PPG Concept Urethane Single Stage

[alphabuck]

im thinking about painting my car with ppg concept single stage urethane instead of doing base/clear.  this will be my first attempt at painting an entire car so im looking for the most forgiving way to go.

has anyone painted their car with this?  pros and cons?

thanks

[72bluNblu]

PPG is good stuff, pretty much the only thing we used in my old man's Austin-Healey restoration business. Hard to go wrong with anything from them. 

As far as pros and cons, there are a few. A single stage will take more work to keep up, ie, buffing, waxing, etc in order to look good. That said, I think a properly cared for single stage looks better than a base/clear if both are in top form. The clears are usually harder, so they resist scratching better, but that's not always the case. The clear coat on my '04 Dodge SRT4 was ridiculously soft, I couldn't even use a car wash brush on it without marring it.    Typically, the clears will look better with low maintenance, but what you see it what you get. Anything under the clear is untouchable, so, if there are any imperfections, they're there to stay. And of course, I'm sure you've seen plenty of late model cars with the clear coats turning white, checking, or peeling. Shouldn't be an issue with PPG, but it does happen. And if it does, you're in for a repaint.

The single stage also makes repairs easier if there's damage down the road. You can work directly on the paint, to touch up scratches or dings. With base/clear, the clear gets in the way, making spot repairs more difficult. Usually you'll have to do an entire panel.

The one possibly exception to my single stage preference is metallic colors. These will have metal flakes in the paint (like B5 blue, for example). Reason being is this- you can't fix metallic paints anyway. Hang a run in the paint, you can't sand it out. You can sand it smooth, but you'll still see the "ghost" of the run in the concentration of metal flakes left behind. And you pretty much can't do spot repairs, since matching a metallic is nearly impossible. Air pressure, temperature, distance of the spray gun from the panel, all effect the concentration of metallic flakes, and as a result, the color. The same paint sprayed with the same set up on different days may not even match.  And you can over-buff metallic paints too. So, in that case, the "set it and forget it" base/clear makes some sense. That said, the clear coat on my B5 car (courtesy the previous owner and probably Maaco) is peeling off as we speak. 

[rallye73]

The bottom of my Challenger was painted with single stage PPG Concept. My biggest reason for the single stage on the bottom was being able to touch it up easily. I plan on driving the car a fair amount.

[E-Body Products]

If you are using a solid color, I recommend single stage.  If you are using any metallics, use the base clear.

[Brant]

PPG DCC all the way. I'm going with Black or EV2 (w/ metallic removed). I'm not a fan of the super glassy/reflective look of b/c on challengers.

[elitecustombody]

I don't know what 72blu is talking about, single stage urethane is alot tougher that base/clear and will need less care, even if it fades or oxidized ,just buff it and it will look like the day you painted it. This stuff won't chip or scratch as easy as base/clear

[72bluNblu]

even if it fades or oxidized ,just buff it and it will look like the day you painted it.

This is exactly my point. With the color topcoat exposed to the elements, you will have to wax and buff the paint to keep it looking like the day you painted it. If you do that work, it will look better than a base/clear. I personally feel that the finish of the single stages is better, and I said so. But, it is not without its drawbacks. The primary one being that the color is directly exposed to UV and oxidation, and so you do need to use some elbow grease to keep it show quality.

This stuff won't chip or scratch as easy as base/clear

My experience with base/clears varies widely depending on their quality. The PPG clear I've seen and used is a harder, more resilient finish. On the other hand, the factory clear on my SRT4 was soft, easily scratched, and a general pain in the ass. And the clear on my Challenger is peeling off. However, up until the point it started peeling, it looked "wet" with a simple wash, no elbow grease required. But I mentioned both of those examples in my previous post.

I thought my post was fairly clear before, I like single stage better, and a PPG single stage is one of the best out there. But there are advantages to a base/clear, especially for metallic paints, which do not lend themselves to maintenance as well as solid single stages. Which is why I gave both sides to the story, with examples for both, based on my 15+ years of experience.

[1970RTSE]

My 69 Road Runner is painted with PPG single stage urethane.  Its been 10 years and it still looks great.  I haven't had to anything since the original wet sand and buff.  I wash it a couple of times a year and it gets a coat of wax once a year.  The car is stored in a garage (heated in the winter), and always under a car cover, so its not exposed to any elements except when I am out cruising.  I put about 2000 miles a year on it.

[elitecustombody]

72, I'm talking about urethane enamel, not acrylic or synthetic enamel.In my experience all single stage urethane was always more durable than base/clear system. I put it all to the test on customer's and personal cars.It takes serious negligence to kill single stage paint,but base/clear paint can fade and or peel in less than 10 years , I have a friend with 98 Mustang,it's been garaged since new,he takes very good care of his car,always cleaning and waxing,it's funny that factory maroon paint faded to pink on top of the whole car and yet the clear is still shiny, he got lucky few weeks ago and I did a two-tone job on it  painting it black cherry on top with silver pinstripe breaking it up. 

OP, why don't you get  Imron by DuPont and forget about it. It is the toughest finish available to general public