The guy I purchased the van off from Germany decided to have the bottom half of the van painted black,the reason he did this was because in the winter it snowed a lot and the bottom half got dirty very quickly !

It’s beyond me why he did this, there isn’t any rust to hide or filler etc but there’s no accounting for taste.

Underneath the black paint that has been applied is the original paint,it’s been sprayed on and very neatly,the paint can be picked off from the odd flaky bit and reveals the original paint work.
I’d love it to be all yellow again instead of a stealth bumble bee !
Any ideas how I can remove paint without damaging the original paintwork or should I leave well alone?

Many thanks

Ps if you’ve seen this on another forum then lucky you…

pps picture was from last year awful stars are long gone !

It’s beyond me why he did this

the reason he did this was because in the winter it snowed a lot and the bottom half got dirty very quickly !

HTH.

Jamie…not really but thanks for trying 😉

Classic.

classic…sure is 29 years old but I think you may be taking the biscuit which is fine…

Isn’t the black paint thing usually a rust rather than dirt measure?

Isn’t the black paint thing usually a rust rather than dirt measure?

no rust there, or what is, is minimal.

no rust there, or what is, is minimal.

So then the paint is a rust measure, and has worked?

I am not a sprayer but I have sprayed a few panels with good side of average but not lets take this and show it results, so my opinion is not gospel.

There are no short cuts to finishing.You will not get that paint off cleanly, prep, prep then prep some more then and respray.

Jamie could make it yellow in seconds.
If you’re really lucky and they didn’t prep it a steam cleaner should get it off.

So then the paint is a rust measure, and has worked?

this be true but I hate the contrast of black on yellow and it doesn’t snow here (yes it rains )!

No prep done before as bits where its flaked off is clean yellow underneath.

When you say steam cleaner please explain method and will it take ages and where does one get one from ?

…and how would Jamie make it yellow in seconds, does he carry a pot of yellow paint and a brush with him ?

…and how would Jamie make it yellow in seconds, does he carry a pot of yellow paint and a brush with him ?

I think he uses a magic wand…

If the paint is shiny where it has flaked off this means it wasn’t rubbed down prior to painting.
A good blast with a steam cleaner will get the paint off in this case. If it wasn’t rubbed down I would have expected most of it to have fallen off by now.
So assuming it was rubbed down and painted with an aerosol you may be able to wash it off with thinners. This will leave you with a yellow van with the bottom half rubbed down. This could buff up with an electric mop provided they used fine wet and dry to prep with and didn’t rub through on any of the edges.
All of this is highly unlikely.
Leave it as it is and have a lie in instead tomorrow.

Take it a paint shop, you need to sort out what sort of paint it is.
If its a stone chip, then flat it back and paint over it.
If its celluose you might be able to shift it with celly thinners.
If you have got the time then it might flat off and if the yellow is thick enough it might polish up.

Bottom line, be prepared for a bottom half respay. anything less is a bonus. If you are going to pay someone to do the labour/sanding then don’t go straight for paint, it will be cheaper in the long run.

thanks for info, if I was to test a small area with a steam cleaner what type of steam cleaner are we talking ?

A big powerful one at the garage.
Looking at the masking line there’s no flaking there which leads me to believe it’s had a certain amount of prepping. You won’t get all the black off.

i like it like that. Painting the steel rims a colour and leaving the hub caps black would look cool i recon. You’d get a sliver of colour around the tyres. Seriously i’d probably go for something like neon pink (maybe)or neon orange and spray the vw badge at the front the same.But thats my taste.

polished and laquered steel ( if it can be done),or gold ( hammerite maybe around the edge??) or silver painted rims, both with the black hub caps would equally look good i recon.

right becoming a bit obsessed now – but red would also work. Loving looking at modded cars is the reason. – oh and loving that van. Looks brilliant.

Rub it down with 500 grade paper, till the yellow starts to show, then 800 paper, then 1000. Then into the yellow with 1200. Then T-Cut & several arm transplants later your done. 🙂

Me…I’d just prep it myself & get it re-painted.

I’m a bit disappointed Jamie hasn’t made it all yellow already!

Jamie,Jamie.

thanks for all the replies, the sensible me thinks its way to big a job for me to undertake…project for 2015 !

iamroughrider- thanks for the ideas 8)

How about a vinyl wrap over the whole thing?

Not got a clue how much they cost tbh, but if your sure the metal is sound underneath it could be a lower cost and prep job than paint.

no experience but i’d look at plastikote rattle cans. bit of prepping around the wheel edge – maybe a can of paint per side, the badge – done – 😀

there isn’t any rust to hide or filler etc

Its a classic-ish VW. You just haven’t found it yet.

It will rot, its only a matter of time.

I own a ’73 bay. I could have bought a 996 turbo with the money I have sunk in to it now…

Even if you’re lucky enough to get it off, and you won’t be, what guarantee that the paint’s in good shape underneath? Could be old damage hidden. I think it looks good as is but if you do decide to get into removing it, make sure you’ve budgeted for a respray too as it’s all or nothing.