What year was clear coat introduced?

[David Fermani]

Re: What year was clear coat introduced?

To check, take a cleaner type wax and in an inconspicuous place like a door jamb rub the surface using a medium to heavy pressure and wipe off. If there is no paint colour (this is somewhat difficult to see with silver paint) on the cloth it has a clear coat finish.

Many vehicles that are equipped with BCCC on exterior panels have no clear coat in interior panel surfaces. The best way to determine if a surface is CC is to check the surface you will be working with.

[OhioCarBuff]

Re: What year was clear coat introduced?

I think The first five years or so that american cars had clear coats, they were different then the clear coats of today. I had a black 1987 GTA trans am that had a clear coat paint, but it seemed to behave like a single stage. When you would buff it there would be no color transfer on the pad, but the paint would dull back and form oxidation that looked very much like the oxidation on single stage paint. Also I remember the paint not being nearly as durable as the new paint now, like it needed to be waxed and polished to maintain the shine very much like a single stage paint.

Aah the memories in that '87 trans am. What a wonderful car!

[TOGWT]

Re: What year was clear coat introduced?

Many vehicles that are equipped with BCCC on exterior panels have no clear coat in interior panel surfaces. The best way to determine if a surface is CC is to check the surface you will be working with.

My son David sent me an e-mail making a very similar correction to my post.

His take on it is this- To test a car to find out if it has a clear coat or a single stage finish you want to use a chemical paint cleaner and a white cloth micro fibre towel, if you're working on a white car then you'll want to use a dark colour cloth because if the car is in fact a single stage paint then you won't be able to see the white pigment you're removing on white cloth, so use a dark colour cloth when testing white cars. To check rub the surface using a medium to heavy pressure and wipe off. If there is no paint colour on the cloth it has a clear coat finish.

It' also important to check for paint type on a number of different panels, and if you want to be 100% sure then check all the panels as it’s possible to have one type of paint on one panel (repainted) and another type of paint on a different panel.

Thank you David's