Why so much fuss about the "Metallic" Colours ?

[mithun]

Nowadays most people are going after the Metallic colours. Infact, in a penny conscious market like India, this is the state of affairs. Except the White, every colour is "metallic" thsese days and the dealers are charging a cool 2000-3000 more for this.

Before the arrival of the metallic colours most of the cars had the normal enamel paints and a layer of clearcoat on top of that. Even in the case of Ambis which always needed the diet of patch work(in some cases every year); since they never had the bodies which were chemically treated (like the modern cars), the old paints lasted for long without any chipping/peeling.

I've seen new metallic cars having blistering/chipping/peeling of paints. And the metallic colours are not able to withstand even hairline scratches.

Other than the metallic lustre is there any advantages for the metallic colours ?

So is it really worth to go blindly after the metallic colours ?

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[Rudra Sen]

Originally Posted by mithun

every colour is "metallic" thsese days

Not exactly. You still get clean white/black/red/pale green etc.

Before the arrival of the metallic colours most of the cars had the normal enamel paints and a layer of clearcoat on top of that.

Correction. Auto paint is not enamel or synthetic enamel. It’s always been Nitro Cellulose base paint commonly known as NC paint. There was no clear coat before the introduction of new generation 2K paint. Clear coat is only a protection with lusture.

Even in the case of Ambis which always needed the diet of patch work(in some cases every year); since they never had the bodies which were chemically treated (like the modern cars), the old paints lasted for long without any chipping/peeling.

Ambassador needed paint patchwork because of rusting due to moisture/water. Essentially the doors bottom panels. Also one other area is rear luggage boot frame, right below the rear windshield curve. Almost all Ambassadors on road carry paint cracks there. This is again due to factory done welding to merge slanted roof panel to boot frame. It’s not one piece steel sheet pressed out of a die. Like many other areas, this was/is the weakest part of Ambassador’s design.

I've seen new metallic cars having blistering/chipping/peeling of paints. And the metallic colours are not able to withstand even hairline scratches.

These have nothing to do with the metallic or non-metallic paint. Main problem with metallic paint is touch up painting. Seldom it matches with the original colour.

Other than the metallic lustre is there any advantages for the metallic colours ?

Metallic paint is suppose to be new generation composition/technology. Whatever it means and whatever is the result.
For additional protection Mercedes Benz is using ceramic coating over paint for scratch/swirl marks protection. It’s for their expensive range of cars. But I’ve seen fine surface swirl marks there. On Maybach, to be precise.

So is it really worth to go blindly after the metallic colours ?

Individual’s choice, if you ask. Apart from that, one gets a better choice of shades in metallic paint range.

[revharder]

very neatly explained by Rudra.
thanx for the enlightenment!

also, in India atleast, more costlier the thing is, more popular it is!
sounds perplexing? but thats how we all grew up! isn't it?!

[varunroy]

[quote]

Originally Posted by Rudra Sen

Correction. Auto paint is not enamel or synthetic enamel. It’s always been Nitro Cellulose base paint commonly known as NC paint. There was no clear coat before the introduction of new generation 2K paint. Clear coat is only a protection with lusture.

A little more info on 2k. Its the top most quality of paints from ICI the makers of DUCO brand of paint, a name so popular that for a common man all NC paints are called DUCO. 2k is Poly-urethane (PU) paints and are resistant to most acid of 50% concentration and salts. They need very good pre-treatment like degreasing, phosphating, etch primer, surfacer before the final coat of actual shade is sprayed. Its fumes are very harmful to health and abundant precaution needs to be taken while working with them. Most important is a chemical face mask. It needs to be done in a paint Booth which is slightly pressurised to keep the dust away while spraying. Its a static paint, which means that it attracts dust like a magnet. The compressor supplying the air to the Gun should have good moisture and oil filters. All these facilities are not available with most dealers leave alone road-side garages. Thats why you see those blisters which are an outcome of poor technology used while working.

The adavntage of these PU paints are that they have a very high degree of surface hadness unlike cheap paints. They come in 2 separate containers, the base and the Hardener. Once mixed the paint should be utilized within a couple of hours. Since they are salt-resistant there are mainly used to paint the under portion of all ships and Ocean liners. There most important characteristic is that they are Ultra Violet (UV) protected therefore do not fade easily. The final coat of PU Clear Gloosy gives you the ultimate finish.

They cost about 2K a litre and some shades are as high as 15K. No wonder that you pay 2 or 3K more for your car and I think its worth it. No 2 way about it.

So long....

[mithun]

When I was checking the prices of Ritz, I found that there is no price difference b/w Metallic & Non-Metallic colours. Previously, there was a difference of a few thousands b/w Metallic & Non-Metallic colours.

What's the reason behind this ?

[Shan2nu]

I've seen new metallic cars having blistering/chipping/peeling of paints. And the metallic colours are not able to withstand even hairline scratches.

Infact its the opposite. My OHC has many minor scratches but even if you stand 3 feet from the car, you wont notice them.

Metallic colours are very good at hiding scrathes.

Shan2nu