Howdy,

My Fit became scratched a couple of months ago and I tried to apply touch up paint to parts of it. There were some parts though that got scratched down to the metal and began rusting. I just went to a repair shop and they gave me a quote for >$800!

I'm thinking of getting rid of the rust and doing the paint job myself. Can anyone tell me if the instructions on this site is good to follow: Video:**How to Fix a Scratch on a Car | eHow.com? Also, is the Fit's paint enameled?

Thanks for any replies!

 

Its not enamel (edit: you know what?...I recall hondas in the mid 90's to have acrylic enamel, edit:call your dealer...cuz I cant shake that old accord being enamel...but I cant imagine the fit being enamel....)
The directions are ok...use like a degreaser that gets rid of wax...
600 grit is good (edit: for starters I prefer 800...and higher if possible...but my buddies use 600)
use a bigger mask than what they use in the video
you can use primer too (dont have to necessarily)
I would make the mask slight irregular shaped and would polish it after a week, to blend it in better.
2-4 light-ish coats every 5-25 minutes depending on your weather/temp
clear coat it if you want but wait longer after the other coats and even then I would only do it if you dig the coverage and are ok with the finish so far...

hope that helps...

Ohh crap! dont forget to do a test spray a few times to get the proper feel for distance and for even coverage and proper application

 

If you notice at the end of that video, the painted area is lower than the surrounding area.

Another way to make the repair almost invisible is to use a brush. First sand the rusted metal ONLY. Then paint some primer into the gouge.

After that apply several layers of paint using a touch-up brush from the dealer. The object is to get it higher than the surrounding paint.

After that you have two choices to achieve a level surface:
1. LANGKA paint blob leveler
2. The EASTWOOD Final Finish System kit

Both will make the repair practically invisible. Search the Web for complete instructions and videos...