[Chirazz]

Hi, I'm Lisa w/a one month old 2002 MB Ody Ex. I just finished washing my Ody and noticed two teeny tiny paint chips on the front hood (looks like a very sharp rock bounced off of it) and am wondering the best way to have this fixed?? Thanks!

Lisa

 

[SAli]

Lisa, sorry to hear of your chips. What I would recommend, is that you get a bottle of touch up paint from your dealer (also see H&A Acc.). Also a bottle of clearcoat finish (any good auto store). Use a little bit of dishwasher detergent and a small toothbtrush and rub the area gently to strip away any polisher sealants. Nest use alcohol on a soft rag to strip away any trace of grease or contaminants. Wipe off and let the area dry completely. Using the touch up paint, apply a thin coating the affected areas. Use multiple very thin coats, spacing application between coats so that each coat is dry before applying the next. Build up the area until flush with the factory paint. After this final coat is dry, follow the directions on the clearcoat for application. Let it all dry completely. Important do not apply any polish until a month or so, to give the paint a chance to cure. Then polish the area with a good sealer.

Second important suggestion, buy yourself either a bra for the nose or a deflector, or you will need many bottles of touch up paint. Good luck, hope this helps.

 

[Chirazz]

Thank you for the recommendation. Sounds like that would work very well, but I am hesitant to potentially ruin this area on the hood.. what are the chances? Do you know how well it will look when finished?? The spots are the size of 2 small crumbs so I can't imagine that I'll botch it up, but I'm wondering if you've done this and what the results were? Thanks again! Lisa

 

[robr2]

You'll always know they are there, but most others will probably never notice. One thing to keep in mind is that the Honda touch up paint dries incredibly fast. I wa touching up a couple of little areas and it seemed that the paint was drying on the toothpick I was using.

You may want to try that. The toothpick allows small amounts of paint to flow into the chip whereas the brush in the touch up forces you to smear it into the chip or settle in a large drop.

These instructions are very detailed and perhaps overboard to most but worth a read to get some ideas.

http://www.autoeducation.com/carcare/paintchips.htm

I used the 600 grit sandpaper wrapped around the end of a toothpick and gently used it.

Good Luck

PS - get a deflector. I see you are in MA as well. So much junk flying in the air especially in the winter. I have one and I'm sure it's saved the nose through its first winter. My Accord is full of chips after 3.

 

[Mel]

Before you try the paint touch up route, try this:

Get some polishing compound (it's similar to rubbing compound, but finer; I think it's usually/always white, while rubbing compound is usually red) and use it very carefully. I've had some good results with just the tip of my finger. I've eliminate some scratches and even a minor "chip". Even if it doesn't work, it'll prepare the surface for the paint.

Mel

 

[Chirazz]

I knew I'd get some great info here! Thanks for the link robr2. I'm going to check it out in the morning. Question for you? Do you think that the deflector really does a good job of preventing chips? When we first brought the Ody home, I suggested this to my DH, but he didn't think it would do much. I am also in the Boston area of MA and you are very right about all of the road debris around here.

Mel, I have one question for you as well. The chips actually go through the paint, so there is bare metal beneath. I'm not sure the polish would provide enough "rust" protection. What do you think?? I'm leaning towards going the touch up paint route as much as I'd like to avoid it.

Thanks again for your thoughts.

Lisa

 

[robr2]

<font face="Verdana, Arial" size="2">Originally posted by Chirazz:
I knew I'd get some great info here! Thanks for the link robr2. I'm going to check it out in the morning. Question for you? Do you think that the deflector really does a good job of preventing chips? When we first brought the Ody home, I suggested this to my DH, but he didn't think it would do much. I am also in the Boston area of MA and you are very right about all of the road debris around here

Lisa </font>

Lisa - personally, I think the deflector does help in preventing most chips as it directs the airflow over the hood and onto the windshield. It's not perfect and I will admit I have still gotten a couple of chips up high on the hood. But it's better than nothing - the hood on my Accord has taken so much winter sand.

I got the Macneil deflector. IMHO opinion, the Honda one looked too bulky and detracted from the looks of the van. You can get the Macneil at:

www.macneil.com

Good Luck

 

[pummal]

So, do you get a lot of chips on your windshield?



------------------
2002 Mesa Beige EX-L-RES - on order
2001 Mesa Beige EX - recently sold

 

[robr2]

<font face="Verdana, Arial" size="2">Originally posted by pummal:
So, do you get a lot of chips on your windshield?</font>

Suprisingly not. The original one was replaced earlier this year due to a crack but it wasn't pitted. I hardly get bug splats either. I guess it really redirects most of the air over the roof rather than the windshield. Any chips and the such seem to be from things that are heavy and that the deflector would do little to prevent without a direct hit.

The sand in the winter is really the issue. Around here it seems the goal of the snowplows is to not let their delicate plow blades touch the road suface. They would rather dump lots of sand. My Accord windshield is terrible due to 3 winters of sand pitting.

 

[Mel]

<font face="Verdana, Arial" size="2">Originally posted by Chirazz:
Mel, I have one question for you as well. The chips actually go through the paint, so there is bare metal beneath. I'm not sure the polish would provide enough "rust" protection.</font>

If the chips actually go through to bare metal then polishing compound will do nothing but cleanup the area. I had some chips that I was sure were through the paint that cleaned up nicely, another one didn't. Try it, if it works, you're done, if not, you know that you need touch up paint.

Mel