I need to remove some chrome decals on my car's bonnet.
What is recommended method to remov these with out hurting the paint?
The decals are also over the 3Mclear bra.

Once all is removed what should be used to to properly clean the surface to make it ready waxing?.

I just purchased some Zaino products but I am waiting to use until I get the decals off the car.
I do plan on replacing them at AMVIV3. I decided to remove the old ones myself to save some $$. So once I get the old ones off should I hold off on wax until after the new ones are applied? Or is it Ok to go ahead and wax even though I plan of putting new decals on?


Any advise is appreciated

 

To remove decals you're best bet is to use a hair dryer (not a heat gun as they get too hot) Once you get it off it's probably best not to wax the bonnett as when you get to AMVIV they'll wash the bonnett with wax remover

So what are you getting at AMVIV?

 

Chrome Bonnet and Boot Stripes w/ black pinstripe
I applied the chrome flames I have on the bonnet now but it was a real pain in the a** and they are already peeling at the edge so I decided to remove them and get the chrome stripes.

I really wanted the chrome flames replaced by a professional but I just couldn't afford it.

 

oh, I forgot to ask what about using 3M decal remover is that easier than hair dryer?

 

I've never used teh 3M decal remover but I have heard that it works really well. Of course it helps if the car bonnet is warm (makes peeling back the decals easier)

 

Well I have to get them off before we leave on the 23rd-and the weather here has been very weird-one day it snows the next it is 70 degrees.
I am going to plan on working on the car tomorrow-supposed to be 60ish
I will start out with the hair dryer is that is too hard then I will go buy the decal remover.
Thank for the advice!

 

I use the 3m adhesive remover. Works great for the removal and supposedly safe on all paint, but not sure about that clear bra.

 

I hate advesive remover.

they say it is safe for paint, but i have seen it lift paint before, its kinda strong.

heat the decals up with a heat gun, peel them off, and remove any glue left over with goo-gone.

 

^^^ +1
Heat is your friend. Working around your clear bra, stay far, far away from decal remover unless you wish to replace the bra as well.

 

Ive destickered 3 vehicles including a company truck.The hair dryer followed by go-gone is what Ive always used.Any other adhesive removers strips wax off.

 

Tried to use hair dryer, then razor blade, then adhesive remover. On the parts of the hood that were relatively flat the chrome decals came off ok. I couldn't get the chrome decal off the curved part of the hood.

And after all that found some dents in the hood that were caused by a shelf that fell in my garage. So I thru in the towel and took it over to the body shop and had the hood sanded and repainted. So now even the clear bra is off. Don't think I will replace it

Worried about the paint being cured before we drive it to Vegas. I picked it up from the body shop in Friday-we leave for Vegas on Thursday.

How long does the curing process normally take? Does air temperature affect that? Also how long before it can be waxed?
The new stripes are to be applied on Friday will that be long enough?

 

Well, I just had my front bumper, bonnet and rear bumper repainted due to some paint 'issues', so I'm speaking from recent, still in progress, experience.

At the factory, they're able to bake the paint finish at a very high temperature because it is just the metal body of the car, no rubber and plastic to worry about being melted. In a body shop...big difference, they can't do the same thing. So, while when you get your car from the factory the paint IS cured, it ISN'T when you get it back from the body shop.

As the paint cures, it 'outgases', and therefore, you should not put any striping or clear bra material on it for at least 2 weeks. My dealer is having me wait 3 just to be sure. If you cover up the paint too soon, it could cause the stripes/clear bra to get bubbles in it, and also damage the new clear coat/paint.

So far as polishing and waxing, you should be fine and okay to do that now, in fact, it probably was already waxed by your body shop, but you should call them to be 100% sure. I've already polished once and waxed twice in the 2 weeks since my paint was redone.

Hope this helps!

 

NOOOOO!!! dont wax it!!!

Factory paint is baked, from the bodyshop, its still relatively soft.

I would wait at least a month to wax. I would only use a soft microfiber cloth to dry it until then if you decide to wash it. Stay away rom the pressure sprayer for a while on the fresh paint too.

all the bodyshop would have done was wetsand the clear then buff the paint to get out the orange peel, they shouldnt have waxed it yet.

 

I hope you're wrong - I specifically called my dealer after picking up the car to ask them if/when I could polish/wax. He told me he'd call the body shop and then call me back...about 5 minutes later, he called me and said they had already waxed and buffed it so they said it was completely safe for me to do so now.

My recommendation would still stand to call the dealer/body shop and ask them directly, they're the professionals when it comes to that kind of thing (not knowing what you do rednwhitecooper , maybe you are one of those professionals!)

 

I would highly recommend, and I think Rick will agree, not to wax or stripe for 60-90 days. As was mentioned above, the new paint will be out-gassing the solvents and if you trap those in, you may end up with bubbles.
We would sometimes put on a glaze after wetsand/buff, but never wax.
Is it possible the bodyshop meant that they had waxed the rest of the car to match the gloss on the fresh paint?
Better safe than sorry.

 

Well, great ...now you guys have me in a panic! Isn't there someone here who works or worked in a body shop who can give us a 100% definite answer on this?

The dealer and the guy who does their striping agreed (individually and apart from eachother) that 2-3 weeks was a good amount of time to wait for the stripes to go back on my bonnet...far short of 60-90 days!

With as often as I polish and wax my MCS, there is no way they had to wax the rest of my car to equal the finish on the new paint job - not to mention, I only have 6K miles.

 

Are you talking about the wings? If so... they are bolted on

 

Wow, if it's not too late, forget about the heat gun and razor blades.

Get one of these
http://www.signsupplystore.com/produ...idproduct=2033

LIL CHIZLER VINYL REMOVAL SQUEEGEE


I use them all the time to remove vinyl, and its the safest way to get an edge and lift the vinyl away without damaging your paint. It's basically a small plastic squeegee with sharp edges that can slide under the vinyl without harming the finish. Since it's tapered, as you push it under, it lifts the vinyl away.

As for waxing after having paint done, go by the body shop recommendation. There are certain body shop safe waxes that can be applied. But generally 30 days is the recommendation as a minimum.

We have a small thread here on our ShowCarGarage.com website on this
http://www.showcargarage.com/forums/...ight=wax+paint

 

15 years in that trade. Anything else you'd like to know?
It's your car, do what you want.

 

Well cool, good to know...I just wish I would have been given the same advice from the body shop / dealership. Now it's too late and I guess I get to worry about what could happen down the road with the finish. Joy, joy, joy.

 

I have been painting lots for about 7 years now. First car I painted was a black fiberglass car (Vette)



I would just be careful with the hood for now.

unless you see anything unusual, you should be fine.

The paint is still dry when you get it back, they do heat up the paint booth to get it hard, but you should be careful with any base/clear paintjob right after it was painted, as it is still rather "soft"

 

Well I guess I did everything wrong :(
I drove the car to vegas 1 week after getting the hood painted. I arrived in Vegas with a couple a chips inthe paint. It was snowing and there was tons of chemicals from the road and sand in the road all over the car when we arrived in Vegas. I immediatley got the car steam cleaned on the outside which left some grungy stuff on the sides. The next day I had it steamed again, this time all the grunge was removed.

At AMVIV3 I touched up the paint and had a clear bra installed again on Sat ( did want to deal with the same chipping of the paint on the way home).

On Sunday I had the stripes put on. We drove back home on Monday
Yesterday I washed it with Dawn, used a clay bar on the whole car and then Zaino'ed it twice.

I really looks awesome but holy cow that was a full day job.


I will try to post some pics later today a long as it is sunny outside today

All in all I made a couple of mistakes but I am still happy with the way the car looks today and it is almost two weeks since the hood was painted

I guess how this turns out only time will tell

 

Those guys with the steam machines did more damage than good to the MINIs. If you watched them do their "magic", you should have cringed when they took those rags filled with dirt and particles from the ground and wiped down the paint after cleaning the wheels.

They threw the used towels on either a piece of astroturf or a set of wood pallets. You could see all kinds of junk. Then they would use those same towels on the next car.

First of all, I can't believe anyone would think that blasting hot boiling water on your paint is good, The biggest benefit was to the guys doing the work, no water runoff to contend with.

If I had brought my full set of detailing chemicals, those guys would have kept me busy 24 hours fixing everyones car, but I had to turn people down and fix only the MINIs with defects in one area.

Good luck, I hope they didn't do any permanent damage to your new paint.

 

for the impatient, overly d-i-y people: i found an impromptu tool for removing the bonnet stripes off my 2006.

if you get 25-100 cd's at a time they come in a "cake box" stack. and on all of these i've seen they're made from this plastic that is perfect for getting under the vinyl, but soft enough not to mar at all.

i just cut a 3"x3" chunk from the cylindrical side, bevelled a really nice (sharpish) edge with a razor blade. and started peeling... there were a few inches here and there of gummy hairlines on the edges remaining that i removed by using the sticky vinyl i peeled off.

cost 0, time waiting for a tool 0.

 

i have plastic razor blades i use from my PDR's glue tool that i used
to agitate the adhesive after removing clearbra off my other car.

my car came with clearbra on the sidepanel and some branch or something
caught it tore it up pretty bad... but thanks to 3M, no scratch on the
paint.