I might have found a good DIY fix to peeling clear coat.

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SprungMS@reddit

I found on a cheap car I flipped when I was 17 that the best thing to do was wet sand until the flaking edges were no longer flaking and smooth, then hit the whole panel with a decent clear coat. It costs next to nothing and if you’re good at laying rattle can paint (and not sanding through the basecoat) it’ll look about like new. Did a neighbor’s 1997 Accord because she was selling it and had a couple spots on the bumper covers, and she had seen what I did on that civic lol

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nature_and_grace@reddit (OP)

Nice! What grit? I have tried something similar but used a lower quality clear which has since cracked.

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SprungMS@reddit

Probably 2000 grit, but it’s been over a decade since I’ve done it! Flake the loose clear off first, needs to be completely removed to the point that the edge is adhered to the base. Can’t start sanding until then. Only really need to sand it to blend the sharp edge into the lower basecoat.

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arkim44@reddit

Sorry to resurrect your comment but was wondering, do you think green scotch-brite pads or even "magic eraser" would be fine enough to feather away the loose clear coat?

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SprungMS@reddit

You can probably use the green pads to remove the loose stuff, but you’re not going to be able to sand with them. Same with the magic eraser except you’re probably better off using your fingernail at that point.

Beside having proper sandpaper, you really should be using something as a sanding block on car bodies too. Don’t just do it quickly with whatever you have on hand or you’ll end up paying someone more to fix it in the end. The other key there is a quality clear coat. If you’re doing rattle can, it needs to be a 2k clear coat to hold up. Spray max seems to be pretty well recommended. ~$30/can.

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arkim44@reddit

Thanks for the quick reply, mate. I appreciate it. Tbh I only recently noticed the beginning of clear coat failure in the center of the roof, a strip maybe 3ft by 4in. I've only got coarse paper on hand and since I need a can anyway, I'll do it the proper way. Cheers!

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SprungMS@reddit

Be really careful spraying the roof with a rattle can! Unless you’ve got a rotisserie (pretty rare lol) it can be difficult to get the angle you need to spray down at a “flat” panel. You might want to try on a test piece, even some cardboard, at a similar height to the roof of the car. Make sure you can lay the paint pretty evenly before you start on the car. Might want a couple cans for that repair area. Can’t mess it up past needing to sand it back down flat while painting, for the most part, though.

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Maschinenbau@reddit

I've done this before too and had a hard time not burning through the base coat. It takes some practice. Definitely looks better than before though.

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pilot64d@reddit

a 2k clearcoat is the budget solution.

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RileyDream@reddit

for a month

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ShidOnABrick@reddit

Imagine being so confidently wrong.

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RileyDream@reddit

Would love to see u put 2k over unprepped paint. lmk how it goes

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155_80_R13@reddit

There was a guy on one of the subs that did that recently. Looked like straight up garbage.

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ShidOnABrick@reddit

What kind of dumbass puts 2k over unprepped lol

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RileyDream@reddit

the stereotypical “budget solution” guy

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pilot64d@reddit

That's a 2 component can.. You push a button on the bottom and it releases the hardener. I did it on my truck hood 7 years ago. Looks good still.

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scoobsnfish@reddit

I've done headlights that were foggy with 2k clear, that looked as good as the day I finished them, 8 years later!

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GuineaPigsAreNotFood@reddit

Shine juice!

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SuperReleasio64@reddit

Don't forget the rebuild black for all of the faded trim panels

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punkassjim@reddit

So, wait, the places where the clearcoat had peeled away came out darker than before? I’ve been wondering if it’s possible to just re-clear a car like this, or if years of sun exposure without clearcoat protection has either bleached or damaged the base coat. Got any insight about that?

Funny, I might actually follow your lead on this. Was considering either a wrap, or redoing the clear myself…but this technique might help me kick the can down the road until I can afford a good respray.

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Never_Wong@reddit

Clear coat works as a UV protector. The base colour will definitely have taken some degree of damage over the years. Red on older cars is especially bad for taking UV damage, as the pigments used to get a good vibrant red are organic. This doesn’t look that old so likely isn’t organic, however any unprotected base colour will take damage in the sun.

I would sand it down and apply fresh colour and clear. But I also have the means to do it myself as I’m a certified paint tech with nearly a decade experience.

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