Selling Your Older Car: Why a New Paint Job Matters
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Selling Your Older Car: Why a New Paint Job Matters

Last year, I bought a new car. Rather than trade in my old one, I decided to sell it myself. Before I put it in the market, I took the car to a local shop and got my old baby a new paint job. The new paint made all the difference with the car. While operationally it was sound, the outside was not all that great. After the fresh coat of paint, the car generated a lot of attention from prospective buyers. I even had a bidding war going on between two parties who really wanted it. If you have an older vehicle to sell, it pays to invest in a new paint job. Let me tell you more about why this strategy works. Follow my tips for selecting the color and the paint type, and you'll get a great price for the old jalopy.

Selling Your Older Car: Why a New Paint Job Matters

How To Fix Rusted Brakes

Nora Boyd

Rusted brakes are a fairly common problem and they're not something you should be really worried about unless it's quite heavy. Whenever a car has been sitting in one place for some time, a coat of rust is likely to form on the brake rotors. This caused by the corrosion of the metal used to make the rotors.

In most cases, rusted brake rotors will not cause much of a problem. This is because the coat of rust will be removed as you start driving the car more often. However, it's not exactly aesthetically pleasing.

The Simple Solution

A simple way of getting rid of rust from your brake rotors is to drive around at a relatively low speed e.g. 5 to 10 mph and braking moderately hard. Gentle braking such as you'd do when you come up on an intersection may not provide enough force to remove the rust.

You'll need to do this several times for it to be effective. Therefore, it's not advisable for you to do this on a busy road. Instead, you can do this out on the street when there are relatively few cars about, or you can also do this in a parking lot.

Removing Rust from the Rotor Hats

The rotor hat is the part of the rotor that isn't touched by the brake pad. This means that you won't be able to remove rust from this part of the rotor by braking. The best solution for this part of the rotor is to sand it. Sanding this part of the rotor will not affect its effectiveness.

Some people choose to have this part of the rotor painted. This prevents it from rusting again. This is a good idea since you have to remove the wheel to sand the rotor hat and this can be tedious if you have to do it over and over. However, ensure that no paint gets to the part of the rotor that comes into contact with the brake pads.

What About Brake Cleaners?

Don't waste your time trying to clean rust from your brake rotors using a brake cleaner. Brake cleaners are designed to remove the combination of dust and grime that can be hard to remove from your calipers and other parts of the brakes. They are not designed to remove rust.

If the buildup of rust is very thick, the effectiveness of the rotor may be affected. You should first have your car checked out by a brake repair expert before you drive it. Contact a shop, like George's Eastside Shell, for more help.


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