When you click on links to various merchants on this site and make a purchase, this can result in this site earning a commission. Affiliate programs and affiliations include, but are not limited to, the eBay Partner Network.
Hi!
Next job to my car is the intake refresh.This is the right moment to respray that and the valve covers.
I found who can paint them with right process , but he asked me the right colour for those parts.He 's fastidious about finish result and asked me a lot about the car. He also convinced me that my car deserves the best , alsofor this repaint... and that he'll do the job with the right colour specs.
Anyone knows the right colour or the code for a similar paint colour?
When Greg Brown said in this thread “The color, the sheen, and the texture of William's efforts are as close as I've ever seen to the stock finish.” (post #20), I knew Feather Bronze was the color for me.
I worked really hard to maintain the original silver color on my '89 S4 intake. Ultimately, I made a mistake ad used a mild detergent on the cam covers while detailing, which stained parts of them. Meanwhile, the intake was in great shape until one day a sheet of the paint just fell off, leaving the dark gray mag oxide color.
Subsequently, Greg and Rob had identified a powder coating place that would work with us for a color match, based on our good color samples. Meanwhile, Roger had obtained an original cam cover for use as a color reference, and shared that part with us, so that was added to the discussion before the final color was agreed upon. There are now several cars with that color powder on the intake. The colr sample from the NIB cam cover and the sample from the bottom of my intake were very close, with difference visible only when we set the pieces side by side in full sun. Rob has pictures of the pieces sitting on the curb in front of Greg's shop, more so that you can see the slight difference rather than for trying to color-match from a screen shot or even the original digipic file from Rob.
The color that was originally specified is the same Zermatt Silver used on the mid-80's cars as an exterior color. There is no clearcoat on the engine parts however, which probably helps explain why the paint finish is so easily damaged and deteriorates as it does/did. At the time. available clearcoats yellowed in the high-heat environment under the hood. Of course the unprotected silver color coat wasn't a whole lot better.
The closest rattlecan color I've found is a Duplicolor "wheel silver", slightly darker gray than the original Zermatt Silver, but with a more prominent metallic content that is appropriate for the smaller parts surface area. The original metallic almost disappears with the size and the shadowing typical to looking at installed engine parts. Adding a single protective layer of satin clear over the base color does not change the finish quality adversely, if you are searching for original appearance.
Most folks look at what's on left their intake or cam covers now, and think that the original color might be one of the several they can see. The magnesium in the intake cuases an oxide layer to form quickly. There are a few prep options, probably the best/easiest of which is a chromate primer applied immediately following blast cleaning. This is the almost mustard-yellow layer that you see when removing the original finish. On top of that is a light gray primer layer for paint prep after the metal was 'detailed' with filler on top of the chromate coat. Then the silver was applied. As the finish aged and suffered damage from whatever you used to clean the pieces, more and more of the yellow came through the silver, making the color appear to have a bronze tinge to it, almost a gold hue sometimes. This is a deterioration color, not the original.
Don't know about the color codes/options, but I kept mine original - a cream yellowish with red and black lettering - colors of the German flag - looks good and I think a fitting choice.
The 'cream-yellowish' is the color of the primers and metal prep coats that were under the original silver color. Someplace I have engine bay pics from early documentation on windshield washer repair, before my little oooops with the spray cleaner that streaked the paint on the cam covers. I bought the car, a completely unmolested example, with 20,nnn miles on it at about eight years old, so I have faith that the intake colors were still correct, at least until I boogered the cam covers.
The first pic shows the top of the intake, but it's a little washed out by the flash. The second shows the right rear corner of the intake side cover, with the color clearly identifiable silver with no cream or yellow.
I spent hours upon hours prepping for paint on several intakes and only one of them that I painted is not in need of a redo. I won't open my own hood any longer due to how bad the paint is peeling off and I spent way too much time trying to make it perfect.
Don't waste your time painting, get it powder coated.
I spent hours upon hours prepping for paint on several intakes and only one of them that I painted is not in need of a redo. I won't open my own hood any longer due to how bad the paint is peeling off and I spent way too much time trying to make it perfect.
Don't waste your time painting, get it powder coated.
I took the low road
Been a couple years, and several thousand miles.
Hi temp paint holds up well if you ask me.
... But then again, my car is a DD.
Yep, I took the low road too.
Sanded it down, Duplicolor high heat engine enamel, and hand painted the lettering with the same paint.
Did it 2 years ago, and other than needing the occasional wipe down with hot water and soap, looks very good.
If prepped, degreased properly, hi temp paint should do well.
Although the generic silver that I used is a shade off from OE, it looks better than the cracked , flaky original.
Plus a color change is just as easy.
I think I'll go with a pale gold when I get around to replacing the boots.
Yes i will powder coat it. No rattle cans or other....
..then make sure the ground points and sensor ports are bare metal upon reassembly, otherwise you'll be asking this, that, and the other why my car won't start or whatever.
OH, and when it goes up in flames, it don't matter what it looked like yesterday.
When Greg Brown said in this thread “The color, the sheen, and the texture of William's efforts are as close as I've ever seen to the stock finish.” (post #20), I knew Feather Bronze was the color for me.
10-23-2015, 12:51 PM
paint colour for intake respray
