Yes - I did an archive search! I know that I could buy oval tips from Gert or others for big bucks. I'm not allowed to spend any money on the car for a while says my wife! I know that you can polish them using varying grades of sandpaper spending hours and hours of time to make them nice and spiffy looking again. I don't have any power tools to buff them out, so anything I do would have to be by hand. I know nothing about my car <img border="0" alt="[icon107]" title="" src="graemlins/icon107.gif" /> other than how to drive it, and sometimes that is sketchy at best. Is there some FAST way to get these ugly exhaust tips cleaner without spending hours in the process?

I guess I could send them out to a "chome" type of place, but I don't know what that really entails or actually what that is! Do they come off the car easily? I have like, no tools, and no know how when it comes to this stuff.

Does my lazy man method even exist (just cleaning them with something as opposed to polishing them for half a day)? If it's about $100 to have someone else clean them up like "new", then maybe this is worth pursuing. I could get away with a $100 charge on our card for that. Did they look shiny and new (like the pics on Carnewal's website) when the car was new? Is there some magic new creme or potion that will spiff these up while they are still on the car - something semi-easy I could do while I'm washing it one day?

Thanks in advance. They are the ONLY ugly part of this car! Everything else on it is just heavenly looking. I'm still recuperating from dual foot surgery, so the only thing I could spend time cleaning on the car, I guess, is something low to the ground like the tips, as I have to keep my leg outstretched as much as possible. I could maybe lie under the car with a towel under me and spend a bit of time scrubbing these filthy tips. I just don't want to spend 8 hours on them, as some have mentioned in other posts I've searched. Brad's results were incredible, and didn't cost a dime, but he said it took him the better part of a day to achieve his result on his 96 Polar Silver C4S.

Lazy but excited at the prospect of cleaner tips,
Steve

 

Hi Steve. Hope the feet are improving this sounds a doable project for whilst you are recovering.

First thing I would do is to remove the tips from the car. This is not difficult and only requires a couple of spanners 13mm from memory but i could be wrong. Dead obvious of course once you are under there.The tips are held on by a clamp secured by one bolt once you have removed the bolt you need to spread the clamp open a bit to get the tip to come free. A screwdriver used to lever the clamp apart will do it.

Once they are off I would simply see what effect a good quality metal polish has, if it is not too ingrained it may well make a difference quite easily. If not I would not start with the sandpaper that could take hours to remove the scratches you would inflict on the tips.

Rather buy a cheap polishing mop for your electric drill and have another go with the polish. Fix the tip to a workbench for this and wear eye protection. I assume you wife will run to a polishing mop for a few $$$ if not the PSS-9
may well be looking doubtful!!! <img border="0" title="" alt="[Wink]" src="wink.gif" />

If this fails I would take them to a professional metal finishing shop and then tell your friends that it took you 8 hours a side!!!!

<img border="0" alt="[cheers]" title="" src="graemlins/beerchug.gif" />

 

Tim,

I polished mine myself. Here is what I did....

Equipment:
Bought a metal polish (mother's)
Bought a polishing disc for my drill (220 fine disc and polishing disc)

Process:
Uses metal polish with rag then use drill with fine disc and then use metal polish again with polishing disc. Worked great. Takes 2 hours for both....

Now, 3 months later looks like old again...

Cheers,
Boris

 

It really doesn't take that long to polish them (2-3 hours). If you just want to get the dingy brown look off then simply going over it with warm water and soap followed by a little metal polish seems to work well. I used Wenol metal polish.

 

I used a dremel tool and Mothers chrome polish and it worked great. It gave the tips a semi Chrome look. After driving the car I take a thick shop towel and wipe them off = me being **** as all H E double hockey sticks. <img border="0" alt="[jumper]" title="" src="graemlins/jumper.gif" /> <img border="0" alt="[thumbsup]" title="" src="graemlins/bigok.gif" /> They still look great after a few months.

 

Hi Steve,

I hope that you are recovering well. If they sell it in the States, use Autosolvol, which is great for polishing Chrome. I used it on my black chrome tips and it cleaned them up well. To be honest though they looked a bit patchy but if you are starting with Chrome you shouldn't have this problem. Alternatively, say sod it, put your feet up and wait for the next "bob-a-job" day when you can pay someone else to work like a slave for bugger all...

Either way, good luck.

Cheers,

David
<img border="0" alt="[cheers]" title="" src="graemlins/beerchug.gif" />

 

Thanks everyone. Uhhh, dremel tool? Pardon my newbie lack of knowlege, but what the heck is that? I don't even know where my drill is, so I can't buff something with a drill & whatever attached. <img border="0" alt="[crying]" title="" src="graemlins/crying.gif" />

Someone private emailed me that they might have a Fabspeed oval tip (X2) for sale in their parts bin for $100 total . If this will solve my ugly tip problem, then "bring it on"! I'm waiting to hear back from this kind gent. Don't know what the Fabspeed tips are worth, as they don't seem to be broken down price-wise like that on their website. Is this a great solution to my problem? Or will the fabspeed one's look like mine in a year? It sounds alot easier than polishing the heck out of my brown tips for hours, to have them simply re-corrode 3 months later, as one gent wrote above. <img border="0" alt="[ouch]" title="" src="graemlins/c.gif" />

Steve

 

Use a non stick pot scrupper. Works a treat and the tips have the same sort of satin finish as when they were new.

Greg

 

I wouldn't be in too big a hurry to chrome your tips. A friend did his, and they yellowed in a fairly short time. Almost looks like the Beverly Hills Gold Package now. OTOH, mine are also chrome, and they still look pretty good.

The tips are easy to remove, even for the non-mechanically inclined, so take them off and have a go. I too have had good luck with Mother's mag wheel polish. The non-stick pot scrubber might work really well with it for polished tips.

 

Thanks Yank and Pete - BTW, is a blue scrunge sponge the correct pot scrubber that you are talking about? Also, when you say that chrome tips can yellow and look pretty bad, does the Fabspeed fall under this category? On their website, they claim "The aftermarket's true oval edge welded angle cut tips! Will NEVER yellow or discolor - 4.5 X 3.5 ovals". True? Are these chrome? The kind Rennlister that may have them for sale paid $400 for them but has offered them to be for $100.

Not to sound thick, but what precise tool would I need for getting the tips off? I have nothing in the way of tools, other than the absolute basics - a screwdriver, wrench, and pliers.

I'm about to go into the garage and possibly conquer this on a snowy winter day. Snow's really coming down, now. I pity you poor Californians and Floridians that don't get to experience the 4 seasons. Man what you're missing - beautiful, lazy, snowy Sunday afternoons... but they always lead to salt encrusted roads and sand caked highways from the crap they put down after our gorgeous snowstorms. Yeah - I guess you southern climed Rennlisters aren't really missing much. <img border="0" alt="[hiha]" title="" src="graemlins/roflmao.gif" />

Steve

 

Ok-this is why I hate working on cars - because I can't do anything right the first 10 tries! I just got under my car for 15 minutes with (finally) the right size wrench, but it won't turn the crusted over, rusty as all heck screw holding the clamp to release the tip. Don't laugh, but I have to ask this question - should the screw turn clockwise or counterclockwise?

It won't turn in either direction, but I thought if I knew which one was right, I could get my hammer out and hammer the wrench in the correct direction at least till it hopefully came loose <img border="0" alt="[grrrrrrr]" title="" src="graemlins/cussing.gif" /> .

I wasn't meant to be a DIY'er. If all goes as unplanned, I guess I'll be taking it to my repair shop to have them do another pitifully simple task.

Depressed I don't have tips to clean while watching the Superbowl!

Steve

 

Stever,

counterclockwise, and soak in some WD-40 first.

 

Lefty-Loosey; Righty-Tighty !!! looked at mine, think i'd better soak with penetrating oil before attempting removal...rather scaley looking...max

 

Ok - I guess I just wasn't made for this $hit. I borrowed some WD 40 from a neighbor, sprayed it on both screws, waited 40 minutes for it to soak in, and attempted it again with the wrench. No go. Then I tried hammering the wrench at least 10 times in the counter clockwise direction but nary a budge. I just hate attempting to finally do something on my car, and totally failing. As usual.

I am declaring complete and utter failure, and will let my mechanic handle the changing out of the tips on the car, or their total and utter cleaning (which I'm sure they don't do anyway).

Oh well - I did give it the ole post college try. Back to the Superbowl. Gotta love them music acts and commercials .

Ughhhhh. <img border="0" alt="[crying]" title="" src="graemlins/crying.gif" /> <img border="0" alt="[crying]" title="" src="graemlins/crying.gif" /> <img border="0" alt="[crying]" title="" src="graemlins/crying.gif" />

 

A dremel is basically an electric drill with polishing attachments. It has 10X the revolutions as a standard drill though. Sounds like your buying new tips anyway, Best of Luck.