I am going to restore a set of inner fender wells for my '71. I read several things on the net as far as cleaning them up and prepping them for paint (they are plastic), but I need a good suggestion about which paint to use. I want something that is heat resistant and will not peel over time. I would like to use a satin or semi-gloss finish.

I can use either a rattle can or a paint gun, prefer a paint gun.

Suggestions?

 

If it were me, and it will be when i get to painting them, Ill use Rustoleum enamel. It comes in quarts, satin, semi gloss, and gloss. Flat too. The inner fender wells shouldnt get that hot to worry about. It sprays very easily and lays down smooth. Here they have it at Walmart and Lowes, very cheap, but good paint IMO. I wouldnt think it would peel anymore than more expensive paints if the prep is done right.

 

if it were me I wouldnt paint them on any car that will be driven, its gonna scratch, peel and show its painted colors on anything but a trailer queen.

I would clean them very good and then use 3m/bondo black restore
Ive used the restore black on my dash which was nice but now looks incredible (my opinion)

I painted my kick panels w SEM and now wish someone would kick me for doing it they looked great at first but now look more like meh several thousand miles later. I did SEM my blue console to black and it still looks good but close inspection shows some flaws.

summary the black restore works great on black parts follow directions, if you need to change a parts color or you dont plan to use your car paint em

 

I didn't think to use a product like that until you mentioned it. I have always thought that products like this were a bit dubious but to be fair, the last time I tried stuff like that was well over a decade ago and I am sure the technology has advanced.

So this actually works huh? Anyone else tried something like this and had better than average results?

 

SEM is the best there is for painting plastic. The key is cleaning and preparation with the recommended SEM products
before painting. With that said, it can be a bit costly.

 

x2

 

agreed on the SEM is the "best paint" for plastic, Ive used it on a lot of stuff besides the above listed items I changed green seat covers to black, those actually still look very good and show no wear through. I use my car im careful w it but I drive it and enjoy it w my family and friends people get in and out of it, under hood might get some spills and typical car type wear. SEM paint on harder plastics doesnt work as well as it does on softer stuff like the vinyl seat covers. it works great, but IMHO if somethings black and can be reasonably cleaned the restore black works better than SEM. The RB leaves any grain and looks like a deep rich black (RGB 000) not the (RGB 222) (Slightly greyer black) of SEM landau black . I also used the restore black on the plastic surrounds on the bucket seats they look great.

it boils down to usage and material....

hard plastic thats already black use restore black (ive never tried any other products only the above mentioned item so YMMV)

soft materials like vinyl (although I have yet to try the restore black on stuff like door panels) or if you need to change the color or you pamper your ride SEM is the best !!!

 

I did my inner fender wells 6 years ago with SEM. Still look great after all these years. Like I mentioned you need to get the correct prep materials for the type plastic being painted. There is the special paint prep that is used on the harder plastic that softens the surface just a bit, it is applied just before painting. I drive my cars so they get dirty, been cleaned many times the last 23,000 miles.

 

Chris,

The number one most important thing when painting anything is make sure it is clean. I mean extremely clean. Those are very grease and oil free but you still have to make sure and make sure you don't have any armoral type use anywhere near them or they will fish eye on you from that. Lots of soap and water, then as a final I recommend washing them with white vinegar and hot water prior to painting with anything but Sem is a great product.

Larry

 

Clean them with oven cleaner, they will look almost new and you will be amazed, I was and am.

 

Here is what I did.

https://classicoldsmobile.com/forums...der-resto.html