altarchsa

This past weekend I gave my 4 horses to a neighbor who has a riding academy. She gives riding instruction to kids, and has some cool programs, such as one for disabled vets. We have been debating for some time whether to find a new, good home for our big "pets". But we needed to eliminate the $400/mo feed bill, not to mention medical and vet costs, and finally decided to bite the bullet.

The great news is the that the husband owns 5 collision centers in San Antonio and Houston, and my gift turned into a trade for a paint job on my '89 C4! Well, before you think he was just THAT nice of a guy, I have to say the horses were pretty good horses.

We discussed the job in detail and it will be a glass and seals out, bolt-on parts off job. I told him I wanted it done right and he knew what I was talking about. I volunteered to disassemble/reassemble parts to minimize his cost, but he said that disassembly was an easy, inexpensive thing for his crews. I think I will insist on doing it myself, because I want the reassurance that it's put back together as original. He even suggested that I could do the spray myself, and while I have painted 3 cars, I will leave this one to the pros.

I did a windshield replacement myself on my '75 S and had to buy two, so we agreed to also have the pros do the glass reinstall. He volunteered to get a new windshield at cost if I wanted (could afford) one.

The car has no obvious major damage, although I have a feeling that the driver door may have had some previous work. The car just has a lot of dings overall, and some ripples in the hood where my big lab chased a cat up onto the roof. There is the half dollar size rust spot at the bottom corner of the windshield. He said they will repair any windshield frame rust.

The paint is GP White and still shines like new. I want the car to look original, not some current tech wet look, so we discussed paint type. He will do as close to the original system as possible, unless someone can convince me I should do otherwise. My 75 S was single stage Glasurit, but we weren't sure what the '89 has. He will do Glasurit, but I would have to go to his shop in Houston, which would be MUCH less convenient if I pull the parts. I can see me spending a couple of weekends in Houston and the job dragging out for a few extra weeks. The San Antonio shops use Sikkens.

Soooo, any advice and technical info on paint systems will be very much appreciated. I've learned from experience to never make a move on my C4 without checking with my Rennlist friends first.

(OK, did I conceal my knee shaking pretty much through the entire post?)

LastMezger

I can't help you but I will read responses with interest as I'm in the same boat. Well the same boat paint wise...I don't have any horses that I traded for a free paint job;-)

robingb

having restored a number of porsches, here's my thoughts: glasurit, sikkens or spies heck are all excellent comparable paints. be sure to do single stage. you migft also want a good PDR guy do his magic first to minimize bondo and hammering. whoever takes it apart should put it back together. if possible keep original paint in door jams.

J richard

+1 on the original color. Buy all new seals and pull out the old ones, the first place to look to see the quality of a respray on a pcar is the fender to cowl trim, to do it right the fenders must be loosened, prep is everything. Be careful on the GP white there are several shades even within the same year!

deleonl1

This would be a great opportunity to shave the rain gutters, paint & install aero mirrors, paint & install color coded 993 door handles, paint & install air ducts, and rear wiper delete.

elbeee964

Heh.

Kahdmus

If this is the case, personally I wouldn't be getting it painted at all. If I was then definitely +100 on the original color.

paa502

993 door handles are pretty slick on a 64, they'll be noticeable on a white care. Worth considering IMO.

altarchsa

Wow, guys. Thanks for the great input!

I should have been a little more detailed in my post. I would never change the color on a Pcar, and I love my GP White.

No question about replacing ALL seals. I also agree with dismantler being same Guy who replaces parts. That's why I'm wanting to do that myself. I did it on the front end of my 75 when I painted it.

Paint on body is still beautiful, but I want to spray it because it does a lot of dings, and a small scrape on the bottom edge of the passenger door/adjacent rear panel. Hood has some pretty bad spots that I hammered out so they're less noticeable. Both bumper covers have issues. I would just like to have a slick car and don't want to have partial paint.

I was visualizing how it would look with shaved gutters - pretty cool I think! More advice and experiences with that please. Structural compromise? Door leaks? Etc.? However, I like the black handles and rear wiper, so I will keep those. Also don't mind the flags. Brake vents would be nice though, if I can find some cheap.

My main question was on paint quality. Thanks for your advice robingb. Single stage for sure. But really no difference between Glasurit and Sikkens? I feel my neighbor / friend will try to assure me his best job by assigning his best body man to the job. He's not a Porsche Guy, but his brother is, so he "understands". Thanks for the suggestion to keep the Jambs original. I can see how that might look better than any repaint I could get there.

To summarize:
Paint brand/type?
Shaved gutters?

deleonl1

PM mr_bock, he shaved the rain gutters on his 993.

964russ

Just had mine re-painted, sort sum rust and little dings.
Car painters are an odd bunch, imo (ive repaired cars for over 12 years, ive met a lot).
Its all about the time, everyting is in the prep.
More prep time the better the finish!

To shave or not?
Mega time!
Can you afford that amount of time?
There there for a reason, looks good without, but rain will poor across the windows.

As for paint brand, every painter has his likes dislikes, who knows?

I think the black contrast works well with a white car, so i didnt do the handles.

Id check the painters previous work.

altarchsa

Good advice deleonl1 and 964Russ. Being an architect and hearing the old addage all my career that you can tell a good architect because his buildings don't leak, I was worried about the integrity of the waterproofing if the gutters are shaved.

Thanks!

mac109

you know that before and after pictures will be required....er...I mean appreciated

altarchsa

Absolutely. Before pics would be required to prove that a respray was not necessitated by damage.

elbeee964

(pssst...)



...how's the paint looking on them there wheels?





Oh, and Merry Christmas.