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Debate: Should we paint panels on the car or off? I've seen both go wrong.
Last month I had a 2018 Civic in my shop here in Austin. Fender bender on the driver side. My old mentor always said pull the panel, paint it off the car for the cleanest finish. So I pulled the fender, painted it on a stand, and it came out perfect. But when I put it back, the gap to the door was off by a millimeter. My coworker Dave swears by masking and painting on the car because the panel settles in its natural position. But I've seen that get overspray on surrounding parts and blend issues in direct sun. Now I'm stuck. Which way do you guys lean for side panels on modern cars with tight tolerances?
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daniel_martin29d ago
Hear me out because I ran into the exact same thing on a 2013 Accord last year. Pulled the rear quarter to fix a dent and paint it separate, ended up fighting the door gap for two hours after I bolted everything back. The paint on that one panel was flawless but the car looked worse because the alignment was off. I've gone back to painting on the car unless it's something small like a mirror cap or a bumper cover. If you take your time with good tape and paper, overspray isn't a problem. The panel settles in its natural spot when you paint it on the car and that millimeter gap is just not worth the headache.
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kellyjones28d ago
I've been there with a Subaru Outback rear door. Pulled the panel to get a clean edge on the paint, spent an afternoon shimming and adjusting just to get it close. Dave's got a point about the natural position thing, I've gone back to on-car masking for anything that bolts onto a critical seam.
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