bruny

Should be Candy white on M plate, heres my Alpine White L90E001.JPG[/attachment:lm5llqx9]

Good choice, keep it standard. When considering overhaul/rebuild I can certainly recommend D&G, best in the bussiness in my opinion :notworthy: :notworthy:

Injected into panels shouldn't be a problem, clear on the underside is fairly easy to remove but dont use the black! This may not help but from the VAG General body repairs manual:2.8l 24v Climatronic system.pdf004.JPG[/attachment:1o7gdxuq]005.JPG[/attachment:1o7gdxuq]

I had another play yesterday, varying the length of time in the zinc elctrolyte from 20mins for the domed bolts [seems about right, fairly bright] to 1hour for the petrol tank strap retainer bracket [which was way to long resulting in a dark zinc finish] Also throwing caution to the wind doubled the yellow passivate strength to 200ml in 4l in an effort to avoid a double dip, that prooved a failure as the zinc seems to have a limited ability to retain the passivate. As you can see from the photo all the later pieces have resulted in a dull passivate finish which is also patchy, when rubbed the passivate comes away, domed bolts showing this clearly, oh well back to the drawing board. :brickwall: 002.JPG[/attachment:1cta2d0k] I dont know how to copy and sticky a site but Gaterosplating superbrightkit is listed at £55, I added the heater and pump and extra pickle. 01522800776/07908965042. I will be seeking more advice :lol: The gti finish is much brighter a agree, it would seem that time/temp/brightener strength are all crucial for the zinc plate electrolyte, the clear passivate seems to be straight forward but I'm really struggling with the yellow finish, a tint is ok but more than that leaves an undourable finish :censored: Ps. Looking closely at new vag hose clamps both the blue and green finish appear to be painted on over zinc finish,

Plating kit was from Gateros plating at Bracebridge Heath in Lincoln, others are available but local to me and a helpful guy running the joint. He gave a quick demo before I bought and is happy to advise over the phone for backup etc. PS. sorry if I've set you off as well :lol:

Brilliant, exactly what I need. It would appear the bonnet catch I thought was too dark isn't far of the mark. The bonnet release catches do surprise me though. Could the pre-facelift models vary? 'cos the 2 early examples I have definately show remnants of silver and yellow. I suppose the green could have worn from the face of the pin but doubt if retainer and washer could change!! The green and blue colour of the hose retainers will be interesting, trying to replicate them will be a challenge :clap: may have to resort to paint over zinc. Buying new vag items may have be the last option :(

Chris, Sorry ,I wasnt infering that you have it easy by any means, I'm just jealeous!! The condition of all your vehicles is a credit to the love and dedication you have and your knowledge is second to none :notworthy: KipVR, I think the rainbow effect can be obtained by clear passivate dip prior to the yellow and drying immediatly with a hair drier. I'm not sure whether you are saying the original would be plain and the new replacement parts are rainbow effect, :shrug: I know that the modern process has changed owing to having to use safer chemicals, so it may not be possible to replicate excactly the same finish. Also many new Vag parts such as nuts/bolts atc are virtually unplated so corrode very rapidly, virtually any extra coating on these should be an improvement?? Piccies of the bonnet fixings would still be useful, thanks :clap:

:clap: Thanks, great help Chris :notworthy: so wish I'd got into this earlier, maintaining a cracker has to be easier than renovating an average corrado.

JCB Loadall mate :D196.JPG[/attachment:2gev6lfh]

:clap: That would be brill KipVR, just what I need. I'm quite happy to do them again, cant do much else with all this bloody snow :shock:

Yep, still learning how to use it, alot of shade options. My fisrt attempt wouldn't take the passivate, my 2nd attempt was way to dark after 2 dips and a bake!! I may well end up buying new door pins if I can't fathom the plastic part :shrug: but more satisfying if I can restore original parts!! The shade of zinc will have dulled off as it ages, I would have thought it would be brighter from new . I need to see some new bay shots if there are any out there :help: Failing that new VW may be similar to how the corrado was in its day! I must admit to being impressed by CHR15_W's restored Golf bay at the show. Perhaps a little pimped but it shows the quality that can be achieved by a cheapish diy kit, I just need to fine tune it for concours standard... keen to learn though :)

Thanks Chris :notworthy: Yep still learning, the yellow passivate finish varies according to smoothness of the zinc underneath and time in the passivate. The smoother the zinc the less passivate sticks to it. The catch in my photo is too dark. The brightness can be toned down by not adding brightener to the zinc dip and /or not clear passivate dipping prior to yellow dip, although the nitric acid in the clear passivate helps the yellow to stick!! Hoping that my efforts dont loose marks as it should be better than the worn or painted finish I have at the moment. I will however take onboard your thoughts on 'bling' level.

I have used the waxoyl black and can tell you it really covers and sticks well, it wont react with anything adversely, ie rubber mounts etc. but if you need to remove it anytime in the future you will be cursing. I think the clear finish is more suited but may need to be re- applied every other year. Make sure you wash the crap off before waxing!

Thanks for that Chris, a very useful thread. As mentioned earlier I could do with researching original fitment finishes to try not to fall foul with my zinc plating kit. Options available are yellow/ clear/ black and olive green. Am I correct with the following: bonnet catch /washers & bolts............... yellow? bonnet release: domed bolt and spring...... clear zinc? bonnet release: adjuster nut and washer ....yellow? slam panel bolts.....noted......................black battery clamp and bolt..........................yellow? Hose clamps......................................green? subframe and rear axle fittings................clear zinc? If anybody has original sales brochures showing any of these that would be most useful :help: 001.JPG[/attachment:2m1cjzgs] this shows the yellow passivate and clear options, any thoughts??

:roll: who's judging at Stanford next year? We will all have to be careful :nono: Any chance of some advice on fittings finish Chris??

Thanks for the kind comments and advice guys, the kit is cheap enough but very time consuming. It helps with my OCD though :lol: Shawshank, will be good to catch up soon, didnt have much time at the post office meet, hows the paint fund going, on schedule for spring still? OSV, you are right about the finish. I'm hoping Crazy Dave is sorting some original bay shots for me for research purposes, also happy to except advice from other sources. There is a choice of passivate colours including olive green, yellow, clear and black. defo need more research but hope to keep it as near to original finish as poss. Have another rado in the shed to refer to as well, thanks Paul :wave: and yes it is quiet now the loading shovell has finished clearing the snow :shock: pretty bad here! KipVR, I'm hoping I can sort the door pin plastics, I bought some new pins off bay but they are crap so back to original. There must be a way to sort it, perhaps shrink wrap :shrug:

£70, probably need a better power supply though, difficult to manage the amps with a charger! and you need a blasting cabinet too! you cant beat being self sufficient though :D

Quick update on my diy plating project: Kit supplied by gateros plating in Lincoln, a helpful chappy. Having seen a quick demo prior to purchase, I bought the pickle cleaner/Zinc dip/ clear and yellow passivates/ heater and aerator and resistor. The power supply comes from my old battery charger. I soon learnt that temperature is pretty crucial so I moved into the boiler room, the workshop was too cold. Also crucial is the use of a hair drier to finally dry the parts.2.8l 24v Climatronic system.pdf002.JPG[/attachment:19x2h0w1] Parts were bead blasted, finer finish than sandblasting Thoroughly degrease before dipping in the pickle cleaner Rinse well before hanging in the zinc plate bucket for 20 mins or so Proper rinse in warm running water, I used the shower but dont tell the my other half! Then dip in clear passivate for 15 seconds before dipping in yellow passivate for same time Quick dip in a bucket of warm water and dry with the hair drier To finnish off after hanging in a warm room for 6 hours or so I gave them a quick waxing After 4 attempts this is the result, think the bonnet catch needs to be redone, a little too yellow [think I over did the zinc coat by leaving it in too long resulting in a rougher finish]001.JPG[/attachment:19x2h0w1]

That 1 point is crucial though drewiee :norty:

Looking good, I would advise you leave it in the paintshop until the weather fines up, you dont want pebbledashed bonnet from the gritters!!! :shock:

Yep, do it once, properly, while the car is off the road for winter! Powder coat the crossmember and subframe and rear axle etc. while youre at it. It is a lovely looking motor that you shouldnt part with so you may as well do it sooner rather than later.

Quite a list for the winter iceviolet but guessing it will be a long cold one, hope you have a heated garage. :shock:

Going for the original orange peel look as it would have been from the factory :)

Cracking shots Mark, good work. Look to be getting a superb finish, thats the beauty of doing it yourself, more effort is well worth it. Shame the PVC didnt work, it sounds sexy having your corrado clad in PVC :lol:

Hi Jude, good luck with this, you'll be on edge for a while, wouldn't like to be in their shoes if they get it wrong :shock: