Alternative before considering re-spary

[LuisMateoSpider]

Hil,

So I've asked around to see if there is something that I can do to improve my car's look. You all know, everyone loves this car but my paint job has lots of chips and cracks, even some nasty gauges in the hood.

In the past I have done the clay bar cleaning but that did not do much other than smooth out the touch. So I researched a bit more and looked in to detailing, and it all seems to point towards the most aggressive treatment which was sanding down the top coat to remove all the scratches. Today I finally decided to give it a try, starting with my hood.

I started with 2000 grit sandpaper and water, the scratches were so severe I moved to 1500 and then 2000 again, after that I used a cutting compound with a wool buffer, then Polishing compound with a foam buff, later I apply hard wax and voila!
I'm very pleased with the results, now I have to move on to the rest of the car.

What do you guys think?

I masked up to avoid sanding the other panel.


Half way sanded.


This was the most taunting part, seeing my hood completely dull and trusting on the compound cream to bring it back to shine.


Half way after the cutting compound


Final Product

[RRoller123]

Nice!

[focodave]

Looks really good.
You're a brave man.

[aj81spider]

Looks fantastic. +1 on the brave man!

[Holshot]

Looks great! I recently went through the same process with similar results. I was prepared for a full re-spray over the winter but in the end I think I can go at least another year maybe more...

[BERGFIAT]

On top of this, fill all of your chips with touch-up from an auto paint store its much thicker (more solids, less solvents?) than Dupli-color, so you don't have to layer it so many times to get up to the existing paint surface level. Then do like the OP and you won't even be able to find the repair! Yes, your car looks great!

[BERGFIAT]

Forgot to add; a sanding pen comes in handy here. Clean chips before and after sanding with isopropyl alcohol. Those chips tend to be filled with wax. Let your touch-up paint cure until its hard. I usually wait at least a week.

[ItsNotAnMG]

Nice work!!
And for any body afraid as well, don't be. I prep cars for paint for a living and trust me, wet sanding by 1500 is fairly safe. When my shop wet sanded, we used 500 grit and I never broke through clear coat(unless I meant to). Keep in mind I knew what I was doing- but 1500 grit is a baby's bottom compared to 500. The key is to mind your edges. I could sand very hard with 5 or 6 passes on a flat panel and not come close to breaking through, but one medium pressure swipe on an edge or body line could breakthrough easily (again with 500).

DO NOT try to sand out any scratch you can feel when dragging your nail across as there is a 99% chance you'll break through. Even if the painter/shop said they put alot of clear on-its not worth the risk

As far as touch up goes, usually it'll look better but anything on the outside will still be rather noticeable, especially if you applied it since you know where to look. But again maybe that's just me

[v6spider]

Bravo! Don't let fear stop you! Love the red. That is my second choice in color for my spider.

Cheers!
Rob

[LuisMateoSpider]

Updating you guys, a couple weeks ago I did the trunk and it came out well, then I went all out doing the sides, front and back. I said to my self, if I'm going to do this, I better do it thoroughly.
So I took all hardware out, bumpers, emblems, side markers, back lights, doorhandles, even the convertible top in the back.
Here are some pictures of the process half way, later on I'll post the results.

In the process I broke both Pininfarina emblems (they were plastic and faded, so It did not hurt) and I got metal ones from Allison, excellent quality . I also noticed the side marker inserts chipped (so I got used replacements) and the front bumper bracket was split in two! (got it on eBay) I also moved the retractable seatbelt from the floor to the back seat and got the missing guides (it is much more confortable this way, coming from the floor was very hard and now I can even sit back more)

Now looking at all this chrome parts they are quite pitted and tired, so I'm planing on re-chroming but including the windshield frame the first quote was about $600, so I need a few other quotes.

[azruss]

Only the bumpers, door handles, headlight bezels, and windshield frame are chromed. The rest are stainless steel and can be polished out.

[LuisMateoSpider]

Yes Azruss,

The polishing of the stainless was about $14/ft. I tried doing it with a kit I got from the Home Depot (red, white, maroon and back paste compounds and cotton wheels) but they did not came up too good, so I might send them out for polish.

[LuisMateoSpider]

Any of you guys have removed the windshield frame before?
Any recommendations?

[Exit98]

Luis,

Check out this post regarding the windshield and frame:

http://www.fiatspider.com/f08/viewtopic.php?f=3&t=30325

$600 for chrome (and polish?) sounds very reasonable. Plating is very expensive. Just like paint, the labor is in the preparation of the items before they are actually plated.

Great work on the paint by the way.

[LuisMateoSpider]

Update on this project guys,

I saw a few times in the blog someone looking to have a video or pictures in to how to remove the windshield, and since I needed to send it to re-chrome, I made one. The frame comes off with the 2 bolts on either side, I had to apply some penetrating oil to remove one of the bolts, the rest were relatively simple. I also removed all the trim and side weather strips.
Once both sides are loose you can detach the gasket off the frame, mine was not glued and there was no foam filler as read in another thread, however the previous owner of my car must have changed it since the rubber is in excellent condition.

Here is the video
https://youtu.be/J96QrY9tfD8

Until I removed it I did not noticed but one of my door handles was broken on the side, I got a used one and send it for re-chrome, they came out very nice, this is a piece you touch every time you open the car so it will make you smile every time well worth re chroming. Make sure to get new gaskets as the ones I had were dry and bent.
Before

After