2003 Protege5 back from the brink: budget rebirth.
- Thread starter hitncry
- Start date
Looks good. Wish I could tuck as much wheel in the rear with 17's LOL.
It's not that hard to do with 18's because of the taller wheel. I am maybe 1/2" from tucking wheel in the rear with 17's and I can't fit my jack under the front half of the car anymore.
I have drop springs on the car, but when I re-did the car I cut one coil out of each rear so it was a tad lower than before. Eventually I want to bag it. I made the mistake of photoshopping it bagged and now I'm super ancy to do it, but don't have the money right now.
PHOTOSHOP:
PHOTOSHOP:
HAHAHAHA!! At least you realized the plate, oddly enough, does pull it all together!! I was surprised that nobody else on here noticed tho with them all throwing suggestions on how to tie the 2 colors together and all lol.
Aside from the visual aspect of your P5, do you plan on doing anything to increase it's performance at all?? Just curious. I keep researching and all I seem to find is pretty much the same basic things on taking stuff off the MSP to add to/replace things in our car. I'm sorry, but I'm just not happy with doing just that for little gain. I'd be happier if I could get my P5 higher, like maybe 250-350 whp and have it look sweet as hell lol. Maybe that's just me tho...? lol
what about a KL swap?
what about a KL swap?
Here is a some reading material for anyone interested
My 2003 P5 KL swap build thread (garage queen)
My 2002 P5 KL swap build thread (sold)
what about a KL swap?
I will def look into that. Thanks
Thanks for sharing some links on it!
I have had a lot of people message and email me about the process for the painting so I am just going to add the info I sent them on here for any newcomers that may stumble across this thread.
The biggest thing overall is to just be patient. (also wear a mask or respirator because you will be blowing colored snot for a week if you don't)
To start just scuff the factory paint with green scotchbrite pad. You can buy the sponge kind at the store, but they are expensive and you are wasting one side with a sponge. I actually went to ACE Hardware and they sell 12"x12" squares of the material for like $1 that you can cut into smaller pads. After you scuff the clear so that the surface is fogy and not glossy, wash the car with water, dry it and then wipe it down with a rag with alcohol or other non-greasy solution to get any oils and stuff off the surface. This way you are spraying onto a good clean surface. Though I will say that I think you could spray this paint on chrome and it would stick just fine!
Don't waste your time trying to take the side skirts off. Almost every weird plastic clip holing them on will break from being old and dried out. I pulled the driver side, but said screw it for the passenger side. The both came out awesome.
The best way to paint the whole car is to "panel paint". Mask of a fender then paint just that fender. Mask off a door and paint just that door. Mask off the hatch and only paint the hatch... and so on. If you try to paint everything at once there will be streaks and poor paint coverage everywhere. This paint goes on heavy so you can get great coverage on the 1st coat, but may need a second on some panels.
The doors are hard to paint. The angle just sucks. I kept wishing I could turn the car on it's side to paint the doors. Actually I kinda tried to get a better angle by using a floor jack to tilt the side I was painting up a bit. DO LONG WIDE SWEEPS when painting the doors and make sure that you don't stop any spraying over the metal door panel you are painting. you don't want to create splotches.
The hood is even worse because all your overspray dust is falling straight down into the spot you just painted. It may get frustrating, but keep at it and you will find a method that works. Technically if you were willing to take the hood off it would help a ton. This scenario would be even worse on the roof because you have to reach so far out and over. My solution for this and the hood was obviously that I didn't paint them. I did the vinyl graphics for the roof and center hood.
I would do a few extra coats of paint on the front bumper to help battle rock chips.
Don't sand the paint in any way afterwards. I tried wet sanding, dry sanding and scuffing and nothing looks better than the "straight out of the can" look. It keeps it all even and uniform.
DO YOUR BEST TO PAINT SMOOTH AND EVEN BUT...THE PAINT WILL LOOK A LITTLE BIT BLOTCHY AFTER YOU FINISH NO MATER WHAT. ESPECIALLY UNDER FLORESCENT LIGHTS IF YOU HAVE THEM IN YOUR GARAGE. YOU WILL BE BUMMED AND THINK THAT YOU SUCK AND THAT THIS WAS A FAIL... I DID. BUT DON'T WORRY!
Because almost all of that splotchiness goes away after a week or so in the sun and a wash or two after the paint is fully sun cured. Also it all looks worse when its all taped and masked. as all the black trim and glass windows are revealed the imperfections become almost invisible. I swear to you that NOBODY who I have talked to about my car in person suspected that it was rattle can. And as with anything, you are going to notice all the little imperfections and they will bother you a bit, but if you take your time and do a good job you realize that nobody else will notice them and over time you won't either.
I'm not ashamed that it's rattle can and I always tell people I know it's not perfect and that I wasn't expecting perfect. They usually say something about how cool it is that make you realize it looks perfect enough to them.
A FEW AFTER PAINTING TIPS:
Treat it right. It's not automotive paint and it doesn't have an extra layer of automotive clear on it, but it is quite durable.
Wash it with a soft cloth any I usually dry it with a soft rubbery style shammy. In fact if it's not super dirty you can simply dampen the shammy and then give the car an all-over wipe down as a wash. The paint actually kind of acts like rain-x and the water just beads up on it so it is very easy to clean.
It will hold scuffs. Like from the sole of your shoe on the sideskirt from getting in and out of the car. You can clean the scuffs but they are a b****. So I just try to be a little extra careful on that now.
GASOLINE IS THE ENEMY!!!! It will turn the paint to goop in a few seconds. I always stick a paper towel under the gas filler hole now to catch any drips that might try to fall off the pump nozzle when getting gas.
HERE ARE A FEW PICS TO HELP TOO:
The biggest thing overall is to just be patient. (also wear a mask or respirator because you will be blowing colored snot for a week if you don't)
To start just scuff the factory paint with green scotchbrite pad. You can buy the sponge kind at the store, but they are expensive and you are wasting one side with a sponge. I actually went to ACE Hardware and they sell 12"x12" squares of the material for like $1 that you can cut into smaller pads. After you scuff the clear so that the surface is fogy and not glossy, wash the car with water, dry it and then wipe it down with a rag with alcohol or other non-greasy solution to get any oils and stuff off the surface. This way you are spraying onto a good clean surface. Though I will say that I think you could spray this paint on chrome and it would stick just fine!
Don't waste your time trying to take the side skirts off. Almost every weird plastic clip holing them on will break from being old and dried out. I pulled the driver side, but said screw it for the passenger side. The both came out awesome.
The best way to paint the whole car is to "panel paint". Mask of a fender then paint just that fender. Mask off a door and paint just that door. Mask off the hatch and only paint the hatch... and so on. If you try to paint everything at once there will be streaks and poor paint coverage everywhere. This paint goes on heavy so you can get great coverage on the 1st coat, but may need a second on some panels.
The doors are hard to paint. The angle just sucks. I kept wishing I could turn the car on it's side to paint the doors. Actually I kinda tried to get a better angle by using a floor jack to tilt the side I was painting up a bit. DO LONG WIDE SWEEPS when painting the doors and make sure that you don't stop any spraying over the metal door panel you are painting. you don't want to create splotches.
The hood is even worse because all your overspray dust is falling straight down into the spot you just painted. It may get frustrating, but keep at it and you will find a method that works. Technically if you were willing to take the hood off it would help a ton. This scenario would be even worse on the roof because you have to reach so far out and over. My solution for this and the hood was obviously that I didn't paint them. I did the vinyl graphics for the roof and center hood.
I would do a few extra coats of paint on the front bumper to help battle rock chips.
Don't sand the paint in any way afterwards. I tried wet sanding, dry sanding and scuffing and nothing looks better than the "straight out of the can" look. It keeps it all even and uniform.
DO YOUR BEST TO PAINT SMOOTH AND EVEN BUT...THE PAINT WILL LOOK A LITTLE BIT BLOTCHY AFTER YOU FINISH NO MATER WHAT. ESPECIALLY UNDER FLORESCENT LIGHTS IF YOU HAVE THEM IN YOUR GARAGE. YOU WILL BE BUMMED AND THINK THAT YOU SUCK AND THAT THIS WAS A FAIL... I DID. BUT DON'T WORRY!
Because almost all of that splotchiness goes away after a week or so in the sun and a wash or two after the paint is fully sun cured. Also it all looks worse when its all taped and masked. as all the black trim and glass windows are revealed the imperfections become almost invisible. I swear to you that NOBODY who I have talked to about my car in person suspected that it was rattle can. And as with anything, you are going to notice all the little imperfections and they will bother you a bit, but if you take your time and do a good job you realize that nobody else will notice them and over time you won't either.
I'm not ashamed that it's rattle can and I always tell people I know it's not perfect and that I wasn't expecting perfect. They usually say something about how cool it is that make you realize it looks perfect enough to them.
A FEW AFTER PAINTING TIPS:
Treat it right. It's not automotive paint and it doesn't have an extra layer of automotive clear on it, but it is quite durable.
Wash it with a soft cloth any I usually dry it with a soft rubbery style shammy. In fact if it's not super dirty you can simply dampen the shammy and then give the car an all-over wipe down as a wash. The paint actually kind of acts like rain-x and the water just beads up on it so it is very easy to clean.
It will hold scuffs. Like from the sole of your shoe on the sideskirt from getting in and out of the car. You can clean the scuffs but they are a b****. So I just try to be a little extra careful on that now.
GASOLINE IS THE ENEMY!!!! It will turn the paint to goop in a few seconds. I always stick a paper towel under the gas filler hole now to catch any drips that might try to fall off the pump nozzle when getting gas.
HERE ARE A FEW PICS TO HELP TOO:
CR3 Motorsports
Member
Where did you get the paint from?
AzteCypher
black ops modifications..
- :
- 2001 Mazda Protege LX
Really want to try this. Maybe I'll save it for my next project.... or maybe I'll just try it on my hood.
CR3 Motorsports
Member
Thanks! How many cans did you use?
Last edited:
12 can, I could do it again in 9, but also I didn't paint my roof or the center of my hood.
