Do I treat the rust issue first, then wash, wax and paint the car

PCULQUI

MEMBER
1999 BUICK REGAL
3.8L
6 CYL
2WD
AUTOMATIC
118,000 MILES

Should rust on exterior of car be treated after washing and waxing car so paint can match more accurately or before.

Thursday, July 18th, 2019 AT 6:13 AM

3 Replies

KASEKENNY

MECHANIC
18,907 POSTS

Hi PCULQUI,

I am not sure I understand the question. How would your "treat" the rust? The only way to properly treat rust is sand/grind it down if not rusted completely through or cut it out and replace the portion of metal.

Just let me know if I am misunderstanding the question and if, give me a little more detail what you are looking for. Thanks

SPONSORED LINKS

Was this

answer

helpful?

Yes

No

Thursday, July 18th, 2019 AT 11:33 AM

PCULQUI

MEMBER
354 POSTS

No, I know how to treat the rust issue. That wasn't the question. Do I treat the rust issue first, then wash, wax and paint the car? I want to know the proper steps to take.

Was this

answer

helpful?

Yes

No

Thursday, July 18th, 2019 AT 11:40 AM

KASEKENNY

MECHANIC
18,907 POSTS

Oh. I see. Yes. Think of it like layering a cake. If you want the cake to look uniform then you start with the actual cake part which would be the sheet metal that is clean even and rust free. Then you put the icing on, this would be your paint. Then you decorate it, and this would be the waxing and polishing. If you follow this steps then you have the best chance of having a mirror like finish.

Thanks for clarifying. Let me know if you have other questions.

Was this

answer

helpful?

Yes

No

Thursday, July 18th, 2019 AT 7:56 PM