is this chrome or stainless steel ?

Maintenance advice to keep your Spider in shape.
Post Reply
84pininfarinablack

is this chrome or stainless steel ?

Post by 84pininfarinablack »

The bumpers on an 1984 pininfarina spider.. chrome or stainless steel ? or aluminum ? Any idea what the 2k cc cars use for the bumnper tubes. My bottom tubes look chrome but top is not shiny any longer. was wondering what I was dealing with. rechrome or a good bit of polishing.
User avatar
ITA124
Posts: 128
Joined: Wed Nov 12, 2008 1:51 am
Your car is a: 1976 Fiat 124 Spider
Location: Sydney, Australia

Re: is this chrome or stainless steel ?

Post by ITA124 »

They are chromed steel. Take the rubber ends off and have a look into the tubes for rust.

Try using a chrome polish on the dull parts
Paul


Fiat 124 Spider (Big Red Car. So my son tells me)
Toyota Corolla AE86 (Fiat as a daily driver? Not)
Fiat 128 Rally (Why did I sell this car?)
Fiat 124 AC (An iron ore waffle shaped like a 124. Donated to Sims)
Fiat 128 SL (First fiat)
So Cal Mark

Re: is this chrome or stainless steel ?

Post by So Cal Mark »

if you weigh one you'll know they're not aluminum
84pininfarinablack

Re: is this chrome or stainless steel ?

Post by 84pininfarinablack »

on both my front and back bumpers the top tube has no shine except on the far edges. and the bottoms are perfectly chrome still. Should i be digging down into the dark non shiny areas.. ? ive scrubbed with scuffys.. vinegar.. paint remover 4 kinds of soap.. degreaser and wd40 my arms are gonna fall off. in wondering if the chrome is gone in that part. and im wasting my time.. any way to tell ? should i try sandpaper? I hate not shiny
User avatar
boogiedude
Posts: 410
Joined: Mon Mar 02, 2009 5:22 am
Your car is a: 1978 spider 1800
Location: Honolulu, HI

Re: is this chrome or stainless steel ?

Post by boogiedude »

84pininfarinablack wrote:on both my front and back bumpers the top tube has no shine except on the far edges. and the bottoms are perfectly chrome still. Should i be digging down into the dark non shiny areas.. ? ive scrubbed with scuffys.. vinegar.. paint remover 4 kinds of soap.. degreaser and wd40 my arms are gonna fall off. in wondering if the chrome is gone in that part. and im wasting my time.. any way to tell ? should i try sandpaper? I hate not shiny
Jeez, that's a lot of stuff to be rubbing on. I'm no polishing aficionado but it would seem some of those would do more harm than good(vinegar and paint remover?).

Make a run down to your local napa or checkers or even walmart and grab either some mothers chrome polish or eagle one chrome polish. Comes in a metal tin and the thing is packed full of cotton that is pretreated with somethin. Rub it on, wipe it off, voila.
84pininfarinablack

Re: is this chrome or stainless steel ?

Post by 84pininfarinablack »

thanks ill try that.. im now trying 600 grit sandpaper and its getting shinier.. lol must be a stiff pile of sludge on chrome or im fine polishing steel at this point..
User avatar
ga.spyder
Posts: 3478
Joined: Tue Nov 06, 2007 7:19 pm
Your car is a: 1982 Spider 2000
Location: Blairsville ,Ga.

Re: is this chrome or stainless steel ?

Post by ga.spyder »

The fine steel wool works really well,too.
Craig Nelson

1982 Spider 2000...pride and joy
1981 Fiat X1/9..gone but not forgotten
1976 124 Spider..the self-healer
2001 BMW 328ci daily driver and track car
Fling It Around Turns !
Post Reply