i painted my car two summers ago, ididnt have the time or the resources to do an all out paint job like ive seen on this website, i.e. i couldnt take out the interior and paint in there, couldnt afford time to take off the GFX, or pull the motor or any of that stuff, this was and still is a daily driver.

now because of the whole not being able to take off the GFX, ive found a couple of spots of paint chipping from the whole plastic vs. metal area where the two meet up, and somehow a spot of rust has appeared ...two summers ago was my first paint job, i didnt really expect it to be that great, but with the color, the 4th gen wing and a couple other little things done to the car, ive gotten nothing but compliments, even from those that say "ugh...its just an 87 firebird" who now say "that thing is and 87 firebird!!"

anywho, i have pictures that i will try to post later of the chips im talking about, buti really want to know what i can do to fix this, im 22, unfortunately i still live at home, i have a dead end job to barely cover cell phone, food and car insurance, and no garage to work in...this work would have to be during the summer (when i get my beach job back and start bringing in some cash) and this time it willalso have to take place outside. because it is still my daily driver, i will most likely not be able to take off the GFX, but im trying to just patch up the spots of paint that are annoying me by sanding it down and spraying color there and then re-clearing the rest of the car that will be wet sanded.

but is there any other way i can do this to save not only paint, but also save time and learn a new trick?? i know it was a long story but i felt i had to tell it in order to give anyone willing to share an opinion the whole view of the problem. also i know i got a response before about a similar thread i posted about possible short cuts to get around having to re-paint the two rear quarters, im still wondering about possible short cuts, but am also wondering about if it woudl just be easier for me to take the route i mentioned above.

thank you for all of your thoughts.

ps...i know some people are going to say 'just let it slide, wait till you can afford to do it the right way' but after spending a whole summer doing prep work and then 2 days painting the body, 1 day painting the door jambs, a day painting under the hood, and a culmination of about 4 or 5 days spent on the damn 4th gen wing (cuz it kept fish eyeing even with anti fish eye additive and a thoroughly cleaned surface)....and just after all this work, i hate to walk out to my car every day and see these paint chips....its a real hit to my ego and morale about the car sometimes, i want to get the pride that i had the day after the paint job back....sorry about all the writing again.

 

grind the rust away, prime it, spray a little base coat, then reclear the 1/4 and blend it up the b pillar.. I'll try to find a video to demonstrate blending because it would be impossible for you to understand even if I spend an hour typing it all out.

edit: sorry I couldn't find any videos demonstrating it, if you want I could take a shot at making one for you.

 

its up to you, i'd really appreciate it if you could but i understand if you cant. ive had to 'blend' it kidna sorta when i repaired mydoor after someone hit me a week and a half after painting, but that was easy cuz ijust repainted the whole door...for some reason i just get a feeling in my gut that this task now is going to be harder for some reason.


oh i forgot something else...i also need to repaint myfront bumper (yes, i hit one of those wheel stop cement things, my damned license plate bracket hangs down about a 1/4 of an inch, 1/8 of that caught the cement stopper, and then fell out, and slammed into my bumper, now its all cracked and stuff) but with this i need to sand all the way down to the rubber, correct? any specific kind of primer to use on this? also i was told base coat/clear coat was good for using on rubber bumpers cuz it can take the expansion in the heat or something like that.

 

Ill try to get a video today, Im supposed to be blending in a 1/4 panel on a buick so if I end up going in Ill get one (but Im pretty sick so I may put it off until tomorrow)

and if all the paint on your bumper spiderwebbed then I'd say take it down only as far as you need to, so once the spiderwebs disappear you should be okay. and just use regular primer and basecoat/clearcoat. you could add a flex additive if you wanted to but I for one feel those are un-necessary.

 

http://autobody101.com

The forums on there cover the concept of spot repair and blending very well. you are better off reclearing the whole panel though, most off the repairs are seen when a clear is just blended in. FYI a gallon of clear and reducer should only run you around 80$ so it's not to bad.