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"Getting my svt looking great again" log

millertime86

CEG'er
Joined
May 19, 2006
Messages
383
Location
lancaster, pa
Figured i would make a little log tracking the progress of my svt. i bought it about 2.5-3 years ago, it was alittle beat up, so i fixed some cracks and painted some parts and it was looking brand new (you can see some before/after pics in this old thread):

http://www.contour.org/ceg-vb/showthread.php?34719-Pics-of-my-svt-and-recent-paint-job/page3

Story: well about a week after i painted it, i realized i forgot to take the tape off of the wiper-fluid shooter things... so i took them off and alittle paint went off with it... next day the gap got bigger, next day i saw a crack forming, the crack moved down alittle bit every day, like a canyon forming in my paint. then bubbles started forming under the new paint... then to top it all off, less than 2 weeks after a paint job, a fox or coyote ran out in front of me as i was going 70 mph on a highway, re-cracked the front bumper, destroyed the paint/mesh, and bent my radiators. car now looked 5x worse than before. i drove it for awhile after that and then i got 2 flat tires at once and the battery died. i said screw it and started driving my other car til now, thinking i was slowly gonna work on the svt... that didnt happen. id start it up every once and awhile and drive it around the block then when the inspection ran out id just start it up a few times a month and let it collect leaves and dirt. I hate to see it sit there looking bad, its the most reliable car ive ever owned, went 14,000+ miles over 2 years with absolutely no problems mechanically.

current state:
imgp3852.jpg


bubbles that formed under the paint:
imgp3655.jpg


the "canyon" that formed at the wiper fluid shooters, all the way down to the front oval:
imgp3656.jpg


the paint only bubbled where the sun hit it (bumpers didnt bubble except on the very top where the sun would hit), so im thinking it got too hot with a combination of 1 or more of the following: 1. I didnt use primer... 2. i took a clay bar/wax treatment to it 2 days after the paint, didnt let it cure at all... i was young and dumb but ill get it right this time around. any tips for next time?
 
i did the trunk so far. what a pain in the ass, took 3 tries. took forever to get through the bubbles/bumps, i borrowed come crappy orbital sander. i used rattle cans... nothing went on evenly, took forever to wetsand/polish and get it right. 1st try a freaking branch fell on it while i was putting on the base... next try i sanded through the clearcoat...

84330428.jpg

rattle cans SUCK!:
imgp3704.jpg

afto.jpg
 
You should of let it cure for at least a week before any kind of polish wax or even washing actually the washing that's just me.
How bad was your bumper from the crash... Fixable?
 
some other random stuff done awhile:

new hood (wasnt even gonna try to sand the other one) and a GT stang scoop:
imgp3863.jpg


front oval/back chrome strip:
imgp3860.jpg


alittle yellow fog action:
imgp3857b.jpg


painted caliper:
imgp3851u.jpg


anddd, one of the new rims on, 3 to go ;):
1on32go.jpg



thats all for now, ill keep making updates

p.s. is it just me or are the pics freaking huge?
 
Why does that rim look different to me? It's been awhile since I had my e1 csvt, but I don't recall that indent by the bolts :shrug:.
 
Pic sizes are fine!
Those don't look like e1's because they're not. ;)
Keep the updates coming! It is shaping up!
Erick --
 
You got a good start going...but please do not put that scoop on the hood. It looks great the way it is.
 
You got a good start going...but please do not put that scoop on the hood. It looks great the way it is.
i think itll look good, still deciding tho, its the same scoop speed demon had on his car and im gonna make it functional. id have to repaint the hood anyway even if i didnt put the scoop on.
Those appear to be "Liquid Metal" wheels with SVT centercaps installed. Looks good nonetheless.
correct
You should of let it cure for at least a week before any kind of polish wax or even washing actually the washing that's just me.
How bad was your bumper from the crash... Fixable?

ya im gonna let it cure for like a month at least this time. and yes bumper is fixable, just cracked in alot of the same places it was cracked before lol.
 
Trunk looks great for rattle can! Those bubbles must have been a ••••• to sand through.

I can't imagine how long it took to shine the trunk up. Looks like you laid the base coat on pretty light.

For the bubbles.. i can only think of bad prep. Or not enough drying time between coats. It could really be a lot of things.. I never see that happen though.
 
That car is a mess. :( I can't believe you would let it sit there and rot like that. At the bare minimum, get a cheap dust cover for it.

I still don't understand why you go through all that effort to paint and don't bother removing parts from the car. The trunk lid is 4 bolts. You would make it so much easier for yourself to remove it from the car and not tape away everything to worry about overspray. The contaminants you are getting into the paint from working outside under a tree is making it that much harder to get a smooth finish.
 
That car is a mess. :( I can't believe you would let it sit there and rot like that. At the bare minimum, get a cheap dust cover for it.

I still don't understand why you go through all that effort to paint and don't bother removing parts from the car. The trunk lid is 4 bolts. You would make it so much easier for yourself to remove it from the car and not tape away everything to worry about overspray. The contaminants you are getting into the paint from working outside under a tree is making it that much harder to get a smooth finish.
i tried to take it off, i took all the bolts off and couldnt find where or how to disconnect the brake light wires. trust me i tried, i almost just cut the wires. only reason i used rattle cans is cause i couldnt get the trunk off to take to my dads to use his gun. im using a gun for the hood and bumper.
Trunk looks great for rattle can! Those bubbles must have been a ••••• to sand through.

I can't imagine how long it took to shine the trunk up. Looks like you laid the base coat on pretty light.

For the bubbles.. i can only think of bad prep. Or not enough drying time between coats. It could really be a lot of things.. I never see that happen though.

yes i forgot to mention i also did the base and clearcoat on the same day, within like an hour or 2 of each other, im sure that didnt help... lol
 
All that work is good, keep it coming.

As far as the scoop, IMO: no add, unless it had a real purpose..., that's just my opinion but at the end it is your car.

Good luck!
 
Update: new radiator is in, started her up and got the new anti-freeze rolling, im getting brand new battery tomorrow and hopefully getting the other 3 rims on if it doesn't rain.

Everything I wanted to say has been said. Except for, CLEAN UP YOUR DAMN BACKYARD! That's sick.
lol i dont care i live in the ghetto, i just got fined for my grass being over 6 inches so im gonna make sure it looks absolutely horrible for the next 29 days then ill clean it up so i dont get fined again.
All that work is good, keep it coming.

As far as the scoop, IMO: no add, unless it had a real purpose..., that's just my opinion but at the end it is your car.

Good luck!
you guys dont think this scoop looks good???
nakayamarsx518inch.jpg


i think it goes awesome with the car, the top curves with the front oval, doesnt look bad at all IMO, and im going to make it functional
 
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