Re: galvanized bodies...

[zm@mhcnet.att.com (Zafer Mehmood [209])]

> I was going to paint my 5k tthis weekend,
> when it occured to me that i might be 
> ruining the rust protection when i strip the
> old paint off.
> 
> Now, i'm an EE, and have no clue about galvanizing.
> Could someone please tell me if i would be destroying
> the galvanized body layer in any way when i strip
> the paint with a sander..
> 
> thanks
> Murari.
> '85 5k.
> 

My understanding is that Audi started galvanizing the bodies '86 onwards.
So your car probably didn't come with a galvanized body. But I'm not
positive. If the paint is stripped down to bare metal, then one could
potentially strip away the protective zinc coating. In most cases, it
is not necessary to strip the paint down to bare metal for repainting
purposes unless the paint is cracked or peeling or you're redoing a
previous rust or body repair.

If you are repainting the whole car, consider having it done at one
of these Maaco car painting chain shops. I have painted portions of
my a couple of my cars (not Audis) myself, and it is a lot of work.
I am getting my '84 Mitsubishi Starion repainted (entire car) at Maaco
next week for $200 (regularly $400, I have a 50% off coupon). Can't beat
that price. You have to check out their work beforehand - some Maaco
shops are good, some do a poor job. I checked out several cars this
particular shop had done and they were cosistently good.

Zafer