I am ready for paint on my 85 gsl. the color i have picked is charcoal gray. i removed all the moldings on the body (going for a clean look). Now this is where i need my fellow rx7 guys opinions. i am undecided if i should paint the window moldings and door trims the same color of the car??? Or should i repaint the trim black like the factory did. also how about the mirrors painted or black ???

 

black

 

The trims are black but not painted.

 

I am also planning on painting my 1st Gen a charcoal gray color, but I plan on doing my trim pieces in black. I like the way the two colors go together.

 

Id paint the trim black also....

 

Paint the trimming...be sure to use the right paint as it may flake.

 

Black Definitely! Look At Some Of The Pics With Trim Painted Same As The Car, It Makes The Car Look Taller And Much Older (my Opinion). Unless You Think A 1975 Rx7 Looks Cool, If So You Might As Well Do 2 Tone And Chrome The Bumpers........................

 

What paint sticks best to the black trim? Mine was repainted and whatever the painter used is flaking off now. I need to repaint and I want to make sure I use the best adhering satin black paint.

 

It's the primer that holds the paint to the metal. A good self-etching primer works best.

 

Well i took the car for paint. a friend of mine knows someone at earl scheib and they gave me a good deal on paint. so wish me luck???? heres some pics of what my car looks like right now.

Ill post some pics of what it looks like after paint.

 

Cant wait to see how it turns out, i am partial to charcoal myself

 

I switched the color to metallic black.

 

I switched the color to metallic black. last second i just like black. the guy said he's gonna make it glossy

 

update on my paint: well as u can all guess it came out shity!!! the first earl scheib did a horrible job and there was no gloss to my paint. missed many areas while sanding (if they even sanded it at all)
but on a good note i called corprate and complained. they had the district manager from arizona call me. i explained the issues and dis-satisfaction with my paint. so to make a long story short. the car is back in paint getting completly stripped and ready for new paint. also they are fixing all my door dings and adding an extra coat of clear for free. the bad thing is that i wont have my car for 2 weeks. but hey ill wait if they do it right.
heres some pics of what a horrible job the first earl scheib did. ill do a fallow up after i get my 7 back with the second paint job.
and i changed the color back to gloss black. the metallic black was to "bling bling" for me

 

Wow, they had better do it right this time. Thats horrible. I guess since your getting a "deal", they figured they could get away with half assing it. Now if they had done it right the first time, it wouldn't be taking up space in their shop for another 2 weeks. Too much work for them to think I guess. Also, is there something wrong with your bumper, it looks weird in the head on shot with the black.

 

yeah tell me about it. they were just being lazy on the first time. as for the bumper yeah its cracked but i have a new one in the truck theyre gonna paint it to

 

I was under the impression from a story my dad told me years ago that earl scheib was a budget place that didn't do any prep work, they sprayed what you brought in how you brought it in, mud on the car, doesn't matter, spray right over it, i'm not surprised by the original crap results based on that story. Good for you getting a second shot at it though, but keep your expectations realistic, it is a cheap paint job after all.

oh yeah good choice with black, mines black too.

 

They better do a bit more prep work this time! Good luck and post pics when you get the car back.

 

yeah thats no joke barf 1 they do paint every thing, molding glue u name it. but i paid extra for them to prep before paint. haha what a joke they didnt even put primer down first. well im crossing my fingers to see how they do this time

 

This is exactly right. Not to be harsh, but Earl Scheib is absolute garbage. So is Maaco. Get ready for your paint to WASH OFF IN THE RAIN in a few years. It happened to my dad twice. They use garbage paint, crappy guns, no flex-additive for bumpers (the paint on your bumpers will flake off. That's a promise!)

They're going to repaint your car...but I promise they're not going to strip the old paint off and do it right!!!!!!

They don't know what primer is. They don't spray a "clear" on your car. They don't know what prep is....heck, they can barely use masking tape.

They're going to paint right over that crappy paint they just laid down. They'll probably bondo over that paint the sprayed on there too. In a few months, the entire clumps will fall out and you'll still have a painted dent there from the paint job in the pics.

There's a reason why a good paint job costs $1,000++.

I hope you like it bro. Again, not to sound harsh; I apologize because I know this sounds rude...but I just hate when I hear about people getting their car painted at Maaco or at Earl Sheib, or other "one day" places.

 

yeah i hear u. at first i was trying to just get an ok paint job. just something with a shine and give the car a better look then faded silver. but when i got it back it looked worse. any ways this is my first 7 and just kinda making it a project car to see what i learn from it. so far i learned dont got to earl schieb. (haha)
ill be sure to post pics when its done

 

Yeah I hear you on that one bro. My '85 is my second R. My first was an '88, so this is my first 1G. I love it!

 

Yikes.

 

Maaco did a good job for me, AFTER I went over the car carefully with the painter and told him what I wanted and what he had to do and then I asked for the quote. Including a new fender, a few minor dings repaired, sanding out the paint checking, primer, etc., it was $1700 a year ago and it's still sound and good looking. One minor paint run. That was their one-coat silver job, which lacks some of the depth of the 2-coat, which is about $300 more.

A few years ago I had Earl Sheib paint my old blue mercury and it came out OK except for some puddling on the hood and top, but for $300 it looked immensely better.

Also, I always have a car repainted the original color, which makes it a little easier and cheaper, and it always looks right. Original restores the car to the appearance you liked , too, and avoids peculiar color syndrome, where people are always surprised, and you get tired of the peculiar color after a while.