Strut / Brace (under the hood) and Painting Thereof
 

Knowing I never should have assumed I had an idea no one else had...LOL...

I thought about either painting the strut/brace over the engine the same as my body color OR having it chromed. I'm guessing body color would be cheaper but I'd want it to match the body color exactly (which means, I guess, buying at least a quart of paint and having a paint shop use the paint code to paint with).

I guess powdercoating is also an option but not sure how to match the paint NOR how much heat is in the bay (having read about how heat softens the powdercoating).

Any ideas/thoughts, guys?

chrome... eeew...

:rofl2:

Well, chrome is a bit "loud" but I can't have it "stainless steeled" ;)

If you want a black chrome like finish, that can be accomplished through powdercoating if you want some bling that doesn't quite jump out at your like standard chrome would.

That's a possibility, too. However, having read what Mike said about powdercoating brake calipers and how heat could soften the coating, I worry it might get too hot in there... dunno...

i measured about 180F+ on the stb after a weekend drive on street... 85F outside.

That doesn't seem too hot...

Compared to the baking process of powdercoating itself? The engine bay is like a refrigerator lol. There are higher temp powdercoats available but the standard colors are good up to 400 degrees F before they start softening up (they are plastic, afterall).

I guess the heat question (on my part) comes from also not knowing how hot calipers get.

I'd really like to have that part match the body color, especially since it attaches to the body on the left and right.

For anyone curious enough to read this and wanting a comparison of chrome and black chrome...

http://www.hummerproducts.com/Black-...ls-Both-We.jpg

I went with powdercoating it the same color as the body color.....and glad I did:


http://www.the370z.com/members/beach...wm-1425-20.jpg



And as far as calipers go, I had those painted....yes, painted.....the same color as the body, too. Had it that way since June and so far no problems at all:


http://i302.photobucket.com/albums/n...0/DSC_4473.jpg

Yeah, looking under your hood in the "under your hood" thread made me realize (as I pointed out in the first post) that my idea wasn't unique at all. And yours is one of the reasons I prefer body color match.

:tup:

:icon17: Thanks.....I really think you'll like it if you decide to go body color.....but doing something unique and different is also cool! In the end, the important thing is you like it. :tup:

2theextreme are your Volks flat black or a semi gloss? Either way they look great on your car, especially with the blue calipers. :tup:

Thanks! They are flat black. :tup:

Awesome! Thanks.

I'm think about getting some wheels powdercoated black and I'm trying to decide between flat black and semi gloss. Of course the paint on Volk wheels is probably better than most powdercoats. I have a set of Formula Silver G2s so I know that first hand.

Yeah, I've had the TE37's since late Spring last year and they still look great! I've curbed one of them but very lightly (thankfully!) and the body shop was actually able to repair it so it's practically unnoticable now. They are some great wheels! :tup:

Yep the Volks are awesome wheels! :tup:

mike has powdercoated the strut bars. hes done mine and z1804's

http://www.the370z.com/nissan-370z-p...7-24-10-a.html

Was looking at the engine bay today and noticed (after I decided on red, the same color as my body) that the red on the inside of the engine bay is a different shade (like, flat red). Wonder what that would look like having gloss red on the strut.

Is the blue Z the same? Kind of a flat blue on the inside? (hard to tell from the pics)

OK, regarding the earlier comments about heat, calipers and underhood.

The powdercoat can handle the underhood heat 100% with no problems at all.

On brake calipers, under normal street driving and even some light track use, they also hold up just fine. The problem comes with heavy use, like boiling brake fluid type use. WHen the calipers get really hot, the powdercoat gets soft, but it rehardens and that isn't a problem at all. The problem comes when brake dust embeds itself in the softened powder. Thats what discolors and dulls them, but the integrity of the coating itself still holds up.

I swear I always find ancient threads that I want to comment on smh.

Anyways, I am currently in the process of painting my strut & a few other things under the hood. I found this site where you can match the exact color code of the Z's. It seems like a pretty simple DIY, and a hell of a lot cheaper than having powder-coating done.

Touch Up Paint and Accessories | AutomotiveTouchup

You are honestly the worst

You must really be a sad & pathetic person to get off on trolling a car forum....smh :gtfo2:

there are many sites out there that can mix factory paints... why u had to bring back an old thread from the dead, not sure.

but better than making a new thread!

Half the time the only threads we see are the sponsers spamming a ton of parts that most of the time wont even post the prices of, to me a old thread is better than the constant part sellers who want a pm for a price...

I understand there are plenty of places/sites to get mixed paint from, I was just putting where I had found the easiest way of doing it. IMO I would rather see an old thread answered than just have a horde of open ending conversations that don't get us anywhere