300zx - cheap engine bay bling

[mr zed x]

What i used:



The engine parts ofcourse.
Scissors..
Stanley knife..
Painters masking tape...

Latex gloves
Fine Sandpaper..
Degreaser..
Enamel Primer..Engine Enamel (any colour you want)


To start i needed all the parts i was intending to spray nice and clean so good old bath of degreaser was used.. a better product would be that grease and wax remover in the can.. but remember we are on a budget so it is not an essential purchase..

i then covered the strip on the throttle cable cover with the writing with several layers of the masking tape just to make sure tha paint would not leak through and stain it then i trimmed the edges with a stanley knife..



Now comes the long part sanding down the area.. but remember the better the preperation the better the final product will turn out.. on the covers i bought someone had already had a hack at them with some colour and the paint was chipping away but after a couple of hours in from of the TV they were all good.. for all of you with stock covers a light sand to cut down the protective coat on the paint will be enough.. but be careful to only use a very fine sandpaper.. as a coarser one will cut right through and even into the plastic which will be much more noticeable when the product is finshed..Also make sure to get in between all the letters and work on them..

you can see the black spots its where the paint is chipping,..:



Ok after they are all sanded down and smoother than your babys bum .. go back to give them another bath to get off any of the dust that is on them.. and let them dry..



Ok now some primer.. i used the can in the middle worked really well.. Ok start by shaking the can untill the ball can move freely inside.. now time to spray.. NOW PLease make sure the product is nice and smooth other wise you will have to go back after the primer is dry and sand down the parts again and it will waste time!!!.. OK so now you can spray 3 light but full coats on the pieces making sure to overlap.. but dont use so much that you cause dribbles of the primer which will need to be sanded down when dry.. apply each coat at 5 minute intervals..



You can see here that the primer has not taken well as the area is not as smooth as first thought..which now means it needs to be sanded back



Now th part is all sanded back to the red paint and smooth, make sure to get rid of any dust and it is all ready for primer again..



OK so once some nice full coats of primer have been applied let the paint dry for a bit over an hour then we can splash some colour on these things

So its the same as the primer 3 light but full coats at 5 minute intervals and becareful not to make runs and dribbles.. remember to shake the can really well and do a test spray on some paper. remember brfore each coat always make sure your gettting nice flow first and no splodges are coming out.. leave for a bit over an hour and you can peel back the tape on the throttle cover and hey presto you have some engine bling on a budget..





thanks to aus300zx.com for the guide.