I know the newer (2003 and up?) SF's come with it all color matched, but I was wondering if anyone has done so, on a older one, where they are black from the factory?
a guy that lives close to me did his silver sunfire like that.... looks really bad because he tried to not paint the part that says sunfire....
Yeah, many have. I think Cannon Fodder did a write up on it.
yea mines color matched......course my car is black
people do it all the time though, mask off the word pontiac and the red reflector, spray away
My car may run 18s, but I can do your taxes in 10 seconds flat.
JBO lube - they would never have enough in stock and we'd never see RodimusPrime again
meh i took out those two bulbs and sanded down the pontiac.
those two bulbs light your license plate bro.... did you mock something up to illuminate your plate??
but yea, i have (white)
I usually dont like to take pics of the back but here is the best one i have...
before:
after: a horrible and very dirty picture..
Wow, I really like the way its looking, especially the red.
Im just wondering if its still going to shine through if I do paint over the pontiac...mmmm
Salvatiosix wrote:Wow, I really like the way its looking, especially the red.
Im just wondering if its still going to shine through if I do paint over the pontiac...mmmm
When I painted my rear panel (picture below,
all done using rattle cans, yes, you CAN get pro results with these and anyone who says otherwise is just a paint shop employee or promoter who hates DIYers), I did the following.
First, the PONTIAC letters at the top need to be sanded down so the panel is perfectly flush (the letters are slightly raised). I used 600 paper and wet sanded them down, then finished off with 1000 paper (all over the black portion of the panel to prep it for the primer. I did NOT sand the backup light lenses).
I then masked off the backup light lens area and the sides and botton of the recessed rear license plate panel.
Then - and this is
CRITICAL -- I sprayed three coats of
flat black paint over the area where the PONTIAC letters are. I wet sanded with 800 grit paper between each coat.
This is the ONLY way to insure the glow from the LEGALLY REQUIRED license plate light won't make the letters -- which are still there, embedded inside the panel -- show through your final paint job.
I then primed the entire panel. Wet sanded with 800, then primed it again, then wet sanded.
Then did three coats with the color coat - got the paint from Paintscratch.com - perfect match.
Then followed up with three coats of clearcoat (generic stuff from an autoparts store).
I let it dry for two days, then west sanded it with 2000 grit, then power buffed it out with various 3m finishing compound until is glowed like a mirror.
The results (again, below) speak for themselves. And no, even at night you can't see
ANY evidence that the PONTIAC emblem was ever there.
hey mike what rims are those that you have on that sunfire...?
"Sunfire got stolen, all i have is the J to remember it by"
i didnt spray 3 layers of flat black and my letters dont shine through.... so thats not the "ONLY way"
(i sprayed black paint on the inside)
Meh. If I ended up with a 'Fire that was color matched that way, I'd probably want to paint it black again.
Shop Manuals, Brochures:
www.kenmcgeeautobooks.com
I like the teal Sunfire like that, but the others I just don't like them like that.
<img src="http://www.majhost.com/gallery/HCAJosh/crap/shooshined.jpg">
- putting the pieces back together -
Jean wrote:hey mike what rims are those that you have on that sunfire...?
Bone stock 1998 ones. I've looked into upgrading, but the wear and tear around here are too high to justify.
Godspeed wrote:i didnt spray 3 layers of flat black and my letters dont shine through.... so thats not the "ONLY way"
(i sprayed black paint on the inside)
Good point - the "black masking" can be done on the interior or exterior of the panel, but it
has to be one or the other. If you skip that step, the license plate light will bleed through the embedded "Pontiac" letters in the top of the panel (it's bright enough to cut through primer and color coats).
Also, the PONTIAC letters are very slightly raised on the exterior, so if you want a razor-smooth finish I again recommend sanding them down. Search this site and you'll find posts from people who learned both of these "lessons" the hard way.
