Ok, Im going to be pulling my wifes car into a heated garage and pulling everything off to do a full paint job. and I was wondering how do i strip the paint, and what is easier to do pull the fenders and bumpers off too or get them painted while still on the car. I won't be painting it just trying to save a little money. Also Id like to get the undercarriage done as well maybe with like rhinoliner or something. Also what are the better paints to go with. Ive never done this so im gonna need help. Thanks

 

if your going down to bare metal....you have a few choices. You can chemically strip it or you can strip it by sanding it all down. Chemical stripping is really messy....and you can burn your skin if your not careful. Last time I stripped a car, i put an 80 grit disk on my buffer and stripped it that way. Alot of dust? Yes....tons....but it came right off...just have to becareful of your corners and body lines. Also, def. take your bumpers off...door handles, mirrors, windows........thats the only way to do it in my opinion.

Make sure to use Etch primer since your stripping down to bare metal. As for paint....there are TONS of products. Your best bet would be to go to an Auto Body supply store and ask them what they recommend. For Show? Daily Driver? Garage Queen? It all matters to a point. And the main thing when making a car look super slick....with no wavy body work is to prime....block..prime..block..prime...block. Use a good high build urethane primer. And first, block it with 180...that way it will cut through high and low spots instead of going on top of high and low spots like 320 would do. It's almost a guarantee for a car to look as straight as an arrow....

 

Id vote to sand it all to bare metal, clean the metal, then put an etching primer on it. then do all your bondo work, urthane prime it, block it with 180 at the highest, do any feathering if necessary, then high build primer, then paint.

only take off what you need to, no sense making more work for nothing... I took off my door handles, weatherstripping, ground effects, all the molding, any louvers (if any), spoiler. when sanding around your bumpers if you leave them on, tape em up so you dont make a mess of em.

 

Ok, so what could be done to protect underneath from future rusting. And I really don't know what you mean by blocking, I can do mechanics but not painting or planning, just install or removing of parts.
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Also, it will be driven only summer and warm sunny weekends but I'd like the paint job to make jaws drop.

 

If you don't have any knowledge of body work you may want to invest $20 into a good how to book, maybe pick up 2, you can pick em up at an auto parts store, book store, or online. I got one from borders, and borrowed a few from a friend, I haven't started my body projects yet, but they are upcoming and I feel that I should be able to handle them, But I plan on having my car sprayed professionally, I just figured it would make less mess, no overspray, it will look better done by someone who knows what they are doing, and I don't have to worry about where to do it/dust/ventilation ect. However I plan on doing all the body and prep work myself to save on cost. Just my opinions on the subject.

 

100% agree and even go to some shops and talk to a few body techs if you can. Becareful at some of the old school books though....ALOT of the information is WAY outdated and can make things really hard...

 

the only way i would ever take a car down to bare metal is if its been painted more than 3 or 4 times.......you will find sooooooo many dents doing that.....my advice would be to block the entire car down so that you can see all the dents.....fill them, primer the entire car....apply a guide coat, block the entire car again with 180, spray one more light coat of primer over it all again, then water sand it with 400 grit then with 600, dont forget to add some flex agent when you spray the bumpers

 

I prefer to loosen the bumpers so that the paint can be properly shot in between. This allows for a good job but is less hassle for your body guy than bringing him a whole stack of individual parts. Removing the rear spoiler is a good idea though and definitely the tail lights. There is a piece of folder steel below the lights that can get pretty rusty. It is only visible with the lights or the bumper removed. As for the undercarriage, it depends on the current condition and how far you want to go. Ideally you want to get rid of rust anywhere you can. Lots of wire brushing and an anti rust paint. There are professional products out there but I've had surprisingly good success with Tremclad from the hardware store (again this is for underneath and out-of-sight areas only). To keep rust at bay and maintain the status quo you'll want to try to remove loose dirt, rust, old tar undercoating etc. with a good pressure washing. Spray a coat of light penetrating oil (preferably with some rust inhibitor) and allow to soak in for a few days. Repeat with light oil until rust appears darker brown for at least a week at a time. For a summer only car you can stop here or move up to something a little thicker, like chain oil, to keep the atmosphere off. You'll want to repeat this whole process every year but with only one coat of the penetrating oil. If you decide to have the car rust proofed "professionally" make sure you can watch while it is done, that the stuff that they are applying is not tar or wax based and that they have an extension wand to allow for spraying into the frames and above the top edge of the fuel tank. Sorry to be so long winded. Jon