Suzuki Equator Forum - Exterior http://www.suzukiequatorforum.com/ Bug Guards, Mud Flaps, Brush Guards, Mirrors, Bling Bling, Etc. en Thu, 09 Sep 2010 08:04:20 GMT vBulletin 60 http://www.suzukiequatorforum.com/images/misc/rss.jpg Suzuki Equator Forum - Exterior http://www.suzukiequatorforum.com/ Sandblasting http://www.suzukiequatorforum.com/t272/ Wed, 18 Aug 2010 18:35:06 GMT While washing my Equator last week, I noticed that the body panels just in front of the rear tires have been heavily chipped and 'sandblasted' from rocks/debris flicking off the front tires.

The stock front splash guards appear very high, and a lot of the mud/dirt get past, and appears to be really damaging the paint on the rear wheel well bumpouts.

Anybody else having this problem? I'm sure if you drive mostly pavement this is a non-issue. I live in an area where there are gravel roads, and unforetunatly road salt/sand in the winter months.

My truck is 1 year old and the paint looks like a 10 year old truck. I plan to let the dealer have a look at it, but I'm not sure they will do anything.
It will surely rust once the winter roadsalt hits it.

Will try to snap a pic or two for reference sometime soon. ]]> Exterior BlackEquator http://www.suzukiequatorforum.com/t272/ Fading hood cowl http://www.suzukiequatorforum.com/t268/ Fri, 13 Aug 2010 01:51:13 GMT The black plastic hood cowl on my Equator has been graying and fading. I’ve tried Back to Black and some other restorers and protectants that either... The black plastic hood cowl on my Equator has been graying and fading. I’ve tried Back to Black and some other restorers and protectants that either didn’t work or didn’t last very long. A little research on our Frontier siblings has shown that some of them share this problem as well. Some commented that they didn’t have any problems with theirs. Maybe early applications with the proper protectants might prevent this, along with the amount of exposure it gets to the elements. New cowls are in the $75 to $100 range. Some have had them replaced under warranty, only to have the same thing happen again. Some have painted them black while others had them painted the exterior body color.

I decided to remove and paint the cowl black with Krylon Fusion aerosol paint for plastics. It’s offered in gloss, satin, and flat black. I opted for the satin finish. The cowl is fairly easy to remove with the removal of 2 push pin clips, wiper arms, radio antennae, rubber antennae boot, weather-strip clips, and hose to the windshield spray nozzles. With these removed the cowl will easily pop loose with gentle prying. There are several snap in type post clips across the cowl bottom. I used alcohol, and soap and water to clean and remove all the different products used on the cowl. There are 2 outside pieces to the cowl that I didn’t remove or paint. They are made of a different material than the cowl and seem to be holding their color alright. The paint is fast drying, and to prevent runs or sags, I put on 4 thin coats in about 10 minutes. With the hot dry weather here in central California it was easily ready to re-install within 2 hours. I’m pleased with the results, and will have to wait and see how it holds up.

Here’s some before and after pics of the cowl.

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Attached Images
File Type: jpg Equator Cowl 01.JPG (270.1 KB)
File Type: jpg Equator Cowl 02.JPG (379.3 KB)
File Type: jpg Equator Cowl 04.JPG (288.1 KB)
File Type: jpg Equator Cowl 05.JPG (145.6 KB)
File Type: jpg Equator Cowl 06.JPG (185.4 KB)
]]> Exterior Sekidou http://www.suzukiequatorforum.com/t268/