So yesterday I decided to finally tackle painting my old Honda Civic with that fancy British Racing Green color. Been staring at a paint chip sample for weeks, time to get my hands dirty.
Gathering the Stuff
First, I dragged everything out into the driveway. You need way more junk than you think. Grabbed:
- A bucket of soapy water and old rags
- Fine grit sandpaper – like, the really smooth stuff
- Painter’s tape and newspaper
- The actual paint cans – British Racing Green base coat & clear coat
- A cheap spray gun I borrowed from my neighbor Dave
- A mask because breathing paint fumes is dumb
Prepping the Beast
Man, this took forever. Started by scrubbing the car down hard with the soapy water. Gotta get all the dirt, grime, and dead bugs off. Let it dry completely – sun helped. Then came the awful part: sanding. Just sanded the whole car gently with the fine grit paper. It’s not about removing paint, just roughing up the surface so the new paint sticks. Arms were killing me! Wiped it all down again with a clean, damp rag after. No dust allowed!
Taping time. Covered the windows, headlights, taillights, door handles – basically everything that wasn’t supposed to get green. Newspaper and tape everywhere. Looked ridiculous, but better safe than sorry.
The Fun Part: Spraying!
Alright, moment of truth. Mask on, spray gun ready. Gave the British Racing Green paint can a good shake for like five minutes – super important! Poured some into the spray gun. Started with thin, light passes side to side. Key is to keep it moving. Don’t hover or you get drips and runs – learned that lesson painting a fence once. Did one coat, stepped back. Color looked kinda thin and patchy? Totally normal. Let it sit for about 20 minutes like the can said.
Second coat time. Went over it again, same technique. Beautiful! That deep, rich green started really coming through. Like the classic Jaguars or MGs. Felt awesome. Let it dry completely again – maybe 30 minutes? Patience is tough.
Sealing the Deal
Finally, the clear coat. Shook that can even harder. Same spraying method: thin, even passes. This gives it that wet look shine and protects the color underneath. One solid coat did it. Carefully peeled off all the tape and newspaper immediately after spraying the clear – waiting can make the tape stick and peel your paint off. Disaster avoided!
Result? It’s not showroom perfect – I spotted a couple of dust nibs – but honestly? For my driveway and a borrowed spray gun, my Civic looks like a million bucks in that British Racing Green. Neighbors even stopped to look. Took me a whole Saturday, but seeing that deep green shine in the sun makes every sore muscle worth it. Give it a shot if you got a beater needing new life!
