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Automotive Plastics/Questions
| Subject | Date Asked | Expert |
| Automotive Plastic Panel Repair | 8/1/2010 | Octavio Torres |
| Q: Trying to determine how to repair cracked automotive interior plastic panels. There are know marking ... A: If your car was made after the year 2000, there must be an identification code somewhere in the ... | ||
| Lens on Taurus 3rd brake light | 6/2/2010 | Octavio Torres |
| Q: The shortcan you advise me on an adhesive to attach the plastic lens housing onto a 3rd brake light ... A: you are right. Methylene chloride is de proper adhesive. This substance is a water-like liquid which ... | ||
| Rear view Mirror - button glued into mirror assembly | 5/11/2010 | Octavio Torres |
| Q: The mirror fell off of the window. The metal "button" that needs to be treated and re-glued to the ... A: Most rear view mirrors attached to windshields do not use any glues in the button assy. However, ... | ||
| repairing interior plastic | 4/2/2010 | Octavio Torres |
| Q: As we were loading something into our Equinox, it scraped along the inside of the back plastic by ... A: Polypropylene interior trim and panels, like those in the Equinox can only be painted for ... | ||
| Affordable reproduction of tail light lenses | 2/12/2010 | Octavio Torres |
| Q: Octavio, In an answer dated 1/28/2009 you answered a query on reproducing tail light lenses. In ... A: Unfortunately, I need the help of a busy neighbor and colleague who owns a tail light repair shop to ... | ||
| auto body glue | 1/31/2010 | Octavio Torres |
| Q: While travelling about 40 mph in my 2003 Jeep Liberty, I was side-swiped (hit-and-run) by a driver ... A: There is no glue nor any adhesive to replace your metal or plastic fasteners. my suggestion for you ... | ||
| CRV Mirror Base Repair | 1/19/2010 | Octavio Torres |
| Q: Torres The base plate which supports the mirror assembly (see picture:horizontal part with 4 large ... A: to exactly determine what plastic the base is made of ,you have to take the base off the door. to ... | ||
| Broken LH mirror housing/91 Honda prelude | 1/13/2010 | Octavio Torres |
| Q: Someone knocked my driver side mirror off..seems to be broken at the base..otherwise the assembly ... A: almost always we get dissapointed when trying to fix plastics with adhesives. This is due to the ... | ||
| cracked Sprinter rear A/C housing | 1/4/2010 | Octavio Torres |
| Q: The rear A/C housing on my Dodge/MB Sprinter passenger van is made of a rigid, gray unpainted and ... A: I have repaired many AC housings and found ALL were made of Polypropylene. I think your's must be ... | ||
| 98 honda prelude rear-view mirror housing | 1/3/2010 | Octavio Torres |
| Q: okay i bumped my mirror off the mount and im trying to figure out if i can take the mirror housing ... A: sorry for a late answer (health has not been o.k. these days. but now in the up &up) I understand ... | ||
| Broken tail light lens.. | 12/19/2009 | Octavio Torres |
| Q: I was wondering if I could glue the tail light lens on my 03 Alero. Someone bumped my car and broke ... A: tail light lenses are made of >PMMA< , which stands for polymethyl methacrylate, a plastic that can ... | ||
| ABS plastic sheet | 11/28/2009 | Octavio Torres |
| Q: I have a bowler tomcat off road race car that I am renovating. the pick up sides are flat aluminium ... A: you are right. ABS is not the best polymer for this application. Despite having butadiene (a rubbery ... | ||
| plastic headlight lense | 11/24/2009 | Octavio Torres |
| Q: Why do the lenses get milky/cloudy? Can it be cleaned? Seems to be common in late 90's to early ... A: lenses get dull for various reasons including: photodecomposition, micro-chipping because of gravel, ... | ||
| Mirror | 10/26/2009 | Octavio Torres |
| Q: my Nissan Maxima 2004 driver side mirror is broken,and I wouild like to try to repair it myself ... A: normally you can not achive good( strong) repairs in mirrors by using any glue. The only solution I ... | ||
| interior rear panel broken | 10/21/2009 | Octavio Torres |
| Q: I would like to repair my rear panel on my 2005 montana its broken in one spot A: please dismantle and remove the panel from the door. Then look in the rear part of the panel and ... | ||
| Identifying auto plastic | 9/30/2009 | Octavio Torres |
| Q: I have a 1991 Nissan Pathfinder with a crack in the front windshield cowl vent grille. It is black ... A: From experience, we know Nissan uses two polymers to make cowls: ABS+pc copolymer in older models ... | ||
| Crack in Bumper II | 9/12/2009 | Octavio Torres |
| Q: You asked me to find out what kind of plastic that the 2006 Sebring rear bumper has. I don't have ... A: Ok Al, though the reparing conditions are not the best, let us try it this way: materials:40 watts ... | ||
| best way to handle polyurethane foam waste | 9/10/2009 | Octavio Torres |
| Q: I have some leftover polyurethane foam scraped off of automobile insides and I wonder what's the ... A: John, PUR foam is the material you are familiar with and is available in two forms rigid and ... | ||
| best way to handle polyurethane foam waste | 9/9/2009 | Octavio Torres |
| Q: I have some leftover polyurethane foam scraped off of automobile insides and I wonder what's the ... A: Recycling PUR is as far as know, limited to rebonding for flexible foam, used in furniture ... | ||
| Crack in bumper | 9/2/2009 | Octavio Torres |
| Q: 2005 Chrysler Sebring Convertible. Rear bumper. My wife (not me), backed into a post and caused a ... A: Normally,Pushing a dent from the inside is the first thing you have to do. However this operation ... | ||
| Glue Auto Body Parts | 8/22/2009 | Octavio Torres |
| Q: A portion of my front air dam trim cannot bolt back into place. Can I glue it back to the ... A: we need you to provide more information in order to try to get a reliable and affordable solution ... | ||
| gasket? | 8/11/2009 | Octavio Torres |
| Q: i have a 2000 3/4 ton ford four door. i had some body work done to it about a year ago, and after i ... A: sorry for changing this question from private to public. I think it has no private information and ... | ||
| mirror | 7/26/2009 | Octavio Torres |
| Q: 1997 chev c1500 passenger mirror, on the interior there is a plastic cover with no screws. how do i ... A: I have been trying to see if there is an equivalent version for your car in my country but I have ... | ||
| Plastic radiator tank repair - BMW K1200S. | 7/26/2009 | Octavio Torres |
| Q: I'm currently rebuilding an '05 model-year BMW K1200S motorcycle. Unusually for a motorcycle, the ... A: on the tank polymer identification. Radiator tanks are normally made of a 6 carbon polyamides >PA ... | ||
| Gloss Black Door Pillars a Success! | 7/18/2009 | Octavio Torres |
| Q: This post is a follow up to my 7/9/09 post. Hi Octavio This information is for you to let you know ... A: CONGRATULATIONS! Steve.you have given us a nice example on how to avoid buying new spare plastics. ... | ||
| Gloss black plastic door pillars | 7/9/2009 | Octavio Torres |
| Q: Octavio I have read all the posts and answers and there is nothing about a 2000 caravan with plastic ... A: Steve, the color of a plastic is not an indication of the kind of plastic we are dealing with, this ... | ||
| Gloss black plastic door pillars | 7/5/2009 | Octavio Torres |
| Q: Octavio I have read all the posts and answers and there is nothing about a 2000 caravan with plastic ... A: Although is not a general rule, these pillars are made of Polyurethane, a polymer which is a ... | ||
| Most efficient tool to scrape off polyurethane | 7/5/2009 | Octavio Torres |
| Q: I've been building car roofs and I filled the interior of the roofs with hard polyurethane foam, but ... A: I have successfully , dealt with some stubborn Polyurethane stains by heating steel with the heat ... | ||
| Rear side marker/park light lens cover | 7/1/2009 | Octavio Torres |
| Q: How do you remove plastic lens cover on the rear side marker,which is also the parking light? Car is ... A: Normally tail light lenses are joined to the housing with a strong adhesive called methylene ... | ||
| Help needed please | 6/22/2009 | Octavio Torres |
| Q: i really hope that you can help me with this, i need to produce high electrostatic adhesion force ... A: I am afraid that I ain't the right person to answer your kind question. However, as far as plastics ... | ||
| repair of plastic mirror | 5/23/2009 | Octavio Torres |
| Q: the outside car door mirror of my Hyundai has a crack from being hit. How can i repair it (product ... A: The mirror housing might be made of either ASA or ABS polymer. Do not use any glue or adhesive. Just ... | ||
| Plastic bumper cover identification | 5/14/2009 | Octavio Torres |
| Q: I have a bumper cover off of a 1990 BMW 325is which is in need of repair. The bumper cover is part ... A: I think you are dealing with polyurethane >PU<, a plastic that will respond fine when it comes to ... | ||
| Weather protectant accident | 4/1/2009 | Octavio Torres |
| Q: I bought a car waxer the other day and tried using it to apply weather protectant on the body of my ... A: although I think this seems to be be a duplicate question, I would use some sttodart solvent ... | ||
| 2004 Chevy silverado rear door panel | 3/16/2009 | Octavio Torres |
| Q: I have a 2004 chevy silverado and the rear door panel is cracked, I coach baseball and I figure it ... A: this panel seems to be made of polypropylene, a repairable plastic.To fix this crack you must take ... | ||
| glove compartment stuck | 2/12/2009 | Octavio Torres |
| Q: I can't open my glove compartment on my 2005 odessy, the keys don't work. Not sure what to do ... A: all glove boxes are not the same & I am not familiar with the one you mention. However, those boxes ... | ||
| reproducing old taillight lens | 1/28/2009 | Octavio Torres |
| Q: Octavio, In restoring older cars, it is sometimes difficult to find good used lens. I have seen ... A: Taillights and headlights are made by the injection molding process, a technique where you heat-melt ... | ||
| TOYOTA CUP HOLDER | 1/20/2009 | Octavio Torres |
| Q: one of the rings on the rear cup holder broke. Its a clean break. It is under pressure as it is ... A: There is not a good adhesive for this application. We, plastic repairmen, usually deal with similar ... | ||
| tailight material | 12/3/2008 | Octavio Torres |
| Q: who makes a material in red to fabricate a set of flat taillight lens for my 1971 camaro? thanks A: I suppose this question comes from U.S. and you do not own an injector. Then, go to: ... | ||
| WOOD DASH TRIM DODGE CARAVAN | 11/19/2008 | Octavio Torres |
| Q: I have been told that there are two types of wood dash trim kits - the molded type and the cheaper ... A: Although I am not an expert, I think you may look for that kit at www.autoanything.com or at ... | ||
| Trim Panel 1997 Mercury Grand Marquis | 11/15/2008 | Octavio Torres |
| Q: I'm not sure if I have enough information for you to answer the question. The trim panel on my ... A: I would Consider replacing the panel. Try JC WHITNEY for replacements. A temporary solution before ... | ||
Octavio Torres
Top Expert on this page
Expertise
I can answer any question concerning automotive plastics repair on condition that the specific part polymer is identified. However, I can also help in the identifying process of any plastic used in automotive applications (for both body work and under-the-hood). I can't answer a question if it is based only on make or model unless full details are provided.
Experience
Two decades working as automotive plastic repairman in my own business
Publications
THE INTERNATIONAL AUTOMOTIVE PLASTICS REPAIR MANUAL
Education/Credentials
Plastics technician.
Past/Present Clients
BMW
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