Is better paint or clear coat on the way?

[ColonelCash]

Re: Is better paint or clear coat on the way?

Nissan GT-R has this self-healing paint from what I recall. Not sure if it was an option or a standard feature.

[Bert31]

Re: Is better paint or clear coat on the way?

Five to eight years ago or so General Electric's plastics division was working on making body panel out of a durable plastic which was made with the paint in the plastic. In other words, the panel would look just like a regular body panel but if you scratched the paint, you didn't need to repaint, just sand and buff the surface to level the scratch out and you were done. I have heard nothing about this in the past few years so I am guessing the long term testing did not work our as they were hoping and dropped the project. Too bad, just imagine, a body panel you could not burn with a rotary.

[Michael Stoops]

Re: Is better paint or clear coat on the way?

[We've seen some write ups of very talented detailers struggling with these paint systems when trying to correct defects (hey, what happened to the self healing aspect then????) as the paint seemed to be incredibly, ridiculously soft.]

CliffNotes® Version

Use Menzerna SIP with a Lake County (L) Orange pad, follow with Menzerna PO85 RD White (LC) foam pad.

Fine and well, but we've seen guys stating that just wiping off the hazed wax caused marring of the paint.

[TOGWT]

Re: Is better paint or clear coat on the way?

Fine and well, but we've seen guys stating that just wiping off the hazed wax caused marring of the paint.

That sounds like paint that has not fully cross-linked or a self-healing paint surface that is being detailed in a hot environment. A hard rain will induce 'hail' like indentations.

What would you advise with this extreme 'soft' paint?

[Michael Stoops]

Re: Is better paint or clear coat on the way?

That sounds like paint that has not fully cross-linked or a self-healing paint surface that is being detailed in a hot environment. A hard rain will induce 'hail' like indentations.

This further shows the problems with this paint system - it supposedly requires a fair amount of heat in order for it to self heal, which left many people in northern climates complaining that they would never experience this so called "benefit" of the paint. Conversely, if a warm surface becomes overly soft and touch sensitive, how on earth do you care for it in the southwest where temperatures will remain in the 85 to 95 degree range for months on end? Most people don't have climate controlled garages to work in, so how does one cool down the paint further than we normally would by simply parking in the shade for a period of time? And in the deep south where it can rain hard on a hot day, can you imagine the frustration of seeing, no matter how temporary, small indentations from mere rain drops??? Apparently these and others are among the reasons that use of this type of paint system was recently dropped by a major manufacturer.

What would you advise with this extreme 'soft' paint?

Buy a different car?



Seriously, without laying hands on one it's tough to say. Having worked in the past on an early '80s Ferrari 512BBi with original black single stage paint that was, by far, the most delicate paint I have personally ever touched, it's tricky at best. On that car even a light application of M07 by hand with a foam or microfiber applicator would haze the paint. We struggled with product/pad/speed combinations until settling on something that worked reasonably well, but the final finish didn't really show itself until after applying NXT 2.0 very lightly and letting it dry fully before removal. We spent almost as much time just sorting out a process as we did correcting the paint!

[StadiumDetail]

Re: Is better paint or clear coat on the way?

Smart cars have colored pastic pieces for all of thier panels, and from what I've seen on her's (she lives in cali, so that's not much) it seems there is just a clear over the plastic rather than 2-steping the paint. I could see this being the new method adopted before stronger paints, Think of a colored alum. panel or even carbon fiber that if it gets keyed only need a new shot of clear rather than a whole color matching process. Cheaper for the consumer and the manuf.

[TOGWT]

Re: Is better paint or clear coat on the way?

Polybutyleneterphtalate panels (Smart Car)

Daplen ED230HP replaces polycarbonate polybutyleneterphtalate (PCPBT) that traditionally serves in body panels, such as bumpers, side panels, tailgates, and hoods. Smart's pioneering approach to using polypropylene for full body panels is a major step forward for the automotive industry and its suppliers, Daplen ED230HP helped Smart tighten its production process while raising the environmental, aesthetic, and safety performance of its vehicle.

The TPO is an in-mass colored compound. Colours are blended into the compound to provide a ready-made base coat. As a result, post-assembly painting steps are reduced with only a painted clear coat layer needed.