New wheels means dressy calipers...

Ok guys...I love the new wheels I just got (as I've shown in a previous post). Now check out what I did this afternoon (I was bored). I went to the auto store and bought one of those caliper painting kits. At first try, the paint was taking too long to dry in between coats (they recommended waiting 20 mins in between), probably because it was raining while I did this inside the garage

Then, I had an idea! I went in the basement and got my handy dandy heating gun! As I painted the first coat, I ran the heating gun on medium heat setting (to prevent bubbling), and it dried the paint really quickly, so that I could apply more coats. The kit recommended 3 coats total and for a final coat to be applied 5 days later if desired. Well, with the heating gun working so well, I applied a total of 7 or 8 coats! It gave it that ceramic coated look

Comments?

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(DocVijay @ Sep 20 2006, 09:33 PM) [snapback]322606[/snapback]</div>

I thought about the drum brakes, but NAW, it will kinda look out of place. The calipers with the wheel combo looks very kewl now. I chose red because it stands out especially when I am on the highway.

Some folks think that it looks silly or tacky to do this, but I personally think it looks fine with the Prius. Heck, I used to own a 911, and sure...the calipers were painted and it looked great on it. So what if it was a sports car...a Prius can be sporty looking too!

Vince.

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(Green Speed @ Sep 21 2006, 02:01 PM) [snapback]322931[/snapback]</div>

Hey there...

It IS possible to paint the calipers without jacking the car up that high...but you have to remove the wheels though

I went to a local auto store (AutoZone....Pepboys sells them too) and got this kit called DUPLICOLOR CALIPER PAINT. Comes in a box as a kit for $19.95. Instructions were pretty simple.

It comes with a spray degreaser/cleaner. Have plenty of worn out rags to wipe off grease off caliper. Once you have it cleaned, then you can apply the paint with the included brush.

Now, a word of caution...if you plan to just paint the caliper (which I recommend, instead of painting the WHOLE brake assemby), make sure you cover and protect the areas not to be painted with masking or painter's tape (the kit includes masking tape...but it is only a small roll).

Oh, if you have one...do use (and I recommend this) a heating gun. Ya know, one that you would use to strip paint with. Or, maybe a hairdryer would work too...but, the heating gun is better because you can actually increase the amount of heat quickly.

Anyway...once you apply the first coat of paint...it'll look kinda weird at first. The whole surface area won't be covered at one stroke with the brush. The key to it is for you to allow the coat to dry (the kit recommends waiting 15 mins between coats. Now, that takes too darn long for me...that's why the heating gun comes in handy.

What I did was...after the first coat...I would run the heat gun about 3 inches away from the surface...just feel with your arm (without burning yourself ) the amount of heat coming out...I found the correct amount of heat is equivalent to having to tolerate the heat on your arm for a few seconds. It's too hot if you can't tolerate the heat for less the 3 seconds. OR, you can paint a coat on a piece of board and practice on it. It's obviously too HOT if the paint bubbles. You don't want that.

The key to it is PATIENCE. After a coat, I would run the heat gun back and forth across the surface for several minutes. You can tell when it dries when the GLOSS fades a little. Or, you can quickly touch the surface with your finger (just touch an area that will not show any fingerprints if in case you touch it too soon before completely drying).

I had my front propped on two jacks, doing both sides simultaneously...alternating between coats. I had applied a total of about 5-7 coats, thinly applied. IT GETS THICKER PER COAT, which gives it that GLOSSY CERAMIC LOOK.

That's all there is to it.

NOTE: When you see the caliper, right at the center there is a semi-circle (halfmoon), where a thin smooth metal is covering part of the brake pad. Try not to paint it...because it is coated with some grease and the fact that the surface is smooth and not rough...the paint will not adhere to it. You can mess it up. I wish I had a picture to post, BUT I RAN OUT OF FILE ATTACHMENT SPACE!

Just take the brush and carefully paint along the inside of the caliper, trying not to overpaint on this part of the metal.

Have fun!

Vince.



<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(Ari @ Sep 21 2006, 02:51 PM) [snapback]322969[/snapback]</div>

I didn't like painting the entire caliper because the contrasting silver with the red makes a much more interesting combination. My previous 911 had this contrasting look. That's where I got the idea for painting my Prius' caliper from. There's no right or wrong about painting the brake calipers. It all depends on one's taste, I guess.

Vince.

By the way, I was at Starbuck's this morning (yes folks, there is now a Starbuck's in Youngstown! Hehehe) and someone asked me if I got my Prius with those "custom brakes". Hehehehehe.

Vince.