painting

[surfcity914]

i'm getting ready to paint my car, and i'm torn between 2 stock colors. signal orange, and silver metallic. my question is does anyone have any experience with metallic paint? is there a cost difference in labor/materials? is there a longevity/fading problem with metallics?

[This message has been edited by surfcity914 (edited 05-02-2000).]

[JP Noonan]

IMHO those are my two favorite 914 colors. I think the silver goes best with the classic look and chome bumpers, steel wheels with hub caps, and the covered sail panels. I like Napal or Signal Orange (not the same but close) with mags and black bumers. Just my two cents.

If the manufacture and quality of the paint are the same the metalics cost more, pearlecents are the most expensive I think. Metalics are pretty common so the price difference isn't that big of a deal, but usally white is the cheapest. I live in Miami and reds and oranges fade or turn a little pink, black and dark colors fade or crack and flake off, lighter colors oxidize... What I'm saying is it really depends on the quality of the paint more than anything, that and how you take care of it. If I had to guess I'd say the silver metalic will last longer, at least any fading will be harder to see.

[John Rogers]

I used Dupont two-stage on both our 914s, one a daily driver for a 16 year old was painted Indian Red (like a dark brick red) and the race car is Guards Red with a little more orange to make it a little brighter. The clear coat has kept the paint from fading in the two years they have been in the So Cal sun. Granted this is NOT the way they were painted originally but I wanted somrthing to last, not chip and not fade and that was what I got. The paint, sealer, clear, etc was about $325 or so. Good luck.

[mejulihn]

The quality of the paint and your prep work contribute significantly to the longevity of your paint job. Silver is a color that is fairly notorious for oxidation, but it is classic. Signal orange is very common as a 914 color. My car is Nepal Orange which is a much deeper shade of orange when you put the two together, almost tangerine. It would not be my first color choice (too 70's), but the paint is still in good shape. Choose the color that pleases you the most.

[surfcity914]

an update:
i talked to a paint shop about signal orange and silver metallic. he said that signal orange can be a one-stage, but silver will be a two stage. what is the difference, and why is a different process needed? he also told me i could select any brand of paint, but he recommended PPG and RM for affordability with quality. does anyone have experience with these paints? also, where can i find the porsche paint codes for these colors?

[John Rogers]

I think two-stage means there has to be a clear coat to make the color look correct while one-stage is just the color. Both our 914s are two stage and the color really looks weird until the clear goes on, must have something to do with light refraction, etc. PPG is a good brand as is Dupont. I would make sure the under lying paint is compatible or you will have to use a sealer to make the paint stick well. Also, if there are any body filler places, they will show up readily if no sealer is used over the old paint. We didn't use sealer on one 914 and you can see where some places were worked on, but on the other one I had the shop use sealer and no blemishes are visible. Good luck.

[B Frye]

Why not paint it the stock color?

[Bee Jay]

I had to make that same decision this past weekend. My painter didn't care whether I chose single stage or two stage. I took a few things into consideration before deciding on single stage. He wet sands between color coats on the single stage. My Corvette was painted that way 14 years ago. It still looks great, with plenty of gloss. An ocasional machine polish, every three or four years, and it looks good as new. I don't think you can do that with clear coat. I've seen some clear coats go bad after five years of So. Cal sun. I plan on keeping the car forever. That is why I also chose to have all the paint stripped, and start with bare metal. A good decision, because there were three paint jobs on the car. Another month or so, and it should be done.
The bottom line, good prep and good paint. It can be expensive, but if you plan on keeping the car, don't penny pinch.
Bee Jay

[surfcity914]

is it always better or necessary to go down to bare metal? my painter said he could do go down to bare metal for no extra cost, but it wasn't necessary since the car was pretty straight.