My 1991 Berlina Black NSX Restoration

great work so far! looking forward to seeing it completed!

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MOD5 Eng. said:

I was too busy to get down to the shop, and get some pics of the car after the Dupont Black sealer was layed down. Here are some shots of the NSX, in there crossdraft paint booth. Next process, is Duponts etching no. 6 primer, and Dupont Guide coats. That is where the majic will start to happen, and they will get rid of any factory wave or imperfection. The car also had a few dings, which will be gone as well.

He welded alluminum patches for the U.S Side Reflectors. The stock side reflectors are officially - GONE.

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MOD5 Eng. said:

I wanted to get some shots of the car, covered in black dupont black sealer. Looked cool, but my battery on my camera was dead as a nail.

As always, the paintwork came out phenomenal. I love love there process of color sanding, and there 3 stages of buffing. It's like watching an artist, paint. Total time in the bodyshop, was just under 3 weeks. They actually work on your car, when you drop it off.

If I can compare the paint to something, it would have to be glass. It amazingly smooth and glassy looking. Now the fun part begins, with re-assembly.

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kostas86 said:

great work so far! looking forward to seeing it completed!

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Thanks for the post. I already talk to Cody @ LoveFab, about a nice street turbo kit. Nothing crazy, probably his 400 whp Stage 1 kit.

Few more shots of the bodywork and paint.

Had to use the wifes camera, so excuse the quality of the pictures. I originally called AAA, to come pick it up, but they showed up with the tow dolly style tow truck. So I put the plates on, and the taillights and drove it back to my garage. I had 4 or 5 people stop me and ask if I was selling it, others just did a double take as I drove by.

Hey...slow down. You're building this too fast....need to pay attention to detail:wink:

Lovin this thread.

Loving the thread!

liftnot said:

Hey...slow down. You're building this too fast....need to pay attention to detail:wink:

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lol, you know I would never do that.

Thanks everyone, for the compliments. I'll keep the progress pics coming...

How much does a paint job like this run? I've got a black NSX that will probably need a respray sometime down the line.

Everything looks great but to those who think a buyer will pay a premium for new paint, I don't think so. Even if the paintwork is impeccable it's still a repaint and most likely will not be better than factory paint on a newer NSX which was well cared for because it was not painted in a cleanroom by robots before it was assembled. I am sure the OP knows these facts but like he said, he just enjoys it as a hobby and gets satisfaction. I just feel like pouring money into an older car which will always be hungry for more "restoration" and money as it ages ended up being a stupid move from a strictly dollars and sensibility point of view, personally speaking. I just don't get the same satisfaction from it, and have a personal regret about buying an older NSX than I could have. I am not trying to rain on the parade here, but was just wondering if satisfaction really would be "good enough" reason. Good luck on this build, it looks promising. I hope you end up ultimately happy w it!

mochanges said:

How much does a paint job like this run? I've got a black NSX that will probably need a respray sometime down the line.

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PM me, if you want his contact information. I would be comfortable telling you 4500-5k is what Prestige usually fetches for a complete paint and bodywork. Of course that depend on the amount of bodywork, and more importantly the type of work they would have to perform. I will say, he charges half of what a typical high end bodyshop charges and in my books, the best bodyshop I have found to date - as picky as I am. That includes hours of teardown, using top quality Dupont Paint materials, Cross-draft Paint booth, and his expertise on getting the car straight as can be, then followed by colorsanding and buffing. I know this being anal, but at other bodyshops, I would always be raged when I get my car back with screws missing or non oem hardware put back on. Prestige is meticulous, with putting all of your oem hardwarde in correctly.

Nero Tenebre said:

Everything looks great but to those who think a buyer will pay a premium for new paint, I don't think so. Even if the paintwork is impeccable it's still a repaint and most likely will not be better than factory paint on a newer NSX which was well cared for because it was not painted in a cleanroom by robots before it was assembled. I am sure the OP knows these facts but like he said, he just enjoys it as a hobby and gets satisfaction. I just feel like pouring money into an older car which will always be hungry for more "restoration" and money as it ages ended up being a stupid move from a strictly dollars and sensibility point of view, personally speaking. I just don't get the same satisfaction from it, and have a personal regret about buying an older NSX than I could have. I am not trying to rain on the parade here, but was just wondering if satisfaction really would be "good enough" reason. Good luck on this build, it looks promising. I hope you end up ultimately happy w it!

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Thanks for your .02. Everyone is entitled to share their personal opinion. No hard feelings.

However, I will inform you. I have a near mint 03 Long Beach Blue Pearl, and this fresh Berlina Black Paint in Dupont Chroma-Premier done by Prestige Autobody, is far superior to my OEM 03 NSX Paint. And for its worth, I am a pure perfectionist when it comes to paint and automotive detailing techniques.

P.S - If you're really regretting the ownership of your NSX. PM me, and lets work out a deal. I wouldn't mind adding a 3rd one to my stable...

Ok, so I wanted to get the dirty work done with. So I went to town on the undercarriage. Since it was daily driven, the undercarriage was filthy. It was a shame to see all that pretty alluminum on the undercarriage, all covered in road grime. So I unloaded 4-5 cans of degreaser, followed by this special lubricating detailer I purchased online. Its specifically designed to lubricate and condition all the factory undercarriage bushings for a pro-longed and un-squeaky life. Stuff works great!

She is nice and clean now. Dont mind the dirty stock cats. I have a set of new High-Flo cats.


Also, detailed the rear taillight panel and bumper brackets.




Dis-assembled the license plate lights and gave them a nice cleaning, as well.






Detailed the Rear Bumper Alluminum brackets and installed all new weather seals for the rear bumper sections.

Wow, great job!! Love your progress and attention to detail. I probably should do something like what you're doing to my 91, but I don't know if I have the patience or $$$ :biggrin:

Lbbp and bb are two of my favorite colors, so kudos on the color choices! I would have to see both of those in person some day as I am sure they will both be extremely nice. Do a photoshoot with them when you're all done? As for selling my car to get a newer one, I was disappointed at how much I was offered for it so I decided to keep it and install all the mods I had saved up. Since you have a targa and a coupe it's nice that you have different experiences offered by each one. Subscribed to see how this turns out, best of luck!

MOD5, just from the pics, i'm jealous of such a fresh berlina black nsx! :biggrin:

Btw, was it a full metameric berlina color match, or just the slightest difference with the special Dupont dispersions?

Looks GOOD.

Blood Stone said:

Wow, great job!! Love your progress and attention to detail. I probably should do something like what you're doing to my 91, but I don't know if I have the patience or $$$ :biggrin:

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Bring it by, I would love to do it for you.

Nero Tenebre said:

Lbbp and bb are two of my favorite colors, so kudos on the color choices! I would have to see both of those in person some day as I am sure they will both be extremely nice. Do a photoshoot with them when you're all done? As for selling my car to get a newer one, I was disappointed at how much I was offered for it so I decided to keep it and install all the mods I had saved up. Since you have a targa and a coupe it's nice that you have different experiences offered by each one. Subscribed to see how this turns out, best of luck!

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Thanks! Keep me in mind, if you ever decide to sell

HAYATO said:

MOD5, just from the pics, i'm jealous of such a fresh berlina black nsx! :biggrin:

Btw, was it a full metameric berlina color match, or just the slightest difference with the special Dupont dispersions?

Looks GOOD.

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That's a good question, and sorry I forgot mention this earlier. This is another big reason, why I am a Dupont fan. There color formulas are spot on, to oem. They even require MFG dates, and what plant the car originated from, as cars paint formulas were sometimes a bit off.

To further answer your question, the brand new OEM 02+ parts that came already painted in Berlina Black (i.e- tow hook covers and such), were spot on to the new Dupont Chroma-Premier Berlina Black.

Finally got to do some fun assembly to the car. Finished up getting the dirty under-carriage, engine bay, front bay, and all four wheel wells all cleaned up and back to new.

I un-loaded some more degreaser and went to town on the wheel wells, then layed down some fresh OEM 3M Rubberized coating, and also cleaned the circular plastic covers.

Before.


After a few coats of fresh 3M OEM Rubberized coating.

Next, I spent a few hours on the ARK DT-S Exhaust. When I removed it, I knoticed a crack 3/4 of one of the exhaust pipes. I called and spoke with Ted, but he said they dis-continued this exhaust, so I was pretty much SOL.

So anyway, I pulled my Miller Tig Welder out, and fixed it.

How the exhaust looked, when I pulled it off.




The section I fixed and tig welded.




After putting some elbow grease into it, she looks good as new. Was able to get the stained exhaust tips, to look brand new again.


Also degreased and cleaned the stock exhaust hangars. Then conditioned them with that detailed/lubricating detailer I use.

before.


after.


I installed the Exhaust, and also brand new High-Flo Cats.

Next, I started on the new taillights. I didn't realized that the taillights did not come with the black plastic trim pieces on top. So I was going use my stockers, but they were faded, so I ordered some new ones. Like everything else, took 2 days to get in.

Brand new OEM 02+ Taillights, and new Plastic trim pieces.


OEM Harness all tranferred over, and put exactly like it was from the factory.








Assembled the rear bumper, with the freshly cleaned brackets and new OEM Gaskets/weather seals. Aligned everything to factory specs, and then installed new Taillight gaskets and the assembled 02+ OEM Taillights.

You sir are a craftsman. Thanks for sharing your meticulous and inspiring progress.

Tom

As a master of the obvious I must say that this is an amazing thread and we are all waiting for your next update.

My question to you is: how long have you been planning this and what made you pull the trigger on a 91 when you already have an 03?

BTW - I think the removal of the side markers was brilliant.

Man,I thought mine was CLEAN!After seeing what you are doing to your NSX,I might just start working on mine to to give it that fresh look.Keep up the awesome work buddy.Can't wait until this thing is DONE!

I was looking at the close up pics of the paint and was like, " what are those particles in the paint?", my screen was just dirty! lol Awesome build and she's gonna look gorgeous!

hi0npsi said:

You sir are a craftsman. Thanks for sharing your meticulous and inspiring progress.

Tom

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Thanks, Tom! I really appreciate the compliment

Matt Knight said:

As a master of the obvious I must say that this is an amazing thread and we are all waiting for your next update.

My question to you is: how long have you been planning this and what made you pull the trigger on a 91 when you already have an 03?

BTW - I think the removal of the side markers was brilliant.

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Good question. I really didn't plan any of this. However, as I mentioned earlier, this car has some sentimental value attached to it, as it was owned by a close friend of mine. Also, since I always think twice before modifying my 03, because of its originality. I decided to let loose on this 91, since a lot of the parts were already aged. I am also a fan of the NA1 and pop-up lights, and if this were a lower mileage car in pristine condition. I would have not opted for the 02 parts, or do what I am doing. But since I decided to replace the aged parts, with new stuff, I figured I would update the look on it.

All in all, like anything in life. One thing, always leads to another...

NSX-ADV5 said:

Man,I thought mine was CLEAN!After seeing what you are doing to your NSX,I might just start working on mine to to give it that fresh look.Keep up the awesome work buddy.Can't wait until this thing is DONE!

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Do it! It's a lot of fun, and piece of mind that all the work was done right. They're great machines...

I will help you, in anyway I can.

Ready2Huynh said:

I was looking at the close up pics of the paint and was like, " what are those particles in the paint?", my screen was just dirty! lol Awesome build and she's gonna look gorgeous!

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Thanks! I'll keep the progress pics coming