Can you seal the factory acrylic lacquer with epoxy and spray base clear over the old finish? And If it reacts and lifts in areas and you fix it will it stay fixed or have problems months down the road? I realize it’s best to strip to metal but asking if it’s possible not to.?
Thanks

 

I dont know but my gut feeling says no.

 

Typically you can, but coat just heavy enough to get adhesion.
Your results may vary depending on the condition of the factory paint.

If original paint, it is not that thick, so sanding is always a preferrable/safer alternative.

At times, I've used a recoat clear, followed by base coat to blend with & then clear the entire panel to blend in a repair.

 

If it reacts and lifts, that will happen upon application and yes, you can fix those spots and move on. You can get away with it, but long term you are likely to have issues. You’re putting a catalyzed material that cures rock hard over a non-catalyzed material that is going to continue to shrink and move for the entirety of its life. This is likely to cause die back and cracking. For me, it’s too easy to sand down to metal for epoxy to justify spraying over it. At least on the exterior.

Also, epoxy is preferred because of its superior adhesion and corrosion protection on bare steel. If you’re spraying over existing paint there’s no need to use epoxy, just use a 2k urethane primer or sealer.