What Type of Paint is Automotive Paint?
3 Answers
Automotive paint is a type of paint characterized by its resistance to corrosion, high gloss, vibrant color, excellent adhesion, and high hardness. Below are specific details on car paint maintenance: 1. Waxing: Waxing forms a protective layer on the car's surface, isolating the paint from external elements, thus protecting it from oxidation and fading. New cars do not require waxing within the first three months of purchase, and excessive waxing can damage the paint—waxing should be limited to once every two months at most. When waxing, apply evenly and maintain a consistent direction. 2. Crystal Coating: Crystal coating creates a robust fiber network on the paint surface, filling microscopic pores invisible to the naked eye, achieving a mirror-like effect. It adds a thin diamond-hard shell to the paint, further enhancing the hardness beyond traditional coatings and protecting the paint from damage.
I'm a veteran technician at the auto repair shop. Automotive paint is nothing like regular paint - professionally it's called amino baking paint. This paint requires baking at 145°C to fully harden, with hardness comparable to glass. In the old days, paint layers were single-coat, but now we have at least three layers: primer for rust prevention, base coat for color, and clear coat on top for UV protection. The smooth surface you feel is actually the clear coat layer, which protects the color layer like a phone tempered glass screen protector. The worst enemies are corrosive substances like bird droppings and tree branches. Once the clear coat is scratched through, the base coat fades quickly. During repairs, we have to use specialized blending clearcoat to transition between old and new paint surfaces, otherwise the touch-up spots would be glaringly obvious.
Our automotive factory has been in the paint shop business for over a decade. The electrophoretic primer for new cars automatically adheres to steel plates when immersed in the pool—this technology is called cathodic electrodeposition. Each layer requires 30 minutes of baking in the oven, resulting in a clear coat so smooth it can reflect like a mirror. With stricter environmental regulations, our factory has fully switched to water-based paints, reducing VOC emissions by 85%, though the spraying process has become harder to control. Color formulations are trade secrets—if the aluminum flakes in metallic paint aren't aligned properly, the color can appear patchy under sunlight. Some car owners wax their cars too frequently, but the clear coat is already durable enough—over-polishing actually thins the protective layer.
