Safe to polish under hood?

512detail

512detail

New member
Any risks to polishing with my nano and the yellow rupes pad on the black paint under my hood?

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My exact plans are

Spray and wipe-done

Essence via nano and 30mm yellow pad

pbl v1 (still got like 1/4 ounce left, should be enough)

I`m only concerned that since it does not appear to be clear coated that black paint might come up on the polishing pad and ruin it. Since I have no idea how much these pads are going to cost, or when I can even order more...I don`t know if I should do this or not.

Need advice please

Backup plan is hand pad and essence + reload (lol)

Thanks

Brandt K.

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512detail- I do it all the time, every vehicle. Gotta be careful about it though as *many* vehicles aren`t clearcoated there and some have only a *very* light fogging of basecoat over top the primer. Sounds like yours might be in that category.

I`ve cut through with just one pass using extremely mild Finishing Polish/Finishing Pad combos. So I encourage you to do it, just be aware of the potential issues and be careful.

I never worry much about pigment from basecoat/single stage staining my pads. While it might look awful, IME it never has any functional downside. But I wouldn`t get a pad badly stained with Red/Black paint and then use it on White either ;)
 
Yep just be careful. Paint is usually thinner under the hood. I let my PE8 sit on an edge for a second too long and burned it. But the results were great. I loved popping my hood and seeing peoples reactions to a spotless and shiny engine bay.

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And besides it looking nice, smoothing the paint and then LSPing it makes it a *LOT* less prone to retaining dirt/moisture. Very easy to *keep* clean too.

Vega- The cut-throughs can happen *fast* in areas like that, huh?!?

You have that looking great, now go back and tidy up that secondary hood release ;) (Heh heh, couldn`t resist as in the pic it doesn`t look like something I`d want to touch..might just be the pic.)

While we`re discussing underhood polishing, there *is* the related topic of those Black Bits, which can deteriorate rapidly if not maintained from new, and also the zinc/cad/etc.-plated stuff, which will oxidize when neglected. Nasty, surface-rusted surfaces like this can often clean up a lot better than one might expect.
 
Thanks guys.

Maybe i will hold off until i get a softer pad for the nano.

I don`t want to mess anything up.


Im thinking maybe i should black hole then exp twice.

Then fk1000p on top for the extra protection

Or black label coating booster and call it a day perhaps?
Spend extra time on applying another coat of Sonus Motor Kote to the plastics(last one worked very well for 6 months)


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512detail- Glad to hear you`re gonna take it easy with a nice, gentle approach. No point in letting your Inner Autopia talk you into overdoing it and then having regrets.

FWIW, the last time I did this sort of thing (`93 Audi) I used 1Z WaxPolishSoft (a very, *VERY* mild polish that`s basically an old-school AIO that does a little filling), not aggressive enough to do any real correction but a bit more oomph than AIO. Topped with FK1000P which bonded fine to the 1Z WPS, which still surprises me a little.

How are your black and plated bits under there? Got any special plans for those?

Oh, and thinking of that other thread, I hope you get your tire damage sorted out. That happened to the Tahoe and I *just* got it back up the street and into the garage before it went flat (a Michelin that had to be replaced, but at least they could still get it; shame they [messed] up the barrel of that wheel :( ).
 
I agree... paint under there can be super thin.

Although..... as we`ve all heard (from the stone ages I reckon) that one can take PTG measurements under the hood, in the jambs, etc. to see how thick the paint is there, to get some sort of idea how save it`d be to buff elsewhere. As in where it`s either not been buffed, or supposedly has clear, more clear, etc.

On CarMomma`s Denali, the inside of the doors will be 55~59 mils, and outside will be 155~160 mils. So the jamb thing didn`t help there. Other than saying that it is THIN in the jambs.

I also recently checked all the jambs on my Infiniti and they are every bit as thin as the rest of the darned thing. I`ve NEVER OWNED A VEHICLE (of any type) with paint this darned thin! This friggin` thing is lucky to have SEVENTY MILS anywhere you look! I know it`s always been stupidly easy to chip, and scratches just as easily it seems. So much for ceramic clear huh?:wacko:

The only thing that I`ve found on all my vehicles, (which are all BC/CC) is the jambs, under the hood, trunk, etc. are ALL thinner than the exterior portion. Now were it old school single stage... ok.... perhaps that`ll have more paint in those areas. Back then the manufacturers were not looking to save 21.2¢ in paint per vehicle by skimping on the jambs versus the rest of the car. These days.... with BC/CC, and even blended base/clear, not to mention waterborne paint systems, they all seem to be putting on the extreme bare minimum to cover the primer. :yikes:


With exception I reckon to the new Camaro`s in black metallic. Where they are not even COVERING quite a few of them! (Can you say dealer buy back?) I can`t imagine why they`d build a $50,000+ car and the paint be so thin you can SEE THROUGH IT!!!! Not just in the jambs, but even on exterior panels as well!
 
Accumulator said:
How are your black and plated bits under there? Got any special plans for those?
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No im not into those types of things.
I`ll keep it stock looking.

I`d stroke the engine (392 crank) and keep everything else stock.(long term goal)

Visually...id like to get a black radiator resovoir, and black wiper fluid housing but other than that I`d rather put all that nickel and diming 200+ at a time into a fund for a SRT max cam (inertia motorsports happens to be 20 mins from me)

I have Ron style boxes of suspension parts in my spare bedroom. I`m collecting to do a full redo, bushings and all.
Im gonna steam everything too.




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Steam the liner...then prolly optimum carpet/fabric cleaner/protectant
Or 303 if it steams up well enough

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Oooooh, I honestly hadn`t thought to polish up the paint under the hood. I`ll probably do the same I did to my door jambs(Sonax Profiline EX 04 06 and a poly foam applicator and a spray wax). Not looking for show car perfection there, just some more shine and less scratches
 
ViperGuy21 said:
Oooooh, I honestly hadn`t thought to polish up the paint under the hood. I`ll probably do the same I did to my door jambs(Sonax Profiline EX 04 06 and a poly foam applicator and a spray wax). Not looking for show car perfection there, just some more shine and less scratches
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I just want to show the `show` crowd (in our car club) I can do under hood better than them as well :)

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512detail said:
No im not into those types of things.
I`ll keep it stock looking...
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Sorry, I was unclear (and I too generally like things to stay stock-looking even when modded)...I meant the *factory black-finished stuff*. Brackets, hood release and latch, that sort of thing.
 
512detail said:
I just want to show the `show` crowd (in our car club) I can do under hood better than them as well :)
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I get a sorta perverse kick out of keeping the engine compartments/suspensions of my beaters nicer than my pals` Concours cars. Eh, I lost interest in the JCNA Concours scene when I found out they don`t even *look* at the undercarriages and that the hoods stay shut in the "Driven Class".
 
Accumulator said:
Sorry, I was unclear (and I too generally like things to stay stock-looking even when modded)...I meant the *factory black-finished stuff*. Brackets, hood release and latch, that sort of thing.
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What should I do them? I ended up working on my neighbors Harley more so I didn`t get to finishing my hood area.
 
512detail said:
What should I do them?
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Depends how bad they are. If they`re not compromised already you could just AIO + LSP. I often wipe with a solvent first to remove grease/etc.

On compromised black metal stuff, I found that the BF GEP works surprisingly well, I even did OK with it on some surface-rusted brake drums. Top with something durable like FK1000P.

If they`re *really* nasty you might have to get inventive (I`ve actually used AutoGlym`s Bumper Care with good results on various things including nasty hood hinges..who woulda thunk it?!?), or just refinish/replace stuff.

IMO it`s basically just a matter of picking an item/area and seeing what makes it look OK. And "looking OK" can mean just not having obvious corrosion and making stuff look clean/corrosion-free enough that you could touch it without getting your hands dirty.

Plated stuff with "white corrosion" is one of my pet peeves, and again what needs done depends on how bad it is.

Get things nice *once* and then just keep `em that way with a quickie job during the wash, even just wiping down with a Rinseless will go a long way.
 
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