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Ease of painting a bumper cover?

natethegreat

natethegreat

New member
well it asks it in the title. how easy would it be to paint the bumper cover? mine is cracked and was estimated 110 bucks for the cover but 400 for painting it. Now to me that seems like a bit much. we know how to use a sprayer somewhat but would you pay the 400 bucks or DIY?
 


Unless your car is perfect why not try to find a wrecked GP your same color and take that bumper cover? Or from a junk yard. Has to be cheaper then $510.
 
not as easy as it sounds. to color match is tough. especially since your painting a piece of plastic. i agree with above post. see if you can find a bumper at the wrecker thats the same color
 


See if you can find a good bumper the same color. If not, paint it your self.

It's easy, just take your time, and then feather/blend it with the fenders, and a little with the hood.

I did this bumper last month for my GF's eclipse, and it turned out amazing. Started with a raw bumper too. Took about 3 days start to finish, minus letting the clear cure.

After the initial sanding
179.jpg


After the last coat of clear
209.jpg


Camera is dead, or I'd show the pics of it on the car.

If you take your time, and use good materials you'd never know it was rattle-canned XD
All it needed was a little cut/buff after I finished.
 


XD, no problem. Make sure that you take your time, and always, always use a tack cloth (it'll remove all the excess dust/hair/bugs that get on the paint between coats)

Also, feathering the hood/fenders to help the color match helps quite a bit.
 
Any advise for a bumper with deep scratches or gouges? Mine's been bottomed out a few times. I'd like to repaint it sometime. And what all did the materials cost you?
 
Okay, just to answer any current, and future questions.

2 Cans of Primer
3 Cans of Paint
3 Cans of clear


You can get away with 2 of color and clear, but by the last 1/4 of the can, paint typically starts splattering, from lack of pressure, so that's when I switch to a new can.

For deep scratches and gouges, scuff of the area well with 400grit or so, and use some bumper repair (3M makes an awesome kit that you can get at Autozone/Advance Auto) Bumper Repair Kit | Body and Bumper Touchup Paint | AutomotiveTouchup | 888-710-5192 <---what it looks like

Then just like any other body work, sand it smooth and then primer/paint/clear.

Take your time, spray any hard to get spots (fog light housing, grill area, headlight cutout, middle lip thingymahbob) first, so that you dont end up with runs around that area.
 
Okay, just to answer any current, and future questions.

2 Cans of Primer
3 Cans of Paint
3 Cans of clear


You can get away with 2 of color and clear, but by the last 1/4 of the can, paint typically starts splattering, from lack of pressure, so that's when I switch to a new can.

For deep scratches and gouges, scuff of the area well with 400grit or so, and use some bumper repair (3M makes an awesome kit that you can get at Autozone/Advance Auto) Bumper Repair Kit | Body and Bumper Touchup Paint | AutomotiveTouchup | 888-710-5192 <---what it looks like

Then just like any other body work, sand it smooth and then primer/paint/clear.

Take your time, spray any hard to get spots (fog light housing, grill area, headlight cutout, middle lip thingymahbob) first, so that you dont end up with runs around that area.

Oh, and the cans are 12oz.
 


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