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73 340 rallye charger

What type of paint should I repaint my original 73 340 Rallye Charger?

  • Basecoat/clearcoat

    Votes: 63 62.4%

  • single stage (original)

    Votes: 28 27.7%

  • doesn't matter

    Votes: 10 9.9%
  • Total voters
    101
moparmaniac10

moparmaniac10

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So I have this charger, a 73 340 Rallye Charger. It is a complete numbers matching car with 88,000 original miles on it. I am restoring it back to original condition. My question is, and this is by opinion, should I paint it base/clear or single stage paint or does not matter?
 
That's a tough call.

There's defininately a "period vibe" associated with a correct single stage.

However, there's no denying the attention grabbing ability of clearcoat.

What color are we talking about?
 
You did say you were going back to original,but with the paints today you can use either system and still have it look original.
 
Can you take the clear and then wet sand and buff it out to make it look like lackor?

I have heard my dad talk about taking cars and making them look like lackor jobs but not sure how he did it.

Can't wait to see the charger any pics?
 
YY1 said:
That's a tough call.

There's defininately a "period vibe" associated with a correct single stage.

However, there's no denying the attention grabbing ability of clearcoat.

What color are we talking about?
Click to expand...
i had a 66 coronet 440 silver loved it babied it rolled it first snow fall of winter .talk about emotional devastation and it was my first car
 
I'm an old schooler. I believe a car should look like the era that it came from when you restore it. I cannot stand base clear jobs on car that should have single stage enamel. They have too much shine. The older cars never had that much shine. It's like puttin Armor All on tires. It just don't look right.
 
Base/clear is to me, is a good looking paint job but true, not period correct. I used acrylic enamel and i think it has a great shine, Its much cheaper then base/clear to. Its really up to you what you like, if your in it for value alone (original) then go with the enamel, if you like the way it will look, go for it. Im old school myself, and cheap, lol.. of course i don't use Armor All on my tires... Now they have the tire shine spray on! :eek: sorry had to do it :)
 
On a rare car that is worth $100K it will matter but most of the stuff we mess with will be just fine with a two stage paint job. I don't think anyone will fault the fact that it's painted well and all other details addressed. My 69 RR is base/clear and cut flat and it looks good. Not factory by any means but I bet no one will care at a show or in a parking lot. Base / clear is also easier to deal with if something happens, so I'm told.
 
What color do you plan on painting it ? How much do you plan on driving it ? Originally it would have been enamel. Enamel will fade quickly if not taken care off., You also can wet sand metallic color if the are done in single stage paint because of the flake.

Base/Clear wont really look correct but will last much longer and is easier to maintain.
 
Yup, it's true enamel will fade if it's not kept up.....or even covered. But I tell you, when we go to the wally world, I can't count the number of cars the clear coat is comin off of. So they both have advantages and disadvantages.....as with everything I guess.
 
I will also add that when you do a car never wax it. If you do the color of your car comes off on the rag when waxing it and what do you think it is doing.

My dad is dead set against waxing a car. He has done a many re-paints due to waxing and always told me never to do it. He said with clear coat you never have to wax one to get it to shine and bring it to a shine.

The clear coat on cars can be a defect and it can be the way it was put on and not done right at the factory.

The old cars would crack and spider web with paint.
 
My Ram is a 97 and the clear coat and some paint off the roof and part of the hood, it is a 97 i understand but ive seen it on newer cars/trucks as well that sit in the sun constantly.. There are differences in all things..
My car hasn't faded at all in 3 years but is inside or would, im sure because enamel does fade. And i do have to say ive never waxed a car with clear coat and had the color of paint come off.. am i the lucky one maybe? Ive seen it with cars with old paint jobs but with enamel paint. just my 2 cents..
 
Ron 73 said:
My Ram is a 97 and the clear coat and some paint off the roof and part of the hood, it is a 97 i understand but ive seen it on newer cars/trucks as well that sit in the sun constantly.. There are differences in all things..
My car hasn't faded at all in 3 years but is inside or would, im sure because enamel does fade. And i do have to say ive never waxed a car with clear coat and had the color of paint come off.. am i the lucky one maybe? Ive seen it with cars with old paint jobs but with enamel paint. just my 2 cents..
Click to expand...

The Dodge trucks had a problem with the paint and my uncles was one of them. They even offered to pay for the truck to be painted he just had to get back into the dealer and let a rep look at it and they would pay for it. It was a factory flaw in that my dad told my uncle to go back in and he did but never went back to meet up with the rep and lost out on getting it painted.

My uncle owned an 83-86 Buick can't remember the model now but it was the body style they race and he waxed it and used a white rag and the color of the car was on the rag. My dad told him he better stop and later on the clear came off and it was maybe three years old at the time.
 
CoronetRTguy said:
I will also add that when you do a car never wax it. If you do the color of your car comes off on the rag when waxing it and what do you think it is doing.

My dad is dead set against waxing a car. He has done a many re-paints due to waxing and always told me never to do it. He said with clear coat you never have to wax one to get it to shine and bring it to a shine.

The clear coat on cars can be a defect and it can be the way it was put on and not done right at the factory.

The old cars would crack and spider web with paint.
Click to expand...


I cant say I agree with that, If your getting color on the rag when your waxing its a single stage paint. the paint coming off is oxidizing. Paint oxidizes when it has not been taken care of. In other words, Not waxed. Wax isnt what makes your car shine. It protects the finish. Polish is what makes a car shine.

Base/clear is much more UV resistant. Yes, some manufactures had issues with pealing clear. GM and Chrylser also had issues with pealing single stage paints. Keeping your car clean and properly waxed is the best thing you can do for the finish.
 
CoronetRTguy said:
My uncle owned an 83-86 Buick can't remember the model now but it was the body style they race and he waxed it and used a white rag and the color of the car was on the rag. My dad told him he better stop and later on the clear came off and it was maybe three years old at the time.
Click to expand...

a 83-86 Buick wouldnt have clear coat on it. They were still single stage enamel back then, If your getting color from buffing or waxing its a single stage paint, No clear. The clear has no pigment in it (its clear) so you wont get any color from it.

Some manufactures still use single stage paints, Usually on whites and reds, or on certain vehicles. Sprinter vans are single stage.
 
This is a lot of good stuff. Sorry, Iwas away at Mopar Nats this weekend so I couldn't chime in. I'll try to cover some of the questions here.

As far as the color of my charger it is original ew1 and I am keeping it the stock white.

I am looking to sell this car as soon as it is done, I have a baby on the way and a garage to be built, so I am looking for value alone. So would enamel get me more?

As far as the wax issues you brought up, AdamR said it best.

As far as the clearcoat and single stage paints coming off on cars that were newer, here is what happens. When the factories shut down their facilities on certain days a car could just be getting sprayed with the factory sealer and the car could sit for too long before the basecoat was applied. a sealer has to have the basecoat applied, usually under an hour depending on conditions like temp, humidity, etc. otherwise it has to be scuffed down, in which an automotive factory will not do. They will turn on the machines again and just start where they left off. there was a point in time, when GM cars that were built on a friday had their paint coming off, because on monday they would start up the machines and the car sat all weekend in sealer, and they would just spray away.
I have been painting/restoring cars for over 20 years, just in case anyone is wondering. I am just trying to figure out what is popular and get the most out of this car.
 
Actually, GM used base/clear as far back as the late 70s. The Corvettes of that era were the first production cars to use it.
 
If i had the money to go out and buy a numbers matching car, i see two sitting there one with period correct paint or one with a shine you cant stop looking at, i think i would take that one, It makes the car look so much better and as Meep said, if we were talking a very high priced car chances are a collector would be looking and possibly want period correct. I cant see how it could damage the selling price, i think it would sell as good or better.. Looks do sell. MHO only..
 
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