Problem with Exterior Plastic Trim Pieces added by Airstream

[Rocinante]

Originally Posted by wachuko

Yes, same here... This is what it would look like if they left it with the stock stuff and not cover everything with the color matching trim pieces...and lower skirts...

That look would have been fine by me, and I would not now be faced with spending a couple of grand to re-do the terrible job Airstream did painting the superfluous panels they added. Thanks, Airstream.

[Zach05855]

This maybe a solution. I have not tried it, but it does get good reviews.


https://trimrestorer.com/products/fu...-trim-restorer

After three years of intense formulation and testing, Chris has created the answer to oxidized, sun damaged grey plastic. There is nothing like it on the market! No product has ever been developed specifically for your grey trim. Just as with Solution Finish, we believe you will be astonished with the results of Fusion Grey.

[Ridgejockey]

I've had same plastic fading issue on my 2015 AI and it's been garage kept! I see some people suggesting some restoring products. Has anyone had any good success with these that lasts more than a few months?

[wachuko]

Originally Posted by Ridgejockey

I've had same plastic fading issue on my 2015 AI and it's been garage kept! I see some people suggesting some restoring products. Has anyone had any good success with these that lasts more than a few months?

The only product that would restore this condition on the trim is paint...

[Hotfoot22]

That you might 'wrap' the panels?

[Alex AVI]

Originally Posted by Rocinante

That look would have been fine by me, and I would not now be faced with spending a couple of grand to re-do the terrible job Airstream did painting the superfluous panels they added. Thanks, Airstream.

The original MB panels are all underneath. They have been covered this entire time and presumably would not have much UV degradation. If you "would have been fine" with that look and do not want to incur the big expense to re-paint, what is preventing you from removing those "stick-on" plastic AI body-kit parts? They do not require much effort to remove. Just patience cleaning the double-side tape residue after. If mine degraded to that level, I would probably remove the belt-line trim (body color + chrome) rather than re-paint. But would probably leave the bottom skirt because they look great there and diffrentiates AI's from SOBs. Then get it painted with the OEM rocker panel chip-guard which now can be body-color matched.

Originally Posted by Hotfoot22

That you might 'wrap' the panels?

Oh yes, wrap would be a viable & cheaper option or even use the more durable PPF. My local tint & wrap shop routinely wraps side doors of exotics using PPF.

[Rocinante]

Originally Posted by Alex AVI

The original MB panels are all underneath. They have been covered this entire time and presumably would not have much UV degradation. If you "would have been fine" with that look and do not want to incur the big expense to re-paint, what is preventing you from removing those "stick-on" plastic AI body-kit parts? They do not require much effort to remove. Just patience cleaning the double-side tape residue after. If mine degraded to that level, I would probably remove the belt-line trim (body color + chrome) rather than re-paint. But would probably leave the bottom skirt because they look great there and diffrentiates AI's from SOBs. Then get it painted with the OEM rocker panel chip-guard which now can be body-color matched.

Oh yes, wrap would be a viable & cheaper option or even use the more durable PPF. My local tint & wrap shop routinely wraps side doors of exotics using PPF.

What’s stopping me personally is that I’m not a body-work person, but this is an interesting point. I’ll also have to look into a PPF wrap for those panels, or maybe having a truck body shop coat those panels with whatever Airstream put on those same panels for the new 24X.

[Alex AVI]

Originally Posted by Rocinante

What’s stopping me personally is that I’m not a body-work person, but this is an interesting point. I’ll also have to look into a PPF wrap for those panels, or maybe having a truck body shop coat those panels with whatever Airstream put on those same panels for the new 24X.

ROCINANTE - It's really not that bad. The middle belt line trim from MB just snap on with body clips. You remove them with the AI panels attached, then pry the pieces apart carefully. However, the process requires the patience of Mother Theresa. As evidence, it took me 1 whole day to remove & clean the stuff properly just on the 2 trim pieces to mod & extend my driver & passenger running boards.

The 24X panel finish are IMHO an excellent finish & look, whether on 4x4 or 2wd units. I was never a 2-tone finish guy but somehow I just like it on the AI. Not sure if it's Rhino coat or chip guard but any of those finishes can now be body color matched.

I have attached pics of an older AI whose previous owner had re-painted from belt line to skirting with darker contrasting charcoal color. I like how this turned out (at least from pics).

[Titus]

My 2013 has Airstream-added plastic for the 1) lower front bumper, 2) lower side molding (including drive and passenger side steps, 3) upper side molding (just below plastic chrome strip), 4) curved pieces around each wheel well and 5) large rear bumper including stepshelf (though I don't know that one should really step on it)and hitch cover. There are several inches of Mercedes metal between the now-ugly upper and lower Airstream plastic pieces. Can all five of the above Airstream parts be successfully wrapped?

[Alex AVI]

Originally Posted by Titus

My 2013 has Airstream-added plastic for the 1) lower front bumper, 2) lower side molding (including drive and passenger side steps, 3) upper side molding (just below plastic chrome strip), 4) curved pieces around each wheel well and 5) large rear bumper including stepshelf (though I don't know that one should really step on it)and hitch cover. There are several inches of Mercedes metal between the now-ugly upper and lower Airstream plastic pieces. Can all five of the above Airstream parts be successfully wrapped?

TITUS - The quick answer is YES. However, IMHO those areas are probably not the best application of 'wrap' because they are the most susceptible to road debris hits. Having said that, I have 18,000 miles on AI and happy to note minimal debris hits in those areas including front bumper. So it is possible a wrap could survive well in those lower areas. I would say the very wide MB mudflaps help shield the areas behind wheel wells effectively. When I say 'wrap', I am mostly speaking of aesthetic & decorative wraps. This is what I used to get the front-to-back full-black wrap-around effect with all the windows (pics below). To me, wraps are a temporary thing, used to check how you will enjoy a certain look. I have lived with that wrap for 3.5yrs and this many miles, I know I love the look such that I will have my paint guy schedule it for painting this winter.

Look into the new breed of colored PPF (Paint Protection Film). It used to be clear was the only PPF choice. Now many colors & designs are available. Yes PPF is still technically a 'wrap' but one that is meant to protect. The clear PPF is what I used on the entire front clip of my AI (hood, front fenders, bumpers, air dam, wheel arches, A-pillars, headlights & foglights ). See my thread. Though new colors are constantly coming out, I have no experience with the colored PPF. Other than clear, I have only used DYNOblack Paint Protection Films from STEK on couple of my prior cars & come in a protected high gloss black, matte, or carbon fiber finish.

The major caveat is my PPF shop does not recommend wrap or PPF on unpainted plastic parts. They said they can not guarantee the longevity of the adhesion especially in Vegas extreme heat. Mine has been there 3.5yrs now (all on painted surfaces) with no issues. IMHO PPF adheres well to painted plastic surfaces just as it does on painted metal. It's the unpainted black plastic surfaces like the MB side mirror housing or bumpers or belt line trim or chrome plastic that it can't adhere to properly.

I know you didn't ask about this, but since this thread is about rectifying the AI paint defects, if I was to address it on my own van, I would repaint the entire bottom half below & inclusive of the chrome part, bumpers, wheel arches, air dams, skirting (like the pics I shared of above AI). But instead of using just regular paint with glossy smooth finish, I would go chip-guard all the way either in body color matched or contrasting color. I believe MAGGIE had done this to her van. Just don't remember which parts were painted. I have attached some screen grabs from one of the Advanced RV builds showing their contrasting color chip-guard. I just don't like their cutesie wave pattern - I would've done belt line to bottom skirting chip-guard and full wrap-around front bumper to rear bumper. But to each his own. I still love their use of it though.

Wrap - temporary, use to check the look, removable, use in areas not susceptible to hits
PPF - permanent but still removable, use to protect areas prone to hits
Chip-guard paint - permanent, most durable, & obviously most expensive option

[Titus]

Alex
I can see why Airstream added the lower plastic panel - to hide stuff that hangs down below the Mercedes panel. But I do not understand what was gained, other than a bit of chrome, by the mid-level plastichrome and plastic. Instead of painting that mid-level chrome and plastic, why not just remove it. When I have Titus in later this week for the wheel speed sensor replacement I may look to see what the stock Sprinters look like without the mid-level trim. Then its off to a body shop to see what the cost would be.

[Alex AVI]

Originally Posted by Titus

Alex
I can see why Airstream added the lower plastic panel - to hide stuff that hangs down below the Mercedes panel. But I do not understand what was gained, other than a bit of chrome, by the mid-level plastichrome and plastic. Instead of painting that mid-level chrome and plastic, why not just remove it.

TITUS - Yeah, I agree. In my response #46 to ROCINANTE, that was exactly what I suggested. Personally I would remove all the mid-level plastic/chrome and leave the lowest skirting because that has the function of hiding infrastructure. The bumpers are a different story. From my limited time taking apart the grill few years ago, the front bumpers are either AI issued body-color matched replacement -OR- the MB bumpers were repainted. Either way, the bumpers had to be removed to perform either method.

My theory on front & rear bumpers is supported by the Parts List for MY 2018. Rear bumper with sensor cutouts is an AI part (#31) while there is no front bumper AI part, just a front air dam (bottom chin air dam, #32). Also 2 pics taken from under the outside of rear bumper near hitchstep clearly shows the entire rear bumper facia is 1-piece cap (from where it meets rear doors and lower hinges to its lowest point. Basically it swallows the entire MB OEM bumper facia/panel. Pic from under the rear section, looking up to the R/S rear corner and another pic taken looking straight out to LPG connection compartment - also shows the AI lower skirting mounting directly on the MB skirting (which used to be the lowest skirting prior to the AI tacking extended over it.

Why is this important? Coz for the front bumper (facia/panel) if you remove it, there is no other MB OEM black bumper facia/panel underneath it. But for the rear bumper (facia/panel), if you remove it, it will expose the original MB OEM bumper facia/panel (looks to be body-color matched). HOWEVER, doing this leaves you with the shorter MB OEM facia/panel and leaving the butt-ugly hitch bar and brackets exposed. One of my biggest pet peeves even with uber-expensive Advanced RV units is they do not take the effort to close off this eyesore.

Stock photo below of Sprinter without AI skirting.

Anyway - I repeat what I would do but not necessarily what I recommend everyone should or can do. If you have the patience and even just a mediocre ability to DIY, you will save yourself a lot of headache by removing all the panels yourself (front & rear bumper facias, middle belt line trim, running board trim, wheel flares). Then you can do all the prep & cleanup of the mountains of double tape residue. I am not minimizing the time and patience needed to do this. BUT I can guarantee the shop will not do it better than you can. Worst case scenario, they will paint it in place, which IMHO is the lazy, cheap, and wrong way to do for panels that can be removed without major disassembly. Once all panels are removed, then you can evaluate whether you only want the lower skirting repainted and leaving the MB OEM panels exposed. Or having all the AI panels repainted and reinstalled.

[ScottP]

Thanks for posting the Advanced RV image Alex ...

They are just such a high quality upfitter of the Sprinter chassis.

Just a terrific clean look. My wife loves the "push the button and expresso machine comes out from a special cabinet option" which ARV crafted for a client.

[Alex AVI]

A

Originally Posted by ScottP

Just a terrific clean look. My wife loves the "push the button and expresso machine comes out from a special cabinet option" which ARV crafted for a client.

SCOTT - My pleasure. I posted pics of the chip-guard from that particular unit (KISS) because I had recently called Mr. Neundorfer inquiring about it as it was available for purchase. They specifically request anyone who is interested in buying their spec vans to read and view all the info they provide first before calling. So I knew that van's specs inside/out.

I also remember the espresso machine from that other build way back pre-covid. Prob. this one?

[ScottP]

Originally Posted by Alex AVI

A

SCOTT -

I also remember the espresso machine from that other build way back pre-covid. Prob. this one?
Attachment 405060

Yep!

I was watching the video description of this custom van… And my wife was studying some orthopedic surgery procedure… And she went “oh mmy!… And I realize that she found that espresso set up appealing

☕️

[Rocinante]

Agreed, I absolutely love the work ARV does with all their vans, just have not yet built (and may never build) the internal fortitude required to spend that much on a camper van. I want to, and I’d love to have one of their beautiful units, but then I remember that the price tag for one of their units is more than we paid for our current stix /brix home.

[Alex AVI]

Originally Posted by Rocinante

Agreed, I absolutely love the work ARV does with all their vans,

Same here. But to bring back the issue of this thread - notwithstanding the problems with the AI plastic parts, from all the Class B sprinters that I have seen, only the AI offers the full wraparound body skirting (front bumper chin air-dam, wheel arches, full body side molding with the chrome toppers, full lower body skirting (including rear quarters) and a beautiful rear bumper cap that hides the hitch & brackets.

AI front & rear



I have looked at so many pics of the ARV builds and I have yet to see one that comes close to how the AI looks. The AI just looks more complete from the exterior (regardless that the ARV is a better van). Their latest build even exposes half of the 2nd alternator due to absence of a chin air-dam to hide it. Of course it doesn't help that ARV installs a 2" lift on their front end to remove the MB front end rake. You can see everything hangin out the rear end. Not a finished look at all.

ARV front & rear



The only Class B I know that has a decent front chin air-dam is the American Coach Patriot. Notice how they also body color match the entire grill. Such classy front end even compared to ARV. But it still has a totally exposed rear arse and just looks totally naked. Just butt-ugly!

American Coach Patriot



So for me, I lean towards preserving the AI skirting if the repairs are not going to break the bank. Coz you know who the important people are who actually noticed those differences in mine - my wife & daughters. I couldn't give them an answer as to why the uber-expensive ARV can't make their exterior look like the AI. And that goes a long way to convince them that the ARV is a well thought out van that we may someday want, in spite of it's outrageous price. Still want one though!

[Alex AVI]

This is how 2017 & older looks sitting on the AS build line prior to the AI Body kit installation (beltline chrome & body colored plastic and lower body colored plastic skirting, bumpers).

NOTICE: the front wheel arches are body-colored but the rear wheel arches have a 3/4 black protective moulding overlayed on the body-colored arch.

[Boxster1971]

Originally Posted by Alex AVI

This is how 2017 & older looks sitting on the AS build line prior to the AI Body kit installation (beltline chrome & body colored plastic and lower body colored plastic skirting, bumpers).

NOTICE: the front wheel arches are body-colored but the rear wheel arches have a 3/4 black protective moulding overlayed on the body-colored arch.

Attachment 405921

It’s not just the plastic parts that Airstream adds which become problematic. Every hole they cut in the Sprinter body has is developed rust cancer on my 2013 Interstate. ��

[Alex AVI]

Originally Posted by Boxster1971

It’s not just the plastic parts that Airstream adds which become problematic. Every hole they cut in the Sprinter body has is developed rust cancer on my 2013 Interstate. ��

Yikes, sorry to hear this. I sure harsh winter roads probably make it even worse. They do wonders to any car.