I've seen a lot of minis out there with the edging around the wheels matching the body of the mini... I have some questions? ....

how did you do it, and what was the cost? anybody you'd suggest in the DC area?

Does the color match up/have you been happy with the results?

Could something like that be done to a Hionda Element, or toyota esacpe with all those matte body pieces similiar to the mini?

Thanks I'd appricate the input!

 

Having your MINI's plastic trim parts painted to match body colour is typically a very expensive, labor-intensive, multi-faceted process. The plastic trim has a textured surface. I think it requires removing all the trim, then either sanding them down slightly until smooth, or putting on many layers of undercoat until the surface is smooth, then the base coat colour is applied, and finally a few coats of clearcoat finish are applied. A reputable body shop, especially those who work on "exotics", will probably do it... I've heard it costs upwards of $2,000 to paint all the plastic panels to match the body colour.

-MB

 

But if it's done right, on the right colour, it looks really good!

 

We have it done you check some pics of the car at http://www.djkaotix.com/sugar

done by the dealership, previous to our car they only did the entire skirt we had to explain to them what we wanted. (don't know if we started the craze or not)

 

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03 MCS, DS/Blk, JCW, Prem. Sport, Nav, Lthr, Aero, HK/6DSC, Sunrf, Tint, Aux Gauges, HSport Springs & RLCArms, Flik Wasp 18x7.5 45offset, Toyo Proxies FS1

 

I had put this as one of my future project. I know a friend that built his truck from scratch said that he could help me with the painting this summer. From the previous posts, I realized to keep the paint stick to the plastic for a long time is very hard. I have no experience with painting whatsoever, so could someone insist me the proper process to do this. BTW, My car is pure silver with black roof, I was thinking to paint the plastic parts black.

 

I had the aero kit, 4 wheel arches, dash panels, and door trims painted for $400. Becuase I like to work on the car myself, I did all the removals and installations, which save on the cost. :smile:

 

I actually got an estimate this past monday to paint all the lower black trim body color I was quoted $378.00 but I did get it priced figuring on me taking the parts off myself and putting them on as well,which I'm not exactly sure how much is invovled but figured can't be that bad to do yourself and save alot of labor.

 

wow! that's a whole lota $$$ you guys saved just by taking off and putting on the trim pieces yourselves. a reputable local autobody shop over here has estimated $1285 for the job - remove, sand, paint, buff, install all the black plastic trim including wheel arches. so far my mini has been in the shop for 2 weeks as of tomorrow. today they estimated finishing on monday.

although it sounds like a whole lota labor, really the majority of the time is spent drying the current coating. then spraying the next one and letting that one dry. and so on. based on the $$$ that davecsuini and scca saved, ~$800, that must be around 8-10 hours of labor, at $75-$100/hour? does that sound right? of course, this is a shop that works primarily with higher end european autos, ie. bmw, benz, porsche. so maybe it's a bit more expensive. but in my opinion worth it. hopefully, monday will reaffirm this.

 

I think my MINI Cooper is the first in Hawaii to have ALL the black moldings, trim and wheel wells painted the same color. The factory OEM trim, not the Aero Kit.
Like previously posted, it is labor intensive and time consuming: removing all plastic panels, sanding down the textured surface 'til smooth, shoot with flex agent, shoot with primer (multiple layers) until smooth, shoot a perfectly matched Velvet Red :evil:
I must say I am very pleased with the outcome and the look

A L O H A !!

 

APU (or acrylic polyurathane) can be applied to plastic after a special primer is applied. Flex agent may not be necessary depending on what parts you are painting. We use a 4 hour hardner to speed drying time. Each application could have 4-5 coats (flash time between coats is about 5-10 minutes). With in an 8 hour period (most of that is drying time, paint time is only 1/2hour) the part would be finished. Clear coat on 2nd day

Since the primer and APU we use have good fill qualities (high solids), as mentioned by Mighty, you may not need to sand smooth (that's the big labor part of this type of a job as I see it). Special additives can be used to build up your base coats and avoid costly hand finishing.

All in all, it should not cost too much. Try to find a good sign shop (one that does exterior and understands plastic painting). We all the same paints as the automotive industry. Bring the parts and paint code to them and let them quote it.

"Leave the Gun, Take the Canollis"

 

Mikebike, I am very tempting to paint myself now. IMHO, if I want to get these painted by the pro, I am willing to spend the extra money because high quality paint job is very important. The more you willing to pay, the better it will look (in most cases it’s true, except when you get ripped off j/k).

PS. Mikebike, do I have to sand smooth the plastic trims like Kohu'ulaMINI stated above, and could please you specify your "special primer"?

 

I had mine done back in July of 02 by MINI of North Scottsdale. I had them do it before delivery. They charged $1500. Kind of steep but I wanted to have it done when I got the car. It looks like the classic Minis with the SportPack fenders.

 

Primer that I use with my system is called VPS 1 (this is the Azko Nobel paint system). These paints and primers are industrial use only. Most automotive paint companies have the additives and primers for plastic since there is much plastic on cars now to match.

Depending on the primer, you may not have to sand. After priming, feel surface to see is the bumps of the plastic are filled in. Additives can be added to top coat to fill as well. Primer dries in about 45 minutes. Each application of primer will build up the surface. Like top coat, 4-5 coats per application of primer (waiting to 5-10 minutes to flash in between each coat) x as many times necessary to fill.

Hope that helps...

"Leave the gun, take the canollis"

 

see this thread:

https://www.northamericanmotoring.co...mp;topic=19213