I have an original paint 1969 Camaro Z/28. I have noticed cracks in the paint on the upper front fenders and the hood stripes. Short of repainting, is there anything I can do to remove these cracks. I want to try to keep the car original. It has only 30,000 miles and is unrestored.

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Only 69 Z/28s
Garnet Red 30,000 mi
Glacier Blue
Rally Green new in 69

Short of re-painting, there is absolutly nothing you can do.

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67 Camaro SS Conv.
70 Challenger R/T Conv.

have you contacted GM ??
all the paint peeled off my uncles pickup truck GM did a warranty on it .

<BLOCKQUOTE>quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by 79z28:
have you contacted GM ??
all the paint peeled off my uncles pickup truck GM did a warranty on it .<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>

I hope you said this as a joke! I think that GM would hang up on him right after he says "repaint" and "32 yr old car"! If you missed the year of the car, I could see where the low mileage would prompt the response so I'm not making fun of you!! I did get a good laugh though!


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...Dennis
The Cars:
'69 RS Convertible w/SS trim (http://www.camaroslimited.com/memberscars/den.htm)
'96 Z28SS #1679 of 2410 (http://www.camaroslimited.com/graphics/memcars/96ss.jpg)
The Club:
Camaros Limited Nor-Cal (http://camaroslimited.com)

If in fact it is original paint, I'd leave it alone as long as possible. Might actually add some value to it. Be real rare about anywhere to find that.

The '69 I had back in the late 70's looked like a dry desert river bed. I used Armorall on it. The results were short term but amazing none the less. Use caution, I only had the car a few years and didn't care what was really happening to the paint! I just wanted it to look better. Also I seem to remember it was hard to put it on real even!!

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...Dennis
The Cars:
'69 RS Convertible w/SS trim (http://www.camaroslimited.com/memberscars/den.htm)
'96 Z28SS #1679 of 2410 (http://www.camaroslimited.com/graphics/memcars/96ss.jpg)
The Club:
Camaros Limited Nor-Cal (http://camaroslimited.com)

Armorall is every painters nightmare. Silicone. Silicone. I hear it in my dreams.
If a painter knows in advance that you have Armorall on the painted surfaces of the car, the price will go up, guaranteed. Even using wax and grease remover has to be done 3 or sometimes 4 times before you can finally work with it.
In answer to your question, the cracks are from paint shrinkage. Nothing can be done to improve the real condition of the paint short of repainting it.

Keeping 32 year old cracked, checked paint vs a new bc clear paint job, I am all for keeping cars original, but boy, that would be a tough one. Hey they are completly restoring 30,000 mile cars so why can't you repaint yours.

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69 rallye green X77 Z/28,1967 SS 396 Conv. 1974 c-10 454 swb

Thanks for the information. I was told it was caused by laquer shrinkage. It is not all over the car. Only in certain areas, and it can only be seen in certain light conditions. As I said before because the car is in such original condition I am not going to paint it. If it gets any worse I will have to consider a paint job.

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Only 69 Z/28s
Garnet Red 30,000 mi
Glacier Blue
Rally Green new in 69

Thanks for the info on Armorall Toby. There are some that believe an unrestored but maintained car (even with problems in the paint) are more desirable cars. It becomes a personal choice. I would be inclined to leave it as there are fewer untouched cars left. An option you have is to sell it and then find another if you want a better than new show quality painted car.. Just my .02

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...Dennis
The Cars:
'69 RS Convertible w/SS trim (http://www.camaroslimited.com/memberscars/den.htm)
'96 Z28SS #1679 of 2410 (http://www.camaroslimited.com/graphics/memcars/96ss.jpg)
The Club:
Camaros Limited Nor-Cal (http://camaroslimited.com)

Stewie -

Same car, same problem. My untouched original 31,000-mile '69 Z28 has a few small areas with the minute lacquer cracks as well, but you don't notice them unless you know where to look - the rest of it looks so good, I'm not going to worry about it. After all, how many truly original cars are left? Just keep a good coat of wax on it. Canadians must take good care of their older classic cars - mine was sold new in Hamilton, where the first owner stored it indoors, in his house (lower-level walkout) from 1978-1993, and I bought it from the second owner in Acton - neither of them ever drove it in the winter, not even a spot of surface rust anywhere, eh?


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JohnZ
'69 Z28 Fathom Green

If the cracking is so small that you can only see it under certain conditions, leave it.

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67 Camaro SS Conv.
70 Challenger R/T Conv.

JohnZ:
I bought my first 69 Z/28 in Hamilton, at Maurice Carter Chevrolet in 1969, I kept it for five years, only summer driven. Rally Green with black interior.
My latest car came from a collector in Rochester N.Y. It was in storage from 1986 to 1996. It must have always been well cared for. I knew a fellow name Jim in the Toronto area who owned a fathom green with green interior. I am not sure about the mileage but it was super clean he sold it a couple of years ago. My car really looks perfect but against a restored one it does not look as good. I can only stress that it is unrestored with 31000 miles. Still no paint jobs in the near future.

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Only 69 Z/28s
Garnet Red 30,000 mi
Glacier Blue
Rally Green new in 69

For minor scratches and fading try some McGuires (spelling) #7 showcar glaze, it really brings out the shine and contains no silicones, meaning safe for painting in future.

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69 rallye green X77 Z/28,1967 SS 396 Conv. 1974 c-10 454 swb

Pipeman:
I already use the glaze from McGuires. It is pretty amazing. I guess I just can't show the car under Neon lights In sunshine you can hardly see the cracks.

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Only 69 Z/28s
Garnet Red 30,000 mi
Glacier Blue
Rally Green new in 69