it all gets grey in sunlight. on my old jeep, it had cladding around the bottom that needed to be armoralled, the top lip around it was faded as all get out while the sides were fine. and i armoralled everything top and bottom when i washed it.

 

I think this is improper use of "epic fail".

Epic? Really? Tell that to the hundreds of people that were killed or injured back in the Firestone-Explorer debacle.

 

EPIC fail to me would be if your truck exploded over a certain speed or something, or the motor fell out on the highway. fading plastic is not epic. lol

 

Huh....

My bedrail caps (and fender flares for that matter) are slightly faded, but I wouldn't consider it an eyesore by any means. My truck has never seen a garage in it's life, mine isn't big enough to hold the truck and everything else.

IMO the plastic has held up pretty well to UV and weathering. Although it's scratched and beat up pretty good, I do use it as a truck after all.

 

Not mine buddy every piece is perfecto on my old 03 with 109,000 miles and 7 years in the hot texas sun

 

at that guy getting busted

and mine seem to be doing ok. what i really hate are the avalanches that have the plastic all the way around the bottoms, when that starts to fade it looks aweful

 

Both trucks were never garaged, never, and neither were neglected. You can deny it all you want, but there was obviously some cost-cutting going on with inferior materials. His isn't the first I've seen that were not faded, the difference just really stood out when they were side by side.

Is it serious like a safety problem, of course not. Epic fail...I guess it's all relevent. In the realm of automobile plastic trim pieces, it's definitely an epic fail.

I've owned much older cars and trucks prior to this '04, and I've never seen anything turn this bad in such a short time. I've tried everything just about, and it doesn't do a damn thing. Yes, I can paint them (and will), but why should I have to? Just pisses me off. *shrugs*

 

all 8 feet of mine still look good

 

I have noticed that the plastic on my truck is different from that on my Expedition. The Expy having a harder surface. The Expy still looks new. I thonk there are different suppliers and may even be multiple suppliers for all the trucks. So, some may hold up better than others. Mine was bad in 2 years and I treated it regularly.

 

Epic?

Geez, if faded plastic on a 7 y/o truck was my biggest worry in life I'd still have hair.

 

It might not be cost cutting. They might have changed to a different plastic for environmental reasons. Maybe a catalyst or raw material has changed or been phased out, resulting in inferior performing parts.

In the early 90'a they phased out R12 and switched to R134a refrigerant - A/C systems did not work as well until the systems evolved. Another one that comes to mind is when they tried to phase asbestos out of brake pad linings. The early non-asbestos brake pads squealed terribly, leading to massive customer complaints. Some wire manufacturers switched to a soy-based insulation to make the wire easier to recycle. Problem was the stuff tasted delicious to rodents and mice chewed up thousands of engine wiring harnesses. Those are just three "green" things I can think of that had unintended consequences.

Use some spray vinyl dye, it soaks into the plastic. Then a periodic applications of Stoner Trim shine on the bed caps to keep them looking good.

 

I never see mine. Thanks, snuglid.

 

Same here. both grille and tailgate emblems are bubbling/separating. Options??

 

Take em off.