Color Change

[FLIP K1DD]

Tomorrow I start the dreaded process of prepping the Camry for some paint. Going from the ugly beige to a nice black. I will be purchasing 2 gallons from a nearby Keystone Automotive, LKQ Corp Hopefully that will be enough. Once Im satisfied with the prep work, we will be painting on the military base's hobby paint booth. $55 to rent a whole days worth with all equipment but paint

Anyways, this will consist of sanding, slight bondo body work on these little dings & de-badged pinholes, and a little primer. Will be using an orbital electric sander and a sanding block. So far from my understanding, I dont have to prime the whole car, just the areas that are bare metal from the bondo work. But since I will be changing from a light color to the darkest color, would it be smart to Primer the whole car anyways?

Any suggestions or help would be appreciated! Correct grit etc. Much love TN, help me make this POS a nice grocery getting gas saving vip back seat loving party car

[Chris Crash]

I would prime the whole car. A little more work, but the final result only looks as good as the work you put into it. I'm not sure but the paint might look different on primer than it would on the old paint.

[OceanView]

I have a dumb question, do you primer the plastic bumper parts as well?

[garytho]

Chris is right,....prime the whole car,....you have come this far,....may as well do it right the first time and save yourself a bunch of hassles.

[Zembonez]

Your paint would cover a lot better if you prime with a dark primer first. It is not necessary (or even an advantage) otherwise to prime over good paint that has been sanded. Don't prime bumper covers unless you use a product made for flexible plastic. You'll also need to paint the covers separately using paint with a flex agent added. Otherwise any flex in the plastic will crack your new paint.

Make sure your bodywork is right on the money and then check it again. Black will show every flaw like it has a spotlight on it.

Lastly: Changing the color on a vehicle really destroys resale. So make sure you wanna drive it for a while.