For DIY types and car enthusiasts, setting out to paint a car sounds fun and like a reasonable thing to do. However, for the rest of us, it sounds intimidating. After all, one false move and the car’s paint job is ruined. Don’t despair. Follow these top tips for painting your car and brag to all of your friends as they admire the amazing job you’ve done.
Remove Any Parts Possible
You can tape around and over anything necessary—but it’s even better if it can be removed. Removing parts like the bumper, emblems, door handles, and anything that can safely come off, makes sense, because it makes painting quicker and easier. If any auto body kit parts are involved in your process, now is the time to decide if they’ll stay on when painting.
Smooth the Surface
Don’t be fooled into thinking you can paint over dents or scratches on the car. The new paint will make them stand out quite well. Using fine-grit sandpaper, sand any imperfections, leaving a smooth, feathered out edge before painting.
Kill the Rust
There’s no sense taking the time to paint over rust as it will come back through, and it’s even worse if it’s destroying the body of the car. Before painting, destroy with rust killer spray made specifically for cars. Sand down smaller patches of rust.
Prepare Your Location
Would you believe some people actually try to paint their car outside? Please don’t do this, although the space and ventilation are tempting. Anything from trees, pollen, or whatever else is in the air at the moment can fall on the car and stick into the paint, forever a reminder of a poor decision.
Create a safe and ventilated area in a garage and cover everything you don’t want splattered with paint.
Wipe Clean
Wipe the car clean to remove any dust left from sanding and such to give a clean surface for painting.
Mask It
Once parts that can be removed are removed and the car is sanded and rust destroyed, mask and tape areas that will not be painted, just as you would the trim in your house when painting a wall.
Prime Time
Don’t jump right into painting without first priming the body of the car. Using an auto body primer, apply three thin coats using a sprayer. Hold the sprayer about 10 – 12 inches away from the body of the car when spraying and paint from top to bottom.
Paint
Finally, it’s time to paint. Using a sprayer, just as with the primer, spray evenly from top to bottom, holding the sprayer 10 to 12 inches back from the car. It’s wise to begin the back-and-forth motion of spraying slightly before you begin to spray, so as it starts, it comes out spraying evenly. This method requires 3 to 4 thin coats of paint.
Lastly, a clear coat to protect the new paint job is applied in the same way.
Whether you’re a car enthusiast wanting to try a new hobby or you just want to paint your car, follow our top tips for painting your car to transform your dull paint job.
Van Rundell is a writer and author who specializes in transportation, travel, guidance, health & fitness. With over 10 years of experience in the industry as a driver and an entrepreneur, he has seen it all. His tone is professional but friendly with a dash of humor thrown in for good measure. In past, he has been advising, educating and writing about transport for the public and professionals alike.
A qualified fitness instructor with over 5 years’ experience as a personal trainer and group fitness instructor, Van brings his deep knowledge of health and exercise science to his articles on health & fitness.
