Consider painting over it rather than blasting or stripping

Question:

The previous owner changed the color of the plastic door panels on my 1972 Ranchero and I’m sure this was done with a spray-on product. Can you tell me if I could have the panels soda blasted to remove the spray-on color without damaging the door panel itself?

Also, the tach needle jumps around and does not give an accurate rpm reading. Do you have any suggestions?

Answer:

The effectiveness and prudence of media blasting the paint off your plastic door panels will depend in large measure on what kind of paint was used, how well it is adhered, how thick it is, how resilient the underlying plastic is, and how skilled and careful the person doing the stripping is.

As an alternative to blasting, consider using a chemical stripper that’s specifically formulated for use with plastic. Your local auto body supply store sells this type of stripper. Before using it on an entire panel, test a very small area on the back side of a panel to determine whether the stripper will harm the plastic.

Another, better option if it is feasible for you, is to paint over the old paint rather than stripping it off. If the old paint is fully adhered to the panel and not too thick then you can clean it, sand it, clean it again, and then seal, prime and paint it.