kyle_l88

So basically I was looking around and noticed that there are alot of mentions about painting the door guards (door strips) but no one has really made a DIY for that yet so here it is. First thing I'd like to mention is that you can take the guards off, but for me I did not feel like taking every door panel off of the inside, so instead I just taped it up around and covered the areas i need to with paper, which took about 30 mins (probably about the same amount of time it would take to mess with the door paneling).

So down to the materials. You will need the following:
- 400 grit sandpaper (400 works well for removing wax and not leaving deep scratches).
- Auto Primer (or Adhesion Promoter, either one works well).
- Clear coat (I used Acrylic Enamel clear coat)
- Auto paint (matched to your car)
- Painters tape (or masking tape)
- Paper (for covering areas you dont want paint to get on)
- rubbing alcohol
- clean cloth (for wiping down sanded surfaces).

Optional:
- Paint mask (to avoid being high and painting )
- Swirl remover/rubbing compound (for later when the clear coat cures, I will explain at the end).
- Car polish of some type
- 1500 grit wet/dry sandpaper
- 2000 grit wet/dry sandpaper
- A polishing device (whether its electric or a rag to use manually).
- old blankets (you dont care about).
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Some words about auto paint:

This is probably one of the most important things (next to the clear coat) in creating a professional looking paint job. I personally do NOT use the duplicolor line for paint code matching. The BEST way to go about getting paint for your car is by getting it professionally matched. I used a place called Paint Circuit Auto Body here in Toronto, Canada. There are other places like it around of course. These places provide chromabase paint, which is professional grade paint. Usually you can get it in many different containers, i chose to get the aerosol cans. This paint looks amazing and its very durable. It might cost you double for the cans, but in the end I assure you, you won't be disappointed in the difference.

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First thing you will need to do is tape off around the door guards. For this part you can take some extra time because the better you do this, the better the area around the guards will look after (especially right in the cracks). Use the painters tape and make sure all the areas around the guards are covered.



Next thing you will need to do is make sure that the area around the guards is covered. This is where the paper comes in, I used one of those big industrial rolls of paper, other ideas could be news paper (anything smaller than that and you will probably kick yourself lol). Now tape the paper using the painters tape (or any tape at this point would probably work) up to the existing tape around the door guards. It is also a good idea at this point to get some old blankets and lay them over the top of the car and the hood.

Here is a picture of the car covered completely. Yes I probably went a little overboard but you can't be too careful with overspray. If you are doing this outside, you might have a better chance of not getting too much overspray, but if its windy, you are sure to get paint in area's of the car that you never knew existed . I used cardboard for the hood and trunk but blankets make your life much easier.



At this point you are ready to start doing the actual work. Take that 400 grit sandpaper (other grits would probably work fine, just make sure to use something above 300 just so that the scratches are minor and the primer can fill it easy enough) and lightly sand down the door guards just enough to get off surface wax and other imperfections.



Now take that clean cloth and wet it. Wipe down the guards really well as to remove all the sanding dust from them. Once that is done let them dry and wipe them down again with rubbing alcohol. The rubbing alcohol will help to ensure that the guards are completely clean so the primer will stick better. After thoroughly cleaning them, start by doing 2-3 coats of primer (I used filler primer, it fills minor imperfections such as scratches). Use lighter coats to make sure that drips do not occur. And wait 10 minutes between each coat.



After all the primer coats are completed, make sure to wait at least 30 minutes before starting the paint. Now start painting over the primer. Do 2-4 light coats of paint depending on how well it covers the primer. I suggest 4 just to make sure. Wait 8-10 minutes between coats.



After completing the coats of auto paint, wait at least 30 minutes again before moving onto the clear coat. Start applying light clear coats to the guards. For the clear coat do at least 5 light clear coats. For the last coat you can do a heavier one, just make sure that it does not drip, so to be safe do 6 light clear coats. This clear coat is what really brings the shine out. After completing the clear coats wait about 1 1/2 hours before removing any of the paper/tape around it. Even after 1 1/2 hours it is still fragile so try not to touch it. After successfully removing the tape/paper, let it sit for a few hours to help to dry a bit more.


Depending on the clear coat you got, it should say how long it takes to cure. This is important in determining when you can start to buff/sand out the clear coat. For me it is 7 days
Some may be less, some more.

Here is some pics of the finished product




This next part is how you really make that clear coat shine.
I have tried this with other things I have painted in the past, but don't have any pictures right now of my car as I am still waiting for the paint to cure. I will post pictures later if anyone is interested.

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BUFF THAT CLEAR COAT!

So first of all, this section is really optional, you can do this or you can leave the clear coat as is; if you liked how it already turned out.
Start by getting a bucket of water with some dish soap in it.
Then wet the 1500 grit sandpaper and VERY lightly sand the guards, you are not trying to sand through the clear coat; just merely evening it out. At this point you dont really need to tape up around it as you will not be going ape **** on the guards. Sand in small circular motions. Make sure to keep the sand paper wet as you go so there isn't too much friction on the guards. The dish soap helps to lubricate the guards against the sand paper.

After sanding with the 1500 grit, wipe down the surface of the guards with a clean wet cloth to get rid of any leftover sanding garbage. Make sure that you really clean the guards off. Then take the 2000 grit and VERY lightly do the same as before. Again making sure to keep the sandpaper fairly wet. After sanding this, again wipe it down and make sure its REALLY clean. At this point the clear coat should look alot smoother. Then you can take some Swirl remover (or some type of buffer compound) and using a CLEAN cotton rag, apply the compound in circular motions. Finish it off using car polish, using the same technique as the buffer compound.

I will post pictures after I have completed this next weekend.
I hope this helps some people. I made this mostly because I was in an empty warehouse painting with no one around . Figured I'd be constructive and hopefully help someone else who may not have the know-how. Let me know what you think. Try not to rip me apart, this is my first DIY .

sam2001GLi

Ahh well done. I was just about to start looking this up, as I really don't like the black side strips, your new ones look so much better!

xRiCeBoYx

iTrader: (22)

Wow, nice write up, dude

kyle_l88

Thanks guys, I was working on the side skirts Saturday. Thats why they were missing in some pics. That real automotive paint makes all the difference in a DIY paint job. After the buffing, it will be even better

a_a91

nice write up great job man!

Mad Dog Tannen

Nice write up. Do you think you could have masked the car a little more? lol

kyle_l88

Ahahah, I did get carried away a little, but overspray is nuts. Worst thing to have is random specs all over your windshield or windows hahah. Technically it might have been easier to use a huge blanket instead lol, and a bit of paper.
Should have thought of that before I put the paper on

Nosepicker

Subscribed!

Thanks man!

Nosepicker

Subscribed!

Thanks man!

kyle_l88

Yea so I forgot I was gonna put up pics of the finished product. Here is some pics now. I also did the front and rear lips as well Now i just need to lower it and put rims and ill be all set





I think they turned out pretty awesome. Pictures aren't as good as real life but you get the idea. Considering its 300+ for all 4 items to be painted or 70$ DIY, ill stick with DIY.

Mad Dog Tannen

Looks sweet man. Good job.

gearbox

iTrader: (95)

looks like they came out nice, good match with the paint.

paulymcd7

where did you get your paint? i found a website automotivetouchup.com that has OEM colors should i trust it? also how much paint should i get for the trim alone?

kyle_l88

I would say that if you can, try to go get it paint matched at a place that specializes in paint matching. But if you don't know of any, you can order from another site or store the color code for your car. But keep in mind that car paint fades over time, some colors more than others and you could end up with a really vibrant set of sideskirts and/or door guards. If that is okay with you then go ahead, but its really personal preference.