Painting Wheel wells -- Paint Type?

N

Neofate

New member
While I have my front wheels off, and its jacked up (Doing some work on the car this weekend so its open). I might as well paint the wheel wells black to give them a better look.



I figure I clean them off really well with a somewhat abrasive brush. Dry well.



Then tape off the edges of car and put a towel over say the brake rotor/caliper etc.



The spray paint away.



Just a quick question *for you guru's*-- Any recommendations of paint type for wheel wells?



Black of course,.. but what gloss/matte etc? Any brands come to mind?



What about for durability?



Does my process sound reasonable?



Thanks.
 
I would go with an undercoating spray. These can be found at most PBE/auto stores.



Are you talking about painted wells? or the plastic/carpet well liners?
 
Hrmm -- Painting the liners.. What is between the lip of fender (metal) and surrounds back of wheel. Mainliy the sides that are plastic. The back and top parts are a thicker rock type substance with texture.



So there is an 'undercoating spray' eh? So any autoparts store -- adv. auto parts, autozone, Napa will have this?



Not something one can grab at Walmart?



Advantage of undercoating spray? Is it by design , designed to better hold up against the elements and subjucation of the area it is in? Or is it basically relabled spray paint?
 
Only use undercoating (rubberized) if that's what's already in place where you're touching it up. Otherwise, you'll be changing the look. Also, you're opening up yourself for getting overspray all over your vehicle if you don't cover it properly, especially if your planning on doing it outside.

What kind of vehicle and are you doing all the wheelwells?
 
if you're using spray paint, it WILL get everywhere. Droplets hang in the air forever and will find their way to all parts of your car. I wouldn't go this route myself.
 
An even better option would be to remove the plastic liners from the wheelwells and paint them seperately and out of the vicinity of your vehicle. That way you don't risk your car being coated in overspray or worry about getting paint in places of the wheelwells where you don't want it. The plastic liners are generally pretty easy to remove, only being held in by a few small bolts, screws or clips. And, as mentioned above... don't use the undercoating spray unless the part of the wheelwells your looking to refresh is the "rock type substance with texture." Pretty much any black spray paint would be fine. Perhaps Duplicolor? And I would personally go with matte black.
 
Paint won't stick to the plastic liners.......



Especially when their getting blasted with rocks and sand as you drive down the road.
 
Great info -- Alot of people on another forum (well the same two over and over) keep suggesting bedliner and similiar materials. I keep trying to explain to them,.. our cars have plastic that is SMOOTH,.. I don't want it to look like a bunch of black rocks :)



I do want durability, but not a quarter inch thick 'bedliner' hehe..



I was hesitant to do the paint today, and tired after all the mechanical work I finished.. So I think I'll just remove the panels like you say -- That is definitely the safest.. Last thing I want is overspray or 'speckles of black' to deal with in my paint now.



Though removing them, I could really do a bang up job on them. I'm talking many many coats, and be a bit careless in application given the whole area can be covered. I'll have to see how they are on.



I was planning on just doing the front two wheel well's because they are so much more noticable than the rears.. But I dunno. I would be removing the wheels and that is always a pain without a lift or impact/air gun. ;)



It isn't a 'must do' -- just something that would make a good contrast and just 'clean' the lines up some, imo.
 
For the smooth plastic type inserts, why not just get a small can of a semi-gloss plastic paint and use a small foam type brush. No spraying, hardly any masking, just a little tape around the outside area.

The wheel will be off, the front jacked and blocked anyway. The spray route seems to have a lot of problems associated with it, the regular paint eliminates most of the difficulties. Toss the foam brush when you're done, strip off the tape, and the job is finished.

Krylon makes a paint called Fusion, specially formulated for plastic.

-John C.
 
I think most paint types won't stick too well to the plastic and it won't look good when part of it is blasted away. How about new plastic inserts? They can't be too expensive.
 
I'd just get new ones... paint will probably start chipping off after about a year, even if you follow these steps:



1: Clean then really good with a degreaser

2: Sand with 400-600 grit.

3: Bulldog Adhesion Promoter (you can get it at wal-mart or most auto supply places)

4: Paint (however you want, BC and CC, or just BC is what I would do)



Step 2 isn't 100% necessary, it just helps with bonding. The adhesion promoter is the main thing, though... it's definitely necessary when painting plastics. You could also prime before paint, but they're just wheel well liners... it sounds to me like it's time to go junkyard shopping for some liners that are still in good shape. If you do paint them, though, you definitely need to take them out to prep them properly and not get overspray all over your car.
 
Am taking them out --



They aren't in hideous shape as they are.. so no need spending 200$ for wheel well liners.



I got my products today..



Decided on something different,..



Krylon -- Fusion



It is specifically designed to bond with plastics. Also claims durability.



I will put on several layers with them out,.. let layer 1 dry, layer 2,.. dry, layer 3.. and so forth.



I am not going to sand down the panels I have now, as if and when this gets knocked off /worn the underneath doesn't look that bad, and is what I would want to show through. Not a sanded down scruffed surface of a possibly different color. (Not sure if these panels are through and through black).



I will post my results for sure. I am not that picky in these areas.. no worries about some texture from some things that have stuck to them.. (IE: a bit of road paint splatter is still left.. and I will paint over that on one of the panels..) -- I will clean them well though.



This paint was designed with plastic bonding as its purpose, we shall see, eh? :)
 
I'm curious, if the paint may not stick or will get knocked off easily, why not just clean and treat them with some type of durable plastic trim protectant? What's the advantage of paint over normal trim care? I could see painting them if you didn't like the color though.
 
Rob22315 said:
I'm curious, if the paint may not stick or will get knocked off easily, why not just clean and treat them with some type of durable plastic trim protectant? What's the advantage of paint over normal trim care? I could see painting them if you didn't like the color though.
Click to expand...



It should stick just fine. If it doesn't,.. oh well.



The advantage is the painted surface will look better than the trim care, and is permenant.



Also one section of a panel has residual paint splatter on it .. Painting over it will conceal some white 'drops' that otherwise stick out. (Not really noticeable, but if someone is walking around the car looking it over they might see it.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top