Bart, I would say that it is a bad idea to just mask the VX and paint it that way only because the masking will create edges that can then chip off. I've never repainted a car myself, and I'm sure a good paint and body shop could do a good job just masking everything off and not creating edges, but if you're going to go through the trouble of repairing and repainting the VX in the first place (and you're going to keep it "forever") then you might as well go all the way and do it right.