Best way to address clear coat failure?

[FUNX650]

Why do you think so many lottery
winners end up bankrupt?

Bob

[Calendyr]

Low quality paint job will be a lot less expensive. Maaco is something i have heard about often but we don't have them here in Canada. They will cut corners and the job will not be as good but you will probably pay less than a 1000$ for that repaint.

The other option is to do it yourself. You will have to spend a lot of time learning how to do everything, paint will cost you probably 200-300$. Other material like plastic sheets, masking tape and the like, an other 100$. So if you are a DIY type of guy, it could be a great project.

Third option, simply fix the problem areas. If you only have clear coat failure on the roof, hood and trunk (most common places since they are hit by the sun a whole lot more), then you could have only those panels worked on (either by yourself or someone else). So it would not be as expensive as re-painting the whole car. Beware that if those panels have failed, the rest of the painjob is probably close to failure too. So if you decide to do it this way, you will have to make sure your paint is protected at all time by a sealant, wax or coating to protect it.

Not sure what year your car is, but a few years back I re-painted most of my Hyundai Accent GSi using color matching paint in spray cans and 2K clearcoat in spray cans. Came out decent. Not as good as a pro could have done but not bad. If you have a high capacity compressor (can't remember the needed specs for painting but think 240V compressor with a huge tank like 60 gallons and up), you could buy or rent a paint gun and that would be a lot better than paint mixed then put in a can. I purchased a gun but my compressor could not put out enough air to drive it for more than a few seconds. So I went with the paint cans instead.

Last option, is to do a roller paint job using rustoleum paint. This is the easiest to do and can do a very good job if you can take the time to do a proper wet sanding job afterwards. It would be a single stage paint with all the inconveniances and advantages that gives. You could do a job like that for less than a 100$, plus the sanding supply.

[DonutTyrant]

Low quality paint job will be a lot less expensive. Maaco is something i have heard about often but we don't have them here in Canada. They will cut corners and the job will not be as good but you will probably pay less than a 1000$ for that repaint.

The other option is to do it yourself. You will have to spend a lot of time learning how to do everything, paint will cost you probably 200-300$. Other material like plastic sheets, masking tape and the like, an other 100$. So if you are a DIY type of guy, it could be a great project.

Third option, simply fix the problem areas. If you only have clear coat failure on the roof, hood and trunk (most common places since they are hit by the sun a whole lot more), then you could have only those panels worked on (either by yourself or someone else). So it would not be as expensive as re-painting the whole car. Beware that if those panels have failed, the rest of the painjob is probably close to failure too. So if you decide to do it this way, you will have to make sure your paint is protected at all time by a sealant, wax or coating to protect it.

Not sure what year your car is, but a few years back I re-painted most of my Hyundai Accent GSi using color matching paint in spray cans and 2K clearcoat in spray cans. Came out decent. Not as good as a pro could have done but not bad. If you have a high capacity compressor (can't remember the needed specs for painting but think 240V compressor with a huge tank like 60 gallons and up), you could buy or rent a paint gun and that would be a lot better than paint mixed then put in a can. I purchased a gun but my compressor could not put out enough air to drive it for more than a few seconds. So I went with the paint cans instead.

Last option, is to do a roller paint job using rustoleum paint. This is the easiest to do and can do a very good job if you can take the time to do a proper wet sanding job afterwards. It would be a single stage paint with all the inconveniances and advantages that gives. You could do a job like that for less than a 100$, plus the sanding supply.

What exactly do I need to learn to tackle fixing this issue? From what I have read, there is the bare metal, primer, paint and clear coat layers. Is it possible for me to simply wet sand the clear coat away on the affected panels while maintaining the current paint, then using a 2k clear coat from a can to recoat the surface, allowing for that to harden for a few days then wetsand and polish the clear coat? My biggest fear is removing the paint during wet sanding if I tried this. Or, is the paint already damaged from the clear coat failure where I cannot salvage it and need to get a color match and repaint?

[The Guz]

What exactly do I need to learn to tackle fixing this issue? From what I have read, there is the bare metal, primer, paint and clear coat layers. Is it possible for me to simply wet sand the clear coat away on the affected panels while maintaining the current paint, then using a 2k clear coat from a can to recoat the surface, allowing for that to harden for a few days then wetsand and polish the clear coat? My biggest fear is removing the paint during wet sanding if I tried this. Or, is the paint already damaged from the clear coat failure where I cannot salvage it and need to get a color match and repaint?

Here is my advice. If you have never worked with paint then save it for the pros. It will save you in the long run. Go to various body shops and get quotes for the areas that are affected. That will give you more negotiating power with some of the better shops.

[Eldorado2k]

Do a search on youtube for sweeeeeeeeeeet project cars... Seriously though, search for Sweet Project Cars, I’m sure he’s got a video on how you can DIY. I’m not guaranteeing it’s gonna be super simple, but it is doable, and if anyone knows how to do it and has made a proper tutorial it’ll be that dude.

If anything, you can try on your trunk 1st without having to commit to the whole vehicle. If you’re good at following instructions I don’t see how it shouldn’t work. Good luck.

[Calendyr]

What exactly do I need to learn to tackle fixing this issue? From what I have read, there is the bare metal, primer, paint and clear coat layers. Is it possible for me to simply wet sand the clear coat away on the affected panels while maintaining the current paint, then using a 2k clear coat from a can to recoat the surface, allowing for that to harden for a few days then wetsand and polish the clear coat? My biggest fear is removing the paint during wet sanding if I tried this. Or, is the paint already damaged from the clear coat failure where I cannot salvage it and need to get a color match and repaint?

No, it is not possible to remove only the clearcoat. While removing it, you will also remove the super thin layer or color coat and reveal the primer.

You have to sand to metal, apply a primer that can bind to metal. Once it's dry you apply the base coat (color coat) and once that is dry you apply the clearcoat.

Application time and dry time depends on the paint used, temperature and humidity level. There are various types of primers. Some are designed to stick to metal, others are designed to hide defects. The color coat is pretty straightforward, only thing you need is the color code for your current paint if you want to keep the car the same color (good idea to do so otherwise you will have to re-paint the door jambs and areas like under the hood and trunk and it's a lot of work to do that.

For the clear coat, there are 2 types : 1K and 2K. The difference is that 2K uses a hardener and 1K doesn't. 2K is much more resilient and should be your prefered method. Shooting 2K clear requires a mask with carbon filters, eye protection and skin protection. This stuff is really nasty for your health and you don't want to breath it in, get it in your eyes or on your skin. Professional painters use a full body suit to shoot it. But they are exposed to it day in and day out. As a DIY, long sleeves, pants and 3M paint filtering mask with some safety glasses will do the job for the few mins of exposition you would get from doing 3 coats of it on your car.

If you want to learn, there are a gazillion Youtube videos describing each step of the process in great detail. It is not complicated, but it is hard to master. The major issue is the equipment and location. In order to use a proper spray gun, you need a very good quality compressor with good filters to prevent having oil and humidity in the paint. So for most DIYers, it's easier to use spray cans or to apply a single stage paint with a roller.

The other factor is the environment. You want no dust if possible and no wind. So if you have a garage, that it is easier, if not, then you will have to find times when conditions are proper and hope they don't change while you are working.

So it is a big commitment if you do it yourself. You have to evaluate if you like that kind of challenge, and if the cost saving is worth all the efforts for you. As Guz said, you might want to leave it to a pro. Get some quotes from several places, you will see prices can vary a lot. Usually it depends on how much prep they do. The quality of paint they use can also have an impact.

[Mike Phillips]

Hello everyone, I recently received an older model Honda civic from my parents for my first car. The car itself runs great, but the paint has what I believe to be definite clear coat failure occurring. From what I have read, the best way to fix this is to have the car repainted. I took the car to a body shop to get an estimate and was given a total cost of ~$4,600 to repaint the car. I have attached some pictures of the paint damage at this imgur link.

Yep.... no easy or cheap way to fix clearcoat failure. Here's one of your pictures "inserted" so it's easy for everyone to see.

Is there any hope to fix this issue on my own without paying $4,600 to repaint an older car such as this? What would be the best step for me to take?

Any input is appreciated. Thanks.

You can do it yourself with Rustoleum enamel paint.

My "rustoleum $50 roll-on paint job"


Besides that you could also go to the extent of turning your parents garage into a paint booth, study, purchase and the do a garage paint job using automotive paints. Another option would be to talk to your local car guys, see if there's a shop in town that does good slam jobs.

We have such a shop in our area, I know because I've taught wetsanding classes to remove the orange peel for these projects. Check it out...



Pictures: 1928 Model A - Wetsand, Cut and Buff at Autogeek

Scuff & Buff - Wet Sanding Single Stage Metallic Paint - 1948 Willys Jeepster

Mirka Abralon for Hand Wetsanding and Machine Wetsanding 1934 Ford Pickup Streetrod Project

Finished! - Wetsanding a 1929 Model A Sedan Delivery Streetrod - Fresh Paint


Orange peel can be leveled via sanding and then remove your sanding marks and you can actually get pretty darn good results from an inexpensive paint job.

[DonutTyrant]

Hey everyone, thanks for all the tips and replies. I will be taking the car to a few places in town today and early next week to get more estimates. I would definitely be willing to pay $1-2,000 for a paint job that could last me 5 years of use until I get a new car. Otherwise I may attempt to learn and do it myself.

[Oats]

If it is just the hood/roof/trunk you could try vinyl wrap. Wrap itself would be around $150-200. I wrapped a white S2000 hardtop black to put on my silver car. It had a few flaws, a corner that I cut too close and you could see the white paint, and then there was the spot where the wrap touched my arm and you can see some hair under the wrap lol. I was very happy with the results and had never wrapped anything before. It took me about 4 hours. There are a lot of youtube videos on wrapping cars now.

Several companies make automotive wrap so you could get samples of the different blacks to try and get one close. Or you could do something weird and wrap them in lime green or chrome or something crazy.

[Finick]

My "rustoleum $50 roll-on paint job"

This was an awesome thread. I’d love to see one of these paint jobs in person.

Sounds like something fun to do on a test panel to see how it turns out.


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