Saving this `02 Taurus clear coat

[Ron Swanson]

I`ve got this `02 Taurus that has aged unusually badly on the hood roof and trunk top, and if I can just get these parts addressed the car will look so much better. I`m not aiming for anything close to perfect...just trying to make these look better so your eye isn`t drawn right to them. Rest of the body`s paint isn`t bad at all.

Hopefully what I`m seeing here is just the clear coat failing and all it needs is a sanding, 2k clear applied, some high grit sanding, and buffing. The directions I`ve found so far are to first sand with 600 all over and especially over where the edge of the clear is peeling up. Clear coat, sand with 1500, then buff. Sound about right? If it`s so far degraded that it actually needs some color work, it`s ok I`d rather not deal with that part. I just want to throw about $100 bucks at it and if it looks better then I`ll be happy.

Any suggestions on how I should approach this? Thanks.

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[Setec Astronomy]

When you say it`s aged unusually badly, I`d say you actually did pretty good if that car has been outside its whole life, if it`s only the roof and trunk, and not the hood, fenders and quarters. That being said, it`s hard to imagine you getting that to look very good, it looks like the color has been compromised on the roof. The trunk might come out ok. Also going to be tough, as you note, in the margins where the clear is peeling.

We did have a member here or at AGO that re-cleared the front fenders on his gold-ish Nissan, I don`t really remember the details, I do a quick search and see if I can find it.

PS If you are going to spray 2K clear make sure you have a good respirator.

PPS Boy, I remembered this pretty well for a dozen years ago: Updated 11/21/11: Clear Coat Failure and Repair(with all pics)

PPPS Food for thought, someone tried to duplicate the above and it didn`t come out so well, but the pictures aren`t there anymore: so i screwed up my clear coat repair, thoughts?

[Lonnie]

Are clear coat finishes (paint seems an incorrect term) water-based OR solvent-based??
I looked on line and some require a hardener.
I am NOT an auto body painter by any means, except an occasional rattle-can.

I will also ask the dumb Captain Obvious question:
Will ALL clear coats fail/flake eventually as pictured above?
AND was this failure a result of:
1) Continuous exposure to UV sunlight and temperature extremes from being parked/stored outdoors?
2) Lack of finish maintenance detailing with a timely/frequent polish and last-step product (wax/sealant/coating)?
(My apology to the original poster of this thread, Ron Swanson, if I imply that you never or infrequently did this "detailing" to your `03 Taurus. I am assuming the reason for the failure is constant environmental exposure.)
3) OEM (IE, factory original) water-based clear coat.
Seems to me that USA-based vehicle manufacturers were switching over to water-based paints and clear coats some time ago to meet EPA legislated mandates/laws for low-VOC for environmental requirements. Not sure year-wise when that happened, but I am thinking in the 1994-1996 model years.

I do see older GM vehicles with this same "problem" and assumed it was due to a poor-quality water-based clear coat.
BUT maybe it was lack of finish maintenance detailing AND constant exposure to environmental conditions OR maybe a combination of ALL those factors contributing to these clear coat failures.

[tom p.]

That is an extreme condition. I wonder if you are really going to make it any better, Ron. Even if you are able to improve the appearance today, it`s going to continue to deteriorate without clear coat protecting the paint work.

Does MAACO still paint cars for $500? Maybe you could leave the car with them for a week and let them use it as fill work when it`s quiet to keep their guys busy? I assume no body work. Is the rest of the vehicle not too far behind?

[Setec Astronomy]

That is an extreme condition. I wonder if you are really going to make it any better, Ron. Even if you are able to improve the appearance today, it`s going to continue to deteriorate without clear coat protecting the paint work.

He stated he wants to go over it with 2K clear.

[Stokdgs]

Welcome to the Forum !

The clear coat is going to continue to die off because the entire panel paint is dead.. Nothing you mentioned is going to help it for very long.

The normal way to remedy this is to completely strip ALL the paint off, clean really well, prime, repaint.. Yes, I know, this is not your intention or in your budget..

Yes, you can do whatever you want, but it will never look "normal"..

If you are ok with that then please be careful and as has been already said, use an OSHA rated respirator, so you don`t inhale those fumes..

I read that clear coat link from 2011...

The question about "back taping"... Painters do this to help Not get a definite "Line" where the paint ends, and then you have to now sand that line down level, to the rest of the existing paintwork..

Sanding - Do as much as you can, using a "Block".. They make the traditional thick, rubber, hard one that holds a part of sheet of sandpaper and thinner ones that have some flex to them... I have used the thick rubber hard ones very successfully for decades and never had an issue...

You Want to have ALL the area sanded flat, so there are no lines, indentions, etc.., showing..
How do you know the surface/s are flat???

You get a can of black lacquer thinner at the paint store, shake it up, and carefully, spray a LIGHT mist over the area to be sanded. It`s Called a Guide Coat..

Then, when you Block wet sand this down, you have a Visual of where you sanded..
You can see any High or Low Spots in the work, as you go and address them Before you put the color, clear, down...

For example, in that old link from 2011, if the guy had sprayed that Guide Coat on his work after he sprayed it, and sanded it with a Block, he would have immediately seen the Guide Coat completely Gone from that high spot line..
And when he eventually sanded it down to the Level of the rest of the work, and the Guide Coat started coming off the rest of the work, then that panel would be flat...

You also need to use your hands to feel it, after the surface is clean, dry and your hands are clean and dry...

Tape and paper off a Lot More than that video... Paint tends to go everywhere and you don`t want more work, taking it all off later...

I have seen zillions of vehicles that were supposedly painted by a pro and the Glass has some paint on it, because they did not tape off the glass

Back Tape= Get a paper and tape machine, they even make a hand held one at Home Depot, or they used to...

Load your masking tape roll and paper roll on it, and get the masking tape started on the paper, so when you pull the paper out, the tape comes with it, all stuck to the edge of the paper...

Take that paper and masking tape you cut off the tape machine, turn it upside down so the masking tape is at the bottom and the paper it is stuck to is at the top..

Tape the panel wherever you are going to tape it, with the paper still at the "top", and when done getting the tape stuck, carefully "roll" that tape and paper edge "Over", in front of you, so that the tape is also "rolled" a little with the paper, and attach that paper edge somewhere down, to the side, of where you started the tape...

Do not pull this back tape too hard or you will flatten out the tape and paper, and you don`t want to do that.. You want that tape and paper edge to be more "Rounded"....

When you now spray "in" that area that is all Back Taped around it, you will concentrate on the target area and whatever overspray you make will get mostly held up by that rolled edge of tape and paper, so when finished, there will be No Line of material to deal with later...

Good luck with this !
Dan F

[Ron Swanson]

Thanks for the advice everybody.

Last thing. If I order some base color coat from touchupdirect, do I have to use THEIR 2K clear or can I use a different brand like Dupli-Color?

[Stokdgs]

Sorry, that should read, "get a can of black lacquer paint" not `thinner"... I know I didn`t type "thinner", sorry...