[Justin W]

Hi there everyone!

I have a 2008 Xterra Off-Road Edition that has a couple of spots of bad rust on the hood. They were caused by the previous owner who had a bug guard on the lip of the hood that caught a ton of tree bits and water. I didn't know about these spots until I chose to remove the bug guard. I'm looking for some advice on how to fix this rust. I know I could just go to a body shop and have them fix it but I know that's not a cheap fix. I think because of where I live I could almost just buy a new hood for the cost to fix this rust. I have a DIY idea to maybe "deal with it" but I would love your opinion on it, if it's a totally dumb idea or if it might be an okay idea but maybe needs a little tweak. I was thinking about maybe sanding the entire lip of the bumper from left to right, just the part that curves down. Then paint it with a basic black Bedliner? I know it wouldn't look super bada$$, but my thinking is that it will at least protect it from getting worse, and if I really hate the look of it, I still have the bug guard that I can put back onto the hood and that would cover the lip of the hood. I've just never painted bare car metal so would I need to do anything beforehand? Or would I just sand it and then spray it with the Bedliner? Do I need to prime?

Any help, advice, or suggestions would be GREATLY appreciated. If it's a totally stupid idea let me know! I can take it, haha Or if you have a better idea please by all means let me know! I'm game for anything!

 

[Lowcountry idn]

Well if it were mine here in the South I would find a nice rust free hood at LKQ the right color. LKQ according to my list charges $54.15 for a hood (plus tax).

If that isn't and option I would sand it down, treat it with a metal conditioner, feather it out and get some touch up spray paint. Probably hold you until you give in and go for option A above? There have been a couple threads recently - AlbatrossCafe's FleXterra ~ T-Swap, 35s, 4.10s...

 

[dclin]

Bedliner wouldn't be a bad idea - but only after you sand away the rust. You can get Raptor liner in an aerosol can if you don't have a decent sized air compressor. Maybe just mask off at the crease line of the hood and Raptor line the leading edge. https://www.amazon.com/U-Pol-Aerosol-Bedliner-Protective-Coating/dp/B07DGVMWS9

I'm not a big fan of the standard lumpy texture of bendliner though, so I'm spraying the bumpers and roof rack with a HVLP gun and diluted with urethane reducer. I did a test spray and was able to get it pretty close in texture to the factory texture of the roof rack.

 

[ccg1018]

Sand, prime, paint.
or

For the same price of supplies plus elbow grease get a new hood that’s black from a junk yard or broker as listed above and call it a day. It’s really up to you. It’s not really that bad as far as rust goes, but doesn’t look good either and I completely understand.

 

[dclin]

The texture on the left side of the rack was what I was going for, but the cheapie Harbor Freight 2mm HVLP gun I had went from wide open fan pattern to firehose (resulting in the lumpy right side) as I was spraying, so redoing this piece.

Honestly though, I would watch a bunch of Youtube videos on how to prep for paint, and then bring to a Maaco or similar for them to repaint.

 

[chevy42083]

I'd be OK with bedliner, for this purpose. It'll look out of place unless you do some other parts (bumpers/plastics/grill,rockers) to make it 'match' a little better, IMO.

If you're spraying that front edge.... where do you stop at the sides? That body line flows up the hood. So.... do you plan to follow it all they up the hood?
Maybe consider doing the entire raised center area of the hood?

I'm pretty sure you'll end up with more time and money into it than swapping the hood out....so don't start unless you want the practice or the end result. Otherwise, just work towards the look you LIKE. Then again... some sandpaper and a can of DIY bed coating isn't THAT expensive if you just want to do a quick and dirty job, shoot it and see. Worst case, you end up back looking for a hood.

 

[Hakkenouw]

If you do a bad job of blending in the paint you can always slap a 50$ bug deflector on top to hide any imperfections.

Amazon.com: Auto Ventshade AVS 24557 Bugflector II Dark Smoke Hood Shield for 2005-2016 Nissan Xterra : Automotive

Buy Auto Ventshade AVS 24557 Bugflector II Dark Smoke Hood Shield for 2005-2016 Nissan Xterra: Bug & Hood Shields - Amazon.com ✓ FREE DELIVERY possible on eligible purchases

www.amazon.com

 

[Tlrtucker]

Like they said, sand, prime, base coat, clear coat - then I'd cover it all up with a new bug deflector. I don't think they look bad and it would cover the repaired area. At least until you can get it repaired correctly.

Junkyards might be difficult to find exactly what you need in the condition you want. If your area is anything like the Denver area, finding a 2nd gen in the right color that isn't completely trashed will be nearly impossible. I've been waiting for 6 months for a black 2nd gen to come through so I can get a new back hatch and I have only seen a handful of 2nd gens come through, none in the right color. Shipping makes it impossible to go outside of Colorado.

EDIT: So immediately after posting this another member dm'd me about a black Xterra in a junkyard 100 miles away. Go figure...

 

[Justin W]

I'd be OK with bedliner, for this purpose. It'll look out of place unless you do some other parts (bumpers/plastics/grill,rockers) to make it 'match' a little better, IMO.

If you're spraying that front edge.... where do you stop at the sides? That body line flows up the hood. So.... do you plan to follow it all they up the hood?
Maybe consider doing the entire raised center area of the hood?

I'm pretty sure you'll end up with more time and money into it than swapping the hood out....so don't start unless you want the practice or the end result. Otherwise, just work towards the look you LIKE. Then again... some sandpaper and a can of DIY bed coating isn't THAT expensive if you just want to do a quick and dirty job, shoot it and see. Worst case, you end up back looking for a hood.

The unfortunate thing is, I live in Ontario, Canada, and doing some searching last night there are no grey Xterra hood's in a 300km radius haha The closest is 200+kms away and it's not even the right colour. The Xterras are rare cars in Ontario. That's the reason I probably overpaid for it in the first place but still totally worth it! haha So I think it might have to be the DIY route. But that's not too bad, like I said in my post, if it looks dumb then I still have the plastic "bug guard" that came with it when I bought it that would cover the front part of the hood up.

 

[Justin W]

If you do a bad job of blending in the paint you can always slap a 50$ bug deflector on top to hide any imperfections.

Amazon.com: Auto Ventshade AVS 24557 Bugflector II Dark Smoke Hood Shield for 2005-2016 Nissan Xterra : Automotive

Buy Auto Ventshade AVS 24557 Bugflector II Dark Smoke Hood Shield for 2005-2016 Nissan Xterra: Bug & Hood Shields - Amazon.com ✓ FREE DELIVERY possible on eligible purchases

www.amazon.com

Lucky for me, I already got one! haha It originally came with one when I bought it from the couple who was selling it.

 

[Justin W]

Like they said, sand, prime, base coat, clear coat - then I'd cover it all up with a new bug deflector. I don't think they look bad and it would cover the repaired area. At least until you can get it repaired correctly.

Junkyards might be difficult to find exactly what you need in the condition you want. If your area is anything like the Denver area, finding a 2nd gen in the right color that isn't completely trashed will be nearly impossible. I've been waiting for 6 months for a black 2nd gen to come through so I can get a new back hatch and I have only seen a handful of 2nd gens come through, none in the right color. Shipping makes it impossible to go outside of Colorado.

Funny you should mention black second gen. There are only 2 Xterras in my "area", all of Ontario, and one of them is a black 2nd gen haha But I need a grey 2nd gen!! They are rare indeed.

 

[Lowcountry idn]

Funny you should mention black second gen. There are only 2 Xterras in my "area", all of Ontario, and one of them is a black 2nd gen haha But I need a grey 2nd gen!! They are rare indeed.

Spend the whole day fixing it. I guarantee one will arrive at the junkyard the next day....

 

[westslope]

Funny you should mention black second gen. There are only 2 Xterras in my "area", all of Ontario, and one of them is a black 2nd gen haha But I need a grey 2nd gen!! They are rare indeed.

Where in Ontario?

A black hood on an otherwise Dark Knight Armour X might look kinda cool.

Frankly, the rust looks modest (by eastern Canada standards). Time for some elbow grease maybe? RobertsPaintCare.com out of Montreal can take care of your needs from A to Z and provide lots of instructions.

Might be an idea to Krown rust or Rust Check treat the vehicle given that rust was showing up on the hood.

 

[Justin W]

Spend the whole day fixing it. I guarantee one will arrive at the junkyard the next day....

Haha isn't that just how life goes!!

 

[Justin W]

Where in Ontario?

A black hood on an otherwise Dark Knight Armour X might look kinda cool.

Frankly, the rust looks modest (by eastern Canada standards). Time for some elbow grease maybe? RobertsPaintCare.com out of Montreal can take care of your needs from A to Z and provide lots of instructions.

Might be an idea to Krown rust or Rust Check treat the vehicle given that rust was showing up on the hood.

Just about 2hrs east of Toronto. Unfortunately, I don't have a garage and a lot of trees in the driveway. The previous owners got a ton of wet leaves and crap caught between the bug guard and hood which created the rust. There is a 2nd gen black Xterra at a junkyard but I don't know where it is and it would cost $200+ CAD to get it. I took it and got it sprayed at Krown but they didn't say or do anything in particular about the hood.

 

[westslope]

Two hours east of Toronto...... if you are near Belleville, then upstate New York is not that far. Roughly two hours to Watertown. That border may open up back up soon. I was born and raised in Ottawa. Did a short work stint in Kingston, too.

I recommended Krown because the rusted hood is an indicator of a much wider rust situation which a Krown application would slow down.

 

[BigBearOverlander]

I just bought that from Courtesy parts, a hood deflector. Check it out! could be a good option for you that cover the part of the hood you need to protect if you dont want to painted with bedliner.

2007-2015 Nissan Xterra Air Deflector, Hood 999D5-KR000 | Courtesy Parts