Soft Paint vs Hard paint

[xlt4me]

Just an interesting note to pass on to those who don't already know. There is a BIG difference in the hardness of automotive paint. I have an 07' vette and the clear coat is so hard that you can buff the living snot out of a light scratch and not even see a difference. But, yesterday I picked up a nasty pushcart scratch on our 00' Honda CRV at Sam's parking lot. It had a scuff mark and some horizontal scratches that I could feel with a finger nail. So today I washed and clayed the bad area and then hit it with some M105 and a 6" rotary foam buffer. WOW, one pass and it was ALL gone. If that was on the vette I'd be wrestling with whether or not I should hit it with some 2000 grit wet-sand paper. I'm not sure which is better but the Honda is sure easier to correct.

 

[Trav]

The clear on the Vette is a better clear (IIRC GM used PPG on Corvettes at least up to the bankruptcy) and probably has more coats on it.High end cars generally get high end paint.
Watch the Hyundai commercial,they say paint better than a Mercedes E or C class i forget the exact series but not MB as a whole because the S class has the best high end paint from Spies Hecker,Glasurit or Standox while the E uses the mid line from Glasurit,which is the G in the paint code.

I painted one car with PPG's best clear talk about tough stuff,you better not wait more than 24 hrs to wet sand it and buff or it will take days to get it super flat.The plus point is it resist chips and scratches much better and doesn't yellow and peel with age.The nice thing with these new clears is they are flexible enough to use on bumpers without a flex additive.

 

[xlt4me]

I guess if I ever need any paint work on the vette, I'll have to ask for expert advice on the forums to make sure the body shop is using a paint that matches the hardness / quality of the factory paint.

 

[Trav]

Absolutely! There are some forums that deal only with automotive paints.
One painter put me onto the PPG DC4010 and Ceramic clears for a car i was doing,really nice stuff but pricey.

 

[Chris B.]

How hard is a late model Volvo paint? How about mid 90's Chevy trucks and SUV like the Tahoe and Suburban?

 

[dishdude]

I have always been impressed with the durability on the paint of the GM cars I have owned in the past, and they were not at all highend vehicles.

 

[GMBoy]

Originally Posted By: Trav
The clear on the Vette is a better clear (IIRC GM used PPG on Corvettes at least up to the bankruptcy) and probably has more coats on it.




Yes, we still use PPG paint.

 

[GMBoy]

Originally Posted By: dishdude
I have always been impressed with the durability on the paint of the GM cars I have owned in the past, and they were not at all highend vehicles.



Me too....until I got my new Cadillac CTS. I am dissappointed in the paint. The overall appearance is excellent, but the paint is soft. It has proven to chip and stain easily. I am not sure why, but all my other GM vehicles have very durable paint. Even my older 1994 Corvette has excellent and durable paint. I have contacted some people I know at the LGR plant. My plant paints the same paint but it's hard and durable so I'm waiting to find out what the difference is between the plants and paint processes.