Primer question

[cockerstar]

I currently am getting ready to put the rebuilt l24 back into my 240 and the PO had painted over the original color with Ferrari yellow. Now that would be perfect if I wanted to go with the same color he was, but I'm thinking more along the lines of a dark green. I started stripping the old paint off and found that he just primered over the original color.

 

I have 2 quick questions for you guys:

Am I going to see a noticeable difference if I strip the paint back to bare metal and primer over that, compared to primering over what is already there and spraying my satin black?

 

I'm going to be using rustoleum rattle can primer and rustoleum rattle can satin black for my pain as I've had great success in the past for smaller parts. Should this hold up okay when using it over a larger surface assuming that I'm applying it properly?

 

I attached a pic of the current bay so you guys can see what I'm working with

 

Thanks in advance!

[calpoly-z]

I am a bit confused. Initially you state that you are leaning towards a dark green over the PO's yellow. Then you state that you are planning on using rattle can primer and satin black? Is that just for the engine bay? That is what I will assume to answer your questions.

 

If you're going to rattle can it I highly doubt that it is worth it to strip the paint down to metal. I have used rattle cans plenty of times and I am rarely completely happy with how thing turn out. That being said I am not disagreeing with your choice of rattle cans for the engine bay. I rattle canned my engine bay about 5 or 6 years ago with a similar choice in paint. It looks ok now, but far from great.

 

Now that I am actually painting my car for real, I did decided to leave the engine bay for now. I don't feel like pulling the engine yet again for something like paint when all I really want is to get my car back on the road with some color. That does not mean that I am happy with how the engine bay looks, but it's not too bad.

 

Any way, to answer your question, if you are giving you car a legitimate paint job, then you should give the engine bay a legitimate one as well, especially since the engine is already out. That does not neccesarily mean that you need to sand down to bare metal. If the paint is not flaking off or bubbling up then just sand it down smooth and paint over. But if the rest of the car is getting a half-assed job then I wouldn't worry about things like stripping paint down to metal, especially if you are just going to rattle can it.

 

Hopefully that makes sense. I am a few deep .

[cockerstar]

What you're saying makes perfect sense to me

 

Right now I lack the funds to give my engine bay (let alone the whole car) a proper paint job. I just don't want it to be a bright yellow down the road when I actually do paint the car. I'm sure that I'm not going to be completely satisfied with mine in a few years, but I know it'll be a helluva lot better looking when it actually matches. I figure that satin black will end up looking decent along any color that I chose.

 

I was just seeing if I was just going to be wasting my time by stripping everything down to bare metal in the engine bay after I saw what the PO had done and how it had turned out.

 

Tomorrow I'll pressure wash, do a bit of sanding, wash again, and then lay down a coat of primer. I need to wash the block too. It's got some dirt over a fresh coat of paint...

 

Thanks for your help!

I'm a complete noob when it comes to paint.

[93anthracite]

I too am working on a tight budget, but I have also never had *great* success with long term rattle-can jobs. Here's my recommendation for a cheap, effective way to get a clean, professional-looking paintjob of any color that you want:

 

My recommendation would be to prep thoroughly, first and foremost.

Depending on much time you want to devote (and if you're as anal as me), I would encourage using a wire brush attachment on an angle grinder and remove as much of the old paint as possible. Those multiples coats of paint add totally unnecessary weight to the car. The key to a good paint job is truly in the prep work...

 

Once you've prepped it, I'd encourage using etching primer to cover up any exposed metal. It won't hurt to put a layer of primer on the entire area you're going to work.

 

Finally, find a car on the street and find out the factory paint code. Go to your local auto paint supplier (same place you got your etching primer) and ask them to mix up a few spray cans of said paint code. They'll probably offer a lower grade version, or some high-grade Dupont paint (for an engine bay I'd lay down a couple coats of the cheaper) to suit your needs.

 

I just finished painting the interior of my Z this weekend (see link below). The painting supplies ended up costing me $50 and I still have leftover paint for the next phase. Considering the cost and effort, I think it turned out extremely well.

http://93anthracite.com/Z%20project%20pages/1Interior%20paint.html

[Matt z32]

to ensure best results, make sure the exsisting paint is sanded extremely well before the primer is applied. if not, because it will get fairly warm under the hood the paint will flex a little bit and if the primer as not adhered to the surface due to improper sanding, the paint will chip and crack. seeing that ♥♥♥♥ on your car sucks because you will forever notice it and it requires resanding and applying paint again. so do it right, make sure it's fully sanded.

 

i'm going to college or collision repair and have been working in the field for almost 5 yrs. now. this rattle can idea isn't a good idea. they are not meant to spray large areas, like you said you had good success with it on small pieces. spend $50 bucks at home depot on a gun, hook it up to your compressor and spray. XO-Rust leaves a nice shine, you just have to cut it with a little laquor thinner.

 

let me know if you have any other questions

[Young Z]

heres a pretty good guide that I plan to follow when I rattle can my car.

 

http://www.nicoclub.com/articles.php?id=197237

[KenshinX]

Good post young Z I might try that as well.