HJ GTS dash vents

**Indy Orange** · 19-01-2013, 12:15 PM

G,day all ,i have some GTS dash vents that are faded and discoloured and i am after some help on how to recolour these black,i have tried spraying a spare one i had with black paint but it did,nt take very well ,is there a way that they can be dyed .help much appreciated .Paul.

**Taily** · 19-01-2013, 01:58 PM

Tried armour-all?

Sounds wierd but worked OK with mine. The main outer cartridge of mine were starting to look quite grey, gave them a hit with it and while not perfectly black (they never were from new) again it certainly looks better than a coat of paint. The armour-all seems to draw into the plastic (I have no idea why, it just seems porous). You may be able to use some trim dye but have seen too many people use it in high traffic areas where it will eventually need re-treating.

Dave

**Indy Orange** · 19-01-2013, 02:30 PM

Yeah i,ve tried the Armour-all Dave ,but still has that light grey appearance and as soon as you wipe it off it goes grey again,so i was thinking maybe some sort of dye ,i have seen some on the bidding site that have been reconditioned and dyed and wanted to do this myself ,not sure what sort of dye to use,black trim dye could be the stuff ?any ideas where to find this?Ta Paul.

**Innuendo** · 19-01-2013, 02:53 PM

Mothers Brand "Naturally Black".

You will need to keep pumping it in over a period of time. The plastic has loss moisture.

Regards, Smooth

**wbute** · 19-01-2013, 03:28 PM

Plastic Re-New. Haven't tried it but looks ok on the adds.

**Indy Orange** · 19-01-2013, 04:24 PM

Righto!thanks for that i'll look into those two products ,thanks

**Valencia** · 19-01-2013, 07:30 PM

Hi paul gene here from the torana forum i havnt tried this on vents but other faded plastic i get a bottle of tyre shine pour it in to a bowl and soak them in there for a few days might work might not but worth a try on some plastics
cheers gene

**Indy Orange** · 19-01-2013, 10:43 PM

G,day Gene ,yeah soaking may help over time, i will try that and see what works the best .cheers Paul.

**Vombil** · 20-01-2013, 12:21 AM

ive used straight GMH black. its a matt finish and looks nice and original. I soaked mine in detergent and warm water to clean all the crap off and then hit them with paint. you'll chase your tail with anything else. Pretty hard to make grey turn into black by putting clear on it (ie tyre shine or armor all etc)

**Taily** · 20-01-2013, 07:21 AM

Originally Posted by Vombil

ive used straight GMH black. its a matt finish and looks nice and original. I soaked mine in detergent and warm water to clean all the crap off and then hit them with paint. you'll chase your tail with anything else. Pretty hard to make grey turn into black by putting clear on it (ie tyre shine or armor all etc)

I'm not sure why it has worked with mine but it did quite well over twelve months ago and still looks good. It is only the central surround (not the outer one that clips into the dash) that has started to grey up, nor the moving centre parts. I pulled the vents out of the dash, treated them with armour-all and just left it to soak in for a few days. My understanding of plastics is that they should be almost impervious to absorbing anything, but I guess time must change that in these instances?

What have people used to replace the deteriorating foam/sponge strip in the vents (make them a bit more stiff and hold the direction they are pointed in)? Can you buy a similar thin/flat single side adhesive strip anywhere anymore (Clark Rubber etc)? I know it is a bit anal but just makes them work properly again. 3M used to do something for aircon ducts that used to be available at Repco that you could pair down a bit, but to date I've just used a couple of layers of cloth tape.

Dave.