Do i have to apply primer when putting touch-up paint on my car? What is the use of it?

I read that first, you need to clean the area to be treated. Then you apply the primer, then the paint, and then the clearcoat. Are these steps correct? is it nessecery to apply primer?Do i have to apply primer when putting touch-up paint on my car? What is the use of it?
Rough up the surface with wet sanding. Then the other steps. You should use primer.Do i have to apply primer when putting touch-up paint on my car? What is the use of it?
Those steps are only correct if the paint is gone to the point to where you can see the silver of the car. Otherwise, no primer is needed.
if you want the paint to stick then yes.
If you are planning on sanding to the bare metal,then a primer should be used because most types have added chemicals that allow for better adhesion.On the majority of car bodies high strength zinc coated steel is used which is a great product but paint doesn't adhere well.Be sure to wash the steel with a strong acid then rinse with water and quickly dry before applying any type of coating.


Painting over a painted surface does not always require primer,sometimes it complicates the process for no valid reason.Primer is used to level and fill sand scratches or very minor flaws if they are present.
applying the primer will give the paint something to stick too and help you get a better finish. most touch up kits have clear instructions and if you follow them carefully and take your time you should get a nice result.





get the area to be treated nice and clean, free from water, dust and muck, then follow your kits instructions





good luck
Wildmary, and christina, what the heck are you two talking about? Touch-up is nomenclature. There are two types of primers relevant to this discussion. One is paint primer, the other is the prep-primer that is needed with certain types of touch up paint. ';Primer';, and, ';Touch-up';, are nomenclature here folks. They are not just general terms you can throw around. So which type of primer are you asking about? The primer in a touch up kit is usually part of a two part epoxy. Which is what touch up paint is by the way, it isn't exactly paint. And, by all means, you will need to use this.





However, if you are in fact reading some third party literature on paint repair, then you likely ARE talking about paint primer.





First, let's make sure you are using your touch up product correctly. How big is the ding you are repairing? If you are trying to repair anything that will need more than a couple of small drops of touch up product, then you will get bad results. Touch up is almost useless for anything other than rock chips. Touch up is a sort of epoxy, it is NOT paint. It is paint primer, scratch filler, and pigment all in one. So make sure you are not trying to frickin repaint your whole door with this stuff, m'kay? And where is your question arising from? Are you reading the directions of the touch up kit, or do you have a touch up kit and are reading third party instructions, or are you without the touch up kit at all, and speculating based upon third party instructional info, and using the term, ';touch up';, in its general, non-nomenclature sense?





Doesn't matter. If you can make your repair successfully with a touch up kit, then do. If the touch up kit is calling for a primer, make sure they are not referring to something that is or should've been included with the kit. And by all means, apply THAT particular primer.





If you have a bottle of touch up, that you bought, or came with your car; but you are getting your instructions for its use somewhere other than the ones that came with it, likely you are seeing a reference to paint primer which you most certainly do not need.





This is not a cut and dried issue as the poster of the question has not provided enough information.





Look, paint primer is most commonly used to prepare bare metal to hold paint. If you are putting that much paint on a car, then you aint touching up anything, you are painting. If you don't know what primer is, and you are painting, you are going to be hurt, and also break about a dozen or so Federal laws. If you are going to do some useless crud like rattle-can a big blemish, then use primer. It will make the repair last 100% longer. Considering your rattle-can job will last about 24 hours, paint primer should extend this to about 48 hours. Yes, I am being very sarcastic.





If you are referring to the, ';primer';, that was, or should have been included, and you don't have it anymore, then replace your kit; because you lost half of it. Please be careful, automotive paint products are insanely carcinogenic. Even miniscule exposure can turn into a tumor in just a few days. No kidding.





Your touch up product will work without using paint primer. If you have a, ';touch up';, to do that isn't actually touch up, but repaint a panel of your car, best leave that to the pros, or live with it. Don't expect touching anything up to do much more than make a spendy mess.





P.S. My harsh tone arises out of abject terror, I don't mean to condescend. You can not believe how dangerous some of the chemicals I'm talking about here are.
The steps are correct, especially if the original paint in the affected area is damaged all the way to the bare metal, otherwise it might be possible to skip priming.





If you want a better paint adherance, you can add application of an etcher between the clean and primer step.
YES AND THERE IS A LOT MORE THAN THE STEPS THEN YOU MENTIONED ABOVE.





THE LONG AND SHORT IS THAT YOU COULD DO THE WORK YOURSELF BUT AFTER YOU ARE FINISHED REMEMBER THAT THE PAINT WILL HAVE TO BE BLENDED TO MATCH THE REST OF THE PAINT ON THE VEHICLE AS CLOSE AS POSSIBLE.