Any recommendations what painting firm I should go with? I was told to stay away from the $300 coupons. I want something that will last about 4 years. If the quality options are expensive I'd do the prep work with a friend of mine and just let them do the spraying. However that voids the warranty and if you prep it they use as little color as possible, so I'm not sure what to do. All the little dents have been corrected, they need to do the sanding and whatever comes after. How much would just the spraying with a good firm cost if I do the prep work myself? I was also advised to use strictly dupont.

 

IBmichael/juan

what do you mean 'if you prep it they usee as little color as possible'?

 

paint brand doesnt matter THAT much. DuPont is good paint but some painters dont like it. PPG is my favorite and the favorite of most. Sherwin Williams also makes good paint as well as many other companies.

It will still cost you over $1000 for someone to just spray it IF they will do it. Most quality shops will not paint your car if they didnt do the prep work. Think about it...a paint job is only as good as your prep work. If the paint job turns out like crap because you didnt do good enough prep work then they will take the blame for it. Most quality painters I know will not just spray a car.

Anyway look to pay $1000-1500 for a "decent" job.

I know first hand that paint is not cheap. Enough paint and clear to paint a Max will cost you well over $500 from a top name supplier. That is not including sealer, primer etc. That stuff in itself is not cheap either. Then the shops have overhead to contend with.

Just call around and ask what it will cost and if they will actually do it.

 

Thanks, very informative. The prep job we'd do would be good if not better than the shop's because my friend used to work for a body shop and is thorough in his work. I've seen cars painted he prepped and they looked like mirrors.

I didn't know paint was that expensive. How do firms make money on those $300-500 coupons? They must use ****ty paint then.

Shawn, they use little color if you prep it yourself because if they don't prep it the warranty is void, therefore they don't care if the color starts coming off in a year.

 

Several years ago (and probably same now) the paint used in cheap paint jobs all came from Italy and was acrylic enamel. It only came in a limited number of colors. I've heard quite few people that were happy with the job they had done. It helps if you do some of the prep work, like clean the car and remove lights etc, as these people don't remove lights, just tape over (hopefully).

 

Yeah the good stuff is expensive but they do make cheap paint too. I painted my black car with single stage urethane DuPont Nason) for about $150 for all the paint reducers, hardeners and an integrated clear (you mix it in the final coat to give it more shine...its not a top coat clear).

It looks great and is real shiny. I would recomend it to anyone that was painting a car to sell or even if you want a decent paint job for little money. If you keep it waxed it will probably be okay for a few years. The problem is that SSU doesnt hold up as well as BC/CC to UV rays. Heck a lot of classic show cars use SSU because they dont like the flowed plastic look on a classic like a BC/CC gives them (just what I have heard and read...not my opinion).

In my opinion if you want a good paint job that will last a while then spend the money and get the highend paint.


by the way I was not questioning yours or your friends prep work skill I am just saying that most high end painters will not want their name on a job that they didnt do the prep/body work on.

 

Maybe I should drive down to MS and let you do the paint job for that cheap..

I've heard that you shouldn't wax your car for a year after painting, but you say you need to in order to keep the paint on as long as possible?

 

You know I am not 100% sure on how long you are supposed to wait with urethane paints. I was just saying that if you keep your SSU paint waxed it should last a little while...that doesnt mean put your first coat of wax on it right away.

I think its acutally like 3 months for the wait on newer paints but dont take my word for it. Check with the jobber or painter. I will obviously have to find this info out for myself if I ever get around to painting my SE.


I would be glad to paint it for you but it wouldnt be that cheap . I still prefer bc/cc because its so much easier to paint and fix mistakes on if you make any. If I were you I would stick with BC/CC and just get a lower line (if money is a concern) like the PPG Omni brand. It is about half the price of their Deltron brand and will give you a nice finish. I wouldnt recomend omni if you were trying to match panels but since you want to paint the whole car then its just fine. Matter of fact I will probably be painting mine with omni bc/cc because my funds are pretty low and I am tired of spending money on this car.

base, clear, reducers, hardeners for my color is $279 (plus tax) in Omni. In Deltron it is around $600-$700 depending on the clear I want to use. So you see why I will probably settle on Omni. Of course Omni and Deltron are both PPG paints so the quality is still there. The main thing most say about he omni is that it doesnt cover as well and you may need an extra coat. That is still much cheaper than going with Deltron.




Also another thing about SS paints. They really are not recomended for metalics. Since the paint is so thick (basically the thickness of clear but all color) the metalics tend to sag which makes stripes on your car. Now a pro that has been doing it for a while can probably lay it down perfect but I will not try it.

 

Yeah, 1 year no-wax seemed too long to me as well.

That's a ****load of useful info, I appreciate it. Can I request the shop to use the omni color? How much in total cost would you do it for (black color)? I may go with a side job if I'm left with no other choice. No way I'm gonna spend $1000 on it to have someone scratch the car in the parking lot.