And I need to get it painted. My question is...does the entire car need to be stripped to bare metal or can the factory primer be sanded/scuffed and primed/sealed over it?

My car is the bright blue. Will I need to repaint the doorjams and trunk and hood areas? They are not peeling of show any signs of imperfection.

TIA.

------------------
Mike L.

The Weapon of Choice:
1987 IROC Z 5.7 TPI A4 3.27 Borg-Warner four wheel disc
Mods: 2300-2500 Stall Converter, Shift Kit(GM parts), TPI Specialties Stage 3 PROM, Modified Airbox w/ K&N's, homemade cold air, Relocated MAT sensor, Gutted MAF, 160* thermostat, MSD 6A, Accel 8mm Wires, bypassed TB coolant, Flowmaster 3 chamber single 3" in/out muffler, 3" MAC mandrel intermediate, custom dual !cat Y-pipe. airfoil, ported plenum. !smog, few others I forgot...???

**BOYCOTT LAPEER DRAGWAY**

 

don't strip it unless your paint is coming off. If you are keeping it the same color there's no need to paint the jambs and engine bay, maybe touch it up a bit, but nothin major.

 

Here comes a "the truth is stranger than fiction" story on GM paint.

I knew somebody who worked at a Chevrolet dealership here in Houston, Tx back in the late 1980's. There are a lot of problem areas on cars that the public never hears about but GM tells dealers to fix them if the customer pushes the issue.

No BS here, there was a GM bulletin to the dealers about paint peeling off in sheets on nearly new cars. It was primarily occurring on the hood, roof, and trunk areas. There was a middle level manager at the paint mixing factory that was passed over for promotion several times. He felt unjustly so. So, to get back at GM, he was pissing in the paint mixing vats. It changed the PH balance of the the paint obviously. Hence, the paint wouldn't adhere to the primer very well. There were cars being brought in to dealerships all over the US that were a year or so old with the paint coming off in sheets! The guys at the dealership were howling with laughter when they showed me the GM Bulletin on the paint peeling problem.

I can't remember the exact time frame anymore. It could have been 1987 or give or take a year. You have a paint adherance problem if it is coming off in sheets. It's the same paint and primer in your door jambs as the rest of your car. Strip it all off and start over. That way you know it will be right.

Steve
1989 IROC Convertible
22 Option "Daily Driver"

 

89vert... That sounds like an urban legend. It may be true in some circumstances, but the delamination problem stems from the use of water based primers and paint to meet emmissions laws in California. Basically, they didn't know what they were doing. It's not a GM problem, it's an industry problem.

IROC, I had mine repainted under warranty at Noonan Pontiac. They didn't do the greatest job, but it was only sanded down and repainted, not stripped. The paint's still holding up, though. The door jams, etc. should be blended in with no problem.

 

pissing in the paint,

 

How long ago did Noonan do the warranty job? I called GM, and they told me if the car is over 10 years old and 100,000 miles that its not their problem.

I am prepping the car soon, and taking it to a professional to seal/paint.

Thanks for the responses guys.



------------------
Mike L.

The Weapon of Choice:
1987 IROC Z 5.7 TPI A4 3.27 Borg-Warner four wheel disc
Mods: 2300-2500 Stall Converter, Shift Kit(GM parts), TPI Specialties Stage 3 PROM, Modified Airbox w/ K&N's, homemade cold air, Relocated MAT sensor, Gutted MAF, 160* thermostat, MSD 6A, Accel 8mm Wires, bypassed TB coolant, Flowmaster 3 chamber single 3" in/out muffler, 3" MAC mandrel intermediate, custom dual !cat Y-pipe. airfoil, ported plenum. !smog, few others I forgot...???

**BOYCOTT LAPEER DRAGWAY**

 

It was at least 5 to 6 years ago, so it's been a while. Where are you having yours done?

 

A good friend of mine, Bruce at Body by Bruce in Warren.



------------------
Mike L.

The Weapon of Choice:
1987 IROC Z 5.7 TPI A4 3.27 Borg-Warner four wheel disc
Mods: 2300-2500 Stall Converter, Shift Kit(GM parts), TPI Specialties Stage 3 PROM, Modified Airbox w/ K&N's, homemade cold air, Relocated MAT sensor, Gutted MAF, 160* thermostat, MSD 6A, Accel 8mm Wires, bypassed TB coolant, Flowmaster 3 chamber single 3" in/out muffler, 3" MAC mandrel intermediate, custom dual !cat Y-pipe. airfoil, ported plenum. !smog, few others I forgot...???

**BOYCOTT LAPEER DRAGWAY**

 

You would only have to scuff the peeling paint for adhesion and not do a complete. New technology can scan your current color hue for a perfect color match.

The paint peel was specific to mid 80's GM cars manufactured in the Van Nuys facility as the other poster suggests due to water based primer and the bone headed EPA.

 

I went to a GM dealership and *****ed about my paint (teal 91 RS), and they told me if it wasn't peeling off in the first three years then it wasn't their problem.