painting my chrome grille.

[urban yan]

I'd like to redo my chrome grille in black (on my 2001).
Are there any tricks to paint chromed plastic that I should know about?

 

[5-90]

Scuff it up some with light (180-grit or so) sandpaper. It's not a hard chrome, so you don't have to chew it right off - but it's still slick enough that getting paint to stick could be problematic.

Scuff.
Clean. I find denatured alcohol is strong enough to degrease plastic parts, wet enough to remove dust, but not aggressive enough to dissolve plastic.
Prime.
Paint.
Paint. (Yes, two coats. Let the first coat dry totally - 24 hours or so.)

 

[urban yan]

I just picked up the paint/primer (I already have the sandpaper and cleaner at home).
I'm going to get on this right away while the weather is nice - Stupid Canadian March weather (we have cigar/ patio weather one day, and a blizzard the next)

thank you.
BTW. Do you think I should clearcoat the grille after the second coat (I have some automotive clearcoat at home from a previous project)

 

[5-90]

I just picked up the paint/primer (I already have the sandpaper and cleaner at home).
I'm going to get on this right away while the weather is nice - Stupid Canadian March weather (we have cigar/ patio weather one day, and a blizzard the next)

thank you.
BTW. Do you think I should clearcoat the grille after the second coat (I have some automotive clearcoat at home from a previous project)

If you want a gloss finish, it couldn't hurt. When I repainted mine, I did flat black, so I didn't bother (did the grille and headlamp buckets on my 88 Laredo 2-door - I'm not overly fond of chrome. I'll get rid of the rest later...)

Bear in mind that it's pretty easy to get drips and runs in clearcoat - very light coats, and repeat as necessary. Wait an hour or so in between coats to give the previous coat time to settle and spread.

 

[urban yan]

Chrome always bothered me on my 90 Laredo (I think black looks much better on the older XJs). I didn't mind the chrome so much on newer XJs.. in fact, I went through some effort to get the front and rear chrome pieces for my 01 classic after a deal on a 2000 limited went sour.

but alas my chrome pieces lost their sheen... along with my interest in them lol. I finished priming everything, I used a black primer, and it looks better already. I'll put the first coat of paint tomorrow. Thanks again for the advice.

 

[BruceB83]

I did this to most (so far) of the chrome trim on my Laredo. I first lightly sanded it...not too heavy because you'll dig down into the material and then you need some thick filler primer. Then used a quality primer and then 3 light coats of flat black on top. Looks great and it's been painted for over a year now without chipping at all.

 

[urban yan]

I put down 2 coats of black primer yesterday, and my first coat of paint today. I liked the way the black primer looked so much I decided to exchange my gloss black paint for flat black. The flat black looks great, but I can't decide if I should clear coat the grille to protect it.

 

[BruceB83]

I had no need to clear coat and it's fine after over a year.

 

[urban yan]

adios chrome

 

[BruceB83]

Looks good but whats up with the Madonna boob headlights?

 

[urban yan]

They're bi-xenon projectors.
http://www.naxja.org/forum/showthread.php?t=940046&highlight=tri-xenon

 

[hubs97xj]

You should dust those screw heads too.

I like the color-keyed grills, but the black grill looks good on the darker colors. It's also a pita to mask the recessed areas and get a decent looking result.

 

[urban yan]

It's a bit ironic because the oem (black) screws rusted/bled so badly that ended up ruining my chrome grille in the first place... which in turn convinced me to paint it black.

 

[xjclassic2000]

You have the chrome above the license plate on your hatch too right? are you planning on painting that as well? I think it would match better if you painted that too... just my opinion though.

 

[urban yan]

You have the chrome above the license plate on your hatch too right? are you planning on painting that as well? I think it would match better if you painted that too... just my opinion though.

I agree complately.

Unfortunately, I misplaced my original green one (I swore I put it aside last fall), and the chrome one cost me too much to paint (I got it from the stealership). I'm holding off until I pick up a spare one.

 

[in4aride]

about to black out my grill too...love the lights

 

[urban yan]

Make sure you give it a good scuff. I really dropped the ball on my grille. I didn't scuff it enough and the paint's not holding on all too well.
I just ordered a new black grille. It was cheaper than having my current one soda blasted and repainted.

I did pick-up a license plate light trim and I painted it black to match the front. I think it looks allot better than the chrome one.
All-in-all, I'm happy I ditched the chrome.

 

[DanMan2k06]

Woah. Who makes that gas tank skid?

 

[urban yan]

A company called antec used to make them, but they discontinued their XJ accessories a while back. I picked up a new one on ebay.de. It was chrome; I had it glassblasted and powdercoated hammertone to match my wheels.

I have some more pics in my bullbar thread
http://www.naxja.org/forum/showthread.php?t=963517&page=4