Tried that at weekend and hated every minute of it! !!! In fact im moving next week to place with 10m2 garden...pure bliss! Recently bought a 2007 RRS HSE TDV6 for a Pimp-My-Ride-Project.
DONE: Meduza front bumper, AB rear bumper, AB tailpipes, calipers repainted, rear upper tailgate upgrade, side steps, AB front grille, AB side vents, rear LED lights, clear side repeaters, integrated daytime running lights, LED headlights.
TO DO: color code sills and pillars.

If you used Foxy's tan-sprayer you at least find it easy to spay 'em 'body' colour

Hi, I have just painted my front sport grill from factory silver to colour coded bonatti grey. I first went over with scotch pad to key .Then 2 coats of plastic primer rubbed back with 800 wet and dry, then 3 coats of bonatti grey metallic I will post pics later but looks good.

Thats a project I would like to tackle after the small bits and bobs, if they turn out good. You didn't apply a lacquer though, I went into a specialist retailer yesterday and they said it's best to apply metallic paint and then lacquer, then 2000 course sand/buffer. Apparently this weathers better.
I was gonna spray handles today but it was only 11 oC in garage, so I'll wait for warmer weather. Recently bought a 2007 RRS HSE TDV6 for a Pimp-My-Ride-Project.
DONE: Meduza front bumper, AB rear bumper, AB tailpipes, calipers repainted, rear upper tailgate upgrade, side steps, AB front grille, AB side vents, rear LED lights, clear side repeaters, integrated daytime running lights, LED headlights.
TO DO: color code sills and pillars.

so, did 3 thin coats of plastic primer today on the handles, about 20 mins between each coat. i used a homemade degreaser though, consisting of distilled vinegar and bicarbonate of soda. Hope this works. gonna let these harden until tomorrow afternoon. the result is surprisingly smooth, not at all patchy, though i suppose its difficult to notice imperfections on a matte finish.

these are currently with me in my office:


tomorrow will be the java black paint and lacquer  Recently bought a 2007 RRS HSE TDV6 for a Pimp-My-Ride-Project.
DONE: Meduza front bumper, AB rear bumper, AB tailpipes, calipers repainted, rear upper tailgate upgrade, side steps, AB front grille, AB side vents, rear LED lights, clear side repeaters, integrated daytime running lights, LED headlights.
TO DO: color code sills and pillars.

Looking good so far suntan Just make sure you are in a dust free zone when applying the top coat & lacquar. Don't rush applying the black coat, don't try and cover the primer in one attempt, and make sure you shake the can of paint for at least 2 minutes before applying it to the handles. Spray some paint out of the can first just incase it spits out onto your handle and then having to start all over again.
Looking forward to the end result.

cheers for the tips Ady
i'm a little unsure about how much time should go between the color and the lacquer, do you know? i've read some places the lacquer should start going on before the color has fully dried, so that they bond better, but some places say it should go a couple of days. very confusing. and the worst i've read is that the lacquer should dry a full week before being man handled. can you shed any light on this? thanks. Recently bought a 2007 RRS HSE TDV6 for a Pimp-My-Ride-Project.
DONE: Meduza front bumper, AB rear bumper, AB tailpipes, calipers repainted, rear upper tailgate upgrade, side steps, AB front grille, AB side vents, rear LED lights, clear side repeaters, integrated daytime running lights, LED headlights.
TO DO: color code sills and pillars.

I would read the instructions on the paint can, as different types of paint require different ways of applying them. Then go with their instructions.

Apparently only three layers color and two layers clear are necessary, according to the shop owner. With a hours drying time inbetween. I suppose there are as many theories as there are experts so ill see the results on one handle and go from there.
Each aerosol color, special made, costs £18 so better be good, although it is cheaper than sending it to the local stealer.
Gonna sand the primer lightly then begin spraying color tonite. Recently bought a 2007 RRS HSE TDV6 for a Pimp-My-Ride-Project.
DONE: Meduza front bumper, AB rear bumper, AB tailpipes, calipers repainted, rear upper tailgate upgrade, side steps, AB front grille, AB side vents, rear LED lights, clear side repeaters, integrated daytime running lights, LED headlights.
TO DO: color code sills and pillars.

Good luck

little update on my progress at weekend.

i left off having primed 3 layers of the Hycote Plastic Grey Primer. great stuff. Left the last layer to harden one full day then sanded down very lightly with 800 wet and dry paper.

i then sprayed the color. Two medium layers with one hours drying inbetween, then a light rub down (after the 2nd coat only, after an hours drying time) with 800 wet and dry, then one more medium layer of color and then let this dry for one hour. On the first layer I went side to side and finished with a light dusting. On the second layer I sprayed in the opposite direction and finished with light dusting. On the third layer I sprayed side to side again and finished with a light dusting.

I was told that you only really need to sand inbetween layers if there are imperfections in the color, which I suppose is more than probable with aerosols. On my second layer of color, I was getting a little excessive build up of color towards the edges so this had to be sanded down. In the future I'l start off with a light layer, then do two medium layers, or two light layers and two medium layers.

I didn't sand the third layer down as the finish was looking very even. So after an hours drying time I went directly to the clear lacquer, Monofil Premium Range Clear Lacquer. I found a tip on one forum that you should put the can in warm water for several minutes prior to spraying, which I did. I sprayed two medium layers but a little too much came on the handles and started to collect toward the edges. So I sanded the second layer down with 2500 wet and dry, then I sprayed the third layer in a slower fashion. The lacquer has been hardening now for about 18 hours:



i am more than impressed with the finish. it's not patchy in any way, 100% even. Based on the result so far, it gives me confidence in color coding the wing mirrors and other small parts (lower tailgate trim possibly next project).

All that's left now is the polish. I've been in contact with Monofil and they inform me that only one hour is required between the last clear coat and polishing. So I'll be getting out my Autoglym super resin polish later today and giving this some exercise  Recently bought a 2007 RRS HSE TDV6 for a Pimp-My-Ride-Project.
DONE: Meduza front bumper, AB rear bumper, AB tailpipes, calipers repainted, rear upper tailgate upgrade, side steps, AB front grille, AB side vents, rear LED lights, clear side repeaters, integrated daytime running lights, LED headlights.
TO DO: color code sills and pillars.

Last edited by tanloverluke on Mon Mar 31 2014 12:38pm. Edited 1 time in total

Great write up and looking really good too.

Could be a nice little side line in this colour coding for you........  FF 4.4 V8 Soooo looking forward to this bad boy
Ex 2006 RRS SC - garbage
Ex 2016 135i M Sport - dream car
Ex 2003 RS6 Avant - piece of cr*p
Ex 2014 320d X Drive, M Sport Touring - ok I guess
Ex 2007 RRS TDV8 - bloody loved it
EX 2007 FL2 XS - not so bad

I would use 'T' cut first, and then finish with Autoglym resin polish  MY2007 RRS TDV8 Black - tinted glass - side steps- stormer grille - 20" diamond cut alloys - alpaca leather - TV/DVD pack - some blingy chrome bits & bob's

Thanks for this write up, been toying with the idea myself for a while.....Seeing how yours has turned out has given me some confidence to take it on. Great job!  2010 RRS TDV6 3.0 Autobiography - Stornoway Grey
2006 RRS TDV6 2.7 HSE -Java Black
2008 BMW 3 Series 2.l
2006 BMW 5 series 2.l

thanks guys! I can certainly try the t-cut MXSRR, now you mention it I do in fact remember reading that somewhere

go for it mad-dafty. I've you've got enough time and patience it's a fun and rewarding project  Recently bought a 2007 RRS HSE TDV6 for a Pimp-My-Ride-Project.
DONE: Meduza front bumper, AB rear bumper, AB tailpipes, calipers repainted, rear upper tailgate upgrade, side steps, AB front grille, AB side vents, rear LED lights, clear side repeaters, integrated daytime running lights, LED headlights.
TO DO: color code sills and pillars.