Bondo on my interior pieces?

mr3000 · 06-30-07, 11:01

Hi, I was wondering if I can put Bondo on some of my plastic interior panels and dash parts to make them fiberglass....any help?

EOppie · 07-01-07, 01:34

What's your goal? A Repair? or to Replicate the parts?

mr3000 · 07-01-07, 02:08

I'm wanting to paint them to match my exterior with touch up paint, but i figured it wouldnt stick to the plastic itself, so I figured i could bondo them so the paint will stick

salty · 07-01-07, 03:26

Don't know your color, but there are plastic paints that stick well with proper prep.

I would try proper prep, before bondo.

PRB · 07-01-07, 10:58

Body filler in no way enhances adhesion.

Most likely, your plastic parts have been treated with some sort of silicone product in the past, making paint adhesion all but impossible without properly prepping. Wax and silicone remover with several new towels will be a good start.

Are you going to do some spot repairs due to color match problems or are you going to do a full custom paint job on them?

Body filler can be used to cover texture, but what works better is a medium-high build sprayable primer. It will require the above prep cleaning as well as some scuffing or even sanding, followed by a few coats, sanding, a few more coats, and sanding until you're satisfied with the end results.

xtremekustomz · 07-01-07, 11:11

NOOOOO. Not unelss you are going to cover it. You can sand with like 36 grit and clean it well and it MAY stay but I wouldn't recommend it. If you are wanting to get rid of the texture and make it smooth, get out some sandpaper and sand it off. I'd start off with some 80 and work my way up to 180 (if you are using automotive gun use 180, if not sand with 320). Go buy some plastic cleaner and adhesion promoter. Clean the part well and spray the adhesion promoter on. after that spray with some primer and sand slick with 400 grit and you are ready to paint. PM me and I'll walk you through it.

mr3000 · 07-01-07, 12:11

Ok, well I have a pearl yellow 3000gt and I'm wanting to do a custom interior with my exterior paint color, so just sand it and clean it up and it will be ready to go?

ninjalogan · 07-01-07, 07:26

I've heard good things about Bulldog Adhesion Promoter for painting non-metal exterior parts...but think it would work in other applications as well.

If you're trying to go for a smooth "fiberglass" look I think you should try your hand with...well...fiberglass.

mr3000 · 07-01-07, 08:47

well I think I'm gonna just clean it, sand it , paint it....I'm also thinkin about wrapping them with the clear paint protection sheeting, for added protection so it wont scratch off

xtremekustomz · 07-02-07, 12:16

Listen....I do this kind of work so trust me on this. If you want the plastic to be smooth like the outside of the car you are going to have to sand the texture off of it. There are alot of people that see a painted dash or something inside of a vehicle and say it is fiberglass. 9 times out of 10 if it is a factory dash, the texture was just sanded off and it was painted with auto paint. Are you doing the painting yourself? If so just got to Lowes or some place like that and buy you a cheap paint gun. You can use it to spray primer and the paint/clear. Sand the plastic down smooth. Get some plastic cleaner (3M can be bought at Carquest), clean the panel really good, spray an adhesion promoter on it (also 3M at Carquest), and let that sit for at least 20 minutes before priming. If you are going to prime with an automotive paint gun you can sand the panel down with 180 grit and the primer will fill in all the scratches. After that sand the primer down with 400 grit (wet usually works the best and you don't use as much paper). Wipe down with final clean (also 3M but you could just wash the piece with some dawn) and be sure to let it dry for a while. After that you are ready for paint. There is alot of work involved in it but the final product is well worth the time.

xtremekustomz · 07-02-07, 12:18

I've got a dash out of a '96 Silverado that I will be spraying soon. I'll be sure to put some pictures up.

mr3000 · 07-02-07, 12:33

Ok, well I was thinking about using the aerosol touch up paint for plastic, thatt would work right? Also a couple days ago before I posted this thread I contacted Bondo when I got the idea, They just now contacted me back-"Bondo does not work well on plastic, I would recommend using our Dynatron #
662 Semi Rigid Epoxy Repair kit."