Paint Damage

[bobcowan]

So, I spilled a little fuel, and I got this. A proper repair will require the back half to be painted. It will take 3-4 weeks.



There's some paint peeling and damage on the front end, too. I'll probably just have the whole car re-painted.

[34fords]

If you were running pump gas that should not have happened.

[patrickt]

Originally Posted by 34fords

If you were running pump gas that should not have happened.

I'll say. I think I've spilled gas on every car I own and never seen that. What sort of gas is he using?

[Kobura]

There is definitely a lesson to be learned here. Details pls.

[Mongoose930]

That is awful !! What the heck kind of fuel are you using? I have spilled racing gas on my paint, wiped it off within a few minutes, and had no issues.

[twobjshelbys]

Wow, that's a bummer! It looks like the gas found its way under the cap and under the paint to the lowest spot where it simply made a bubble. It looks similar to what happens when water gets behind paint on drywall. You'll have to go all the way down to the bottom and it'll be difficult to blend the surface let alone the color.

What color would you repaint?

Good luck.

[spdbrake]

Originally Posted by twobjshelbys

Wow, that's a bummer! It looks like the gas found its way under the cap and under the paint to the lowest spot where it simply made a bubble. It looks similar to what happens when water gets behind paint on drywall. You'll have to go all the way down to the bottom and it'll be difficult to blend the surface let alone the color.

What color would you repaint?

Good luck.

Tony has a point. If the fumes or gas liquid gets under the paint it will lift. Was this right after a fill-up? And was the car sitting in the sun? Gasoline volume increases 1% per 10C and what comes out of underground tanks is much colder than ambient.

[patrickt]

Originally Posted by spdbrake

Tony has a point. If the fumes or gas liquid gets under the paint it will lift. Was this right after a fill-up? And was the car sitting in the sun? Gasoline volume increases 1% per 10C and what comes out of underground tanks is much colder than ambient.

Wait a minute. Wouldn't water freezing and thawing on your car do the same thing?

[twobjshelbys]

Originally Posted by patrickt

Wait a minute. Wouldn't water freezing and thawing on your car do the same thing?

Yes, but I wouldn't expect water to have a solvent effect that would unbond the paint, at least this quickly. (Remember from high school chemistry that water is the universal solvent. Sometimes it just takes a long time...)

[twobjshelbys]

Originally Posted by spdbrake

Tony has a point. If the fumes or gas liquid gets under the paint it will lift. Was this right after a fill-up? And was the car sitting in the sun? Gasoline volume increases 1% per 10C and what comes out of underground tanks is much colder than ambient.

I suspect this is close to what happened... Rather than a spill, the tank was filled, topped off, and then the car parked. The gas expanded, slowly, and got past the seal on the cap and over time seeped slowly enough volume to break the bond of paint to surface. The lowest point is a "bubble" so it took a while.

How it happened is a potential mystery or a lesson (don't overfill), but that it happened is a major bummer.

Modern vehicles have the evap recovery tank that captures vapors, but that can get flooded with liquid if the tank is overfilled and is in the path to react before it hits the cap seal. Alas, not here...

[patrickt]

Well what's to stop this from happening again? It doesn't look like he has any drainage holes for little spills, or even a recessed area on the fender for it to safely pool <see pic>. When I'm filling up with any of my cars I would say I spill some gas more often than not. I can remember one time with one of my cars that I spilled a lot, and I'm not even sure how I did it. But I pretty much ruined a nice pair of shoes and smelled like gas all day.

[twobjshelbys]

Comparing apples and oranges, I think, but possible hints. Bob, can you post a pic of the inside of your filler cap?

PatrickT has what looks like a traditional fuel filler neck inside the quick fill surround. In this case though the filler is recessed so overflow can sit in the ring around the quick fill.

Bob's on the other hand sits on the surface. So... If the construction is similar, gas expanding and getting past the gasket on the traditional fuel cap has a nice little place to puddle and seep past any pinhole that is in the sealant around the filler tube where it meets the quick fill cap. With the seal of the big cap, any gas sitting in that area can't evaporate, it'll just puddle and if there is a pinhole in the secondary sealing just keep looking for a way out.

I seem to recall that on my CSX the quick fill was "live" - the top had a gasket that sealed. It had a pretty good funnel-shape that would probably have held a good amount of expansion and any spillage would have been over the top of the cap. In Bob's case it looks like it came from around the bottom of the LeMans cap area and then found a way under the paint...

[FredG]

Yikes!! Another thing to worry about. Things like this reinforce the reason why I always pump my own gas and never try to top it off.

[Moriarty]

My ERA just has the flip-top lid, no cap inside. Is there a cap I should purchase, or would I need to do some more extensive work to add threads for it to screw into?

[patrickt]

Originally Posted by Moriarty

My ERA just has the flip-top lid, no cap inside. Is there a cap I should purchase, or would I need to do some more extensive work to add threads for it to screw into?

Try a Parts Master 46139, which is a vented cap and pretty standard.

[patrickt]

Originally Posted by patrickt

Try a Parts Master 46139, which is a vented cap and pretty standard.

... and I think that's the same as Stant 10810 that you can order off Amazon.

https://www.amazon.com/Stant-10810-F.../dp/B000B8LKZK

[DanEC]

I’ve heard of other evidence of fuel spills damaging paint in not too many years and it’s a mystery to me as urethane is pretty much standard anymore and should be undamaged by fuel. I’ve even flooded fuel over the back of my lacquer paint 66 Corvette but it didn’t damage it - wiped it down with a wet towel and drove home and waxed the area. It’s pretty much a habit with me anymore to carry a damp towel with me if I’m planning to stop for gas. I don’t understand how that type of damage happens??

[34fords]

As I said in post #2 I don't think that is pump gas. And as DanEC said, I to have had C2 Corvettes and motorcycles all my life and I spilled more gas on the Corvettes and bikes than I like to admit and I have never had anything like that happen. I have had the pain fade and get dull but nothing that wouldn't wax out.
I hope Bobcowan responds.

[Lou1119]

Originally Posted by DanEC

I’ve heard of other evidence of fuel spills damaging paint in not too many years and it’s a mystery to me as urethane is pretty much standard anymore and should be undamaged by fuel. I’ve even flooded fuel over the back of my lacquer paint 66 Corvette but it didn’t damage it - wiped it down with a wet towel and drove home and waxed the area. It’s pretty much a habit with me anymore to carry a damp towel with me if I’m planning to stop for gas. I don’t understand how that type of damage happens??

I had paint damage from gas spilled on a 64 Corvette but that was in 1964. Paints were very different than today’s. It could be a poor job from the factory, if it were from pump gas.

[DanEC]

Good point about the factory - hadn’t noticed it was a Backdraft which is factory painted. I think I might have a discussion with the Backdraft representative - unless it was something other than fuel.