Engine Colors

[Threehz]

Alright guys so I'm finally going to paint my L28! So my 77 is 216 White, original paint job and when I get her repainted I'm going to keep her the same color. However I might add one sky-blue racing stripe most likely down the center, possibly a little off center. Now originally I was thinking either painting the engine stock blue, or maybe a lighter more sky blue to match the stripe. I'm also going to repaint my engine bay very soon and of course keep it the stock white.

Then I got the idea of painting my engine white. I looked around the web and saw some very scary L-series engine paint jobs and of course some good ones however not a single white one. I think it will look very clean and look good alongside the fresh white engine-bay. Of course anything white in an engine bay, let alone the engine itself is going to get very dirty, but I think as long as the engine is running how it should it won't get excessively dirty really fast, not to mention it will give me extra incentive to keep it clean!

SO,

Anyone ever seen a white L28 or related engine?

AND,

What are some of your guys opinions?

(keep in mind only the block is being painted, just repainting the fading stock paint-job. The head and cover will be polished. I hate when people paint the entire engine, IMHO.)

[mjr45]

Never seen a white one, might be interesting. Its your ride do what YOU like unless you are going for a concours trophy.

[cygnusx1]

Sounds nice. Just a bit of my experience. The color of my engines changes with age. Maybe it's the constant heat cycling. The blues get a little dimmer and less intense with age. I am wondering if white would turn brownish to off-white as it aged. Just a thought. I have used both POR-15 Chrysler Blue, and Dupli-Color GM Blue to paint my engines.

POR15 new:

POR15 after 5 years:

Edited October 2, 2011 by cygnusx1

[robftw]

From my experience a white engine block will eventually discolor and yellow in certain hot spots.

All of the oil dirt and grim will show up easier, so prepare to detail that engine every time you wash the car.

Also, (this isn't all that important but i'll share it anyway) The engine won't dissipate heat as well, but its not noticeable.. maybe 5 degrees at best

Here's how i did mine

Edited October 2, 2011 by robftw

[Oiluj]

A white engine would look cool in a white engine bay, but agree with the comments above about yellowing in "hot spots". Kinda depends on how important having it remain "pure white" is to you.

[Threehz]

Thanks guys that is definitely something to consider, I could see it beginning to look pretty nasty after a while and the yellowing would not be very nice at all.

Do you think the darker colors may hold up better?

I'm thinking a darker blue like Por 15's dark cadillac blue would change less then the ligher blue like Dave's above.

[robftw]

You could always try to powdercoat the block white

[FastWoman]

We has a little white diesel in our sailboat. White DOES get nasty looking after a while, even when the owner tries very hard to keep it bright and clean looking.

Deep blue paint hides flaws very well, as we have very few blue cones in our visual systems to resolve the details. Try reading blue text on a black screen. It will give you a headache. Furthermore, our color discrimination suffers on that end of the color spectrum, so we're less likely to see staining and fading. That's why most machinery tends to be painted some form of blue. It looks cleaner only because our eyes can't see the flaws.

[Healey Z]

This blue was the closest I could find in a rattle can to the Datsun blue. I really like the color on the motor, especially when you have some shiny parts next to it.

Rust-oleum 248961 GM BLUE

I liked it so much, I painted my vice the same color.

[Threehz]

That makes a lot of sense FastWoman, good to know information! I'm pretty sure I am going with the dark blue.

Healey that color does look good and very close to the original color, I'm thinking of going with Por-15's Dark Cadillac Blue though and whatever color I do I will definitely post some pictures!