Repainting Front Splitters|Help!

[Prestovie]

Hey guys I'm planning on painting my front splitters(currently matte black) to match my car(TiAg). How would you guys recommend going about it? I know the paint code is "354", but I'm not sure who to go through for paint. The only stuff I find from BMW specifically is touch up paint, but I need more than that, along with a solid clear coat like the original paint. I have a connection with Sherwin-Williams but I doubt they carry the specific color.
Any recommendations? Anybody have experience with repainting large parts of your car?
Thanks!
Preston

[Sockethead]

The problem is finding the right color in a small quantity. I found this on ebay http://www.ebay.com/itm/like/111685393273?lpid=82&chn=ps&ul_noapp=true but it's a little pricy for a rattle can but for a pair of splitters, it will be your best option

Painting large parts takes equipment and skill... not only for spraying but also for mixing & reducing the paint for the right temperature. You need a decent spray gun and compressor with a water separator. If you're going to paint in your garage, you'd need to cover everything in the garage with plastic and mask off the entire car except for the panels being painted. If you're just doing say, the front bumper, you could take that off and paint separately. The panel or part would need to be strait and cleaned with wax/silicone remover before scuffing to prep for paint.
Metallic colors take special skill and experience to do right as the metallic in the paint has to be spread evenly. I've only painted two metallic cars. The first one looked horrible. The second one turned out pretty good.

I haven't painted a car, panels or any little parts in years. I don't have the equipment or the prep materials anymore. The paint has changed to all water based. To get all of that again would cost more than just getting a body shop to paint it.

What I did last time is I found a body shop that painted a lot of BMW's. When they had a car in there that was the same color, they sprayed my parts. That way they didn't charge me for all the materials since they already had the color mixed in the spray gun.
You can save more money by prepping the part yourself before they paint it. The most important step is stripping off the old wax because if it's not all removed the paint will fisheye. No amount of additional sanding will remove the wax. It has to be removed in the first step. I found this out the hard way...

[Prestovie]

Thank you so much that helps a lot! I might stop by my local BMW shop and see if they're mixing any colors eventually like you said. How much do you think it would cost to take it in and just have the splitters done? And thanks for the link! I won't be painting any big panels anytime soon so i hopefully won't be covering my entire garage ;)

[Sockethead]

Cost all depends on the shop. I had one of my headlight washer covers and two mirror mounts painted at one shop and they charged way too much. I had my mirror shells painted at another shop and they practically did it for free...

[danewilson77]

Ive used these guys for Imola (painted underside of my hood).

http://www.automotivetouchup.com/touch-up-paint/bmw/2005/all-models/

S7 Edge, out

[Sockethead]

Something like this is what I would do. Those splitters are low enough that it may not make a difference if it's not perfect.
Prep with wax remover, scuff up the piece (a green 3M scuff pad works)
Just spray even coats. Always keep the spray nozzle Perpendicular to the piece you're painting. Stop each pass after you pass the end of the piece and start the next pass before you reach the beginning of the piece. Don't change speed in the middle. This will keep the metallic uniform...
You may want to experiment spraying the silver on black and gray primer and see what matches. The final color may be be different depending on what color is underneath..

[Prestovie]

Something like this is what I would do. Those splitters are low enough that it may not make a difference if it's not perfect.
Prep with wax remover, scuff up the piece (a green 3M scuff pad works)
Just spray even coats. Always keep the spray nozzle Perpendicular to the piece you're painting. Stop each pass after you pass the end of the piece and start the next pass before you reach the beginning of the piece. Don't change speed in the middle. This will keep the metallic uniform...
You may want to experiment spraying the silver on black and gray primer and see what matches. The final color may be be different depending on what color is underneath..

Yeah I'm definitely going to be doing it at home, just got back from dealer... $1,200! Absolutely blown away, the estimate was shoved in my face and when I got in the car there was $800 alone in labor, then sheet metal(wtf) which was another $300, where does sheet metal come into play??(Keep in mind that this was the estimate to do the front splitters TiAg and the rear diffuser gloss black, but still:eyetwitch

[Prestovie]

Also, now that I'm in this position, anybody know how to actually remove the splitters to paint them? Or should I tape and cover off the rest of the car?(Obviously I'd prefer to remove them if I can)

[Sockethead]

The common way to mount them is 3 screws on the bottom and double sided tape on the top edge