Fiberglass roof care

[J Dee]

I have a 1998 RT Popular 190 that has oxidized roof and would like instructions or suggestions on the care of this roof.

Thanks

[rowiebowie]

I believe your roof has a full automotive paint job. So you could get it repainted, or use whatever is recommended for faded paint. Just know you're on borrowed time as the paint is shot. But hey, it lasted 20 yrs.

[fmallin35]

Had mine redone by body shop in white rhino coat, really like it. Get lots of good comments, cost was half of paint job.

[rowiebowie]

Originally Posted by fmallin35

Had mine redone by body shop in white rhino coat, really like it. Get lots of good comments, cost was half of paint job.

Did you find it stayed cooler to the touch than a white painted roof?

[fmallin35]

Believe so, its more hail proof to.

[J Dee]

Thanks for your input, appreciated.

[Joe]

Originally Posted by fmallin35

Had mine redone by body shop in white rhino coat, really like it. Get lots of good comments, cost was half of paint job.

Mind if I ask how much it cost???

[booster]

Originally Posted by fmallin35

Had mine redone by body shop in white rhino coat, really like it. Get lots of good comments, cost was half of paint job.

Was this the truck bedliner product? If so how much did it at in weight?

[fmallin35]

Prep and install by RV body shop, $1650.00 complete.

[fmallin35]

Don't know if same as bed liner, bright and shines, there are a lot of trucks in the Texas panhandle are that have full body paint jobs with this material, body shop probably could answer your questions, don't know about weight, haven't had any effect I can tell.

[booster]

They make a couple of things that it might be.


Rhino Eco Coat Bed Liner, Best Spray on Bed Liner, Truck Bed Liner | Rhino Linings


or maybe this one


Rhino Solar Max Bed Liner Colors, Rhino Solar Bed Liner | Rhino Linings

[Turbowhiz]

Odds are if your fiberglass roof is badly oxidized but the rest of your van isn’t, it’s probably gelcoat rather than paint.

You do have options beyond just painting it or putting bedliner (???) on it.

You can invest in a rotary buffer and buff out the gelcoat; Its LOTS of work but it can be brought up to be as good as new, so long as there is gelcoat left. Odds are your good.

Another option is poliglow. It’s considerably less work then buffing it out, especially considering the awkwardness of working on the roof. I spent a lot of time debating the pros and cons of this, but like many things it probably mostly comes down to the prep.

I started with buffing my roof out, 1st with a cheapo orbital buffer, which was entirely ineffective, then with a professional rotary buffer, which worked fine but I just found the awkwardness of reaching the roof entire to be a significant challenge. So I now resorted to poliglow. Its early days (1 month) so I can’t speak to its long term durability, but it’s definitely a massive improvement, and was relatively easy to do and cheap. (now even the poliglow was work, you need to apply quite a number of coats of the stuff, and the roof needs to be clean before you apply it, I used a pole for most of the top horizontal surfaces)

My gelcoat was seriously oxidized, and then basically leaving a chalky streaky mess all over the sides of the van… And then the chalky gelcoat also forms dirty black dots (mold I’m thinking), especially on the horizontal surfaces. And then the mess spreads to all of the painted surfaces too.

Once I finished the gelcoat roof with Poliglow, the rest of the factory paint on the van looked quite a bit worse relatively speaking.

Now the factory paint (1999 Dodge) was also starting to oxidize a fair bit too…Nothing compared to the nasty gelcoat roof, but definitely looking a bit faded and tired. Especially in the last couple of years. So I employed my rotary buffer on that, and the results are stunning. Looks factory fresh, honestly (down to the factory imperfections too).

Don’t underestimate what a good detailing job might do for a 20 year old vehicle, I’m really happy with how it’s come out, it looks better now than when I bought it 5 years ago in every respect. (its exposed the sun in my south facing driveway 6 months/inside 6 months in storage). Time will tell how long it all holds up, but I’m confident I can buy at least a few years before a complete refinishing job, at which point I’d be inclined to paint the fiberglass top with automotive paint along with the whole van.

[J Dee]

Thanks for your input......greatly appreciated.

[Eraygunz]

I redid my roof when I re did the outside of my 1997RT.
I then coated just the upper most part with RipTide a marine version of the Rhino.
So, from the ground, looks nice and shiny.
But the top has a bit more protection from the sun and weather.
Eddie

[drober05]

I used this product on my badly oxidized RT200. Used a Harbor Freight oscillating polisher and followed instructions. Also referenced some Youtube videos which are abundant. Wasn't that hard and came out absolutely beautiful.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0...?ie=UTF8&psc=1

[Bud]

Originally Posted by drober05

I used this product on my badly oxidized RT200. Used a Harbor Freight oscillating polisher and followed instructions. Also referenced some Youtube videos which are abundant. Wasn't that hard and came out absolutely beautiful.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0...?ie=UTF8&psc=1

Will you need to continue using?

[drober05]

Bud, I think over time the fiberglass gel coat oxidizes. Basically the kit is multiple coarseness polish finished with a wax coat. If left untreated it will re-oxidize. Possibly waxing regularly will slow this down. I just did mine a month or so ago so we'll see how it looks in the spring. Probably makes a difference how it is stored (inside or out). I'm planning to redo it each spring. It took well under half the material in the kit so should be good for several applications. Also, in my case the 200 had to have the entire shell done while a 190 or 170 will only be the roof portion.

[Bud]

Originally Posted by drober05

Bud, I think over time the fiberglass gel coat oxidizes. Basically the kit is multiple coarseness polish finished with a wax coat. If left untreated it will re-oxidize. Possibly waxing regularly will slow this down. I just did mine a month or so ago so we'll see how it looks in the spring. Probably makes a difference how it is stored (inside or out). I'm planning to redo it each spring. It took well under half the material in the kit so should be good for several applications. Also, in my case the 200 had to have the entire shell done while a 190 or 170 will only be the roof portion.

Nostalgia. After plenty of elbow grease and more to remove the oxidation from a 1965 MGB, turn around and reach for the wax and it was to late. Oxidation had already begun.

Bud

[luclemieux]

I have a 2003 RT 190P with a fiberglass top. I have found this product (FIBERGLASS OXIDATION REMOVER & COLOR RESTORER from Protect All - https://www.protectall.com/shop/fibe...ation-remover/) at a Camping World in the spring and I have tried it on a small portion of the roof last week. It seems to be working as I quickly got back the original color (white) of the roof. I will eventually do the entire roof with it. It is recommended in the instruction to apply a wax after the treatment is completed.

[nicaland]

Think of approaching this exactly as you would a fiberglass boat. It will take time and muscle to do it right, but in my opinion it's the best way to go. Start not with compound but wet sanding it with 400 or 600 grit with an orbital sander, depending on how bad it is. You have to be careful of course, but I'll wager that your gelcoat is plenty thick enough to get it done this way. Then either go to 800 or 1000 grit, or go straight to compounding it, then polish, then wax. Just my opinion of course, but that's what I did with my '98 Xplorer; it looks great and I haven't had to re-wax yet after 2 years.