Forever Black Bumper & Trim Kit (NEW Improved Formula & Larger Size)

Highly recommend! Easy to use! Works great on door handles and window trim....doing mirrors next!

I recently purchased a used 2003 Saab 9-3 Arc that is in excellent condition except for a couple of minor cosmetic defects. In particular it suffered from faded door handles. This is not surprising because that year of that model was known to have a problem with the paint used on the handles and Saab actually issued a service notice on them and was replacing them for free. Unfortunately, this particular car is past warranty and I don't think Saab is still replacing them (I'll look into it when I get a chance). At any rate, the handles were in bad shape. Not only were they faded to almost grey, much of the paint was worn off, especially on the driver's handle - which was actually down to bare metal!I had browsed the web and others had suggested using Forever Black to restore parts painted with flat/satin black (such as wipers) so I thought this was worth a shot before any more drastic measures (new handles cost $80 and are quite a bit of labor to install) or spray paint (labor).Based on a tip, I picked up a couple of foam paint trim brushes to use for detail work rather than try to use the push-pin foam applicator on the bottle. I squeezed a little of the black liquid at a time into a plastic cup and then used the foam 'brush' to apply it. This gave me more control and kept runny drips to a minimum. I still found it necessary to carry a barely damp microfiber cloth while working. I used this to wipe up splotches and drips as needed. An alternative would be to mask everything off with tape, but it comes off pretty easily with a firm wipe of a damp cloth so unless you know you are particularly clumsy and messy, you don't need to mask for most uses.Note - if you decide to use this product for interior surfaces I would definitely mask off there because there are absorbent surfaces inside a car that would definitely be permanently stained by FB instantly!I ended up giving the handles 3 coats. I focused on making each coat as smooth as possible and not trying to put it on too thickly. After three coats, they now look brand new. A beautiful smooth black satin finish. You can't even tell where the paint had flaked away to bare metal!!!!Encouraged, I then went crazy and treated every bit of external black trim on the car. Amazing results. It took years off the car. The plastic bulkhead in front of the windshield from which the wipers come out was also practically light grey. Now it is a beautiful rich black like it was originally supposed to be. Same with the collars around the side mirrors. I was able to do the entire car with a little more than half a bottle. I don't have large black trim areas like say, all black bumpers - if you do, that could take a lot more. Probably a full bottle or more.When all was done and dry I sealed up everything with a coat of Meguiar's Ultimate Liquid Wax to protect from the evil sun and the elements! We'll have to see how long the deep black color lasts. But for right now, my 'old' car looks brand new!Some black recovery treatments work by abraiding away faded surfaces to show fresh black surface from underneath and others restore oils to revive pigments. Still other's just gloss up the surface giving it a 'wet look'. Forever Black seems to work both as a dye and a paint - if anything it is reminiscent of a 'stain'. It is much thinner than a conventional paint so it absorbs deep into surfaces. Yet unlike a pure dye it seems to have a strong binder that allows it to fill in minor scratches and voids, smoothing rough, cracked surfaces. That is just my take on it from watching it work.

UPDATE 02/03/16: The stuff still looks great. I initially put this stuff on in the Summer of 2015. It is now Feb. 2016, around 9 months later. The car has been outdoors 24/7 and exposed to the elements (including some snow falls) and the trim is still a nice black. Perhaps the slightest fading in parts where I only did one coat. Would still recommend this product.Alright so I bought this to re-darken the trim on my 2000 Volvo S80. I applied it about 6 months ago and for the most part it still looks great. On the bumper I applied two coats and that seems to be lasting. But in a couple of small places in the front where I only applied one coat it appears to be fading (ever so slightly, still looks light years better than before!). The car is kept outside almost 100% of the time and is exposed to the sun/rain/snow. With that in mind, I suppose it held up really well.Overall the application process is simple but not easy. I made to sure to clean the trim VERY thoroughly beforehand. I used the supplied cleaner as well as some dish soap with warm water and a scrubbing brush. Once cleaned, I let it try and taped off the areas I wanted to cover. You don't have to tape off the area but make sure you have a wet towel with you to wipe off anything you may get on the paint. The application itself can be a bit tricky as you need to make sure you apply it evenly to avoid streaks (though I never had much of a problem with streaks, a few minor ones). Overall I spent a solid Saturday afternoon doing all this. The stuff itself goes a long way. Applying on all the trim on my 2000 S80 used barely half of the bottle (with two coats on the bumper and thick coats).I suspect that doing at least two coats should ensure that this will last quite a long time (in excess of a year). I plan on purchasing more and applying a couple more coats. Overall I recommend this product. At any rate, I am confident that this lasts longer than 90% of the other solutions out there. And for the price, it is a steal.Pros:-Excellent price-Appears to last long-Looks great after applying, rich dark colorCons:-Application process is a bit tedious/long-May not exactly be a "permanent" solution and will eventually fade