My '76 XJS had matte black bumper shelves.

i noticed newer cars ~'82 on up had chromed bumper shelves, back then.

I had mixed feelings about those, while i like chrome, I thought the chrome shelves looked bit gaudy.

The chrome shelves on my '88 are not exactly show quality, but not terrible.

Thinking about having them sand blasted and powder coated matte black to match the bumpers, vs getting better condition chrome pieces.

Thoughts?

This isn't an urgent matter, just something i want to ponder on.

Doug

 

I believe that the only reason the early XJ-S's had the black over bumper sections was a rushed job to meet new impact standards in the U.S. market. I doubt it was aesthetic choice of the design department if that influences your decision.

Cheers

 

why don't you photo shop a picture of your car to see what it might look like

 

Well, since they used black bumper shelves for 6-7 years, I think it went beyond being a rush job.

I dunno. IMO, I think the chrome looks better on some color cars and the black looks better on other color cars.

I'll think about it for a few months. I can always get mine powder coated,and if i decide I don't like it, get some good quality used chrome pieces. At the price of chrome plating these days, refinishing mine in chrome doesn't make sense unless I am going for absolute Concours d'elegance. And if that was my goal, I would go find much better car to use as a starting point.

I do want something that looks better than the pic below.

Doug

 

I prefer chrome against your car’s dark paint. Of course, with powder-coating, you can choose all sorts of finishes and colours. But I don’t think I’d want to introduce something new. The windshield surround is stainless steel, not the same but similarly bright, and there’s chrome on the rear end. I think that chrome on the bumpers is complementary and not distracting.

 

The pre-HE cars were fairly basic inside and out. No chrome, no wood, more "sports" oriented. That changed around the time they introduced the HE engine. They added chrome outside and wood veneer inside to make the car more of a GT.

I personally would leave both cars as they are, because they are different. But I'm not really one for modifying cars. You do you.