I had my side moldings removed and repainted in that area. It looks awesome. No orange peel or nothing. The total cost for it all was $15! 100% DIY!

We removed them, filled the holes with bondo, sanded it, taped off the area, primered it, and sprayed it white. We had cans of Taffetta White and used those to spray the area.

When we took off the tape it had a line of paint crust from where we taped it off obviously. We then used 600 grit sandpaper to get rid of that, and blend it together with the rest of the car. Also to get rid of any orange peel that was prevalent on the side.

We then taped it off again and sprayed it once more. We then removed the tape, sanded it with 1000-1500 grit sandpaper to blend the paint line, and smooth out the finish. We dried it, waxed it, and it looks pure OEM.

My car is fairly new, and the paint's been waxed periodically. It still has a great shine and is bright like when I got it. this may pertain to the reason the new paint on the sides was able to mesh so well.

My father and I don't mess around when it comes to the DIY. He also painted my front lip when I got it. He's a finisher, and has a great background in spraying. I couldn't have done it without him. Pr0ps y0!

Pics soon to follow. I need to snap some and upload them for your viewing pleasure. The whole car's being repainted when I get a JDM front, which will be sooner or later. That's why I wasn't TOO iffy on whether it would look good or not. I was very pleasantly surprised with the end result though. Better than I expected!

 

Forgot the mention that this took place over a week. Time was definately taken when working on this project. No rush. Glad to have it back now too. I kinda missed it when it was down.

 

Definately show us some pictures.

I've always wanted to shave my side moldings off.

 

Well I hope you don't have problems, but bondo isn't supposed to be used like semi-liquid metal. There's a technique using bondo and steel wool in holes like that, but really you should have had them welded up. I've seen people shave moldings on civics with bondo, drive a few thousand miles, and have funny little squares start on the side of their cars....and eventually crack to where the bondo falls out completely or to where it's still in place but it's not actually sticking to the metal anymore, which looks even sillier.

I shaved my molding on my 88 Civic by welding and it looks great, though.

 

when you have your car painted you might want to look into having those holes welded and then smoothed out w/ bondo . hate to see them crack after you spend 2g's on a paint job

post pics soon

 

Nice job man, can't wait to see some pics.

 

thats what i plan on doing soon cuz those molding are such junk all they do is trap dirt and crap in there and when you wash it and drive away i get a nice line if crap that spills out of them every time

 

yea, ur not suppose to use just bondo, they'll crack! hope urs turned out good though

 

Definitely post some pics!!!

Good job...

 

how'd the bondo end up holding up?

 

just fiber glass the inside then bondo fill the outside.

it wont crack or fall out then

but yeah it is best to use welds

 

i'd like to weld them but the other threads i've read on this says it gets reallll expensive. so i'm thinking about doing the fiberglasss then bondo. can you elaborate on that for me?

 

just pull off the side markers.

get some automotive tape and tape off the holes from outside so the fiberglass dont fall threw when its wet.

then just put a little square of hair fiber glass matt over the hole from inside and soak it with the resin, then lay a little bigger piece of heavier thicker cloth fiberglass over that and soak it with resin, (you do these two steps before anything dries so it all dries together. u dont get much working time so be quick.) the easiest way is to have your squares cut already b4 u mix the resin and just lay the pieces in the resin so they get soaked and then just put them on.

the first hair matt piece should be just bigger then the hole, then the second cloth piece should be just bigger then the last matt piece. then just use your brush and smear a final coat of resin over it all.

you can do all holes at the same time so you dont have to mix more resin.

no need to be big or messy just enough to cover the hole and extend a little more around the hole so it holds well. then when it dries remove the tape outside and do the sanding/bondo.

then you have a complete job that wont crack or ever fall out.

always remember when applying bondo, use thin layers, the bigger the layer the more ittl crack or break up.
Keep in mind that bondo absorbs water and moisture too, so the less you use the better, and as long as you prep it properly and paint it well and clear coat it you should have no problem

welds are the proper way but like you said it does get expensive thats why you do this when your getting a paint job cause their already doing the prepping so they dont charge much extra to weld a few holes

 

where can i get metal and fiberglass filler i see reg bondo at harbor freight only