Preparing a Car Body for Painting: A Step-by-Step Guide

Proper body preparation is the key to a paint job that lasts 5–10 years without peeling or clouding. Not a single step can be skipped.

Step 1: Damage Assessment

Before starting, carefully inspect the panel under raking light. Look for: dents, scratches down to bare metal, cracks in the paint, bubbles (signs of corrosion under the paint). Photograph all damage.

Step 2: Washing and Degreasing

Wash the vehicle with car shampoo. Allow to dry. Degrease the surface using an anti-silicone degreaser — this removes polishing waxes, hand oils, and silicone residues that reduce adhesion.

Important: degrease immediately before each subsequent step.

Step 3: Removing Old Paint (if necessary)

If the old paint is peeling, it must be removed. Methods: sanding (P80–P120), sandblasting (for large areas), chemical paint stripper. After stripping — degreasing is mandatory.

Step 4: Panel Beating and Body Filling

First straighten dents. Correct remaining irregularities with polyester body filler (up to 5 mm thick) or a lightweight finishing filler (up to 2 mm).

Sanding sequence: P80 (coarse) → P150 (medium) → P220 (fine) → P320–P400 (before primer).

Step 5: Priming

Apply 2–3 coats of 2K acrylic primer. Allow a flash-off time of 10–15 minutes between coats. After full curing — sand with P400–P600.

On bare metal areas — apply acid or epoxy primer first, then an acrylic filler primer.

Step 6: Final Degreasing

Immediately before painting — thorough degreasing with anti-silicone. Wipe with microfibre cloth only once — never make a second pass with the same section of cloth.

Required Materials (checklist)

• Anti-silicone / degreaser
• Abrasive materials P80, P150, P220, P320, P400, P600
• Polyester body filler (coarse) + finishing filler
• 2K acrylic primer + hardener
• Acid or epoxy primer (for bare metal)
• Masking tape and film for isolation