Paint... what kind... and what for...

Ok, My tranny toasted the other day... and the axles were destroyed b/c of the way it was towed home (it had already been broken into, and I didn't wanna leave it again and have the rims stolen; so I sacrificed a set of axles)...

Now, while it's outta comission I wanna take and clean the engine/parts and paint them...

What paint can I use for things like the clutch slave cylinder (cast iron I b/l)
intake manifold, exhaust manifold, transmission (a good idea?), throttle body, valve cover, brake calipers, etc...

I am planning on going red (car is black)...

Well dude I was going to tell ya sorry about the car messing up.
I know how it feels.Anyways the best paint to paint engine parts with would be Krylon Engine Paint and make sure you use some kind of engine temperature primer.Also make sure you dont have any rust on any of the parts you may wanna slightly sand them, but be careful not to mess anything up.:icon16:

I painted all my engine parts with Engine Enamel (500 degree or 1200 degree), but I didn't use any primer and it turned out awesome. As long as its made to withstand high temperatures, anything should work.

Ok, I went out last night and purchased some Engine enamel... it's supposed to make everything look anodized.... you also have to purchase the basecoat...

I tested it, without the basecoat, it's a bit darker and doesn't have the sparkle finish to it... I also don't think it adhered as good as it could with the primer coat....

The other, with the primer, stuck good and looks even better... it's a little brighter, but right where I want it... The base coat provided a slight sparkle finish to it that looked amazing...

The paint is good for 500°F, so I should be good for most things...
I don't think I'll be painting the exhaust manifold... and I'm definitely gonna clean things first... I did the test on a couple pieces of the broken bell housing on the old transmission... It looked good, but there were spots where I didn't clean good enough...

What can I use to break through oil (to clean)?

A couple other things I will be painting, battery tray (maybe)
intercooler piping,
MAS base (connects MAS to intake piping)
Fuel rail


What can I use to block off holes in the TB, Fuel rail, etc...

You should just be able to use some heavy duty degreaser to clean things up. As for plugging of holes, masking tape might work.

You should just be able to use some heavy duty degreaser to clean things up. As for plugging of holes, masking tape might work.

ok... that degreaser won't hurt anything (hoses,sensors, etc) will it?

The masking tape sounds like a good idea (and it's cheap enough)

ok... that degreaser won't hurt anything (hoses,sensors, etc) will it?


I wouldn't directly spray it on sensors, but hoses it should be fine along with anything metal. When I cleaned my engine bay, I just took some and sprayed it on a rag and then rubbed the shit outa anything not electrical, and no harm done.

cool... I know I sprayed some when I cleaned the motor in the Eclipse (small oil leak, my fault) but I stopped after spraying the valve cover for fear of damaging anything (and I was trying to sell it, didn't wanna damage anything)

I have some "CleanBrite" I think it is... I'll cover the Air filter and stuff like that and clean it up... maybe I'll take stuff out of there first (intercooler, painting end tanks)(intake manifold,painting it as well)...
shit maybe I'll clean it up while it's on the motor, so I won't have to plug so many damn holes... lol

You are taking this stuff out of the engine bay to clean it right? To clean it I would soak it for a good time in some hardcore degreaser and go to work with a stiff bristle brush or get it bead blasted. Masking tape should do wonders for keeping paint way from where its supposed to be.

I would keep in mind that red will probably show oil leaks and dirt pretty easy, I would paint the tranny, block, and that kind of stuff black. Black will probably hide the dirt and grime a bit better, but it will also set off your other red stuff (valve cover). I would also paint the IM black to set off that valvecover. I wouldnt paint the exhaust manifold. Scottsee has a pretty bitchin heat shield that would dress it up good. Either way good luck and sorry to hear about your shit breaking.

Yeah, I'm taking the stuff outta the engine bay... I have nothing to soak them in though... I might try and find a 10 gallon bucket and buy a ton of the degreaser...

I know that the red will show the oil and dirt... I plan on keeping it clean, and I'm actually kinda using it to help me diagnose some oil leaks... I think I have one, and I'm pretty sure it's coming from the valve cover (stripped bolt holes, gonna fix that when I put the VC back in...)

The car's black, that's why I didn't go with black, b/c I didn't wanna make everything blend in... I can't paint the block, but I was debating over doing the transmission red too... as it will be a helluva lot harder to get it 100% clean...

Also, should I use some Acrylic as a clearcoat? or will the red be fine as a top coat?
I wanna do this as cheap as possible (more money for repairs/mods) but I wanna do it right and that matters most...

Personally I would throw a coat of clear over everything that you can to help protect the paint, but that's just me. It would be more work and a little more expensive, but damn it would look good.

I used some of that anodized paint on one of my engines that I sold and it worked very well for me. To clean the engine parts, just spray them down with EngineBrite, but make sure you get ALL the reside off, otherwise the paint won't stick for shit. And for the clearcoat idea, I wouldn't do it to engine parts, I don't believe that they make a high-temp clear coat, and clear under those temperatures can start to melt down and bubble, and I know you're not going to want to start over again. For painting the exhaust manifold, they actually make paint for exhaust manifolds and headers and stuff, it's good for up to 1500 degrees and I believe they make it in silver and black. IIRC, Scott (pr_ricer) painted his manifold with some paint and it worked extremeley well for him.

And for the clearcoat idea, I wouldn't do it to engine parts, I don't believe that they make a high-temp clear coat, and clear under those temperatures can start to melt down and bubble

That's a very good point, didn't think of that.

k, well... I didn't get these messages til this morn... but I opted to go w/o clear coat...
I painted (so far) the fuel rails... the Throttle body elbow... and I am letting the intake manifold soak...
I have painted the valve cover with the silver base coat (I'm doing the anodized paint, BTW)

I have decided to use the base coat to accent the red...
The intake manifold is going to be painted silver, with ECI Multi in red (PITA)

The valve cover will be painted red, but the Letters and the spark plug area will remain silver (to offset/accent the red)... I think it's going to look great... it has been a pita so far, but the few pieces I have been able to get painted have made it worth it all....

If you ever want to strip paint off of say the valve cover... I found something that does it instantly...
"Permatex Gasket Remover" (Bought at Advance Auto) I sprayed it on the paint and it bubbled, and the paint peeled off instantly... washed it down with a hose, and the valve cover was clean and smooth as a baby's ass...
I ran out before I could use it on the intake manifold.... but the silver is coming off of mine anyway... so I'm soaking it in Purple power and gonna scrub it awhile... then see where I'm at as far as painting is concerned...

BTW, The Prothane mounts and Magstar wires are red, and will match the paint very well



Edit:
This is what my valve cover will look like, except the spark plug area will be silver as well, to accent the red wires (oh and I got smart and removed the PCV valve before painting, lol)
http://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i279/shadowless_nite/DSCI1181.jpg

I used some of that anodized paint on one of my engines that I sold and it worked very well for me. To clean the engine parts, just spray them down with EngineBrite, but make sure you get ALL the reside off, otherwise the paint won't stick for shit. And for the clearcoat idea, I wouldn't do it to engine parts, I don't believe that they make a high-temp clear coat, and clear under those temperatures can start to melt down and bubble, and I know you're not going to want to start over again. For painting the exhaust manifold, they actually make paint for exhaust manifolds and headers and stuff, it's good for up to 1500 degrees and I believe they make it in silver and black. IIRC, Scott (pr_ricer) painted his manifold with some paint and it worked extremeley well for him.

Awesome, I'll probably go silver with the manifolds then... I was still debating over what to use as an accent, but the silver base seemed like a viable option and it looks great so far... so Silver and red it is...

Hey, Here's some pics to update you guys on my progress...

I think it looks bad-ass... it has its flaws, but it's also my first time... and I still think overall, it is good...

fuel rails (this pic sux, b/c it was on the brick/plastic which I used to paint, and the red is in the back ground, but I assure you; it looks good...)
http://memimage.cardomain.net/member_images/2/web/2462000-2462999/2462639_26_full.jpg


Throttle Body Intake Elbow
http://memimage.cardomain.net/member_images/2/web/2462000-2462999/2462639_27_full.jpg


And the best for last (over an hour to mask it off, plus the base coat, then top coat... and tons of suspense...)


http://memimage.cardomain.net/member_images/2/web/2462000-2462999/2462639_29_full.jpg

P.S.-I looked on e-bay and found a painted intake manifold (candy apple red) and it looked like $H!T... so I won't be spraying that red... possibly silver, but most likely, it will stay ugly till I get a sheet metal intake)...

Well, enjoi... and let me know what you think...

Looks good so far. What else are you going to paint?

not sure... it's time to start ordering parts... and I'm a/b $200 short... so I don't know what i'm gonna do...
I may have to wait another two weeks to get the car back together...

I'm going to paint brake calipers, and probably intercooler piping... just haven't taken stuff off yet... and I don't have the damn key for the rims ($60 from Snap-On)...so I can't do anything just yet...

I'm gonna buy a new V/C gasket and some helicoil (fixing stripped bolt holes) and put the VC back on... protect it with some plastic till the IM and fuel rails are back in...

Truthfully... I'm not sure what else to paint... and I don't wanna disassemble a fully working motor to do anything else... and I'm broke... so who knows...

Damn, the valve cover is HOTT!!!

Is the paint ever going to have problems? I was going to powdercoat mine, but if I can get it to look that good and for a lot cheaper than powdercoating, I may just try that.

Damn, the valve cover is HOTT!!!

Is the paint ever going to have problems? I was going to powdercoat mine, but if I can get it to look that good and for a lot cheaper than powdercoating, I may just try that.

Thanks... I'm not going to gaurantee anything with the paint... it is rated for temps of up to 500°F... so it should be fine... the silver is the base coat, and they are supposed to be resistant to heat,oil,moisture,etc...

the cans cost a/b $5 a piece... and everything I painted, cept the valve cover was done with one can... the valve cover has quite a bit of overspray, b/c the first can began to run out of paint and spotting everywhere... I had to take the second can and do the layer a bit thicker... but I think it turned out good... if you look around the letters, it's a bit lighter there, but with the silver there, it accents it even better... so I'm pleased...

I picked up the paint (Duplicolor Anodized [something like that]) at Advance...

if you wanna strip the paint quick... use the permatex Gasket Remover... it will peel the paint on the VC instantly, then just clean that off of it, and paint the base coat...

Masking is a bit more labor intensive... I took and ran strips all the way across the letters, then I cut around the letters...

I wish I had done the raised lines on the valve cover silver, but it would have been a hell of a job to cut the tape around them and make sure everything still lined up and no spray got under there...

Oh, to those Who said Clearcoat/Acrylic doesn't come in high-temp... it does, I actually found some at Advance the other night when my buddy was picking up paint... I'm interested to try it out, but I don't want to have to paint the same things all over again, and it's getting too cold...

^Oh, and that paint I used is Duplicolor MetalCast

Here's a test fit of the VC on the car... (haven't tapped holes or hooked everything else up yet)
http://memimage.cardomain.net/member_images/2/web/2462000-2462999/2462639_34_full.jpg

After I posed that about the clearcoat, I went out to the shop and guess what I found? A can of 1200 degree engine enamel clearcoat. I meant to re-post, but forgot. I also did a whole engine in that Red MetalCast and Aluminum colors, I'll have to try find the pics and show you how well it turned out. They also have a new paint called MetalFlake and it's badass! I bought a couple cans because the burnt copper exactly matches the color of my car and I love the paint. I'll post up some pics when I get some time.

I'll have to check out that MetalFlake... I'm pleased with the MetalCast, but still gonna look, ya know; for next time...