Bed Liner Fender Flares

The black plastic fender flares on most trucks and cars fade to a light gray color after a few years making the car look older than it should. I tried using Armoralll and even floor polish to make them black again but neither worked very well especially after rain. (Floor polish does work exceptionally well in making tires shiny and stands up to water fairly well)

I decided to use bed liner on them to make them black and add a small amount of protection. I was quoted anywhere from $125 to $250 from professional shops so decided to do it myself.

After shopping around and reading reviews, I went with Herculiner, the brush on kind. I read many bad reviews for the spray can type, and it didn't make much since to me anyway since the "bumpy" bits probably wouldn't even fit through the nozzle.

The smallest can I could find at Advance Auto cost $30 and I probably used 1/5 of it on the entirety of the exposed fender flares and the mirrors.

I used a foam brush in a dabbing motion, I recommend at least two coats. The bedliner must be mixed extremely well, being sure to scrape the bottom of the can thoroughly.

Before, after sanding with about 150 grit sandpaper. This is ESSENTIAL and cannot be skipped. The surface must be rough to accept the bedliner, this is how the pro's do it. I taped off the entire area, but you may want to do a better job if you dont have steady hands.



The finished product. I will post more pictures very soon(this is my first real post give me a break) It certainly looks a lot better than it did before. I also did the outside of my mirrors since they were impossible to clean thoroughly.

 

I'm surprised you didn't take them off before doing it. Got pictures of the mirrors too?

 

No It was too much hassle with rusted bolts and all. Plus a rigid surface was needed for sanding. Also I wanted to preserve the rubber gaskets fit. Its having body work done from a recent wreck but Ill post ASAP.

 

Sorry it took so long, here is the mirror completed.

 

Looks a lot better OP! I am planing on doing something like this but Im gonna go with rustoleum spray on bed liner for my flares. Have used it on some of my armor and it holds up well, gives a uniform textured finished and Its easy to touch up if needed.

 

Cool. I heard bad things about the spray on, so I went with the brush on. It may have dried in the can since I used it meaning I wasted $30 though. I did like that I could change the texture, as I used less on the mirrors. Also, I didn't want to take them off so brush on was pretty much the only option. Just sand them until they are rough as pictured, the spray on certainly wouldn't stick otherwise. I also recommend taping off the rubber gasket, as they don't need to be covered and they could cause problems.

Good luck!

 

Www.monstaliner.com is another option.

No ground up rubber, so results can be smoother, colors other tha black available if you wish.

Look around their site at cool stuff folks have done.

 

Wish I had known about that since it would be smoother. I do like what I have now though, its held up pretty well.

 

Update:

I think I regret doing the mirrors. They do match the fenders, however look a bit tacky and are hard to clean. I wouldn't recommend doing them unless you just absolutely love how they look. The only reason I did is because I couldnt seem to keep the stock plastic black.

 

Update: Feeling better about the mirrors, because I figured out a way to make the black shine. Just throw some armorall (or floor polish) on one of these paint edgers for an even coat. Much better than tearing up a microfiber or trying to use a sprayer, and I found a bunch of them laying around in my garage not being used.

http://www.target.com/p/shurline-pr...7Pkq1KrJEgJO3jrD1oJDUaAmx_8P8HAQ&gclsrc=aw.ds