Refinishing 308 GTS Black Fiberglas Tops

Dave I was just looking at the roof on my 328 yesterday and wondered about cleaning or refinishing, it has that gray/white look to it that black plastic exposed to sunlight gets over time. I presumed that these roofs have the black pigment in the gel coat ? do you reckon they are painted ? Can anyone else help us clarify this ?

 

on my 308 i used wurth satin trim paint after cleaning the top and spoiler well and let it sit for a day or so inside...has been 6 months now and it still look great...

 

I have used plain old black lacquer spray paint on my 308GTSi top. It looks great and I have not had a problem. I did this 8 years ago! By the way, my car's top was and is quite glossy. That is the way it came from the factory when I bought it new.
WilliamR

 

Here are a couple of relevant links to old FChat archives where I discuss my targa top & spoiler restoration using Rustoleum's black vinyl paint. It's still looking good after almost 4 years.

These threads also contain several other opinions/tips. I thought I'd written up a more detailed description of my project, but maybe it's in the FerrariList archives:

http://www.ferrarichat.com/discus/messages/256120/85860.html

http://www.ferrarichat.com/discus/messages/256120/205938.html

BTW, there are conflicting posts as to whether original finish was satin or glossy. I'd like to hear from Ferrari.UK as to what finish their replacement targa tops have.

 

Very good suggestions thus far.

Another option would be to simply "recondition" these surfaces. Recently, my detail guy used Griot's Garage Bumper and Trim Reconditioner (Black) on my 308's targa top and spoiler and it turned out fantastic. It now has the glossy "gel-coat" appearance with a uniform black coating. Here's the link: http://www.griotsgarage.com/search.jsp?searchtext=bumper

He said it took about 10 - 15 coats (since the surfaces were really soaking it in). He used about a 4" diameter round terry cloth style wax applicator pad to apply it (this worked better than the supplied small sponge applicator tip).

I must say that I was very pleased with the results, and it will greatly minimize efforts on my end of constantly having to apply "dressing" to these surfaces just to keep them looking glossy and fresh.

Here's a few pics I took over the weekend. Hopefully, they will show the results adequately...
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Here's another pic...
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Here's a third pic...
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And a final pic...

BTW, these surfaces are completely dry, with no added "dressing" afterwards...
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I like the idea of using the Griot's rather than needing to repaint, I will certainly give that a try. Thanks for the info !!

 

Meguires has a similar product to the Griots reconditioner, but it will eventually come off. they work well on rubber because it is porous and can soak in the top is hard gel coat. the most permanent way is to paint it. the problem with that is you can't sand it very hard because you will sand down the texture. you have to use a scuff pad and a sandfix sanding past to give the surface tooth for the paint to stick. a good epoxy primer and a light coat of a quality urethane semi gloss black will give you years of hassle free service.

 

Mike Charness had his painted to look like a GTB. Improves the lines of the car.

 

My top is fine and the black finish on it is great BUT, I would like to have it painted to match the car. Is this something the local paint shop can do. If you don't recommend this, why? I think the car would look much nicer having the hard top match the car. Any input is greatly appreciated.

Sam

 

Thanks. Of course, on a dark gray or black car, it wouldn't make as much of a difference...