I have a 21 year old vehicle. Currently, the clearcoat finish is good. There is no peeling or flaking. But, I'm concerned that it is only a matter of time before it starts -- 21 years is a long time. So, I'm thinking about spraying new clear coat over the existing finish.

Will this give me the desired effect of preventing the existing clearcoat from beginning to peel/flake?

Thanks!
Bryan

Well, putting more clear over your existing clear sounds like a good idea....but the wear/chemisty of the coating would say, no. The number 1 thing that breaks these coatings down is UV. It starts working on the clear from day one and does not stop. So you already have 21 years of this working on that paint package. Putting more clear over clear just encourages less flexibility of the coat to be able to flex in heat/cold. If that coating is going to start delaming in a year, few years, etc., there is nothing you can do to stop it. So, if it is in this shape I assume it is probably garaged? Is it a daily or occassional driver?

Thanks DarrelK, for your reply. Yes, the car is garaged and is rarely driven on the weekends. I do drive it daily during the week. Some week days it is parked under the shade of large trees. But there are a few days, when working at a different location, that it does sit exposed to the sun for most of the day. I'm in Iowa, though. So, I'm not at a high elevation.

So, if I understand you correctly, you are saying that a second coat will decrease flexibility and therefore will ironically make it more like to start peeling and flaking?

So, I have no choice but to let time and the sun keep working on it?

Automotive paint packages are designed within thickness parameters of mils. Coatings didn't just start getting thinner because it was cheaper (there are some crappy factory paint jobs out there though). Newer coatings coatings flex and move with heat/cold/vibration. When you start exceeding designed mil thickness you decrease the ability of the paint to flex and sure enough cracks can start to appear. Just clear coating over the existing clear may not negatively effect the existing clear however you could start seeing micro cracking in the new clear sooner than you think. Honestly, I've seen this done a few times by guys at some of the shows I go to.... 3 of them I can think of had cracking within a couple of months.
Nobody likes to address the fact that paint is a wear item on a car. Yes, it's pretty and shiney however it's main duty is keeping your metal from rotting into the earth. Paint will wear out over time/exposure. Garaging/storage is going to be the biggest single thing that will preserve your paint....

Thanks, again! I appreciate your time responding. I will continue to hand wash and wax, garage, and wherever possible to park in the shade -- and hope for some good fortune, to go with it.

One final question: how do the concerns you raised regarding clear coat over clear coat impact spray repair on a bumper? Specifically, I will soon be attempting to reattach a broken off piece of my wife's bumper. If I succeed, I will then plan to sand the bumper, and then paint and clear coat it. I was planning to repaint and clear coat the entire bumper, rather than try to blend in the paint. But now, I'm thinking that could be a bad move and lead to problems with the clear coat. Her car is a 2015 Prius. So, maybe the much younger age of her car makes the problems of a paint and clear coat over the existing bumper not something to be concerned with?

Thanks,
Bryan

Well, bumper covers are kind of in there own little section of paint world. A lot of us don't even try to repair them anymore, just replace them, but hey, you can certainly try.... First, what's the plan for that piece? Best way to repair most bumper materials is by plastic welding them. You will have better adhesion and less chance of "ghosting" with your repair. Might want to bounce over to... www.polyvance.com There are charts there about identifying your plastic and preferred ways to fix your plastic. You can also go over to our fiberglass and plastics section here and find a sticky at the top on bumper repair. Here's my last bumper repair..... viewtopic.php?f=13&t=27152
Oh, and yes, you can do as you said, and hit the whole thing. The paint on those bumper is pretty thin to begin with..., Color is the thing that can be tricky for the novice on bumpers as in a lot of cases the factory didn't even get it quite right....,

Thanks! Not sure yet, on how to tackle the bumper. Thank you for the links! I will definitely check them out to develop a plan of attack.

Much obliged,
Bryan