How to Repaint Your Car (same or close to same color)

[pacotaco345]

This how to is designed for people who actually want to paint their car, NOT ANY OF THAT RATTLE CAN CRAP!! Also, if you plan on doing a complete color change of your car it will entail much more work than this thread describes. This is not car show winning quality by any means, but the finished product will look like the car did new from the factory.

Materials NeededAir Compressor (preferably a decent upright one, 25+ gals. capacity)Gravity Feed Spray Gun (at least one, two recommended)- you can get cheapo ones for about 50 bucks100, 150, 220, 320, 1200, 1500 grit sandpaperOrbital DA Sander and sanding blocksBondo and SpreadersRattle Can PrimerWetsanding SpongesLacquer ThinnerClean, Controlled Area for paintingTack Cloth and Prepaint cleanerRubbing Compound and Finishing PolishMachine PolisherFoam and Wool Polishing PadsMasking Tape and NewspaperA lot of time and some friendsFor paint materials bring your car to the local automotive paint supply store and they should supply you with everything else that you will need. Hopefully the manager/owner/dude who works at the store will be willing to supply you with any specific information relative to the materials you are purchasing.

Price300-600 dollars depending on material quality

TimeAbout a month assuming that you have a life besides your car

Procedure

Step oneThoroughly clean your car, it should look something like this:

Step twoFind and take note of where every dent and ding is, THIS IS EXTREMELY IMPORTANT, any ding that is hardly noticeable will become 10x more visible once the car is painted.

Step threeSand each dent and ding with 60-100 grit sandpaper. If any major dent can be removed in any way before bondo is applied now is the time to do so, this is an example:

Step fourMix and apply bondo to dents, if this is your first time it may take a few tries before you get it just right, note that bondo is not meant to be applied to dents deeper than a quarter inch. If the dent is any deeper than that refer to step three

Step fiveSand bondo progressively from 60 up to 180 grit finish, use the sanding block for this step and make sure that the junction between the edge of the metal and edge of bondo is smoothly feathered. cover finished product with rattle can primer.

Step sixAny part of the car where clear coat has been burned through, sand with 100 grit sandpaper on orbital sander until other material is feathered into clearcoat, this may include bumpers, roof, decklid, and hood. If any bare metal is showing after this process, cover with rattle can primer.

Step sevenAfter all bodywork has been completed wet sand entire car with 220 grit sandpaper.

Step eightClean entire car again, I washed as if I would normally wash a car, using Simple Green instead of soap (a few ounces to a bucket of water). After this it is extremely important to avoid touching surfaces that will be painted-get as little oils from hands, hair, etc. as possible on the car.

Step ninePosition car exactly where you want it in spray area, put the car as high as possible on jackstands, remove wheels and fender liners, and prepare spray area for the rebirth of your car. I painted my car in our garage which I thoroughly covered with plastic and cleaned as much as possible. PLEASE DON'T ASK ME IF THIS IS LEGAL!!

Step tenMask entire car. This includes edge of engine bay, all trim/windows, lights removed or masked, etc. It is important to TAKE YOUR TIME during this step-ANY mistakes made WILL show up in the finished product. Double check any newspaper that you are using for holes or gaps. Wipe entire car off with your precleaner if you have it, then your tack rag.

Step elevenBefore you begin this step, make sure you have any/all information about paint mixing, reduction, gun pressure, etc. This is very important. After all precautions have been taken, mix and apply primer to bumper areas, and all areas without a layer of old clear coat with first gun. BEWARE THE LOCATION OF YOUR AIR HOSE-DON'T DRAG IT OVER YOUR WET PAINT!!I had a separate primer for the bumpers which did not match the color of the car, so after the bumpers were initially sprayed, they were wet sanded to a 220 finish and a second coat of red oxide primer was sprayed over them as well as the other areas which needed primer.

Step twelveOnce all primer is applied, wet sand all areas to a 320 finish. Eliminating all orange peel. If layer of primer is breached, repeat step eleven. NOTE: All this sanding will generate a lot of dust which will be all over the car-make sure the car's surface is CLEAN again before you start spraying topcoat.

Step thirteenOnce again, make sure all information for basecoat has been reasearched, then mix and reduce as needed. Apply 2 coats of paint to the car. Beginning at the top and working your way down the sides of the car with the second gun. NOTE!! water in paint is disastrous, make sure you compressor is drained, and that the date you pick for this glorious event is not too humid. An inline water separator is advised. In my case we had sooo many problems we wrapped a paper towel around the air coupling where water was spurting forth.

Step fourteenWait for basecoat to flash dry, 1-2 hours. Mix and apply clear taking same precautions as with the primer and basecoat once again with the second gun. Most manufacturers recommend 3 coats, we got away with two because we applied and excessive amount with each coat... we had a few runs also.

Step fifteenWait a couple hours and remove mask, put various doo dads, wheels, etc. back on the car, take car off jacks. It is also a good idea to keep the car sheltered for the next few days. After all this my car had vast amounts of the dreaded orange peel and runs... I nearly started cutting myself. However we took the car to our paint vendor and he determined that we could either sand the entire car over again and re shoot clear, or color sand and buff the entire car and hope for the best. I chose the latter.

Step sixteenIf you are lucky/good/too lazy to care about the finish of the clearcoat, pat yourself on the back and enjoy your new paint. If you were like me and contemplating becoming emo, you will need to colorsand and polish the car which entails:Wetsanding one panel at a time first with 1200 grit, then 1500 grit paper, getting about 80% of the orange peel out with 1200 and the remaining 20% with 1500 making sure to be careful of the peaks and edges in the body. Runs can be wetsanded out by using a 1/2"x3"x1" block of wood wrapped in 1200 grit sandpaper. DO NOT ATTEMPT TO DO THIS ONLY WITH YOUR FINGERS, YOU WILL GO THROUGH THE CLEAR!!! After this take your machine polisher, wool buffer pad which at this point should be attached to your polisher, rubbing compound, and begin to buff the car in roughly 2"x2" sections. After the entire car has been buffed, switch to your foam pad and polish out the swirl marks with your final polishing compound.

Step seventeenAdmire your handywork and post pics of your car

I did this in about one month, paint was applied in two days and mild weather, this took most of my Christmas and Thanksgiving vacation. By no means is my car perfect, but its insanely better than before, and the paint is better that factory and proly 99% of 240's on the road today. This does require a fair amount of skill, patience, attention to detail, and A LOT of work. Even when you apply all of these things, mistakes will be made. I strongly advise shooting paint on a test panel before each step to get a feel for the gun. All of this WILL save you about 700 dollars as opposed to taking it to a bodyshop, and when you are finished you will have the tools and knowledge to paint several more cars before you die.

[94_240sx]

Good job, but if I were you, I would take side markers, bumpers and side mirrors and such. Looks like a lot of work. Again, good job.

[mudvayne9790]

sweet right upim glad u decided to right it the car looks so wet