Painting Spider Armrests

[wdmh306]

Hi All,

As I have read there are some topics already posted regarding the painting of interior parts. I have a 79 Fiat Spider 2000 with the beige interior and am looking to see if anyone knows the SEM or some other brand color code that matches. I am wanting to paint my arm rests because they have yellowed over the years. If anyone has any ideas I would love to hear. Thanks!

[spidernut]

I purchased SEM vinyl paint from World Upholstery. The color was a perfect match to their tan interior for the 79 and newer cars. The color seemed to match very closely to the original door panels I had. I did door panels, arm rests and the console. The door panels and arm rests were originally tan and the console was originally black.

[fiat218]

Bad thing about painting, it will wear off, just paint again

[fiat218]

In my 80' I painted the lower part of the dash, arm rest and lower console .looks great

[wdmh306]

Thanks guys. I contacted world upholstery. Hopefully they still have the vinyl paint that matches!

[srwilson]

FWIW the SEM Lt. Buckskin was Not a very good match with my tan 79 interior. It was quite a bit lighter. I think I would have had to paint seats, door panels, and consoles to be satisfied. I might be on the picky side too.

[IndyMark]

I have a 79 with the tan interior also. Since I couldn't find an exact match of the tabacco interior i decided to paint the armrests and the center console black and the contrast looks great and actually compliments the interior.

[spidernut]

The vinyl paint was a very close match on the 79 and a perfect match to the seat upholstery that I bought from them (no surprise). It was way off in color compared to the upholstery in my 80. You can always buy one can and try it out. Also, look for an SEM dealer near you (see their website). The colors can be custom mixed for about $15 per can.

[srwilson]

Hey John, Yes I can see the color matched between the seats and the Lower Console in your picture, but you can definitively see a color change between the Lower & the Upper (radio) console. That is the difference I saw in my 79.

I'm following IndyMark I guess, Black Consoles. I'll post a pic when I've finally got the job done.

[spidernut]

The upper console isn't quite as different in color as it looks in the photo, but it is different. The upper console came out of a different car and was darker than the door panels and arm rests. I still need to respray it. The 81 that I bought new had three tones of tan...arm rest and front seats matched; door panels, back panels and rear seat matched, and upper and lower console matched. It always bothered me.

[BwBrown]

Yes, you can paint soft surfaces, some paint formulations are more flexible than others - enamels stay flexible, acrylics get brittle. Some companies make and market fabric, plastic, and vinyl paints. Most auto-parts stores will have them amongst the other specialty paints.

The big thing is cleanliness. Not so much with fabric, but vinyl, plastic and leather must be clean. Most vinyls and plastics "exude" oils and films over their lifespan. Go to your local hardware store and buy some TSP (tri-sodium phosphate). It's not costly at all, but boy does it work! Mix it according to the directions and use a green scratch pad and RUB. Dry well. Then the paint will stick.

Leather works best with a specially formulated leather dye - comes in all colors.

[RRoller123]

I changed the armrests on my Spider from tan to black, with vinyl dye. Worked very well, and so far is durable. Use the vinyl prep spray that they sell and you should have no problems.

Here's an after pic. The door card and armrest were tan when I started. Sprayed the door card grey.

[fiat218]

It will rub off
I painted the lower part of the dash,and console and arm rest
Looks great

[RRoller123]

Mine has been fine for a year now. Make sure you use the prep spray.

[fiat218]

Console,black and olive green, arm rest, and lower dash