Paint coming off...

[MR2 Drifter]

When I bought the car the paint was so bright and it looked new, but a couple months after it has swirl marks, and spots that seem to be fading

So I waxed it and it looks better but it doesn't look like when I got it

im a porter so I clean my car a couple times a week and a couple days ago I had some bird sh*t on my hood, so I power washed it off and some paint also came off, i power washed a different spot and some paint came off from there, they were about the size of a penny, and after that happened I used the hose instead of the gun

so I was wondering what can I do to protect my delicate paint thats starting to chip away???

[mr2silvertop]

not much you can do at this point. Sounds like its been buffed alot. Buffing is kind of like sanding in the fact that it removes the top surface irregularities. The only thing you might try is to touch-up the chips made, as to cause rust or other things getting under the paint, and not use a power sprayer.

[GR8MR2]

Are you sure that the car has not been repainted? Sounds like it may not have been prepped well. At any rate I'd resolve myself to only doing hand washes.

[TonyHuynhTwo]

Those are all symptoms of a maaco paint job. Most people get the $200 paint service so that they can sell their car. I'm pretty sure that's the case here.

[halo434321]

I too have a cheap paint job on my newly aquired 1991 white non-turbo. After doing (and continuing to do) extensive work on the interior, I have found glass schards in both the back and the front of my MR2. I believe that it was in one or maybe two accidents in its lifetime. I found glass behind panels in the front and underneath the cheap subwoofer box behind the driver's seat. Also, there is some streaking paint under the tail fin so I know that this thing has been repainted at least once. My question for future reference is:

What can I do to ensure that once I am ready for a new paint job (and not a cheap $200.00 one) that the new paint will not flake off over time due to the past paint. I am unsure as to the stepped process for repainting a car and am wondering if it will be bead-blasted first or not. One thing is for sure, this WILL get a quality paint some time in the future (once my checking account says 'go'). Any knowledgable response would be greatly appreciated!

Also, my 2005 Celica had a clear coat with a lifetime warranty for fading added to it after I bought it and I will probably do the same with my MR2.

[mr2silvertop]

Originally Posted by halo434321

I too have a cheap paint job on my newly aquired 1991 white non-turbo. After doing (and continuing to do) extensive work on the interior, I have found glass schards in both the back and the front of my MR2. I believe that it was in one or maybe two accidents in its lifetime. I found glass behind panels in the front and underneath the cheap subwoofer box behind the driver's seat. Also, there is some streaking paint under the tail fin so I know that this thing has been repainted at least once. My question for future reference is:

What can I do to ensure that once I am ready for a new paint job (and not a cheap $200.00 one) that the new paint will not flake off over time due to the past paint. I am unsure as to the stepped process for repainting a car and am wondering if it will be bead-blasted first or not. One thing is for sure, this WILL get a quality paint some time in the future (once my checking account says 'go'). Any knowledgable response would be greatly appreciated!

Also, my 2005 Celica had a clear coat with a lifetime warranty for fading added to it after I bought it and I will probably do the same with my MR2.

Your car will only be bead blasted if you take it somewhere that does that specifically. Most body shops wont even think about that unless its a "complete restoration". When you take a car to get painted they will sand it enough to get paint to stick. It wont get sanded down to metal or "stripped" unless the paint unsuitable to hold a finish. If you want a good job on your car pay the extra money to get it prepped right. Get the body work done right to make sure its not a hack job. Get it primed and blocked so there aren't any spots that arise later. You need to get a base/clear job. Look at spending between $1500-$2500 depending on bodywork.

[TonyHuynhTwo]

Yeah 1500-2500 sounds right on the money for a paint job. You definitely want to shop around though. Just recently I bought a new front bumper cover (lucked out and got it for 1/3 the price of the dealership). Trying to find a quality body shop to paint my bumper was very time consuming. Shopping around I got price quotes that ranged from $125-$500. I ended up taking it to the shop that quoted me $125. The owner actually took time to describe in detail how they were going to prep and paint the bumper. The bumper came out looking fantastic (I wanted to tip the guy $100). There are some quality shops that charge rock bottom prices while still putting the time into proper prepping, painting, and finishing techniques. I spent a week driving around to different shops getting quotes and looking at the quality of finished products. It was definitely worth it to find a quality body shop.

[GENESIS]

It sound like a repaint from maaco/miracle/1 day paint/earl cheib.usually they cost from 300 to 800 paint job with a lousy 1 year warranty.

I was in the same situation before when I bought a 89sc with nice red paint but after a short while it could never shine like the day i bought it,Plus it started to chip the longer I had it so I had to hand wash it carefully.

What people don't understand when going to cheap places like those you have to do your own prep work coz for the price they charge they don't really want to sand and mask anything well they just break the clear coat for the new paint to stick.A decent to a good paint job warms up at 1200-$3500 bucks anywhere from 2500 your paint will last many years.PPG is the way to go if your anal about paint.

I would rather primer my car than have those $300 paint job,I know a guy that does PPG for as low as 1200 bucks but i would have to talk to him for you,If only you were in the bay area.My friend got his paint job 15 years ago from the place i was talking about and his paint still looks very much the same with only minor rock chips.

[328FTW]

Originally Posted by halo434321

I too have a cheap paint job on my newly aquired 1991 white non-turbo. After doing (and continuing to do) extensive work on the interior, I have found glass schards in both the back and the front of my MR2. I believe that it was in one or maybe two accidents in its lifetime. I found glass behind panels in the front and underneath the cheap subwoofer box behind the driver's seat. Also, there is some streaking paint under the tail fin so I know that this thing has been repainted at least once. My question for future reference is:

What can I do to ensure that once I am ready for a new paint job (and not a cheap $200.00 one) that the new paint will not flake off over time due to the past paint. I am unsure as to the stepped process for repainting a car and am wondering if it will be bead-blasted first or not. One thing is for sure, this WILL get a quality paint some time in the future (once my checking account says 'go'). Any knowledgable response would be greatly appreciated!

Also, my 2005 Celica had a clear coat with a lifetime warranty for fading added to it after I bought it and I will probably do the same with my MR2.

Just sand it down and prime it yourself. It won't happen in a day you will be sanding it for many hours if you want no ripples or noticible dings. Start with about 60grit or 80 take it back heaps don't worry if you touch metal, maybe block it a bit in places to take off ridges then do 3 REALLY thick coats of primer don't worry if it dibbles a few times they will go later. Lay a spot coat on it in a contrasting colour then wait for it to completely dry maybe wait a couple days.

Then you break out the wet and dry plus the palm of your hand and seek out the dips and raised bits using the spot coat and watching where it removes the spot coat and leaves it showing imprefections. Then lay a final primer coat and using those plastic kitchen wipes to lightly take that back when it is dry (UNSCENTED otherwise they leave soap residue just plain ol cheap ones). It's not the most sophisticated method but it works the thick primer holds well and fills the rough sanding you did and since the sanding was so rough the primer holds like a legend You can get finicky with it but primer is where you just lay it on thick and use it like a very fine filler, use knifing compund for stone chips and wash the car with something that won't leave residue after wet sanding as the water will leave deposits and it will be really dirty from the wet sanding.

Bead blasting is pretty drastic you will blow out the factory filler and land up having to do some body work and you still land up priming the hell out of it and find dips/hollows so it is not for your regular person really it is kinda special although you can if you want. I work by the theory that the car will not be perfect unless you have HEAPS of time or money you could make it that way but there is many many hours in that. You can hide things and still have a really good looking car without worring about it down to the 9th level. My neighbour spent 2 years doing body on one car that is the sort of crazy perfect you can go to.

Long rant yes but it is free info read it or not it is there, I'm not a body shop guy but the crazy neighbour across the road from me is and wants me to be like him

[mr2silvertop]

I didn't know rednecks lived in New Zealand. I don't recommend 60 grit unless stripping to bare metal. 80 is still too much. Sand w/ 180 with a DA or palm sander for primer. Use a block after not your hand, your hand will leave ripples. Use 320 to block, prime again and wet sand with 600. You can get a good finish that way. I don't for PPG so much I prefer DuPont.

[328FTW]

Originally Posted by mr2silvertop

I didn't know rednecks lived in New Zealand.

Some folk'll never eat a skunk
But then again, some folk'll...
Like Cletus
The slack-jawed yokel.
...
Most folk'll never lose a toe
And then again, some folk'll...
Like Cletus
The slack-jawed yokel.

And yes I'm about as rough as they come sometimes but I can spin paint quite well just like I can drive like a demon posessed. I love doing what I do and if you don't like it then meh enjoy being part of the hater club because I don't care good sir

Originally Posted by mr2silvertop

I don't recommend 60 grit unless stripping to bare metal. 80 is still too much.

That is why you use a thick layer of primer to fill the "swirls" left by the power sander and hitting metal is kinda part of the point what I said is not for roughing up the paint it's for stripping it back. Roughing it up is all well and dandy but if the paint is flaking why would you want to base anything on it?

Originally Posted by mr2silvertop

Sand w/ 180 with a DA or palm sander for primer. Use a block after not your hand, your hand will leave ripples. Use 320 to block, prime again and wet sand with 600. You can get a good finish that way. I don't for PPG so much I prefer DuPont.

In theory that makes sense in reality that is not going to work that great I tried to block my mkII but it has too many curves to get it blocked really nice, using the palm of your hand works well if you use your fingers it will leave marks but you use the soft palm of your hand it won't leave marks like finger tips. Also using a palm sander to do a whole car will take ages a random orbatal is best and use a palm sander on the bits it can't get to. There are different ways of doing things doesn't make either way wrong I just don't see the point in spending heaps of time making the surface perfectly smooth when the primer can be used to fill the slight marks, I've used my method to great success I've seen it used to build cars to show spec and I've been told it's all wrong .....each unto his own, I'm still proud to be the ghetto guy though I'm not here to fu** spiders just have fun.

[mr2silvertop]

All I am saying is don't take your car somewhere and expect that to be the way they prep it. Palm sander and orbital sander are usually interchangeable terms. I wasn't referring to a jitter bug. You can use a flexible block on contours so long as you know how to use it. Lastly don't go to a random hardware store and expect to get your supplies there. I'm just giving professional advice. It's not a matter of hating anyone.

[GENESIS]

Im actually doing my own prep right now I painted it black with 6 coats but now i changed my mind to silver or yellow or red.I couldn't find my favorite orbital sander so I had to use my palm sander.

80 grit was the sweet spot with all the black coats,I have already hand sanded the minor flat spots and rough edges all I gotta due is primer the roof.

[328FTW]

Originally Posted by mr2silvertop

All I am saying is don't take your car somewhere and expect that to be the way they prep it. Palm sander and orbital sander are usually interchangeable terms. I wasn't referring to a jitter bug. You can use a flexible block on contours so long as you know how to use it. Lastly don't go to a random hardware store and expect to get your supplies there. I'm just giving professional advice. It's not a matter of hating anyone.

I see no problem using a random hardware store to get supplies in fact the supermarket will do if you know what you want, sandpaper from a paint shop and a hardware store should not be any different last I checked they were the same brand, and scotch brite pads (kitchen scrubs) are standard issue for painting primer round here. The part not to skimp on is the paint you have to buy the right thinners, paint and a good air supply plus paint gun that has the right tip and spray pattern for the paint being used. Cheap paint will come back to bite you and will not look as good compared to any quality paint, I've used white tin paint, PPG, Ameron, Bare-Co and everything inbetween it makes a huge difference. I also see a difference between palm sander and random orbital btw. My random orbital is a big hitachi that eats babies I would hardly consider it a palm sander It does bonnets etc and the palmy does around the other bits.

It is user choice how the car is prepped if the car was worth a heap I would pay a lot more attention to detail but it takes a perfect body to do perfect paint and if it's a scrub and spray job there are going to be imperfections hence thick primer + spot coat and maybe a little knifing compund for little bits. I see nothing wrong with going higher grit and using a flexi-pad on the car but at the same time don't see the issue with a good eye and the palm of my hand it is all personal opinion and I can't see either producing bad paint I do know my car looks pretty smooth right now apart from the door I can't be bothered fixing, things came up now I just want it done so meh. The biggest worry now is the paint is going to be about $300-$400 when the car was $600