987 Arch/Road Rash Repair

[Craigmann36]

The arches on my 987 had begun to succumb to the road rash around the bottom of the arch/sill area where many cars seem to - I often see it in cars offered for sale, in far worse a state than mines was. Seeing as mines was not so horrendous, and my car is not metallic, I thought I’d give a home repair a go. Being a flat colour with no flake, a paint match was far easier to achieve from an aerosol can.
Here is how I went about it:

Products used

Bilthamber Deox Gel

Wire brush 

All purpose cleaner/degreaser

Zinc primer

Guards Red (or applicable) aerosol

Any good lacquer

Bin bags

Masking tape

Method

Firstly, I washed the entire car, however you can just wash the area if you like. I did it to reduce swirls and marring when masking.

Once I had dried the car, I lightly sanded the area and wire brushed the exposed metal. You can go far more harsh on the areas than I did, and probably should - however it did not affect my end result. 

Once wire brushed, smear deox gel onto any areas of exposed metal, and leave to sit for at the very least the minimum time stated on the container. Once it has been left to work in, wire brush the areas with deox gel applied, and remove the gel.

Once the deox gel has been washed off, thoroughly degrease the area, and let dry. Then mask the vehicle up extremely well. I had my wheel full lock to the left to allow access, then masked the entire wheel up. Further I masked up almost the entire arch, half the door and the sill. I used a kitchen roll on the edges of where I intended to spray. This ensured an even blend of paint, and was extremely effective. Also, I advise laying something on the floor underneath where you are painting - unless you like the idea of a PTS garage floor.

Next I laid down 3 layers of Zinc Primer, followed by 4/5 coats of Guards Red, and then around 6 coats of lacquer, to protect from stones in the future. I’m well aware this is not the most effective method, nor am I by any means a professional vehicle repair tech - however as a cheap, temporary home repair, I am delighted with the results. 

Unfortunately I didn’t take pictures during the process, only before and afters.

[Craigmann36]

[Christopher2110]

Taking sandpaper to your paint is always a brave thing to do! 

When you say temporary do you mean you will be getting it done professionally in the future, or do you have another fix in mind? That last photo seems out of focus, do you have any others where we can see the outcome?

[red rocket]

Looks good. When i did mine I also used a couple of coats of Stone Chip paint prior to base coat for added protection.

[Craigmann36]

4 hours ago, Christopher2110 said:

That last photo seems out of focus, do you have any others where we can see the outcome?

Yeah, just realised when posting. I’ll have to go and take another, focussed this time. Although I say it’s temporary, it’s only ever getting done again if the arch bubbles - which it shouldn’t. I recently cleaned the lip on the inside of my arches. Go to your rear arch, and at the inner top you will feel a fairly significant lip, which on my car was holding a lot of dirt, and I imagine, if left, would result in corrosion.

[bally4563]

On 9/16/2020 at 9:36 AM, red rocket said:

Looks good. When i did mine I also used a couple of coats of Stone Chip paint prior to base coat for added protection.

Exactly what I did , masked up stone chipped couple of coats and then rattle can  top coat, looks much tidier.

[Lennym1984]

If you really want to do a good job, buy some epoxy mastic. It takes a long time to fully cure (about a week) but once it is dry, it is extremely tough. I left some in a plastic mixing cup and it has dried into a 2 inch thick "puck." I've hit it with chisels and hammers (just to see how tough it was) and nothing will scratch it.

[Del_tl1000r]

On 9/15/2020 at 10:28 PM, Craigmann36 said:

The arches on my 987 had begun to succumb to the road rash around the bottom of the arch/sill area where many cars seem to - I often see it in cars offered for sale, in far worse a state than mines was. Seeing as mines was not so horrendous, and my car is not metallic, I thought I’d give a home repair a go. Being a flat colour with no flake, a paint match was far easier to achieve from an aerosol can.
Here is how I went about it:

Products used

Bilthamber Deox Gel

Wire brush 

All purpose cleaner/degreaser

Zinc primer

Guards Red (or applicable) aerosol

Any good lacquer

Bin bags

Masking tape

Method

Firstly, I washed the entire car, however you can just wash the area if you like. I did it to reduce swirls and marring when masking.

Once I had dried the car, I lightly sanded the area and wire brushed the exposed metal. You can go far more harsh on the areas than I did, and probably should - however it did not affect my end result. 

Once wire brushed, smear deox gel onto any areas of exposed metal, and leave to sit for at the very least the minimum time stated on the container. Once it has been left to work in, wire brush the areas with deox gel applied, and remove the gel.

Once the deox gel has been washed off, thoroughly degrease the area, and let dry. Then mask the vehicle up extremely well. I had my wheel full lock to the left to allow access, then masked the entire wheel up. Further I masked up almost the entire arch, half the door and the sill. I used a kitchen roll on the edges of where I intended to spray. This ensured an even blend of paint, and was extremely effective. Also, I advise laying something on the floor underneath where you are painting - unless you like the idea of a PTS garage floor.

Next I laid down 3 layers of Zinc Primer, followed by 4/5 coats of Guards Red, and then around 6 coats of lacquer, to protect from stones in the future. I’m well aware this is not the most effective method, nor am I by any means a professional vehicle repair tech - however as a cheap, temporary home repair, I am delighted with the results. 

Unfortunately I didn’t take pictures during the process, only before and afters.

Craigmann36.......where did you buy your paint and was it a good match. 

[Craigmann36]

On 1/29/2022 at 12:27 PM, Del_tl1000r said:

Craigmann36.......where did you buy your paint and was it a good match. 

I can’t remember the sellers name, but just off of eBay with the colour code. Halfords also do a good colour match I hear…