It’s Good to Go Red!

By Ron Coan, Mobsteel Custom Painter

Red is hot.  Red is fast.  Red is good trouble.  And Axalta’s Radiant Red is the coolest red that I’ve ever seen.  It’s smokin’! 

I had the pleasure of painting the infamous No. 24 Axalta Chevrolet SS motorsports racecar for Axalta’s Automotive Color of the Year 2015 reveal at SEMA automotive aftermarket tradeshow this past November.  I used Axalta’s Cromax™ Mosaic low VOC solvent-borne paint that has top-notch sprayability.  I work with Axalta products on a daily basis at Mobsteel, a custom design/build car shop in Detroit.  I love how the color goes down and blends ever so nicely.  A smooth blend was key for the racecar, because I put a little twist on the styling.  Radiant Red faded brilliantly into black at the back of the car, reminiscent of Axalta’s Brilliant Flames paint scheme, driven by four-time NASCAR_® Cup Series champion, Jeff Gordon.  The fade process could easily get muddy, but not this one.  It stayed nice, red and clean.  It was quite a memorable experience to go to Hendrick Motorsports’ garage to paint the racecar.  

There was a little pressure, especially going to someone else’s shop.  Nevertheless, it was a huge ego boost to paint a car that millions of people see on a regular basis and the feedback from spectators at SEMA was pure affirmation.  Every comment that I heard was so positive.  I’m a humble guy.  So it was nice to sit back and hear people talk about it.  The awesome reviews could make even a tough guy like me get a little emotional.  I’m not saying that happened, though.  But it could have.

In the past, I’ve painted many concept cars in red hues, but they were typically solid, saturated reds.  However, Radiant Red uses Axalta’s Vermeera™ technology in order to achieve a high chroma color that also has an added sparkling effect.  It’s not your average red, people.

Radiant Red is so inspiring that I would love to spray one of my favorite cars in this color–a 1950 Mercury Coupe.  With its lines and roundness, Radiant Red would explode on this car.  The curves would really make the color pop with all the glass flake technology.  That color…on that car would be a perfect match.

I’ve worked on quite a few classic American beauties as well. You can see some of my work on a 1963 Lincoln Continental on a new television show titled, Mobsteel.

Check out Ron Coan in his new NBCSN automotive reality show titled, “Mobsteel” along with the rest of the team on Sunday, August 16, 2015 at 6 p.m. EDT and on Wednesdays at 10 p.m. EDT, following the premier.

About Ron Coan

Born and raised in the suburbs of Detroit, Ron first started working in the automotive industry at the age of 15 when his neighbor offered him a job washing cars at his auto body shop.  Ron has been in the industry ever since, graduating from South West Oakland Vocational Education Center with a certificate in auto body repair.  He has more than 30 years of experience painting custom cars.  For the last nine years, Ron has been painting classic cars for the design/build car company, Mobsteel based in Brighton, Michigan.  He also owns and operates the paint removal and restoration company, Alternative Media Blasting in partnership with Mobsteel.  Ron was a celebrity painter for the No. 24 Axalta Chevrolet SS racecar driven by by four-time NASCAR_® Cup Series champion, Jeff Gordon.  Ron’s newest project is a 1952 Buick.  Ron is also one of the stars of a new automotive reality television show called Mobsteel that airs on NBCSN.

Ron Coan, of the Mobsteel crew from Detroit, is known for starting with “Detroit's finest
vintage luxury cars and turning them into modern day menacing street machines.”