Door handles

[CMF_Toma]

Im sick of my door handles. Theyre spoiling the interior look. Theyre old and spotty and ugly. Is there a decent alternative? any other car handles fit in their spot? Anyone painted theirs???

Also the exterior ones are old looking and a little cracked. Glue + Paint to colour code with the car?? Or ditch them and get some new ones?

Heres a picture of my ugly ugly handles.

 

[CMF_White Knight]

They all go the same way.
Solution?? Paint?? But paint has to be very flexible but I am sure there would be some product out there that would do the job.
Outside doors handles are very basic ( read plastic and get brittle) Take em off and if paint okay cover them with a clear epoxy resin to add strength.If paint no good redo and then cover with a resin.Can buy metal ones? UK I think.
The overflow coolant bottle is also prone to cracking especially on the front side closest to the engine. I found a fairly good quality one second hand and coated it with an epoxy resin.Super strong now and resin has stuck to it like the proverbial.

 

[CMF_Toma]

Ahhh yes, the overflow tank... I had a good long think about that fragile looking device when i was checking out my intake pipe. I was almost inclined to take it out and get my brother to manufacture a nice/better suiting aluminum one. Obviously clear would be better.

Sounds like resin is the way to go!
Thx White knight.

Im guessing the inside handle paint would need at widthstand like... 50oC for those hot days?

 

[CMF_Yom]

You'll have to use vynil paint on the interior handles as they're slightly flexible.

Remeber to touch them up with some sandpaper, get most of the oil and paint paint off them or the paint finish will be horrible.

Putting a clearcloat on them will make them shiney... hmm mabye if you put a a fair few coats of clear coat on them and then go over them again with some light sandpaper to take the shine off the clear coat - then there'd still be the clearcoat protection over the vynil paint... Hmm.

 

[CMF_Toma]

Im also dabling with the idea of putting a bit of soft rubber on the top part and covering the whole thing in something. I could get a huge peice of heatshrink to cover it then paint it with something nice...

Or like you say, sand it down. Perhaps to a super smooth finish! Get rid of all those silly bumps in it.

I rest my arm on it when i drive so i get reminder about it everytime

 

[CMF_eM]

me and matty did ours and they look 50985498756 times better. Just go to autobarn, you have to buy plastic primer and the paint.

 

[CMF_Alex_B]

50 billion times better hey > sounds good to me. So apart from the plastic primer what kind of paint did you use? and do you haev any spare

Alex

 

[CMF_eM]

I don't think its any type of special paint. The guy said as long as you use the primer most of the spray paints are ok. I have some silver stuff if you wanna use that . Matty bought they grey stuff that we used for the handles.

 

[CMF_jaxx]

This is what i have done, lasted me a year and still going strong. it was my first attempt at spraying but turned out ok. heres what i did:

take your ugly handle off.

sand it.

prime it, 2 coats (leave to dry for 24hrs)

spray it your desired colour, 2/3 coats (leave 24hrs)

spray with laquer, 2 coats (leave 24hrs)

job done, screw it back on. easy job really. alot of people recommend sanding between coats to get rid of air bubbles etc. i didnt sand between coats and it has worked out very well. in the winter/summer....hot/cold, its not craked and its not faded. perfect DIY job if i dont say so myself ha ha. Sprayed loads in my interior.

quick picture for you: hope all this helps

 

[CMF_jaxx]

Found a pic of my handle sprayed silver (it was from halfords, UK. BMW silver i think)

 

[CMF_jaxx]

close up.

 

[CMF_Toma]

That looks real nice!!! Is it smooth? Or still slightly bumpy?

Ive got a spray can of my exact cars colour so i guess i could colour code! but the interior theme is an ugly green checker thing. Might not go to well with silver.

 

[CMF_jaxx]

very smooth mate, easy job. well worth the attempt.

 

[CMF_Toma]

I think i might stick to the standard grey. Tho, i will spray some other interiors bits what have scratches and fading. Is there a colour code for the standard Micra interior grey? I think i saw something under my bonnet... *runs to car*
KLO?
I used that code for my Paint so i doubt its the interior grey :| Looks like ill have to pop down to the local paint shop for a bit of expert advice.

Looking at my original post, any suggestions on how to make that scene a little more attractive?

 

[CMF_Toma]

Oooooooooooo!!!

Just had a fool idea... might install some Red Leds under the handle and hook them up to the interior light.....
Will go nice with my red light theme

Ill get pics when its done

 

[CMF_Toma]

Hmmm. Just poped off off now, and it seems its hollow?
Can anyone confirm this?

 

[CMF_jaxx]

say again mate. you mean 'is the handle hollow'

 

[CMF_Yom]

I wouldnt be suprised if it is hollow. I can squeeze with my hand.

 

[CMF_evade]

the silver door handle looks pretty cool from the photos

 

[CMF_Toma]

Yhe, is the handle hollow. From the looks of it, its a really hard plastic thats got a hollow centre.

 

[CMF_jaxx]

didnt notice it was hollow myself. what ever it is, it will spray on the same. good luck

 

[CMF_Toma]

Yeh, sanding today

The reason behind my questioning, is that if it had a soft foam centre, id cut a little channel thru the bottom and install some LEDS or Neons and wire them up to the interior light, making a sweet red glow when i get in the car at night.

Anyway, thanks for all the tips!

 

[CMF_evade]

well, at least people would know if you suddenly opened your door at night

 

[CMF_Toma]

hehe

Just thinking about when i get in the car at night, id like to light up the surrounding area so that people see how cool my car is after partys and so on. Ive got a red glow theme going right now, you can see and red bits at day but when you open the doors, 3 red lights turn on. Just wanting to highlight it a bit better...

Time to stick the thinking cap on and be creative.

 

[CMF_Toma]

OK!!! All done! (Sort of)

I did 1 handle to compare to the other handle, and i must say, im quite pleased with this $5 fix!
Yep. $5. Fate made it so the day i went to the auto-shop they were selling vinyl spray paint + primer for $2.50 a can. Awesome! hehehe.

Lots of coats later, and a bit of sanding in between...
and voila! very nice looking door handles. Thanks all that helped on this thread

You might notice the colour is SLIGHTLY out with the interior. Its a pain. I might goto a paint shop and see how much the exact copy would cost. If its cheap, its easy enough to throw another coat of paint over it.
Thanks again y'all!