Aight, I know this topic has been beaten to death in the past. IVE ALREADY DONE A SEARCHED AND READ A BUNCH OF SHIT but i need my own questions answered. Ok if anyone who is experienced with this cheap mod can help me out please answer the following questions for me.
1. What is the exact type of paint i need to use for the cover. Do i just use a regular spray paint color like a KRYLON type of spray paint or do i need an AUTOMOTIVE spray paint specifically desinged for cars??? Please specify a particular brand of paint.

2. Do i have to sand the entire cover down or can i just prime the entire cover first without even sanding it, and then apply my coats of paint???

3. If i want the cover to be glossy, do i use a flat color paint and then apply clear coat paint??? Or do i just use a spray paint that is already glossy when sprayed on????

4. If i need to sand it, what type of sand paper do i use?? Please specify grit?? Oh, and is a 3M scuff pad the same thing as sand paper??

5. Is using high temp paint on the cover necessary in preventing the paint from cracking or melting away??

6. DOES PAINTING THE ENGINE COVER HARM or DAMAGE the ENGINE in ANY WAY AT ALL??? Ive heard that one time someones paint on their cover evaporated through the cover and into the engine or messed the engine up in some way?? IS THAT EVEN TRUE???

 

yeah save up some money and get an expienced body shop that... has experience with carbon fiber and make a custom CF engine cover

 

I can somewhat answer your questions..

1) What i wanted to do is match my engine cover with exterior paint color so i went to a shop and i got automotive paint in a can.. the can dosen't say anything about high temp or anything like that, and my paint is still holding up about 3+ months later. Sorry I dont have a brand or anything like that.

2) I guess you can wet sand but i didnt.. i just cleaned the surface with soap and warm water and applied 2 coats of primer.

3) If u want a glossy surface you should apply a clear coat after reguardless.. IMO

4) I didnt sand so i cant answer that question..

5) Using high temp paint can never hurt... but regular paint should also be fine. I look at it like this... the engine cover is plastic, if that shit didnt melt by now im sure regular paint will hold.

6) Nah painting the engine cover is 100% safe.. ive never heard of anyones paint evaporating through the engine sorry.

Hopefully this answered your questions!!

 

Ok here is what you need to do.

As for paint, you can use what ever you want. Heat paint is NOT necessary (mines been painted for a few years now and it looks just like the day i bought it). As for what type, thats up to you. I personally think that color matching your car is the best color.

As for prep,Wash it good with something like dawn to degrease it. get a 3M Scuff pad for sanding and sand it with that. the scuff pad will get in between all the rough spots. Then Prime the whole thing. I used high build primer (can be found in a spray can) and sprayed it with that to help make it as smooth as possible, then painted it.

as for the finish, unless its a paint thats designed to have a clear sprayed over it you dont clear it.

Where ever you heard or read about the paint evaporating into the engine and hurting it is wrong. It wont hurt it.

to make your life alot easier take the cover off

 

Thank you so much man. I had read an older post about this mod where u said that u paint cars, so i figured u probably would end up being one of the guys answering my questions eventually which u did and i trust u on the answers since u paint cars and all that paint shit. Anyways, u answered everything perfectly. Only other thing i was wondering was, where can i find that high build primer? Like what types of stores, HOME DEPOT, WALMART, AUTOZONE, LOWES ?? And also, should i take off the ACURA emblems on the cover to paint it, or should i mask them up and cut around it with an exacto nife to paint it?? And if i do take the emblems off to paint it, after it gets painted, will i still be able to see exactly where the emblems are supposed to stick back on, like the exact position?? I doubt i will be able to so how would i know exactly where it should go, just by look or what? Idk, just tell me the best way for best final looking product. THANKS ALOT fsttyms1.

 

The primer can be found in most auto parts stores. or if you get a custom mix color in a spray can from a auto Paints store.

Once you take the engine covers off, you will see what holds the acura emblem on there are holes for it, the words you will have to tape off since they dont come off.

for painting, just remember many thin to moderate coats are better than heavy ones!

 

I painted mine, It still looks good, its only been about 4-5 months though. i've gotta spray the engine down so it will look good again, its a lil dusty

 

Thank you so much. Will give it a try and let you kno how i did. Later.

 

for the prime get a plastic primer it will be a little more flexible to prevent chipping , your engine doesnt move like a front bumper does but theres still a lot of vibration

 

Ok, but is it a must to have to use plastic primer??? If i dont use plastic primer, is it for sure going to chip and crack????

 

DONT USE KRYLON...its the most shitty spray paint available

use the white rustoleum cans, they even have a high temp brand

also. i would get a 10mm wrench and just unscrew the engine cover and everything for painting. i dont see how paint would melt through this at all

 

i was thinking of doing this mod soon..i have a WDP with a blue AEM intake..what do guys suggest:
1. white covers and white AEM
2. blue covers and blue AEM
3. white covers blue AEM
4. white covers(leave red lines on engine) red AEM
5. other suggestions?

 

Ok, no one on here has specifically told me brands of spray paint i can use for this. Now im a big fan of rustoleum spray paint. Can Rustoleum spray paint from HOME DEPOT do the job perfectly??? Also, will Rustoleum Primer work for primeing the cover????? PLEASE SOMEONE TELL ME EXACT BRAND INFO, cuz i just stopped at discount auto on the way home and they had car paints but not the right color blue that i wana do it. Also, i saw a sandable white primer, but i wasnt sure if thats the primer i needed, cuz fsttyms1 told me to get a HIGH BUILD primer which i didnt see there. But look, will rustoleum white primer and rustoleum Glossy spray paint from Home Depot work just fine??? Also, can i just use some fine grit sand paper to sand the cover down?? I dont have to use a 3M scuff pad right?

 

You want to use the WHITE STOP RUST rustoleums. they shold be around 3.50+ a can. the can is all white. its not painters touch, american accents etc.

the only colors they have are sail blue, brilliant blue, and deep blue. they dont have exact color codes. what color are you trying to do it in?

 

I want to do it blue. But i dont want to do it baby blue or that greyish blue. The blue im lookin for is the blue that @cUr@-TL used on his cover. Have you ever seen @cUr@-TL's Engine Cover before???? And also, Is that WHITE STOP RUST rustoleums sold at Home Depot?????

 

OK, I just got done doing this with my TL engine cover (even though I have an Accord). I bought the filler primer from Duplicolor (can really be any brand except what the other poster posted).

1.) Sand down the engine cover. I forgot what sand paper I used, but I used a rough piece first, then medium grit, then a fine grit piece.
2.) Buy a tackcloth at an auto parts store. Wipe down the engine cover.
3.) Spray the engine cover with primer. Wait the alotted amount of time.
4.) Sand down the engine cover again. Spray with primer again.
5.) Wet sand the engine cover. Wait until it dries. Wipe down with the tack cloth and spray again.
6.) Wipe down the engine cover again after it dries.
7.) Get your paint (I matched my exterior color by going to www.towerpaint.com) and spray on the first coat. Wait a couple of hours until that dries. Wipe with a tack cloth and spray on the second coat.
8.) Wet sand the engine cover again and wipe down with the cloth.
9.) Spray down the cover again with the paint.
10.) After that coat dries, if it's smooth enough, spray on clear coat.
11.) Wipe down with a cloth after it dries and spray on a second a third coat if you want.

Viola! You're done! I sprayed on a totaled of 17 coats of primer, paint, and clearcoat on my engine cover. You can see results here:

http://www.v6performance.net/forums/...ad.php?t=61013

and here:

http://www.v6performance.net/forums/...ad.php?t=61644

I think it turned out pretty well! Good luck!

 

Can someone please answer this question. I dont need anyone else telling me step by step how to paint it. I know what to do. I NEED MY SPECIFIC QUESTIONS ANSWERED. THANKS

 

LOOK ALL I WANA DO IS PAINT MY ENGINE COVER THE SAME BLUE COLOR AS THIS PIC

That cover is @cUr@-TL's. Now what specific brand of paint he used, I DONT KNOW, but thats the color i want. Now can some just tell me if i can use RUSTOLEUM GLOSS SPRAY PAINT FROM HOME DEPOT, AND RUSTOLEUM WHITE PRIMER FROM HOME DEPOT???? AND IF ANYONE KNOWS THE SPECIFIC BRAND OF SPRAY PAINT THAT HAS THE COLOR SHADE OF BLUE, PLEASE LET ME KNOW. THANKYOU.

 

alrite....that color is closest to SAIL BLUE......or BRILLIANT BLUE, both are pretty similar

and yes tehy go have them at home depot, they are all glossy.

its not called rusto white thogh. the can is white. its a really basic looking spraycan



looks like that

 

Ok, Sounds good. Gona head over there now to get that paint, if i feel that the blue just aint right then im not gona get it but other then that, I got a 3M sanding block. I found it in my garage. I dont know what grit it is, but i tried it on a small piece of the backside of the cover, and it created like white scratches sorts. its as if someone scratched it all up sorta. Will that sanding block work. Its foamy but grity on the outside???or do i HAVE to use FINE sand paper?

 

i used Dupi-color Engine Enamel but really i think that paint is overkill for our purposes... think about it, our covers are PLASTIC, and honestly what kind of plastic can resist up to 500 degrees C of heat without deforming at all?

anyways, the same procedure... wet sand, few coats primer, few coats paint, and clear coat...

i used 'Aluminum' paint for the main piece & the rectangular piece that has "3.2 VTEC" on it, a flat black for the middle piece, and gross black for the front.

here are some pictures:

the '99 have a diff engine cover so this is how it looked stock


wetsanding...


applying primer


and skipping to the end is the end result

 

With a white car.. I would suggest going red...
- Red intake with custom black design,
- red and black two-tone engine cover ( 3.2 vtec in red, then black, then red,etc..)
- red accent hoses some might stay black, carrying the black/red colour scheme,
- red battery top (if you're painting the engine cover paint the battery cover to match),
- spray paint the winshield washer fluid cap red,
- oil dip stick red,
- oil resivour cap red,
- plastic spark plug caps red,

And then take the red accent colours to the exterior.
- Paint the calipers red..


Note: If you want to do this, all of this, the KEY is matching the red. It hurts my eyes to see a car modded with mismatched accent colours ( two different blues, reds, or yellows, etc). I would sugest getting the caliper paint or hoses first. Simply due to the fact there are few shades of red hoses and/ or red caliper paint , and there are many many variantsof regular red spray paint. Matching the spray paint to the red high heat caliper paint, or to the red hoses would be much easier than doing the opposite, painting the engine and then looking for hoses to match exactly.

Oh, and another thing, @cur@tl's engine cover is not glossy at all, that finnish is actually considered Matte, no shine at all.

 

Any primer will work. it wont chip, if you clean and sand it properly.

 

Go to a AUTO PAINT and look thru the color book. Pick out the EXACT color you want. Be original!

 

dont paint ur cover WHITE! it will get REALLL dirty REALLL fast

 

Go to Tower Paints or paintscratch.com and order your exact color (paint code is on the driver's door jam), the primer and the clear coat all in spray cans plus the 3M sanding pads. One box arrives via UPS and everything is there to complete the project. Here's a picture of my (dusty) engine compartment.

 

 

Go to an auto parts store and get Duplicolor Metalcast. Rough up everything with a scotchbrite pad, clean it with alcohol, spray on the base coat that comes with it, then the final coat. It comes in different colors, lasts fine, won't harm the engine. Piece of cake.

 

The Duplicolr Metalcast is great stuff. I put it on my calipers and it is holding up great (few chips from ice in the winter)

 

Is metalcast fine for plastic? I thought it was just for metal..

Anyone know of a color that would def. match the AEM intake Red color?

Thanks in advance

 

i clear coated mine.

 

even if it doesn't match, paint the AEM intake to match the engine.. it would look amazing that way, plus you won't be governed by the colours the intake coem in, you could do a custom chamelion paint if you wanted to.

 

could i just do the AEM with the same metalcast i use on my engine cover?

 

 

Well I took the advice toward Metalcast. And it came out FANTASTIC!!!
I painted my AEM CAI as well, but I haven't installed it yet. But here is a picture of my engine/valve cover

 

Nice

 

Beautiful Mike!! I told you, Metalcast is da BOMB!! Mine still looks like new. get comments all the time. Glad to help.

 

Now I have to do mine the same!!!! I didn't think it would look so good.. no offence to your skillz, I'm seriously suprised about how well that turned out..

I was playing with the idea of what colour to use - red or blue, possibly yellow but after seeing how you engine looks I"m going red! No question, that engine looks mean!!

and if you can paint a few moer things to ballance out the colours in the engine bay.. Try starting with the battery cover, and (look in the blue engine in the eg. above) that piece on the left side of the engine, the washer cap helps too.

 

thanks for the compliments, I am really happy with how it turned out. My CAI is awaiting it's 3rd coat because i missed the time limit and have to wait a week to apply the last coat. But that should be in soon, and i'll post more then. Whenever I get around to getting some more paint I'll do some extra engine parts too, i think i might have killed that can of red

 

as promised, here is my (nearly) completed CAI and Engine setup. I'm hittin autozone for a hose connector (for the coolant hoses) and a hose clamp for the top air hose. But check it out, let me know what you think. My butt dyno and ears have made me very happy this evening