Engine Paints

POR-15

The American rust-coating maker's brush-on engine enamel: what it is rated for, how long it takes to cure, and the single route by which it reaches the UK.

Updated 2026-09-18

On this page
  1. Who they are
  2. The engine paints
  3. Buying it in the UK
  4. Where it fits
  5. Sources
  • A brush-on gloss enamel sold in US pints, in 24 colours built around American engines, with a few European shades such as MG Maroon.
  • Rated to 150°C. That covers blocks and covers. Manifolds need POR-15's separate High Temp paint.
  • Slow by design. Leave four to six days before starting the engine.
  • One UK distributor, Frost, which is why the sizes are American.
  • Owned by Recochem since the end of 2020. Forum advice from before then describes a different company.

Who they are

POR-15 is a brand of P.O.R. Products of New Rochelle, New York, and the company is older than the brand. It began in 1923 as Wood Finishing Products Co in the Bronx, making shellac coatings under the Absolute name, and moved to New Rochelle in the 1990s. In 2016 it sold the wood flooring business along with the Absolute name. What remained was renamed Paint Over Rust Products.

At the end of 2020 it changed hands. Recochem announced on 31 December that it had bought the company, which now sits in Recochem's car care division. The New Rochelle site stayed, with its 50,000 square feet of research, production and warehousing.

The brand made its name with a rust-preventive coating. Rust and chassis work are outside what this site covers, so that product gets only this mention. The engine enamel and the High Temp paint beside it are what matter here.

The engine paints

POR-15 Engine Enamel is a gloss enamel made to be brushed. It comes in US pints of 473 ml, with quarts in Black and Chevy Orange only. The 24 colours are named for American engines: Chevrolet Orange, Ford Corporate Blue, Chrysler Hemi Orange, Hi-Po Yellow, plus aluminium, black and white. Frost also lists a few European shades in the same tins, including MG Maroon, Austin Healey Green and Ford Green.

It is rated for engine temperatures up to 300°F, which is about 150°C. That suits a block and its covers. For anything hotter, POR-15 points you to High Temp, rated to about 650°C in flat black, manifold grey and aluminium, as a liquid or an aerosol. High Temp has to be heated to finish curing. The liquid needs 15 to 30 minutes above 150°C, and the aerosol needs at least two hours at 205°C. The exhaust guide covers how to manage that.

The enamel levels itself as it dries, which hides brush marks, and it can be thinned by up to 5% with POR-15's reducer for an HVLP gun. It is touch dry in two to six hours. The figure that matters more is the wait before the engine runs: four to six days.

On preparation, the maker and the retailer say different things. POR-15's product page says Metal Prep must be used on bare or rusted metal, and recommends a coat of its Rust Preventive Coating under the enamel. Frost's UK listing for the same tin calls it a direct-to-metal coating. Follow the maker. A retailer's description is a summary, and the maker's page is the instruction.

POR-15 doesn't state anywhere whether the engine enamel is one-pack or two-pack. Everything about how it is sold and used says one-pack: a single tin, stirred and brushed, with no activator.

Buying it in the UK

POR-15 names one UK distributor. Its dealer page lists Frost of Glazebury, Warrington, and its international sales list does the same, alongside separate distributors for Germany, France and Ireland.

A single route into the country explains most of what a buyer notices. The standard UK tin is the 473 ml American pint, not a half litre, and the quart is rarely stocked. Ordering from an American seller means a flammable liquid crossing a border, with the carriage restrictions and cost that brings.

Where it fits

POR-15 is the choice when you want to brush an engine and get a finish that looks sprayed, and when you can leave the car alone for a week afterwards. It is the wrong choice if you need the engine running at the weekend, or if the colour you need is British and not on its list. For what the colour should be, start with the colour reference.

Sources