Rep Power: 0

I just painted my interior trim red to match my car, and here are some of the really big points which I think will greatly help any other noob paint them.

1) when you're removing the center console, and the DIY says to push UP on the bracket, ignore that. Reach behined (more towards the front of the car) the bracket you just unscreweed the screws from, and you'll find another piece of metal. Push that towards the REAR of the car, and the center will pop right out very easily.

2) GIVE THEM AT LEAST A FULL DAY TO DRY! I had to paint mine like 3 times becase I was so impatient!

3) You know how the stock peices are sort of textured? Do you want them to be smooth? Just put some some Methyl Ethyl Ketone (MEK) on a paper towel, and rub it onto the plastic. It will react with the plastic and smooth it real nice. This stuff also works well if you need to remove the paint.

4) Clearcoats didn't work for me; the clearcoat mixed with the red paint and made the whole thing white and all wrinkly...not good. Removing this is how i discovered #3

I think that's it. MIne look really nice...with the MEK plastic-altering thing, they look almost like the exterior, with no clear coat.

 
Rep Power: 0

do you have any pics?

 
Rep Power: 513

i would be interested in seeing some pictures. where did you get that "MEK" and how much was it?

 
Rep Power: 0

i dunno where i got it...sitting in my dad's garage? I'll try to get some pics up. I just painted the door latch trim and the center piece around the CD player. Tonight im painting the trim around the vents and the power window pieces.

 
Rep Power: 355

i used colored sray paint primer on mine, it settels really well, and looks good

 
Rep Power: 335

yep, 2 coats primer, and then 3 light coats of color. I didn't add clear coat because I already liked the way it shined, and didn't want to add a glossier shine.


oh and the metal thing you pushed might be the rear end of the radio/cdplayer. I pushed that too, instead of the metal bracket the screws were attached to. It budged the headunit console enough for me to grab the edges and pull it out.

 
Rep Power: 813

I saw some MEK in the organic chem lab when I was taking classes. Don't know if it's a common item.

 
Rep Power: 0

well, its in a normal aluminum can, so i suppose you can get it at pretty much any hardware store. And I also forgot to mention that I sanded the peices with 800-grit sandpaper before painting. That combined with all the coats being VERY thick, and the MEK, might have all contributed to the smooth and glossiness.

 
Rep Power: 0

what kind of paint do i get?

 
Rep Power: 0

i just went by the DIY for painting the trim piece around your stereo. I used Dupli-Color sandable white primer from Advance Auto, and Omega Enamel (red). It was a pretty close match to the exterior, and pretty glossy. You can also paint the pieces to match the Honda silver (INTERIOR), just use plastikote "import silver" or "honda silver" or something like that.

 
Rep Power: 0

thanks man