How durable is a repaint?

[RedlineIRL]

I am looking at getting my front bumper repainted on my car due to a few problems. I am concerned that a repaint is not going to be as durable as the factory finish, and will chip a lot easier from stones, gravel, and all the other little things from daily driving. Is this typically the case? I don't want to have to get the bumper repainted every couple years due to excessive chipping. I am hoping this respray will last the life of the car.

The shop I'm going to possibly let redo my bumper uses Sikkens paints, which also goes by Akzo Nobel from what I have seen. Has anyone has any body parts repainted using this brand paint? What is the durability and finish of it? Once completely cured is it a harder or softer paint?

[Mindflux]

You are right that a respray won't be as 'tough' as an original paint job. I couldn't say for sure why that is though.

My buddy had his whole car resprayed less than a year ago and it amazes me how many rock chips he's accumulated already. Truly amazing.

I'm pretty sure the paint place he used uses PPG paints.

[jeteast99]

a respray can be as "tough" as an original paint job as long as it is prepped correctly and a hard clear is used. having the shop use a hard clear coat will be key to the durability of the paint job

[RedlineIRL]

Originally Posted by jeteast99

a respray can be as "tough" as an original paint job as long as it is prepped correctly and a hard clear is used. having the shop use a hard clear coat will be key to the durability of the paint job

What kind of brand clears are typically hard?

[David703]

I always thought the original paint was more durable because the car and the paint have opposite electronic charges at the factory that help the paint adhere better.. And that the cars are 'dipped' in paint instead of being sprayed. But again, I'm just repeating what i've heard. I don't know for sure.

[Yal]

The cars aren't dipped in paint at the factory. They are dipped in baths for cleaning and rust proofing but not final painting. Final painting is done by robots with built in "spray guns". But you are right about the electron charge. Factory paint has a chemical and electron property that allows it to adhere and dry quickly.
The process of spraying the paint in the factory is also very precise in terms of how well the paint is mixed and atomized before it hits the surface. Let face it, a guy waving a spray gun, even a very expensive spray gun in the hands of a pro, is never going to be as good or achieve the same result as a million dollar robot wielding a million dollar specialty nozzle that mixes, atomizes and electrolyzes the paint finer than the human eye can see.

Here is a little factoid I found....OEM Auto Paint Finishes

[Danase]

It all depends on the painter, process, and products used. I've seen aftermarket paint much stronger than some factory paint and visa versa.

[Accumulator]

Originally Posted by Yal

.. a guy waving a spray gun, even a very expensive spray gun in the hands of a pro, is never going to be as good or achieve the same result as a million dollar robot wielding a million dollar specialty nozzle that mixes, atomizes and electrolyzes the paint finer than the human eye can see...

Oh, I dunno My D2-series Audis were sprayed in one of those high-tech/robotic factories and my good painter does a *MUCH* better job than what's on those cars. And when we discussed his reshooting my M3, the baseline requirement was "much better than factory finish" and he kinda chuckled and said something like "well, sure..I know *you* wouldn't settle for a factory-quality job".

OTOH, that's just that guy and he's truly special.

And yeah, generally speaking repaints just aren't as durable as oe paint, but the bumpercovers can be wildcards as some are provided already painted by second-party sources.

Still, getting around to RedlineIRL's concern... IME repainted front bumper covers always just chip more readily than oe-finish ones; it's not a matter of the paint being *as hard* but rather as *TOUGH*. Talk with the painter about it and see what he says. I myself just go ahead and get the bumpercovers reshot when they need it, and I accept that I might have to have it done every few years on certain drivers.

Be sure he paints it *off* the car. This is one case where you don't want things blended into the surrounding panels. Color match isn't the primary concern here, and such things don't always (ever?) match 100% even from the factory.

[SilverSeven]

I used to have problems with stones chipping on my resprayed bumper. Then after an accident I complaint to the painter and he use a slow drying clear which he said is tougher and less prone to chippings. I didn't seem to have any more problem.

Presently my new car had an accident and he uses the same slow drying clear..? On the hood and bumper again. He said that the hood is normally quite hot from engine heat and this method is suited for the application.

[itb76]

From what I heard an epoxy primer makes for a much more durable job. The front of my VW is all chipped up. I believe that's from having two layers of paint on it; the factory and the respray. Too thick a paint is not that tough.

[RedlineIRL]

Originally Posted by Accumulator

Be sure he paints it *off* the car. This is one case where you don't want things blended into the surrounding panels. Color match isn't the primary concern here, and such things don't always (ever?) match 100% even from the factory.

I'm taking it off the car and dropping it off at the shop.


The thing is, I'm just having the lower half of the bumper redome since that's where the damage is. The painter also suggested that this would be the best approach since color mathing to the original top half would not be a problem. What they are going to do is strip some of the lower areas where the paint has spider webbed, prime, and then respray and blend those areas. They are then going to wetsand the entire bumper and reclear the whole thing. Does this sound like a typical process for a quality durable finish?


I have done some research and found out that Sikkens/Akzo Nobel offers at least 3 or 4 different types of automotive clears. Does anyone happen to know which ones are best as far as durability and resisting rock chips?

[Accumulator]

Originally Posted by RedlineIRL

.. I'm just having the lower half of the bumper redome since that's where the damage is. The painter also suggested that this would be the best approach since color mathing to the original top half would not be a problem. What they are going to do is strip some of the lower areas where the paint has spider webbed, prime, and then respray and blend those areas. They are then going to wetsand the entire bumper and reclear the whole thing. Does this sound like a typical process for a quality durable finish?

I don't know enough about this stuff to say if that's an OK approach or not, but it's not the way either of my guys would do it; they'd redo the whole bumpercover (and they'd do it off the car, which your guys might be planning to do anyhow...I'd sure insist on *that*).

Some clears work a *LOT* better/worse when it comes to "melting into" the existing clear on jobs like this, so I sure hope they use the right stuff.

I can't comment on the Sikkens, simply don't know about it FWIW I have my spot-ins (and most of my other paintwork too) done with Spiess-Hecker, which seems to work much better than the paints they'd used previously (nice and hard, good color/texture match, smooth and seamless blends into existing paintwork).

FWIW, one reason why I'm so adamant about having plastic parts painted off-the-car is the issue of "bridging"- the gaps between the plastic parts and the body of the car proper are problematic. You don't want paint across these gaps as it'll crack/etc. later. You can't mask them either because of the way the paint will end up with an "open edge" right where you need durability. When cars are built, the plastic parts are painted before they go on the car, and that's the way it needs to be done when aftermarket paintwork is performed. Of course this is just IMO (and that of my painters) and other people undoubtedly see/do things differently.