Painted Skirts, Bumper and Front Grill Black

I was at wits end with that horrible gray all around my Montreal Blue 1995 325i Vert, so I originally thought I would scrub the grey off to the Montreal Blue. Started the job and was having some success but decided that, in my opinion, the skirts, bumper and front grill would look cool gloss black.

I got some 400 grit paper and sanded down the skirts, then wiped with mineral spirits followed by tack rag. For the skirts I purchased two rattle cans of gloss black Krylon Rust, two rattle cans of Krylon Fusion for the plastic bumper and grille and two rattle cans of Krylon Clear coat for everything.

I spent most of Friday and Saturday taking my time. I gave each skirt, rear bumper and front grille 5 very thin coats of black followed by three coats of clear. Came out awesome. Only pissed I didn't do it sooner.

My whip looks really clean trimmed in the gloss black. Only thing that I messed up was after I sanded the skirts, I didn't rewash the car, I only wiped down the to be painted surfaces as mentioned. After the job was complete I waited till Sunday to wash the car to get all the dust off. Well, some of the fine dust would not come off and the surface of the paint felt rough. At first I was concerned that it would not come off but then I decided to clay the entire car. Claying worked like a gem, paint is as smooth as a baby's buttocks.

Okay, you know the drill... PHOTOS!!

I know, I know. Hopefully I can get some good shots tomorrow. Test assured as soon as I get time I will post them up.

I need pictures...

I need to do something to keep my black looking black.

photos naow!!

OMG pics. My first E36 was Montreal Blau. Gorgeous!!

Here"s some pictures before and after. I still need to breath some life into the trim.

Before:


After:

Looks great! How have your BMWs been running lately, anyway?

Great, thanks for asking. I finally diagnosed the Warm start problem with the ZHP. I suspected a leaky fuel injector but being lazy I tried everything else before pulling the fuel rail. The injector next to the fire wall had a slow drip. Replaced the injector and car starts perfect. The ZHP also just got new tires and a full detail.

My baby, the E36, is starting to show it's age. Just fixed the bat ears and head liner on the top. Replaced the power steering reservoir and all affiliated hoses and trumpet. Bought some sweet Style 68s and sold the Style 30s. Replaced the brake light switch. New akimbono ceramic brakes and brake fluid flush.
I still have not done the suspension refresh but the front left strut blew Sunday. Just bought Bilstein shocks and struts, all new shock/strut mounts and reinforcement plates. Will be doing shocks/struts Friday into Saturday. Future will be control arms, end links, tie rods, And RTABs. Also searching for new front seats. Mine have been beaten down by the sun.
Anyway, hope all is well with you and your sweet whip, Ze.

Looks great! I've been considering getting some paint match rattle cans from napa and just color matching my side skirts. I dont know how it would look with just the skirts though. I've always been weary of painting the plastic. I guess the good thing is it can always be reversed.

The only thing I would be concerned about is matching the color. Remember our cars are getting up there in age and have been out in the sun, rain, sleet, snow, wind, road grit etc. I'm sure the paint is not exactly the same color as it was in the 90s. Not saying it can't be done but might be difficult via rattle cans. Maybe go to paint shop to get the match.

Trying to color match using hardware store paint is much harder than simply painting the lowers in a complimentary color such as black.

You can actually give napa the paint code, and they'd basically give me brillantrot in a can. Like you guys have said though, how good of a match can they get? Since its a single stage paint, I polish it regularly. I figure its worth a try. If it doesn't turn out I'll just re-do it in black. I just dont want to make another M3 wannabe with the skirts and bumper.

You can also try Paintscratch.com or AutomotiveTouchup.com. Others I know have gotten nice results with them.

You can also try to scrub the grey off the skirts as the cars original paint color is underneath that horrid gray. Apparently BMW painted the skirts the car's actual color than painted over it with Gray. Why, I have no idea--rust maybe?

It's a bit of a paint o get all the gray off but it is possible with good results. Indeed, I was doing it until I decided I liked the black better. I just think it gives my car a bit of pop.