Hey guys, just picked up my new mini this past weekend. It is a cooperS manual pepper white. I want to do a bunch of things to personalize and make this car my own and that includes ditching the front bumper (when a nice aftermarket option is available) and painting the skirts and flares to match the body color. What is the best way to go about painting these plastic pieces? Is this a job any joe can do? Thanks and I look forward to being a part of this community.

 

I'm not sure about the removal of the plastic pieces, but the paint job I would recommend having a professional do. Don't get me wrong, you can do it and you can make it look fantastic, but if you're not experienced with painting then a pro would be better.

There's a few things to consider. For example, the plastic parts your speaking of painting have a texture to them. Do you want to keep that texture or do you want the plastic to be smooth like the other plastic parts on the car? If smooth, then you need to understand sanding, primer and preparation. If you want the texture, then you don't need to sand as much, but you'll need an adhesion promotor because if you do sand then you're going to change the surface of the plastic.

It really depends on how handy you are. One thing that's nice is that white is very forgiving when painting. So if you are doing this yourself and you have a little spec of dirt in the finished product, it will not be very noticeable.

You can PM if you want. What your tackling paint related is what my company does (not the painting, but the materials) and I'll be glad to offer any answers to any questions you might have. I don't want to sound self-promoting on here but I'll gladly offer any advice I can.

Nice car BTW!!

 

You can also try matching a Plasti-Dip color from Dipyourcar.com, a cheap, quick and effective way of painting without much prep work. Easily reversible too if you don't like the outcome.

 

It might be tough to get a good color match, but it's an excellent idea, for sure. It's always nice to be reversible and then it can be decided if the overall look is what's trying to be achieved.

 

audisyr. Definitely remove the trim. Don't paint it on the car!
I've removed my front bumper including the front wheel arches. Not too hard. I did a "how too" here...
https://www.northamericanmotoring.co...m-removal.html




Please post pics when you are done!

 

Plenty of people have painted the black plastic wheel arches and some the lower side skirts. As I recall the parts were sanded first then painted, almost always by pros. They look great especially the wheel arches. The other consideration is to wait until the factory JCW body kit becomes available, maybe this fall. In the past it was dealer installed for $1300 (I think). That's both bumpers and the side skirts, not wheel arches. I really like the painted side skirts on my car.

 

I plan to do this and get rid of the reflectors on the fenders. They irk me.

 

Those reflectors are also lights...

 

Thanks for all the replies. Looks like i may try this on my own if i can gather up the supplies. Touchup, look for a pm from me soon. Thanks for the pics GregoryK