HOW T0: Removing & re-installing body side moldings '05

Disclaimer: Links on this page pointing to Amazon, eBay and other sites may include affiliate code. If you click them and make a purchase, we may earn a small commission.

thx1138

Full Access Member
Joined
Sep 22, 2005
Messages
145
Reaction score
1
Location
Central Indiana
In case no one has noticed, every '05 Liberty Limited, at least the ones I've seen, have chrome side moldings and chrome grilles. I'm not into the bling thing, at least on a jeep anyway so I opted to remove my moldings and paint them the body color and re-install them.

Ok, I don't have pics of me actually removing them so I'll try to describe the process. Using a heatgun on LOW I worked back and forth over a 6-8" area until it got hot. Hot enuff to make it uncomfortable to grab anyway (don't wanna melt them now would we?) A trim stick would most likely work, but as I didn't have one, I went with a polyethylene ruler I had handy. Something made of a stiff plastic that won't scratch the body easily ya know? Once I had a short section pried off, I carefully wedged an ice scraper underneath the molding..yeah I know, but I work with what I have on hand. I continued to work the heatgun back and forth every few inches prying as I went until it finally popped off. Now this 3M "Redline" automotive tape the factory uses is different than what you normally find in a parts store. The stuff at Advance Auto or Walmart is 1 layer of grey acrylic foam tape. The stuff the moldings are taped with have 3 layers of foam, black-grey-black and this stuff is sticky! So, after removing all 4 moldings, I had tape and residue left behind on the body and the molding itself. What to do? Well, There's a product called "Goo-Gone" that is an adhesive remover. You can find it most anywhere, Walmart being one place. A lot of elbow grease and some cursing and the residue, tape, etc. is gone. Next I cleaned all affected areas with alcohol.

This pic shows the alignment holes for the moldings. Note the red arrows. These holes are a "normal" round hole and what I'd say is the "key" hole to start your molding when re-installing. The holes under the black arrows are oblong.
You must be registered for see images attach


Here's a pic of the molding guides...
You must be registered for see images attach


...and a closeup...
You must be registered for see images attach


I sanded the moldings with 180 grit wet/dry sandpaper and then 400 grit. Wiped with a tack cloth, spayed with 3 or 4 coats of automotive trim primer (not all at once, but 1 coat...let dry...another coat...dry, etc.) then sanded with 600 grit paper.
You must be registered for see images attach


As the Mopar paint is kinda expensive, I ordered some Stone White Duplicolor paint thru Autobarn.com for $4.50 a 5oz can...4 cans BTW. I used between 4 to 6 coats on the moldings, lightly spraying each time. When I figured they were ready for Clearcoat, I first took a black fine tip paintpen and colored in the "Liberty" logo. Then, 4 to 6 coats of Clear, lightly spraying. I let 'em cure for at least 24 hours. I had ordered that special 3M tape from a vendor online. I know I went overboard as I bought a 20 yard roll of it! You could easily get by with a 10 yard roll as this stuff ain't cheep. I cut and applied the tape to the moldings pressing it on tightly. Then , whip off the red liner and line it up..press it on and compress all along the length of the molding.
You must be registered for see images attach


Now I have an air compressor and a paint gun, but auto paint in liquid form is outrageously expensive so that's why I used spray cans. You get more "orange peel" effect when doing this, but, when it's done in a careful manner it turns out better than one would expect. I hope this was slightly helpful to anyone attempting this procedure and if not, I apologize as I'm an awful teacher. 8-[ :-k
 

GoldBug

Full Access Member
Joined
Oct 31, 2005
Messages
317
Reaction score
1
Location
Clarksburg, WV
looks really sweet THX! icon996.gif I agree with you on the chrome thing, that's something i've considered in wanting a libby. i don't mind the chrome on the black, red and blue KJs i've seen but think it's a little out of place on the khaki and green. Another thing i don't care for are the unpainted fender flares on some models... kinda look cheep to me. I know that the unpainted ones are better off road cause there's no paint to scratch but why not off road in style? The ones on my TJ are gray not black anymore. Any KJ owners have that problem?
 

mattjeep

Full Access Member
Joined
Jan 13, 2007
Messages
78
Reaction score
0
Location
El Paso, TX
That looks clean. I wanted to do something similar. Mine is a white, 06 sport and I just wanted to paint the raised liberty letters either white or silver and leave every thing else the cladding color. I like how Jeep put big name plates on 02-04 Liberty and on the 96-04 Grand Cherokee. I'm not to big on them being on the moldings. Especially the Grand Cherokee.
 

libertyman

Full Access Member
Joined
Jan 28, 2007
Messages
111
Reaction score
0
If anyone wants to trade there chrome ones for the unpainted plastic one's Im willing to trade, just pm
 

WoodysKJ

New Member
Joined
Jun 21, 2007
Messages
15
Reaction score
0
Location
Louisville, KY
Thanx for the tutorial. I have done my chrome grille this way:
You must be registered for see images

with Herculiner. Getting lots of great comments about it. Want to do the same with the side moldings. Now I know how to remove and re apply without killing them.

Thanks
 

AMPlibby06

Full Access Member
Joined
Nov 11, 2008
Messages
194
Reaction score
1
Location
Rochester NY/Burlington, VT
Thanx for the tutorial. I have done my chrome grille this way:
You must be registered for see images

with Herculiner. Getting lots of great comments about it. Want to do the same with the side moldings. Now I know how to remove and re apply without killing them.

Thanks

Did you just take off your grille, bring it to a shop, and have them spray on a liner? How much did it cost? Did it cause any problems when fitting the grille back on?
 

Latest posts

Members online

Top