after hitting some sand barrels and generally owning a maxima that has been on the streets of nyc for 12 years i've decided to get a new paintjob. The problem however is picking a place and price. There are shops that offer to paint it for several thousand while Macco has a deal for something like $700. Is the difference between the 2 extremes that great? How much "should" a paint job cost? Any general suggestions (possibly tri-state area)? Also what colors should i look into? Im leaning towards something blue

 

A good quality paint job will cost a few grand. Macco paint jobs suck

 

all depends on what macco you go to, there independentally owned. But generally they suck.

 

Alot has to do with preperation. when i was looking to get my car repainted i was quotes any where from $1000 to $5000. The diffrence is how the car is prepped, if everythign is taken off when painting or EasyO jsut masking it with tape, and if the materials used to pre the car are good quality or bad, also the quality of the paint and clear coat.

My 1st car was painted by a cheap shop the car in decnet shap minor nicks and dents, guy masked everything off and painted it for $1450. From far car looks great on closer insptection you could see where the tape lines were, some drips and after 3 years the paint began to peel where the tape lines were rough.

My cousins car was painted and he payied $3200 his car was in the same condition, everything was taken off, moldings lights, windows etc, no masking of tape quality ****, its been 5 years now and the car still LO0KS GREAT !

 

if you go to macco's your paint will last only about a year or two. then it will start to crack, fade, and you will find other things that comes with a cheap paint job. if you do spend a couple grand on a good shop, it'll probably last you for a long time. and it will come out so much better.

 

generally i would tend to agree with the above statements.. but i have a friend who had his car repainted the same factory color and I have to say it looks pretty darn good and has held up. Could be an abnormality I think where you really run into problems is switching colors..

 

You pretty much get what you pay for with body work. I've seen some pretty crappy Maaco jobs.

 

i did all the prep work when i painted my old civic...(yeah i owned a civic...hangs head in shame) a friend of mine, that is a professional, sprayed and buffed it for me.

the amount of hours i put into the prep alone was unbelievable. i understand why a good paint job can cost so much now.

basic rule of thumb.... quality prep work = quality paint job. and quality prep work takes time.

 

Last time Maaco painted my parents' car, there were drips, tape lines, and overspray everywhere, even the interior. All the passenger doors were painted shut. And yes, it only lasted a little over a year.

What puzzles me is that Maaco offers a warranty on their paint jobs.

 

Paint job prices and quality depend on many things:
quality of materials
amount of trim removed for paint
effort and time put into prepping
painter's work ethic ,skill and mood
the quality of his paintguns
clean constant air supply
weather
Shop around ,ask a lot of questions.Be specific about what you want ,how much its going to be,how long its going to take.Be clear about what bodywork you expect to be done.
Good paint isnt cheap.

 

Ask the shop to look at other cars they've done. There should be one or two completed ones sitting around. I remember seeing overspray on the wheels at this place in Orlando. "Um, thanks for your time. Bye."

 

getting mine painted next week. one shop told me $3500 and that's keeping it black. The shop I'm going to is gong to be $2000 and keeping it black. Color change is $1000 extra. If you're going to keep it, I'd probably stay the same color and get a quality job. that's what I'm doing anyway