Interior Exterior
Q:
I just had my car repaired after an accident back in July.
Part of the repair involved installing a new rear clam and painting it. Color is Magnetic Blue. The body shop had to blend the paint into the doors to achieve a color match across the whole car. The body shop says they got the "Paint Codes" directly from Lotus, so it should be the same color as the original.
However, I've noticed that the new paint is quite different both in terms of depth of color and smoothness of finish. The new paint has much more flake in it and is visibly brighter than the Factory paint job. Also the clear coat is much smoother on the aftermarket paint. The factory-painted part of the car has a rougher, almost like a light sandpaper, "gritty" feel to it.
When I commented to the Lotus tech about this, he acknowledged that he has seen "better" paint jobs on repainted cars when compared to the original, factory paint.
I've attached "Before" and "After" pics of the car, although I recognize that lighting and camera angles make an accurate comparison tough.
I'd be interested to know if anyone else has noticed this or is something else going on. Maybe, over time, the new paint will "fade" back to the OEM shade?
That said, I really like the new paint, so much so that I might have the whole car done that way.
Thanks for any input.
Wayne.
A:
Claying the finish of the oem paint took care of the fine grittiness in my Elise. Smooth as glass now.
A:
In order to get a perfect match, you need to take a photospectometer reading of your original paint in bright sunlight. PPG paint dealers use this in what they call their Prophet System paint matching. There are also a number of metallic particle sizes that the paint matcher needs to accurately match. Blending the paint through the adjacent body panels is the accepted method of concealing a slight mismatch, and if done well is almost undetectable especially with a two-stage base coat / clear coat paint which Mag Blue is.
Your body man is correct. Lotus' factory paint sucks. I have mismatches, orange peel (appropriate for Chrome Orange, I guess) and heavy pearl areas all over the car. Sometimes you just have to accept the nature of the beast.
John
A:
Like Prolene said, the roughness of your original clearcoat is likely due to contaminants. Claying it would smooth it out
(btw Prolene, is that Little Ninja? Did they ever finish it?)
A:
FWIW, given the difference in color of the driveway background in your photos (if it's the same driveway), you're right about comparing the color.
That said, I got a new rear clam recently (track damage), and the body shop did an excellent job matching the color and spraying it - the quality is much better than the original, and it isn't subtle. In addition, they spent a fair amount of time smoothing the clam, so it is much flatter than the original factory clam, and looks better as a result.
ed
A:
Clayed mine, too. It is also Mag Blue. Smooth as glass!
A:
Thanks everyone for the input, I appreciate it.
Any suggestions or recommendations on which clay product to use? Also, can you clay the Star Shield? It also feels gritty.
Wayne
A:
I clayed the Starshield as well. No ill effects. I used Zaino's clay bar.
A:
Like Prolene said, the roughness of your original clearcoat is likely due to contaminants. Claying it would smooth it out
(btw Prolene, is that Little Ninja? Did they ever finish it?)
Waydui, Mother's, Meguairs, Zaino all should work well. I have used the first two.
The paint on my Elise seems to be perfect in metallic eveness, lack of orange peel, etc., glad to see. Generally speaking, I have always thought factory paint is the best. I don't like the idea of blending to get a color match, but if it works, that's all that matters, I guess.
Little Ninja is great, Zeede. I have yet to see that the final episodes are out.
A:
Clyde mentioned that the cars are painted by 4 guys in 20 minutes. I had some damage to my front clam and had it repaired and painted locally. I never thought that my car had a bad paint job, it was prepped and polished with Zaino shortly after delivery. The new paint job looks great and perhaps a bit smoother than the original. I wouldn't say it's a huge difference but I (think) it's a little better.
A:
I don't want ot knock Lotus, but when I had my rear clam replaced, the paint came out better than the original. In addition, the shop did a better job of re-installing the clam (line looked better) than the original. But I did have a pretty good paint job to begin with, too.
i'll probably get mine painted again in a few years, but right now I'm contemplating how much a new starshield would improve the appearance (lots of cone marks).
A:
Waydui, Mother's, Meguairs, Zaino all should work well. I have used the first two.
The paint on my Elise seems to be perfect in metallic eveness, lack of orange peel, etc., glad to see. Generally speaking, I have always thought factory paint is the best. I don't like the idea of blending to get a color match, but if it works, that's all that matters, I guess.
Little Ninja is great, Zeede. I have yet to see that the final episodes are out.
I have used the Zaino clay bars, and they work quite well.
Prolene: I thought Little Ninja was great, too. Surprisingly violent, but good.