Top coat, general

The vehicle paintwork is generally divided up into standard and metallic finishes in the customer area.

Standard finishes are defined as finishes without any special-effect pigments.

Metallic finishes, including special-effect metallic paint, are defined as finishes that exhibit a bright-metallic effect.

The effect is generated by the use of special-effect metallic pigments.

These are special, plate-like metallic flakes (preferably made of aluminum) and mica-based pigments that are contained in the paint composition.

The clear varnish represents the final stage in the body-painting process and therefore the uppermost or outer layer on the paintwork structure.

This correspondingly lends the clear varnish special significance with regard to surface protection for the complete paintwork against mechanical and chemical environmental influences.

The main objectives of the clear varnish are to protect the top coat against mechanical stresses (scratch resistance), chemical environmental influences and ultraviolet light as well as achieving a uniform and structure-free surface.

The top coat requirements are extremely dependent on the purpose of use and the nature of the objects that are being coated.

Therefore, different qualities of top coat paint are used for painting passenger cars, buses and trucks.

The objectives of the top coating are to achieve a uniform, structure and fault free, chromophoric paint coat, to display various effects (e.g. metallic effect paint finish) as well as the promotion of adhesion between the filler or functional layer and the clear varnish.

The top coats applied in the current Mercedes-Benz vehicle model series are environmentally-compatible water-based paints.