(re)Buildthread a Smart Car

oh Jim...its needs a Comutacar body!

I'm not sure about giraffe but blue and white works well with that green.

This project's been quiet, been buried in other things and there's no huge rush on it. But I do have all the parts and 2 days off work, tomorrow its supposed to be 67 degrees perfect for painting. So I finished up sanding all the panels. The old panels are painted (some smart panels are painted and some are molded in color) So they had a nice base for paint last time, I just sanded back the old paint to make everything smooth and have a good surface.

The new panels for the front were color molded in white, so raw plastic. I have scuffed them back with scotchbrite pads and I'll use plastic adhesion promoter before applying primer or paint.

Decided to try something different and I got the Duplicolor paint system products. In Sublime Green pearl. I'll keep everyone posted on how well they work but what I do like is everything is pre mixed, just pour it in the gun and shoot. I got 3 qts of primer, base and clear, its a small car, should be plenty. I only used about a quart and a half (before mixing) of traditional paint when I did it last time.

So this is what the body of a smart breaks down to.

Paint day got pushed back due to injury but today was a lovely 68 degrees with low wind and just overcast enough to be perfect. I built some stands to hold all the panels.

Here they are all prepped to go

Then I laid on the primer. Had some doubts as it sprayed a bit lumpy but it laid out nicely in the end. Glad I went with 3 cans, needed 2.5 in the primer and 3 for the color to really get good coverage.

And then the basecoat. Really its not as obnoxious as I thought it would be. Maybe the clear will brighten it up a bit.

And now I'm here posting this killing time untill clear, base needs an hour to dry before clear.

The color coat sprayed nicely and really laid out well. Overall I'm pretty happy with this paint, it works quite well and is some of the easiest to spray I've ever worked with.

And now in clear. Whohoo...I can start putting this thing back together soon.

What paint did you use?

Did that paint come with a volume knob?

pres589 wrote: What paint did you use?

Must have gotten lost in the wall of text above but its the Duplicolor Paint Shop paints. All pre mixed, just load the gun and shoot, So far Im a fan, we'll see how it holds up.

Kia_Racer wrote: Did that paint come with a volume knob?

Oh, good, I was thinking it was a bit subdued. Really its not as in your face as the color I painted it with the first time, but I like it better, nice pearl in the paint that really shines in the sun. Im a firm believer that Smart cars should only be painted colors that can be found on Skittles.

I'd like to see one painted like a harlequin.

In reply to JThw8:

I concur with Smart cars being Skittles colored, I just prefer International Orange.

Assembly day!!

Fiddly work but not too difficult. The rear went back together pretty easy.

A little close up in the sun catches the pearl nicely

Then piecing the bits of the front back together, look, it's winking at you. Johnny 5 is alive!

Just about done....

And finished.

I still want to buff it out and there's maintenance work to be done before it goes back to her but the big hurdles are done now.

Wow, that came out great!

How much did the paint set you back? It looks very similar to a modern version of sublime green, which is the leading contender for the color of my challenge car.

Dusterbd13 wrote: How much did the paint set you back? It looks very similar to a modern version of sublime green, which is the leading contender for the color of my challenge car.

It is called sublime green so that makes sense. 3 qts each, pre mixed of primer, base and clear was just a bit over $200. But that was enough to do a smart, figure doubling it for a real sized car :)

edit thinking on it and how it didn't go nearly as far as I would have expected I'd factor 3x what I used on a fullsized car so 9qts each of primer, base and clear.

Looks great! Can't believe it was painted in your back yard.

Nice work!

DatsunS130 wrote: Looks great! Can't believe it was painted in your back yard.

Nature makes a great paint booth with the right conditions. This time of year bugs are low, temps are great, and it had been rainy the 2 days before so the dust was down. Its not a show quality job or anything but with a cut and buff to get the few bits of crud out that did get into it it will be plenty good.

Still probably looks better than some "professional" body shops. Whats you compressor/ paint gun setup? I'm thinking of painting my jeep.

DatsunS130 wrote: Still probably looks better than some "professional" body shops. Whats you compressor/ paint gun setup? I'm thinking of painting my jeep.

I have a large (60 gallon) craftsman air compressor, although I've used the same guns with good result on a portable 25 gallon compressor, you just want to make sure the CFM requirement of the gun is under the max of the compressor. Or if it exceeds the compressor's maximum plan your project with break points to allow the compressor to recover.

My spray gun is just a DeVilbiss Startingline set from Eastwood. Fairly cheap for a good set of guns http://www.eastwood.com/devilbiss-auto-paint-and-priming-system.html

But if you aren't planning on painting more than one car, to be honest I've heard good things about the cheap Harbor Freight HVLP guns. I think a few folks here have used them with great success.

You make that look really easy. Looking awesome. I'm a big fan of having small cars stick out a bit with brighter colors. I would think it would make it a safer vehicle as it isn't likely to be overlooked.

84FSP wrote: You make that look really easy. Looking awesome. I'm a big fan of having small cars stick out a bit with brighter colors. I would think it would make it a safer vehicle as it isn't likely to be overlooked.

It really was easy. No bodywork needed, it was all panel replacement. Everything was a bolt on. No masking since it takes less time to remove the panels than it does to properly mask off the car.

I will concede that when she first asked for it to be painted green I went out and found the brightest green I could find because driving it for all those years in silver I learned just how much it really did blend in. (and it will do a stoppie if your have to emergency brake)

ir if helps, the "finished" post was posted at around 3:45. I didnt start working on the car until 12:00 noon and I didn't just rush right in to post that I was done. So 3 - 3.5 hours to assemble all the body panels back on the car and that was with generous breaks and internet checks to remember where things went.

edited because I realized there is a 1 hour offset in the forum time to my local time...I was thinking 2 hours seemed too short to get that done

That's a great result. I'm actually a big fan of that color.

84FSP wrote: You make that look really easy. Looking awesome. I'm a big fan of having small cars stick out a bit with brighter colors. I would think it would make it a safer vehicle as it isn't likely to be overlooked.

Now that's brighter you don't have to fit it with a safety vest to be seen!! Love the Kawasaki green... brings back good memories

Nearing the end of this one but one last thing...giraffification.

Per the suggestion of her best friend who is my advisor on the project I went silver on silver for a subtle effect. Depending on how the light hits it you dont even see it at all. Of course had I realized how different the phase shift was I might have paid more attention when applying pieces which filled gaps in the larger layout. So there are some that are out of phase. I'll try to do better on the drivers side tomorrow.