FrontySpot - A Nissan Frontier Forum

Anybody tried painting the front end plastic pieces or have any info on how to do it and have it stick??? I tried the bedliner on the lower splash guard and its already flaking off? I will add that I only cleaned the surface with soap and water prior so, surface prep might be part of the problem???

A 3m scotch brite pad does a good job when used with water. Clean the surface real well with rubbing alcohol. Dupont 3812 enamel thinner works best, but is only available from a body shop supply source that sells Dupont products. The 3812 will not hurt painted surfaces. It will remove all greases waxes, and road tar.

As far as painting, Krylon Fusion works well on plastic. I don't think bedliner is going to stick to plastic.

don't quote me on this but i think it's best if you sand the area first with a fine grit sandpaper. them maybe painting it some kind of flexible primer so that it doesn't crack or peel. and then painting it....

from my understanding, surfaces have to be somewhat "rough" and clean a the same time so that paint will adhere better.

carphreak Wrote:don't quote me on this but i think it's best if you sand the area first with a fine grit sandpaper. them maybe painting it some kind of flexible primer so that it doesn't crack or peel. and then painting it....

from my understanding, surfaces have to be somewhat "rough" and clean a the same time so that paint will adhere better.

If the plastic has a smooth finish like my Jeep flares do, sanding works well, but use a fine grit wet (400 grit) paper (black). But, if the surface finish is rough, sanding will only hit the high spots. The 3M Scotch Brite pads work very well on rough surfaces. I have been using them since my body shop days back in the 80s.

Are you asking about the valance under the front bumper? If so I had mine painted when I got the truck as part of the deal. It is now almost 4 years old and getting close to 16,000 miles. It has a few chips in it, but no worse than the factory paint.

I do baby my truck so I stay off of gravel roads as much as possible and when I do have to venture out on one I maintain a healthy distance from the vehicle in front of me. Yoou can enlarge the pictures to inspect it a little closer.

Okie

OkieScot Wrote:Are you asking about the valance under the front bumper? If so I had mine painted when I got the truck as part of the deal. It is now almost 4 years old and getting close to 16,000 miles. It has a few chips in it, but no worse than the factory paint.

I do baby my truck so I stay off of gravel roads as much as possible and when I do have to venture out on one I maintain a healthy distance from the vehicle in front of me. Yoou can enlarge the pictures to inspect it a little closer.

Okie

The parts you have painted are exactly what I was talking about and what I want painted(black) to match my rims. Do you know the ins and outs of how they were prepped and painted?

By the way I did paint my rims and have no complaints as far as that goes. I also want the lower sides of the truck painted to match(black) but I dont think thats as complex as painting plastic??

Also, your truck looks awesome.

Okie, if those pics are anywhere near recent, the white lower valence has held up well. It still looks good.

Prep work is EVERYTHING in getting paint to stick... I painted my front grill, emblems and wheels over a year ago and with the exception of a couple knicks from hitting things on the grill you would not know it wasnt done last week.
I used a generic scotch bright pad, and cleaned it WELL with alcohol before laying down paint. I then used a generic rattle can primer (black) and then flat black krylon on the wheels and spray on bedliner on the grill.
You do not really want to use a fine sandpaper, as if too fine it will actually remove any scratches or scuffs that you WANT to help adhere. It is also very important to clean the parts after roughing them up.

Just today I painted my fenders and front upper valance with bed liner... The prep work took nearly three hours to tape off, scuff up and clean. And the actual painting took 30 minutes. I am very pleased with how it came out and will POSSIBLY do the rocker panels also. I havent decided yet.

carlsbadfrontier gave a good how to on painting and since I had mine done before I took delivery of the truck I cannot help you with that.

This photo is a couple of years old, but it has not done too bady in the past two years. I always wanted to do the 3m clear film, but never could convince myself to spend that much money on it.

Okie

carlsbadfrontier Wrote:Prep work is EVERYTHING in getting paint to stick... I painted my front grill, emblems and wheels over a year ago and with the exception of a couple knicks from hitting things on the grill you would not know it wasnt done last week.
I used a generic scotch bright pad, and cleaned it WELL with alcohol before laying down paint. I then used a generic rattle can primer (black) and then flat black krylon on the wheels and spray on bedliner on the grill.
You do not really want to use a fine sandpaper, as if too fine it will actually remove any scratches or scuffs that you WANT to help adhere. It is also very important to clean the parts after roughing them up.

Just today I painted my fenders and front upper valance with bed liner... The prep work took nearly three hours to tape off, scuff up and clean. And the actual painting took 30 minutes. I am very pleased with how it came out and will POSSIBLY do the rocker panels also. I havent decided yet.

Thanx for the info.

I was thinking along the lines of doing the same thing starting with the lower front valance and working my way down the side rockers as well. I guess when I first tried to paint the lower front airdam I didnt rought it up or clean it before paint that is causing it flake off in places? I guess thats what happens when your in a hurry like I was to see the results.

SInce I dont have my garage anymore I'll have to wait for warmer temps to get this done but so far it seems like I was pretty much on track with what I thought should be done to get right the first time.

Thanx to all who helped.

I think that I heard there is a special paint or additive to deal with the flexing that plastic pieces do. You might check that out before you paint.

Okie

Okie, there are additives for flexible paint... But In all honesty, I have never used any of them on these type of parts and Ive never had the paint crack.
Now if we were talking about painting the plastic parts on a quad or something that will constantly be flexing... then yes, I would suggest using a different paint.

(02-17-2009 05:52 PM)nismosteve Wrote: [ -> ]Anybody tried painting the front end plastic pieces or have any info on how to do it and have it stick??? I tried the bedliner on the lower splash guard and its already flaking off? I will add that I only cleaned the surface with soap and water prior so, surface prep might be part of the problem???

i painted the lower valence on my truk and the plastics on the rear bumper too. i used to work at a body shop and took dual-credit classes durin highschool at a local college. painting plastic is hard but it can be easy if you have the right stuff. i sanded all the plastic with 180grit sandpaper and then primered it. after that you have to wet sand the primer with 1000grit sandpaper and get any missed spots with scotch pad. after that your ready to paint, just clean with degreaser made for prep-ing surfaces for painting. then just paint and clear and you should be good to go. if your painting plastic that is going to be flexed for any reason, they sell additives that allow painted surfaces to flex and not crack. ( btw im new to frontyspot, i saw this thread and had to join furums!!! ; ) grill looks wierd cuz the angle and lighting, and dirty from removing licence plate

(07-01-2009 12:59 AM)JasonFromHouston Wrote: [ -> ]

(02-17-2009 05:52 PM)nismosteve Wrote: [ -> ]Anybody tried painting the front end plastic pieces or have any info on how to do it and have it stick??? I tried the bedliner on the lower splash guard and its already flaking off? I will add that I only cleaned the surface with soap and water prior so, surface prep might be part of the problem???

i painted the lower valence on my truk and the plastics on the rear bumper too. i used to work at a body shop and took dual-credit classes durin highschool at a local college. painting plastic is hard but it can be easy if you have the right stuff. i sanded all the plastic with 180grit sandpaper and then primered it. after that you have to wet sand the primer with 1000grit sandpaper and get any missed spots with scotch pad. after that your ready to paint, just clean with degreaser made for prep-ing surfaces for painting. then just paint and clear and you should be good to go. if your painting plastic that is going to be flexed for any reason, they sell additives that allow painted surfaces to flex and not crack. ( btw im new to frontyspot, i saw this thread and had to join furums!!! ; ) grill looks wierd cuz the angle and lighting, and dirty from removing licence plate

Welcome to the SPOT Nice looking truck.

Welcome to the Spot Jason.

thanks guys. hopin to put up more pics an reply to threads once i figure it out

I upload vehicle pics to cardomain.com, and the others to photobucket.com. Then while viewing the pictures from those sites, right click on the image, select Copy Image Location, click the mountain picture "Insert Image" icon in the reply window on the forum, and paste the image location to the Insert Image dialog box. That image will show up in your post. Use preview to verify it worked correctly.

Just ask, we'll help.

I painted my grill black, and my nissan symbol orange with factory toyota spray paint from Autozone and its flaking terribly, lol i dont mean to steal this thread, but whats the best to use, i heard krylon was good, and i also wanna paint my front bumper black too, haha any advice? its an XE so everybody knows what a pain in the butt it is to keep that dang front bumper shiny and clean looking lol