Decided enough was enough, i bought my gen 1 in april and the passenger arch had severe rust bubbles and the bumber was scratched, then last month some inconsiderate knob opened their door and dented the same side. so on my day off i went got paint and other bits and pieces and cam home and attempt to fix the damage, i catalouged my progress to share with you all...enjoy

Stage 1: got it all sanded down and filled


Stage 2: Attempt 1 was intialised


Stage 3: Stage 2 did not go to plan so it was back to square 1


Stage 4: Primer applied it was time to start the first coat

Stage 5: first coat applied


Stage 6: Step back and admire ( NOT!!!)


Stage 7: I then "baked" the paint for a wee while


Stage 8: to be fair they say the camera never lies but it looks o.k here but i still need to blend the pant in and it ran in places.... however for a first ever attempt im pleased but i will have to correct my mistakes....best advice just take it to a bloody body shop

cheers dude the most important thing is the rust is gone but still want the perfect lookin paint aswell

I had to do the rear corner of mine when someone pulled in too soon behind her

Anyway from my first time the suggestions I have are P, four times infact!!:

Preparation - Sand, Sand and Sand ending with a very fine wet & dry paper. The smoother the start the smoother the end result
Patience - As said many small coat will be much better than one big one
Perseverance - Once you are done, blend it in well with T-Cut, will take some elbow grease but it ont be noticeable to anyone else afterwards.
Perfection - Assume you will not get it 100% perfect again and aim for 95% as you may do more damage from over doing it!!

Just my thoughts and I am by no means an expert, just from one novice to another!

Edit - Just looking at 'Stage 5' again, I would say that exactly how mine looked the first time when I hadn't sanded it smooth enough to start. I sanded it all back and started again. You can see a pic of the corner in question on my pics in my garage.

no i wil be doing it again, now i know what needs done it doesn't seem as daunting anymore lol....just 1 question, how long is it preferable to wait before blending in with T Cut? as i don't want to leave to late and don't want to do it to early

When you spray it I was told you need to feather it so it goes on lighter at the edges and heavier where you are spraying, and to spray it in an arc.

Quick pic, does it may make sense?

it should naturally feather because of the over spray and yeah deffo mask up your windows lol and as far as i know all cars should be laqured

Im not so sure, I was told that due to my coupe being painted in Ebony Black with is 'Flat Black' it shouldn't be laquered

you may be right but as far as i knew all cars were laqured its just the paint that makes it dull etc the laqure is basically just to protect the paint underneath it