in the pic below he has the fenders painted. now can you buy them painted or do you need to take them off and bring them in for painting? if they need to be removed, how do they come off? i ove the way that looks, and would do the smae except in black.
thanx
ja

 

Many people on MCO have had their fenders painted. When I took my Mini to the best body shop in Danbury, CT, they said they wouldn't paint the fenders. They said no matter what you do to prep it, the plastic wouldn't allow the paint to stay put for any length of time.
Sure wish I could get mine painted red but I think I will stick with this shops recommendation.

 

>>Many people on MCO have had their fenders painted. When I took my Mini to the best body shop in Danbury, CT, they said they wouldn't paint the fenders. They said no matter what you do to prep it, the plastic wouldn't allow the paint to stay put for any length of time.
>>Sure wish I could get mine painted red but I think I will stick with this shops recommendation.

That seems strange to me.. I thought the fender material was the same material used for the bumper covers? I know on my MR2 when I had it repainted they used a different paint for the bumpers because they were rubber/plastic. They actually mixed a Poly-somthing with the paint to make it more fexible so it wouldn't crack.

 

Well, as long as they are putting plastizers in the paint and primer, there should be no issues with the paint adhering to the plastic. Typical bodywork done in "plastic" like our front and rear bumper covers are made of polyurathane, a specialized plastic with a smooth surface. The lower plastic trim which you want painted is a more flexible plastic type, not polyurathane. It will require prep work to get to a smooth surface. Now here is the problem. Since it's not the tough polyurathane but a more flexible rubber/plastic substance, painting them will work, but upkeep may suffer. Whereas with metal or polyurathane, there is is little deformation of the panel when hit by an outside source, like a rock. But the easily pliable lower plastic trim is easily deformable and therefore will chip easier.

R

 

If you don't mind asking But who did the painting? Did you take them off your self? and how much did they charge you to paint them??