[HOSS]

Picked up the car from the body shop yesterday. Wife was rear ended a few weeks back in the Escape.. So I figured since it was in the shop for repair might as well have a little bit more done that I had been wanting, so we had the shop color match all of the lower body trim since I really liked how the Kugas look when they come that way. Then the plans changed entirely and we painted the whole car. lol I know not everyone is going to be a fan of the color - well the finish anyways. But the wife and I are extremely happy with how it turned out!

Factory color - Matte
Lower trim - color matched.
Fog light bezels/lower grill/front and rear bottom bumper pieces painted gloss black.

 

[centex]

VERY good looking indeed !

I've wondered how the FE would look with matching lowers and must say that yours is really handsome in all respects including the finish.

Kudos and congrats on the bold change !

Edit - does the finish feel 'slick' to the touch? Are there any special care-instructions, do you still use typical 'wax-type products' with it?

 

[jb in az]

Very nice! and definitely unique!

 

[HOSS]

VERY good looking indeed !

I've wondered how the FE would look with matching lowers and must say that yours is really handsome in all respects including the finish.

Kudos and congrats on the bold change !

Edit - does the finish feel 'slick' to the touch? Are there any special care-instructions, do you still use typical 'wax-type products' with it?

Thank you!

Not really sure how to describe it - It is smooth, but not slick, I guess. lol There are special soaps and sealants for matte/satin finishes. They are pretty much just made without added waxes, because adding wax would add gloss. So it just gets a "sealant" that is made for the finish, to protect it from UV and just everyday grime. Have to be super careful to avoid scratches - because unlike traditional glossy clear coat, there is no just "buffing it out". Was already careful before - but now I am just terrified. lol

 

[HOSS]

Very nice! and definitely unique!

Thank you!

 

[centex]

.... There are special soaps and sealants .... Was already careful before - but now I am just terrified. lol

Oh well, the far-corner of the parking lot and a bit of walking / special handling is worth it sometimes as a small price for having something special. I think it's cool that you did it.

 

[jmt9779]

Picked up the car from the body shop yesterday. Wife was rear ended a few weeks back in the Escape.. So I figured since it was in the shop for repair might as well have a little bit more done that I had been wanting, so we had the shop color match all of the lower body trim since I really liked how the Kugas look when they come that way. Then the plans changed entirely and we painted the whole car. lol I know not everyone is going to be a fan of the color - well the finish anyways. But the wife and I are extremely happy with how it turned out!

Factory color - Matte
Lower trim - color matched.
Fog light bezels/lower grill/front and rear bottom bumper pieces painted gloss black.

That looks crazy awesome! I love everything - The color choices, the painted plastic trim (something I've always wanted to do but probably never will)...just all of it, including the matte finish

 

[Aussiedogs#1]

Best looking Escape I've seen. Nice choices. A real eye catcher.

 

[HOSS]

That looks crazy awesome! I love everything - The color choices, the painted plastic trim (something I've always wanted to do but probably never will)...just all of it, including the matte finish

When I got the original quote a couple of months ago for painting the black trim... I had the same thought. It pretty much went out the window. lol But since the car was in the shop for repair anyways, I got a much better deal on everything so I went for it.

Thanks!

Best looking Escape I've seen. Nice choices. A real eye catcher.

Thank you!

 

[jmiller11784]

Picked up the car from the body shop yesterday. Wife was rear ended a few weeks back in the Escape.. So I figured since it was in the shop for repair might as well have a little bit more done that I had been wanting, so we had the shop color match all of the lower body trim since I really liked how the Kugas look when they come that way. Then the plans changed entirely and we painted the whole car. lol I know not everyone is going to be a fan of the color - well the finish anyways. But the wife and I are extremely happy with how it turned out!

Factory color - Matte
Lower trim - color matched.
Fog light bezels/lower grill/front and rear bottom bumper pieces painted gloss black.

That thing looks SHARP! Good work!
Did the you have to have the lower panels sanded or filled or anything? I figured that with the slight texture they have, it would look weird painting them. They look perfectly matched in your pictures

 

[HOSS]

That thing looks SHARP! Good work!
Did the you have to have the lower panels sanded or filled or anything? I figured that with the slight texture they have, it would look weird painting them. They look perfectly matched in your pictures

Thanks!

And yeah, they had to be sanded completely smooth before paint.

 

[jmiller11784]

Thanks!

And yeah, they had to be sanded completely smooth before paint.

Ahhh I bet that took quite a bit of time. I wish Ford would have offered painted rocker panels. I can't stand the black plastic.
Thanks for sharing man!

 

[RushMan]

Ahhh I bet that took quite a bit of time. I wish Ford would have offered painted rocker panels. I can't stand the black plastic.
Thanks for sharing man!

Anecdote!
Funny thing about the plain black plastic panels...my previous car had them also, and when I got rear ended waiting at a stop sign, the body shop was just able to bolt up the replacement parts - no sheet metal damage, and no painting. They also commented that I was lucky that I didn't have a rear camera or parking sensors, and that made the job easy for everyone. The job was quoted as 4 hours labor, computer system used by all the local body shops came with the same quotes but varying prices because of the shop's hourly rates varied. In reality the repair was under an hour to remove the old parts and replace with new. The guy who hit me had just gotten his car back from the shop the day before, after he had rear ended someone else, and so didn't want me to call the cops or report to the insurance company. He got ticketed and paid the full 4 hours body shop quote.
Anyway, bottom line: I prefer the plain black panels. To each his own!

 

[HOSS]

Ahhh I bet that took quite a bit of time. I wish Ford would have offered painted rocker panels. I can't stand the black plastic.
Thanks for sharing man!

It did. I went over and checked in on it a couple times during the process. lol When I originally got a quote to have it done a few months ago it was $1,000 just because of that. When I heard that I was like "nope, not happening!" lol

 

[jb in az]

My nephew had one of the original Honda Elements with the large plastic body panels a different color than the body. He had them painted to match the body color, and didn't smooth the plastic. IMHO, it looked "better" but didn't look right. What you have done looks better than "right" It looks GREAT!

 

[Hydrokracker]

Man that looks great.

 

[MSchienle]

That looks beautiful, HOSS. That immediately reminded me of the ESS paint scheme that was done in the late 1970's to a few Fords.

 

[IHackett]

Your car looks great, best of luck with the matte finish, hopefully you can keep it looking fantastic.

 

[Ozekuga]

The car looks great, with the painted lower panels it looks very similar to the Kuga ST line in Europe.

 

[HOSS]

My nephew had one of the original Honda Elements with the large plastic body panels a different color than the body. He had them painted to match the body color, and didn't smooth the plastic. IMHO, it looked "better" but didn't look right. What you have done looks better than "right" It looks GREAT!

Thanks!

Man that looks great.

Thank you.

That looks beautiful, HOSS. That immediately reminded me of the ESS paint scheme that was done in the late 1970's to a few Fords.

Thank you!

Your car looks great, best of luck with the matte finish, hopefully you can keep it looking fantastic.

I’m gonna try. Lol

The car looks great, with the painted lower panels it looks very similar to the Kuga ST line in Europe.

Seeing pictures on the kuga groups on Facebook is what made me do it. Idk why they get all the cool stuff over there and we just get the basics here.


Really appreciate all the kind words! I expected at least a couple of people to not be a fan of the finish.