Re:trim Chrome Inserts

[Little&Large]

Hi all
Does anyone have any idea if the chrome trim inserts are still available?I should imagine they would only be available from Citroen-I am off to France in 3 weeks time so I might enquire over there.
If so any idea of the cost?
Many thanks
Regards Rob

[mackay1]

Hi Rob,

Yes they are still available - but they are expensive. The main problem is the side chromes only come complete with the door rubbing strip - you can't buy them seperately. The bumper chromes can be purchased on their own.

To give you an idea of cost the rear bumper chrome is £63.55 + VAT and the drivers door moulding & chrome is £67.67 + VAT.

If you contact techmanagain - he is the UK agent for a neat product. He can supply a full set of the side chrome strips on their own. They're not the original plastic covered ones - they're simple highly polished aluminium profiles manuafactured to the correct shape and pre-cut to the exact sizes required. The advantage being there's no plastic coating to create the discolouration problem that occurs on the originals. They are a bit more tricky to fit because there are no clips on the reverse and they need to be fitted with a quick drying mastic type sealant. They do come with comprehensive fitting instructions though and from memory a full set costs less than a single door moulding.

I'm sure techmanagain would be able to give more acurate information / guidance.

Roy

[Little&Large]

Hi Roy
Thanks for the email.There was a chap selling a front bumper one on Ebay this year...I should have bought it.They are quite expensive from Citroen...considering they are only plastic.My worst bit is the short one on the front wing.I might try removing it and see if I can clean it and maybe spray it from the back....I can see me making it look worse as I write!
Techmanagain.....if you read this please contact me.
Many thanks
Regards Rob

[Peter.N.]

There seem to be a lot more XMs in France than here, so you might find that they are cheaper. Their diesel is!

Peter.N.

[techmanagain]

"If you contact techmanagain - he is the UK agent for a neat product. He can supply a full set of the side chrome strips on their own. They're not the original plastic covered ones - they're simple highly polished aluminium profiles manuafactured to the correct shape and pre-cut to the exact sizes required"

Nice plug Roy! They are stainless steel, not aluminium in fact. Complete set to replace all side trims (including fiddly bits on wings) can be at your door in two days for under £47. Front and rear replacement triims seem to be in immediate supply from Citroen, and take only an hour-at most-to fit the lot. Rear tailgate trim for Estate is only available with the whole plastic support and only from Citroen at about £84. The real trouble then is getting the old one off. Easier to buy the unit and just lever out the trim and throw the plastic away What a waste!!

[xmexclusive]

Hi

I have found that you can do a lot of recycling. The plastic corrosion seems to be worse the more recent the car. I have collected Mk1 plastic chrome from front and rear bumpers and door trims from scrap yards, usually they are in better nick than Mk2 ones and seldom as much as £1 a length. These cut up to suit Mk2 cars with washers at the front. With the side trims all four pieces of trim are different lengths. Lever the corroded ones out and the good bits can be cut up to fit in the shorter length trims.

Regards

XMexc

[xmman]

a couple of years ago i replaced all chrome strips i noted all the old ones were corroded at the ends due to capillery action so before fitting new ones i sealed all the ends of the strips with sillicon sealant and so far they show no sign of corrosion

[xmexclusive]

Hi XMMAN

Thanks for that little tip, very useful.

Regards

XMexc