Lotta videos and opinions on youtube. One guy suggest blow torching the plastics as they have an agent in them that can only be removed by heating up the parts and wiping it off with alcohol. Another says use Tri Sodium Phosphate....Denatured alcohol, lacquer thinner, etc. Some say use 600 grit sand paper............


I'm f'in confused...I tried denatured alcohol and sandpaper and my SEM paint didn't stick....At $12.00 a can it was a costly mistake as when the paint gets hot it comes off easy.....I haven't even dared to paint the leather 02 trans am seats I installed.....

I want a blacked out interior...Not grey.....Help me

 

as far as i know, paint doesnt stick well on leather. itll look good for a while, then itll wear off. i hope im wrong, and you succeed tho!

 

Well, this is the appearance section and we have some of the smartest mechanics/auto body guys that are members here. I have seen several youtube videos and random info on google but I want to hear from somebody here how it turned out for them and learn from their mistakes.


I already learned denatured alcohol and 400 grit sanding isn't enough as with plastics the molding process requires they use a mold release agent that sticks to the plastic and can't be removed without some serious prep work.

SEM seems to have a good product to prep...that's my next attempt but by the end of this I WILL HAVE a blacked out interior in a 96 Z with 02 T/A seats. I'm really nervous about the seats as I paid a lot for them just to paint/die them and have it turn to shi*.

 

dont paint the seats

if anytihng take the leather off them and dye it, do you want this car to look good for a looooooong time of 4 weeks? paint on leather WILL come off, well some of it will stay but it gets crackly and gross. those youtube videos make it look great but they dont talk about time.

for prepping the platics, i guess you didnt want the texture bc you used sandpaper. but the easiest way to do it is to soak them down in a wax and grease remover, then spray them off, then use a good dish soap and a soft brush, then most have plenty of luck just waiting till they r air dried and then spraying them, i personally lightly hit them with a red scotch bright then compressed air to dust them off and then wipe with soemthing like prep-sol or mineral spirits (MAKE sure you wear gloves!-do not let any oils from your skin on them). the types of alcohol like isopropol or denatured never really seemed to allow the paint to stick right. so i spent a lil more of those and it made a huuge difference.

for more assurance after that hit it with bullydog adhesion promotor and then the sem paint or the sem primer(whatever you are using) make sure to follow the adhesion promotor directions perfectly.

do this and theyll look great and not wear off. its not hard but it takes a bit of time. ive also had better luck with using light coats on plastic

 

I started painting my tan interior black about a month ago. I first cleaned it with this orange degreaser:


Then used some Dawn dish soap to final clean it.

I used 3 coats of rustoleum plastic paint and 2 coats or clear enamal


Been about 4 weeks, my daily driver with a 2 year old (has a car seat) and 6 year old. And sits in the California Mojave desert sun. Still looks nice and clean. I wipe it down with a water damp cloth and still sexy.