Havoc Diffuser Painting

[scythezo6]

HURRY UP ALREADY!! Lmao! Looks cool so far!

[Saint Alban]

So i got it on tonight! I may have rushed it though. The clear probably didnt completely cure overnight and i have two stress marks. I'm sure i can light sand and clear over it, but i had to do it tonight or i may not have gotten another chance for a while with the weather and the holidays. I really like it though. The butt of my car looks more aggressive now and despite the stress marks, the finish is pretty nice. Here are the pictures i could get, i lost light after i was done installing so its the best i could do after it was done. I'll get more pics in the day time. The only imperfection is the two stressed areas, anything else you see is dust from the dusty old blanket i used to work on and lay the bumper on.

Oh, and one thing i'm gonna have to modify that kinda pissed me off was that i was unaware of fact that the havoc rear diffuser DOES NOT FIT with the GM mud guards. I had to remove my rear ones. I'm gonna have to figure out a way to maybe cut them to fit. The havoc extends underneath all the way to the wheel well.









Here's the stress. Any suggestions?

[custompainter]

Should be a simple fix. Problem is you're going to have to wait until the clear completely cures,before you can repair it. If you have a heat lamp or a portable heater you can speed up the process. Even a hair dryer will work. Just warm up the entire area until it is warm to the touch,no warmer. Even still I would wait at least a week before attempting any repairs. Adding more clear now and you could have a reaction. Which will look pretty much like the problem you have now.
IF it is just the clear coat that wrinkled it should be easily WET sanded out with 800 grit or finer sandpaper. Be careful to always keep it wet and not let the material build up on the sand paper or you might create more of a problem than you already have. Just take your time and sand it until the high ridges are flat. Clean the area to be painted well and put very light coats on it. 2 coats max. And try to feather or blend the edges by pulling away as you near the edge of the painting area.
IF its just the clearcoat. If it wrinkled the black underneath you may have to "spot paint" the area with black first.

The most important part......DO NOT sand the texture on the part flat! This will leave a flat spot on a textured surface. You dont want that. Just sand until youve sanded the "high" spots on the wrinkles off. Then clean and paint. If you do sand it flat then let me know and I will tell you how to add the "texture" back.
You can do this lol.

Oh...and watch for overspray on your car. Cover it with old sheets or painters plastic works best.

[Saint Alban]

Thanks. I think i will wait though because of the cold weather. I don't have the room to put my car inside and i dont know how well my satellite looking heater will work for this. I don't want to screw up because of not having the temperature correct. A week from now may be snowing. Would it be a problem if I waited till spring? It's not bothering me too much right now.

[custompainter]

Not at all,the longer the better. You might find it will self heal a bit as it dries and the paint shrinks. Just be carefull around the area,the wrinkling has affected the adhesion. Should be fine though.
All in all you did a good job! Nice car!

[Mach]

I see your helmholz pipes!! LOL

[Saint Alban]

Daytime photos. Theres also a picture of where the diffuser meets the rear wheel well showing why the splash guard has to come off.

[Mach]

That came out real nice!!! Good Job buddy.

PS.. Have you thought about blacking out the taillight bezels?

[Saint Alban]

Originally Posted by Mach

That came out real nice!!! Good Job buddy.

PS.. Have you thought about blacking out the taillight bezels?

I have but very indecisive about it. Considering plasti dip in case I want to go back. Plus, what made me consider blacking them out was that I noticed there's a clear film over the chrome that seems to be peeling away and it's not as nice underneath. The same with the chrome ring on the steering wheel. I'm worried that if I spray them, the peeling of that stuff will show if I don't peel them completely....which I'm not looking forward to doing.

[ICEMAN 316]

Great job!! I have a question, do you have to remove the rear bumper to install the Havoc rear diffuser?

[NYJETSFAN]

I wish I had the trust in myself to attemp that.. good job.

[Saint Alban]

Originally Posted by ICEMAN 316

Great job!! I have a question, do you have to remove the rear bumper to install the Havoc rear diffuser?

Yes. Oh, I forgot that picture. It's impossible to avoid. Everything is connected from the inside. But it is surprisingly easy to remove the rear bumper. Inside both wheel wells, there's one 7mm screw and three torque head screws, T-20 I believe. You grab the section that you unscrewed and tug a little and it snaps out. Remove rear side markers, unplug tail lights, then pull back on each side of the bumper and it pops out. May need a second person to catch it, but I did it own my own without too much trouble. Just have a blanket to lay it on. I'm summarizing so don't use these instructions to remove your bumper. The havoc comes with step by step instruction.


Just noticed, post #30 has the full sized pic. Those red tabs you see is what's holding the bumper on and a track right along the edge of the trunk rubber.

[hrpiii]

great job on the painting and installing. I also have the havoc diffusor and love it. Also guys, it's scary how easy it is to remove the whole back bumper, I'm talking mear minutes and it's off.

[Saint Alban]

Yup, it's crazy. 4 screws in both rear wheel wells, remove rear side markers, unplug tail light harness, and it pulls off. I've seen people charged hundreds of dollars for this install.