Chelsea John

2006 Premium White Pearl. I have several stone chips on the hood. It's just chipped the suface layer. Should I use touch up paint to cover them or is it going to look awful, car with spots ??

princelybug

iTrader: (16)

Just dab the chips VERY lightly, and reapply about 3x. You'll only be able to tell when you get up close.

Chelsea John

Thanks You. I'll give it a try this weekend if the weathers good.

curls

The thing is to really really clean out the chip. Use some rubbing alcohol on a terry cloth and make sure no lint or fibers get left behind. Then apply the touch up paint very lightly as indicated. Since you're in Toronto, you can get the touch-up PEN from your Acura dealer... I've found this matches the PWP paint a lot better than the nailpolish-type bottle does. I've done my hood many times with the pen (usually put a few drops on an old credit-card type plastic and use a toothpick to drop it onto the chip). The pen tip itself is too big so this method works better for me. Once you've done 2-3 coats of the white base, then do 1-2 coats in the same way, using the clear/top coat. It's the pearl that will really make the chip invisible.

Once this has dried (I give it a day in the sun), I use a little home-made sanding block I made from a piece of 2x2" wood (craft store), some craft foam (very thin), and some very fine grit automotive sandpaper (1000 grit). Soak the sandpaper (attached to the foam which is glued to the block), then wet the chip. Sand LIGHTLY in straight lines, first left-right, then up-down. Once the level of the chip is equal to that of the existing paint on the hood, stop, use very diluted car wash soap + water to clean, and then wax with a good caranuba wax. Done!

I spent a good 4-5 hours over the span of a few days last year and you'd be very hard pressed to see my repairs to this day.

Chelsea John

I did get the touch up pen from the dealer but didn't think of getting the clear coat. I'll do that and thanks for the excellent advise.

mdkxtreme

personally, i bought the clear coat but never used it. After you apply the polish, it will match your OEM shine.

curls

It's not teh shine that makes the difference with the paint pen clear coat, it's the pearl (metallic flake) in the clear coat from the pen that makes the "white" turn to "pearl white".

Armydeuno

Great advice, Curls!!

I just have a quick question for you or anyone that can help. I just purchased a 2008 TL Type-s (Diamond white pearl) The car is in great shape! I am very particular with my cars and I love taking good care of them. There were obviously a few stone chips on the car and they have a light rust forming within them. What is the most effective way to remove the rust completely before I use your method to touch up the stone chips???

Your help would be greatly appreciated!

Thanks!

curls

3M Sanding pen -- I've seen them at most automotive stores with the automotive body work supplies (next to the sandpaper, body tools, and body filler).

Armydeuno

Thanks!!

Couple more things....

After I remove any rust from the stone chip, should I proceed with the alcohol application, or is there something else I should use to make sure the rust is completely removed?

How long should I wait between touch up coats for optimal drying?

Thanks again!

curls

I'd use a tack-cloth (located near the sanding pen!) and then the alcohol.

I'd also wait a few hours in the daylight, but if you need to paint the coats with less time in between, use a hairdryer on LOW fan speed to speed up the drying process.

Armydeuno

Thanks again, your advice is really appreciated!!

One last thing I can think of is the type of alcohol I should use. What purity of alcohol is best? 70% ? 100% ?

Thanks!

curls

I just used walmart brand rubbing alcohol... what percentage that was, I have no idea. It was in the medicine cabinet. LOL!

Armydeuno

LOL! Ya, I guess it was kind of a weird question. I just thought maybe I would ask to be sure.

Thanks!