.JPG
 
Green T said:
www.ebay.com

Black Pillar Posts for Ford Thunderbird 89-97 2pc Set Door Trim Piano Cover | eBay

Ford Thunderbird 89-97 2pc set.
www.ebay.com

I got these pillar post covers off of Ebay about two years ago and I have to say that they have held up much better than I expected. I expected them to scratch easily or even come off, but no. They still look new and have held on very well. I do not think anyone (except you guys) would ever even notice.

View attachment 1694

Here is before:
View attachment 1695
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Nice, What else is out there that I can use to repair my original cover?
 
There isn’t an original cover, factory correct way is to simply mask off the surrounding paint/trim and repaint it satin black.
 
Looks nice! I've actually been meaning to post about these and see if anyone has bought them. They are on eBay for Cougars as well
What I've seen with others cars that have them, is their flawless gloss finish. Spray can can't duplicate that. It especially matches window tint well for a uniform look.
 
Talk about jealous... Good thing you don't live near me! LOL Looks fantastic, wish mine looked that nice!
 
Neat. Just ordered a set: looking forward to seeing how it looks in person. Thanks for the post.
 
I've seen those on eBay also and thought about getting them, but would prefer satin black like the original color.
But glad to see they work well in the wild, instead of turning out to be junk.

If the fading isn't too bad, you can also use Mother's Back to Black with great results.
It also does wonders for the black weatherstripping, black window moldings, black plastic wiper cowls, wiper arms, and other black plastic or metal parts that might be fading.

I tried Meguiar's Ultimate Black Plastic Restorer, but it didn't work very well at all.
 
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XR7-4.6 said:
There isn’t an original cover, factory correct way is to simply mask off the surrounding paint/trim and repaint it satin black.
Click to expand...
That's what I'd like to do to mine. What brand of satin black paint would you recommend that can hold up well under the Las Vegas summer sun?
 
3.5 years after install and still look new. What I like about them is you really don't notice them. Looks factory, maybe better than factory.
20240605_082037_HDR.jpg
 
NEURO said:
That's what I'd like to do to mine. What brand of satin black paint would you recommend that can hold up well under the Las Vegas summer sun?
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For various upkeep reasons, I'd vinyl wrap it instead of paint it.
 
NEURO said:
That's what I'd like to do to mine. What brand of satin black paint would you recommend that can hold up well under the Las Vegas summer sun?
Click to expand...

If you want the best spray paint in a can, 2K is the most durable also closest to a factory finish. However it is costly and a one time use per can. It also requires extra safety precautions because of the isocyanates.

1K is available at most autoparts stores, it is supposedly better than regular spray paint. I refinished the taillights on my Firebird and used a 1K clear coat. Car is garaged but it has been a few years and has held up great.
 
I
Kenz said:
If you want the best spray paint in a can, 2K is the most durable also closest to a factory finish. However it is costly and a one time use per can. It also requires extra safety precautions because of the isocyanates.

1K is available at most autoparts stores, it is supposedly better than regular spray paint. I refinished the taillights on my Firebird and used a 1K clear coat. Car is garaged but it has been a few years and has held up great
Click to expand...

I never tried that, is it made by spraymax like the 2k? Which stores have you found it at?
 
Irv said:
For various upkeep reasons, I'd vinyl wrap it instead of paint it.
Click to expand...
Vinyl wrap does sound like a better idea, but I didn't know that could be done.
I'll have to look into that to see what's involved, since I don't know anything about vinyl wrapping.
Thanks
 
I wrapped mine almost 15 years ago and they have held up great, and the car sits outside as well. It was one of my first wrap jobs and the only issues now are the couple small wrinkles in the lower corners I never got all the way out have turned hard and are chipping away a little bit, something you can't notice until you're a foot or so away. Found the easiest way is to disassemble the window somewhat so you can get the guide out of the way and also remove the lower outside window seal since it's only one bolt. Make sure the surface is almost perfectly smooth as the wrap will show scratches. The second time I did one it turned out better and also still looks great 13 years later.
 
My ebay kit came in today and so I tried this out.

20240627_130533.jpg

Very simple: just a couple of strips of material. I slid one beside my wiper and arm to give you a sense of how thick it is; the red is the cover protecting the adhesive on the back, and the grey is the material itself. It's definitely not some paper-thin thing.

20240627_130913.jpg

Before.

20240627_130725.jpg

And after.

20240627_131519.jpg

How is it? Well, you need to make sure you have that lined up right, because once that thing is on it is not coming off, even to adjust. Install was about ten minutes, most of that being opening the package and rubbing the pillar with the included alcohol wipes. Quite inexpensive, and as simple as can be, but again: be precise or you'll wreck it.

I'd say it's better than it was, but you go from undermatching (too dim) to overmatching (too bright). I prefer the shine over the dull fade, but I'd prefer something that matches properly even more. Still, it will do until I can get around to repainting the whole thing proper.
 
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I prefer it matching but I agree compared to the usual dull alternative that’s better. I’m just conditioned by complacency, it looks good!
 
Be nice if they had a matte black version that matched the other trim.
How are you going to get it off, when you decide to paint the pillars?
 
NEURO said:
How are you going to get it off, when you decide to paint the pillars?
Click to expand...

I have absolutely no plan and trust to the autobody gods that they'll have a method when they're stripping the whole thing down, 5-10 years down the road when I go to paint it.

This may have been foolish.
 
Looks good!

I thought that if I ever had to remove them I would be able to use Goo Gone. That stuff works on removing all adhesive, just let it sit for 5 mins. It smells great also. I've used it as cleaner too.
IACGG010.jpg
 
NEURO said:
Be nice if they had a matte black version that matched the other trim.
How are you going to get it off, when you decide to paint the pillars?
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They did have at least one other version... Chrome! (not for me!!) Maybe they will make other versions as I saw they had other options for different cars such as carbon fiber ect.
 
1997ThunderbirdLXV6 said:
I used PlastiDip on mine. It's been months, maybe a year, and it looks flawless in spite of the hand traffic.
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Your plastidip looks flawless and very factory. I however have low confidence that I could pull it off. The covers were easier for me.
 
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