JoeJoe

I have a white max and am having the Stillen body kit installed next week. I was debating on whether or not to paint the grill black or white. Just curious if anyone has had any problems with it or not. Or if anyone has pics. Thanks for your help.

a33

iTrader: (1)

look in my profile

JoeJoe

Wow, that looks nice. You just helped me make up my mind. Thanks!!

kafene

iTrader: (2)

mine looked really cool too, but i do a lot of freeway driving. it'll eventually start chipping from being pelted by road debris and start looking *not so good*. i've painted it dark again, but still chipping, even after a few coats of paint and a grip load of clear. i don't know about street driving, but freeways in so cal was too much. i'm planning on getting that metal grill to solve the paint chip problem.

kafene

mdeal

iTrader: (2)

kafene, did you paint it yourself? If you say it is chipping, what kind of paint was used and how many coats of clear? I am planning on doing this myself.

Altimat

Using a plastic adhesion promotor and adding a flex agent to the paint will help some. I wouldn't be concerned about chipping. The entire front end of the car is painted and getting chipped so you may as well paint the grille too if you like the look. I do!

a33

iTrader: (1)

i have the problem of chipping too
but i am repainting it soon
cuz they are supposed to use a special kind of liquid before they put the paint on so that teh paint sticks onto the plastic....
i didnt do it the last time thats why it is falling off...

kafene

iTrader: (2)

had the front grill and splash guards painted when i was getting repairs done from a rear-ender. looked great for the first few months, but after about 6-8 months, it started to chip from being pelted daily from freeway driving.

i went ahead and painted it myself w/ white paint and clear, but the problem persisted. i figured what the heck i'll try a dark color like the stock, but after about 3-4 coats of that and several coats of clears, it's STILL chipping from being pelted.

gonna replace the grill w/ the metal mesh ones to resolve the issue. i don't mind so much because i was going to get the grill anyways, but if you're going to keep the stock grill, than i don't suggest painting it.

kafene.

doublea

iTrader: (7)

If the paint is chipping, perhaps you had a problem of surface contamination, I happend often when the surface is not cleaned up properly. I know for shure on the metal parts you have to wash the car with paint thinner to avoid any contamination before you apply the paint, also you wanna make shure there is one or two coats of primer prior to painting that helps a lot. Allow 24-48 hrs for the paint to dry correctly depending on the type of paint is can take up to a week for the paint to dry completely. Last thing if you apply let say 5 or 6 coats of clear and live in winterland, clear tends to crack in cold weather specially if there is many coats.

Good luck.

AA

adman

ADMAN

alembicf1x

had my grill painted professionally for $75 - looks great and no problems with chipping

Newman

iTrader: (3)

got mine done for $48. although its a 2k2 so the grill may not be made from the same material. ive had it for about a month and no problems so far.

see sig.