[DIY] Caliper painting?

[Desertdude]

Anyone paint their calipers with a brush by themselves? I’m thinking about trying this, I don’t want to spend $800 to have it done.

 

[Dysan911]

I ordered the Tesla Decals from Amazon which took several weeks to arrive from China. I am on the fence about the paint though. The G2 Caliper paint is supposed to be the best of the best but it's like $65 bucks for the little can of it you get. Is this stuff way better than say the POR 15 brand of brush on caliper paint that you can pick up from Autozone for $15 bucks?

 

[GreenHokie]

Yep, lots of threads/info on this already. I painted the calipers myself. Used the G2 brush-on paint system and got superb results. It does take a little skill/know-how to get that perfect finish, but it’s certainly not difficult. Just read the info/tips out there and do the necessary prep work. Prep work is absolute key to a perfect finish/result.

See attached link and then scroll down to post #29 for my comments/photos…

DIY Painting Brake Calipers Red

I messed up decal on front passenger installed it top down instead of bottom up. How easy it is to remove without damaging the paint?

teslamotorsclub.com

 

[Dysan911]

Yep, lots of posts/info on this already. I painted the calipers myself. Used the G2 brush-on paint system and got superb results. It does take a little skill/know-how to get that perfect finish, but it’s certainly not difficult. Just read the info/tips out there and do the necessary prep work. Prep work is absolute key to a perfect finish/result.

See attached link and then scroll down to post #29 for my comments/photos…

DIY Painting Brake Calipers Red

I messed up decal on front passenger installed it top down instead of bottom up. How easy it is to remove without damaging the paint?

teslamotorsclub.com

Thanks, GH!. I just watched another video on the POR-15 and it's been mentioned that the color can be more Orange-ish than Red so that was enough for me to want to consider G2 even more.

I did read a G2 Review on Amazon that said that you have to be fast because it dries so quick in the can and the 3.5oz you get isn't really enough paint to do all 4 calipers. Did you feel the amount was more than adequate or does one really need to be careful about the amount you apply so you don't come up short?

 

[GreenHokie]

Thanks, GH!. I just watched another video on the POR-15 and it's been mentioned that the color can be more Orange-ish than Red so that was enough for me to want to consider G2 even more.

I did read a G2 Review on Amazon that said that you have to be fast because it dries so quick in the can and the 3.5oz you get isn't really enough paint to do all 4 calipers. Did you feel the amount was more than adequate or does one really need to be careful about the amount you apply so you don't come up short?

You’re welcome!

That Amazon reviewer is both correct and incorrect.

The G2 comes with a hardening agent (liquid) that you apply/mix to the paint immediately prior to application. Once you add/mix that hardening agent, you have about 5-6 hours before the paint starts to thicken up too much to become useful. With all the proper preparation done and completely out of the way (like completely cleaning all surfaces of the calipers, having the entire vehicle already fully lifted/jacked, etc…), you can definitely apply at least 3 coats to all four calipers before the paint mixture thickens up too much. Once you start painting, you definitely do not want to stop (other than waiting the suggest time between coats) because you have to jack-up the other wheel or do something else that would add time to the job.

A possible alternative approach is to split up the supplied paint into two separate containers (one container with 1.75 oz of paint and the other with 1.75 oz of paint). This will allow you to mix just half of the supplied hardening agent to one container at a time. So, you would be able to stretch your total allowable paint time to 10-12 hours, since you’d be doing the job with two separate paint batches. For first timers or someone who may not be that handy/comfortable with painting careful/precise strokes, this two-batch method would be my recommendation.

For me, the supplied 3.5 oz can of paint was plenty to apply 3 coats, with plenty of paint left over.

Pro-Noob Tip #1: Apply light and even coats, so the paint does not accumulate and form drip marks.

 

[gundam83]

I've used G2 paint on my previous car (2015 Mustang GT) and had great results. Looks pretty good 6 years later. I too am curious if cheaper alternatives look just as good.

 

[GreenHokie]

Yeah, I painted mine about 2 years ago and it looks just as good & glossy today as it did the day after I applied it. Fantastic results so far. Talk to me in 6 years, but at this rate I’m confident it will look great then too.

Disclaimer: I baby my cars, keep em in a conditioned garage and we don’t get a lot of snow/salt here in central Virginny.

Also, if I remember correctly, the G2 only cost me around $36 delivered back in 2019. Of course, they’ve raised the price significantly since then.

 

[matnetik]

I sprayed them and used decals I bought from eBay - you can peep the video here, cost me $30 and I did it in my driveway with 1 jack-