These bothered me for a while. I was hesitant to remove them when I first got the car a few weeks ago because the car is 8 years old and I thought maybe the paint under the molding wouldn't match but I went ahead and did it today. The paint looks great. The only problem I'm having are the little dirt lines left over. Any idea how to get rid of these? I tried wiping it down with some cleaner but didn't do much. Would a nice wash and wax get rid of them?

 

buffing compound. and some elbow greese

 

Dang coupes have it so easy when it comes to removing side moldings...haha. Looks awesome man!

 

Looks so much cleaner!

Is your car brilliant silver? Looks awesome!

 

Try a clay bar on the dirt marks.

 

Are the sedans different?

 

Sedans have holes behind the moldings

And yes, it is brilliant silver

 

And thanks for the suggestions. I will try them out

 

Correct, Sedans have holes behind the moldings so the only way to remove the moldings properly is to weld the holes shut and repaint all four doors. You very rarely see a Sedan with the moldings removed.

 

Where were those pics taken?

 

Your BS coupe looks soooo much better without the side molding.... It may require more than a wash/wax to get rid of those marks. Is it the glue residue that's left, if so GooGone or WD40 will remove it but you'll need to saturate several times and don't rub too hard. Then just like debadging a little ScratchX and final wax will get er done. Now you'll need to be more careful who you park next to like the rest of us!
Gary

 

It's not the glue/tape residue. Pretty sure it's just dirt marks that have settled in over the years.

 

Parking garage of my apartment complex

 

If it's just dirt a simple car wash will remove what you posted...G/L!
Gary

 

It's probably a combo of dirt and glue residue. Either way some denatured alcohol will clean it off no problem (it won't hurt your clear coat), and then get at it with some polishing compound and it'll look good as new!