Okay, yesterday I was removing my side moldings and ran into a bit of a problem. I believe my drivers side door was once repainted because you can clearly see discoloration and a "bump feeling" after I removed the molding. I tried heat gunning, buffering with polish, goo gone, etc, and it's not getting fixed at all. So, I believe its a paint issue and I really don't want to spend the money to get it repainted. There are two things I'm considering now...

1) Thin black stripe across the side of the car
2) Buy moldings and replace them(ewww), how much would this cost anyway?


Anybody have any suggestions?

 

Is the bump actually paint that built up when it was repainted? The discoloration can usually be blended with a buffer.

 

Can you lightly wet-sand & then polish to bring back the shine?

 

I am sure it is a paint line...I had them on my white Firehawk, my silver TA and Cecilias WS6 when we removed the moldings. Its a PIA to get out but like PF said just wet sand it and wet sand it and wet sand it and buff it and buff it and buff it and it will work out. It takes a while but it will work itself out.

The good news is if thats your car in the pic under your name...white is probably the easiest color to fix it on.

 

What girt sand paper to I use. What is the best way to buff it out?

 

if the car had some paint work done then it might have been painted with the molding on.
if that is what the did then it will need 2 be repainted 2 get it out


and i would not recommended wet sand and wet sand and wet sand and buff buff not knowing how muck clear is on the car
u can burn through the clear very easy

 

I was planning to remove my side moldings soon. Reading this is making me reconsider. Is this a common problem? Should i expect to deal with this if I remove the side moldings on a car that has not had any body work? I was reading another post about removing side moldings and they were saying I shouldnt have any problems . . . confused

 

I have a White 2002 WS6 Trans Am and I am removing my original white side moldings and replacing them with Black. In order to validate the PNs I needed a VIN for Black 02 TA.

I decided to do this for my TA; since, I am trying to tie all the black in nicely. Please do not criticize my choice until you see it. It is looking awesome. I know/realize that this is very differnt from what I see on most forums and have been criticized for doing this to the point where someone actually told me this is why the Pontiac divison is closing. Most people will just take it off; but, I have something else in mind. And some people think it will look great when I am done. Besides, can always switch back to white anyway. I do not want to eliminate my side molding because I like it and because I will encounter door damage where I live.

I thik this is my very first post up here-have been seeking information on painting techniques.

I only posted this to address the part of the question abut the cost of replacement molding. Mine came off so easily-just used waxed dental floss and it fell right off. I did not even need to apply heat. I used Goof Off to remove the residual glue.

You will be able to order the molding for the fender and quarter panels for the color of your car; or, in the color you would like to change them out to (in my case black).

However, no matter what color your car is, in this process I have learned that the piece for the door only comes UNPAINTED. I have a huge trail or e-mail from various GM suppliers regarding this. "It is up to the customer to paint the side modling that is on the door."

The lowest price I was quoted was by GM Parts Direct; and, with shipping totaled $196.82. The primer, paint, and clear coat was $31.91 from www.autobarn.net. I have learned that you cannot buy spray paint within the Chicago city limits and got a way better price from Autobarn anyway. Plus did not want to drive from suburb to suburb searching for paint. As long as you have the paint codes you can get paint. The black is 41U or 8555 called Black/Black. The Arctic White is 10 or WA9567 or 8554. I got a perfect match with Dupli-Color code: WHITE-DSGM388 AND BLACK-DSGM001.

I bought 1 can of Dupli-Color Adhesion Promoter Clear Primer 11 oz; 2 cans of the Black Spray Paint 5 oz; and 1 can of the Dupli-Color Auto Spray Clear Top Coat 11 oz.

Here are the PNs and cost I know to be correct for the white and black molding:

White:

10166786-qnty 2 @ $52.00 each side-Side Door
10285746-qnty 2 @ $15.45 each side-Rear Quarter Panel
10285888-qnty 2 @ $13.81 each side-Front Fender

Black:

PN 10285746-qnty 2 @ $52.00 each side-Side Door
PN 10285893-qnty 2 @ $15.45 each side-Rear Quarter Panel
PN 10166786-qnty 2 @ $13.88 each side-Front Fender

(I cannot account for the cent difference I the white and black fender molding-ODD)

Additionally,I replaced my rocker Trans Am lettering with black and it was unbelievably easy. Just waxed dental floss and Goof Off for the residual glue. No muss no fuss. I have seen many people who have had a more difficult time with both of these removals/replacements.