Water based paints ?

[Quick Silver]

The paintwork on my 1990 SL is as far as I'm aware oil based so if I wanted to blow in any scratches or do any paintwork repairs would using a water based paint react with the original . I'm told that oil based paints are no longer available and it is now illegal to use it . Also would it be more difficult to match the colour , also it's metalic.

Has anybody any qualified ideas on this ?

 

[television]

Your car was finished with a water based base coat (colour) and a 2K top clear coat.

Water based paints are fully compatible with what you have, as it is a 20 year old car you can insist on the original, but what we have now is good and near enough



Oil based paints went out in 1927 roughly when they invented cellulose, not all firms took it up, but by 1930 most had

 

[turbopete]

as Malcolm says, it shouldnt be a problem at all. colour match will be no harder to achieve. depends mainly on the number of variants there is and how much "ageing" has taken place to the paintwork. ive heard of people buying paint and being asked how old the vehicle is so that the correct amount of 'fade' can be added to ensure a good colour match! ive a feeling that was in made to order aerosols though and the guy wanted it for a van. i did see theresult though. perfect colour match. that was for a flat colour though, and therefore just a colour coat, not base and clear like metallics are!

 

[stats007]

Water base didn't come in until 1996ish so it will be solvent if metallic. No reason why a reaction should occur if prepped properly - especially given the cars age.

 

[television]

Water base didn't come in until 1996ish so it will be solvent if metallic. No reason why a reaction should occur if prepped properly - especially given the cars age.

Not true stats,, the 124s all came that way with water based base coats, the first 3 years production was awful where a stone knocked of huge lumps as it was too hard. MB were the first to use it.
A friend of mine bought a new 107 SLC and the boot was nearly bare where the paint just fell off

 

[turbopete]

apart from the poor metal they were made from, i wonder if thats where they went wrong with the 210's! :lol::lol::lol:

 

[television]

apart from the poor metal they were made from, i wonder if thats where they went wrong with the 210's! :lol::lol::lol:

It did not help Pete, as the adhesion was poor, Volvo got it right on the V series, but the metal was a good grade

 

[turbopete]

maybe MB should have bought their metal from sweden then! or from ford! unless my memory isnt what it should be, werent the 's' and 'v' series volvo's the first ones to be totally designed, built etc under ford ownership? seems to fit well as ford started using better metal around the time of the takeover, which was about 93ish i think, when the mondeo went on sale! :lol::lol::lol:

 

[stats007]

Not true stats,, the 124s all came that way with water based base coats, the first 3 years production was awful where a stone knocked of huge lumps as it was too hard. MB were the first to use it.
A friend of mine bought a new 107 SLC and the boot was nearly bare where the paint just fell off

We're talking about 129s, Malcolm. I think you're confusing stone chip damage with the later nano paint. Waterbase was introduced as part of their recyclable programme in 1996.

You can check this by looking up paint codes with ICI, RM or Standox etc - early cars all have solvent based paint. It's only in the last year or so that most bodyshops have finally given up solvent - reluctantly seeing as it's double the price at £40 per litre.