maybe paint was an over-simplification...
the wheels were painted.
the lower parts: grill, front & rear bumper, sliderz, and plastic trim were coated with rust-oleum's road warrior product. it's an epoxy with grit, about the same stuff as herculiner.
the top parts: rack, deflector, lights, and basket were painted. we did not paint/coat the mirrors, door handles, window trim, and a few other pieces.
all in all it has held up rather well. the rack has a few scratches on top that can't be easily seen. the hi-lift jack, yakima space booster, and other metal objects have scratched the surface. of course the same objects had already scratched the rack while grey before painting so we knew it was coming.
the rust-oleum has been almost bullet-proof. only the botto side of the sliderz shows any damage. (they're sliderz, what do you expect??)