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My hood is an after market one, and I live in northern New York. Just noticed that these rust spots and discoloration had started. Should I try to set sand them? Some have actually ate through the clear coat already. I'll attach pictures to the thread. 

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24 minutes ago, lmdew said:

www.car-part.com

Find a good used Subaru hood.  It will most likely be less than having it painted over and over again.

Is there no way to fix this one from rusting worse? I mean structurally it's fine now, I just don't want to have it fall apart down the road I guess. 

 

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Ignore it.  If your salt exposure is bad enough for that to be problematic in 7 years then your rear quarters, exhaust and suspension are all going to be a dramatic mess.  

like he said that’s labor intensive to get it right and it’s going to be madly susceptible to problems. Rusting anyway, clear coat peeling, poorly done paint issues, not matching, blending...

Bare minimum grind/sand each spot, clean and prep and hit it with a bottle of Subaru touch up paint  

more specifically if it needs to look nice, sand all the rust off, treat with POR15, clean, prep the areas for painting and prime, paint, clear coat it all while doing your best to blend each area or one large area. At which point - sand paper, POR15, primer, paint, clear and tools you don’t have - it may be easier and cheaper to just strip it all and start from scratch depending how big the area is. That’s what a shop would do.  They wouldn’t typically address all those little dings. 

don’t get me wrong it Can be done if you’re high on time and wherewithal. but if you’re asking that probably means you’re not a paint guy and that’s something that’s as much art than science and requires a skill set that isn’t easily got from reading.  I avoid it at all costs because I’m bad at it and it’s not my skill set. it’s way harder than dropping engines and trans and tearing them apart. Compared to body work and paint, that stuff is easy:  “this bolt goes in this whole - wash-rinse-repeat”.Painting is not that simple and automotive prime/paint/clear finishes are more akin to chemistry than you’re average latex house paint. People too often equate painting a car with painting a house and that’s not in the same ball park.  again - it can be done but start googling, you won’t  learn it all in one thread.

after all that Work, like lmdew said, it would be cheaper or the same cost, and take 10 hours less time to just buy a used color matched hood.  

there generally aren’t many short cuts to body, paint and rust work.  

Edited by idosubaru
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4 hours ago, dameson said:

If you want to paint it, just do the prep work really well for the paint to last longer.

LOL, you make it sound so simple, but to get a good looking finished product, it is far from that.

As already mentioned.. a used hood of the correct color is going to be far easier, and cheaper, in the long run.

what you are seeing on the surface is just the tip of the iceberg, so to speak. it is pretty much guaranteed to be worse underneath the paint - especially if it was that poorly done.

in your first pic, it looks to me like that entire front edge is starting to bubble up.. not good.

The way to prevent this from happening in the future is to address any little stone chips/nicks with touch-up paint as soon as possible.

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12 hours ago, cspurli2 said:

Is there no way to fix this one from rusting worse? I mean structurally it's fine now, I just don't want to have it fall apart down the road I guess. 

 

12 hours ago, lmdew said:

www.car-part.com

Find a good used Subaru hood.  It will most likely be less than having it painted over and over again.

Is there no way to fix this one from rusting worse? I mean structurally it's fine now, I just don't want to have it fall apart down the road I guess. 

Okay thanks everyone. I'll just look into another after market hood. Thanks. 

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3 hours ago, cspurli2 said:

Is there no way to fix this one from rusting worse? I mean structurally it's fine now, I just don't want to have it fall apart down the road I guess. 

Okay thanks everyone. I'll just look into another after market hood. Thanks. 

Not sure if it matters to you but aftermarket hoods are thinner and lower grade. that’s why most people suggest buying a used color matched hood. Depending on your area and vehicle it’s usually not hard to get a rust free hood in the same color. 
 

aftermarket hood, shipping, painting will be $500 or DIY for $250.  You can usually buy a used one cheaper than that.

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