jimbobery
S3
- Joined
- May 6, 2008
- Messages
- 257
- Reaction score
- 0
- Points
- 16
My black 2001 S3 is in good condition, especially the interior, and the roof has been resprayed under warranty, but there are some exterior defects that bug me after Ive cleaned it.
- Front bumper has loads of small stone chips and the headlight washers have loads of white bits on them, and there is a big scuff.
- Bonnet has been resprayed at some point but the lacquer is peeling in small areas
- Rear bumper has scratches from a previous owner taking things out of the boot, and there is a very deep scratch
- Front of rear wheel arches have slight bubbling where Im told pinpoint stone chips have broken the surface of the paint
- The lower rear quarters have been lacquered over a dirty surface and now permanently look like Ive left dirty water marks after cleaning
- Deep stone chip, down to metal, on passenger door (probably could be touched up well without spraying the whole door).
My friends company does motorsport paintwork so I approached him with the intention of spraying the front bumper, rear bumper and bonnet, but after he explained that for a correct job they would blow over the front panels and rear quarters, the only panels not being sprayed with at least some lacquer are the doors! Therefore, Im going for a full respray (excluding the roof) and fixing all of the defects above in one go. Im taking some time off work to do the prep work under the supervision of the professionals, and then one of the spray guys will do all the spray work in the booth for me.
Obviously Im getting plenty of professional advice from my friend, but there are some questions I thought Id ask here:
- Front bumper has loads of small stone chips and the headlight washers have loads of white bits on them, and there is a big scuff.
- Bonnet has been resprayed at some point but the lacquer is peeling in small areas
- Rear bumper has scratches from a previous owner taking things out of the boot, and there is a very deep scratch
- Front of rear wheel arches have slight bubbling where Im told pinpoint stone chips have broken the surface of the paint
- The lower rear quarters have been lacquered over a dirty surface and now permanently look like Ive left dirty water marks after cleaning
- Deep stone chip, down to metal, on passenger door (probably could be touched up well without spraying the whole door).
My friends company does motorsport paintwork so I approached him with the intention of spraying the front bumper, rear bumper and bonnet, but after he explained that for a correct job they would blow over the front panels and rear quarters, the only panels not being sprayed with at least some lacquer are the doors! Therefore, Im going for a full respray (excluding the roof) and fixing all of the defects above in one go. Im taking some time off work to do the prep work under the supervision of the professionals, and then one of the spray guys will do all the spray work in the booth for me.
Obviously Im getting plenty of professional advice from my friend, but there are some questions I thought Id ask here:
- If I have time, Im thinking of getting the grey side trim and front and rear grey inserts sprayed as they are a bit discoloured in places. Id like to keep them grey, but does anyone know what grey they are, colour name or paint code? If not I guess Ill just have to pick a solid grey from their paint scheme?
- After the respray I want to do protect the paint as best I can. Is a sealant the best thing to use? My girlfriends mini has been a-glazed, but I cant tell if it makes any difference? Can I apply an a-glaze style product myself?
- Ill be having a few bits off the car, bumpers etc, is there anything else I should look at getting done at the same time?
- Does anyone have any experience of the prep process on an A3/S3 with any specific advice?