Hey, folks. My car is Alpine White and I'm going to have an auto paint shop paint my IS spoiler black. Is there a specific black that was originally used for the spoilers, or is it just Schwarz-086? I want the finish more matte like the black trim on the car.
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If you're going through the expense of having a body shop paint the spoiler then preferably you would have it painted to match your car, as IS spoilers from factory were always painted body color.
Or you could do what most of us e30 owners do (because we're cheap) and make it a pretty simple DIY job and sand and prep the spoiler and hit it with SEM trim black and that will give you a nice satin black finish -
It's already painted body color. Thought of using SEM Trim, but wanted to see if there was a specific black from the factory for the spoiler.Comment
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Short answer: there's no separate factory code for the spoiler. The matte black you're chasing is a finish, not a color. The trim blacks on these cars are satin plastic or satin paint, so a catalog hunt won't get you there, and Schwarz 086 is a gloss black that never reads as trim no matter how well it's sprayed.
DIY route: scuff with a grey pad, wipe with wax and grease remover, adhesion promoter anywhere you break through to bare plastic, then SEM Trim Black, light coats. That is the trim look. Skip true matte, it shows every water spot. Satin is what the trim actually is.
Shop route: the spoiler is a flexible part. Plain 2K black and clear with no flex additive will hairline-crack at the edges. Tell them to treat it like a bumper cover and put a satin flattening agent in the clear, because their default is gloss. If they won't talk flex, walk.
- Jess (I do body and paint for a living)Comment
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Good question, and the honest answer is you might not need to strip it at all. If the factory paint is still stuck, leave it and paint over it. Feather the chips and edges flat with 180 then 320, and that old paint becomes the best primer you will ever get on that part.
If it is flaking in sheets and you do want it off:
1. Heat gun on low, plastic razor blade. Warm a section until the paint lifts, slide the blade under, peel. That gets the big flakes without touching the substrate underneath.
2. Whatever is left, sand it. 180 on a soft block, then 220 to 320. Light pressure, keep moving. That part flexes, so a hard pad or a DA on high will dish it and you will see every wave in the new paint.
3. No chemical stripper. On these spoilers most of it attacks the substrate and you find that out too late. No wire wheel either. It tears the surface and leaves tracks you cannot hide under paint.
4. You do not need bare substrate. Uniform dull grey is the goal. Grey scuff pad over the whole part, wax and grease remover, let it flash, adhesion promoter anywhere you went through, then SEM Trim Black in light coats, 10 to 15 minutes apart.
One warning: if the cracks in the old paint are deep, they ghost back through the new finish. Sand until they are gone or fill them. Do not paint over them and hope.
Last thing, since you are doing it yourself: this is what I do for a living. If you want the products and the exact order of steps written out for your car, that is a $20 job and it saves you the second attempt. If not, everything above is yours for free.
- JessComment
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Jess, thanks so much for all the info and help. I'm going to try this out and see how it goes.Comment
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Good luck with it. Post a pic when it is on the car. And if it fights you halfway, say so. That spoiler flexes, and the flex is what catches people.Comment
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