Need to paint the whole car: suggestions on shops?

[MKIIISUPRA]

To clarify, whole car as in exterior only! I'm not stripping the entire thing, i don't have time for that. Keep in mind i only plan on having the car for a year maybe two tops. So it doesn't have to be an amazing paint job, i just am looking for a good dark, deep black with a good gloss finish to it.

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Just that. I think I found a replacement toyota Supra body for my engine but it will NEED paint bad. Clear is peeling off pretty good with a couple minor rust spots.

I need to keep the paint costs down but i require a clear coat for sure...none of this 200$ MAACO crap.

I found a place in PITT that is reputable and does this for pretty good price (only about $800):

Chemical Cleaning and Dewaxing
Dual Action Machine Sanding for Adhesion & further Cleaning
Hand Sanded for Adhesion & further Cleaning
Air-blown Dust Removal
Careful Masking/Taping
Tack Cloth Cleaning
Complete Exterior Primer/Sealer
3 Full Exterior Coats of Acrylic Urethane Paint (Single Color)
Each Coat of Paint will include Integrated Clear for Added Gloss & Protection
Exterior Cleaning
Euro Clear Top Coat — a true clear top coat applied after your last coat of paint — a Scheib exclusive that gives your car that super gloss finish.
Euro-Paint Pearl colors


Anyone know a shop that can do comparable that's in the eastern PA, NJ region??



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[Gorilla Unit 33]

only $800? lemme know how that turns out, because that still sounds cheap for a good job.

[Renegade_]

only $800? lemme know how that turns out, because that still sounds cheap for a good job.

Ditto, if they can do all that for 800, tell us where haha

[ozthunder]

Yea don't expect the moon in all honesty.

[yellow2000S/R]

DA sanding and hand sanding are, in my opinion, out of order.

It should be hand sanding the edges and any hard curves, then doing the flatter portions with the DA. Reason for this is hand sanding creates straight long scratches. This REALLY matters if you are shooting a metallic or pearlescent. As the paint flows, the metallics/mica will get caught up in the scratches and stand up on end. This is BAD because it makes the scratches appear dark as you don't have the same light reflection. It's not as big of a deal with Mica as most are round, but metallics, especially depending on size, can really make scratches stand out.

I work for Sun Motorcars doing prep work and soon paint work on Mercedes, Porsche, Audi, and BMWs (Mini, and once in a while a random Honda/Acura or other car). The hole hand sanding / DA sanding being switches is a matter of personal preference I guess, but in my experience, I prefer to DA after hand. DA makes a smoother surface and if there is any chance of there being sand scratches, they aren't lines and will be little to not noticeable at all.

I'm not taking on many side jobs yet as I don't feel I have enough experience (I'm picky...) but I do know a guy that might paint take it on for around $1k including materials. You would have to bring it to him tho (Central PA, Mechanicsburg area).


Below is what we do at work... BOLD stuff is in addition to...

The red "& further Cleaning" is incorrect. If the parts aren't already clean, sanding them isn't going to make them clean either. Sanding is just going to push the dirt/grease/etc. farther into the existing finish and cause problems which could be noticeable right away, a few weeks after being painted, or a year after being painted.


Chemical Cleaning and De-waxing
- 1st is ZEP 40 - Heavy duty Chemical degreaser
- 2nd is W&G remover - removes anything left over
- 3rd if needed is a Waterborne cleaner - used if there is noticeable areas where bird poo sat for extended time.
Hand Sanded for Adhesion & further Cleaning
Dual Action Machine Sanding for Adhesion & further Cleaning
Air-blown Dust Removal
Wax&Grease Removal - Removes more dust than just blowing it off (actually wiping it down with a solvent)
Careful Masking/Taping
Pulled into booth
Plastic draped over vehicle if needed (pertains more to panel painting) and then cut out
Wax&Grease Removal - Removes anything that may have transferred on in the process of putting the masking on... such as brushing against a panel with your forearm
Tack Cloth Cleaning
Complete Exterior Primer/Sealer
3 Full Exterior Coats of Basecoat
2-3 coats clear (you specify)
Any dirt/fibers sanded with 1500 dry and 3000 wet. Then buffed with compound, swirl remover, and final glaze. Brings back the shine from the sanded areas.


Entire cars clear can be sanded if you want that smooth mirror like surface for a show car for extra $$$

[MKIIISUPRA]

DA sanding and hand sanding are out of order tho.

It should be hand sanding the edges and any hard curves, then doing the flatter portions with the DA. Reason for this is hand sanding creates straight long scratches. This REALLY matters if you are shooting a metallic or pearlescent. As the paint flows, the metallics/mica will get caught up in the scratches and stand up on end. This is BAD because it makes the scratches appear dark as you don't have the same light reflection.

I work for Sun Motorcars doing prep work and soon paint work on Mercedes, Porsche, Audi, and BMWs (Mini, and once in a while a random Honda/Acura or other car). The hole hand sanding / DA sanding being switches is a matter of personal preference I guess, but in my experience, I prefer to DA after hand. DA makes a smoother surface and if there is any chance of there being sand scratches, they aren't lines and will be little to not noticeable at all.

I'm not taking on many side jobs yet as I don't feel I have enough experience (I'm picky...) but I do know a guy that might paint take it on for around $1k including materials. You would have to bring it to him tho (Central PA, Mechanicsburg area).

Thanks for the info, ill keep it in mind.

Guys, This doesn't have to be the most amazing paint job. I plan on only keeping the car for a year maybe two tops. So $1000 for a paint job is a bit extreme. I just want a nice deep black with a good gloss to it.

[TurboTagTeam]

800 for an entire car is DIRT cheap.

I'm in the middle of painting my car right now. Although it is a complete color change....the normal price would approach 10k. I happen to work in a shop that does custom fab/restorations so I'm doing most of it myself. But I'm at over 1,500 just in materials so far. Just my paint was $800.

[yellow2000S/R]

Thanks for the info, ill keep it in mind.

Guys, This doesn't have to be the most amazing paint job. I plan on only keeping the car for a year maybe two tops. So $1000 for a paint job is a bit extreme. I just want a nice deep black with a good gloss to it.

Haha, we just had a older BMW in the other day. We repaired a small dent and painted the door blending it into the fender... that was a $900 job.


You want a full overall job at our place, its going to be in the $8-12k+ range depending on the amount of rust/body work that needs done. :lol: And that's just an example of a few of the cars I've heard about.



Should see the new Z4 we just did. Hit a deer (hair clear up on the firewall). Replaced the hood, headlights, radiator, rad support, and passenger fender. Painted the jams of fender, underside of hood. Installed them on car and painted along with blending into passenger door and drivers fender. Came out to mid $9k range.

We don't blend clear mid panel either. If basecoat is just being blended on, entire panel gets sanded down till there is no orange peel and blender is sprayed and then after base coat is sprayed and 1 layer of clear focusing on new base coat is sprayed, we spray another layer on the entire panel.

[MKIIISUPRA]

^sigh, body work is such a rip off. Can't wait until memory metal is perfected and affordable for mass production, put a lot of those shops outta business or force them to lower prices

[TurboTagTeam]

^sigh, body work is such a rip off. Can't wait until memory metal is perfected and affordable for mass production, put a lot of those shops outta business or force them to lower prices


You have NO IDEA the amount of work it is to properly prepare/paint a car then.

[yellow2000S/R]

You have NO IDEA the amount of work it is to properly prepare/paint a car then.

LOL, nope.

Neither did I 2 years ago. Between ~$45k in schooling (Trim/Upholstery, Collision, Refinishing, Applied Service Management, and Chassis Fab) and learning more at work... I now realize.

Vehicles will always be around. So people like me will always be needed. Granted I just started in the field, I make decent $ and once my 90 days is up, I'll be getting a $3-5+ raise depending on my performance.

[JKrome]

so basically your telling me to get my clipse painted a nice midnight black.. its gonna run me about 8 grand ??

[TROLL]

maaco does plenty of $800 paint jobs that still arent all that good... i'd have to assume the other place you found would be comparable to that.
my suggestion is to not even think about paint unless you've got a couple grand minimum to work with... so often aftermarket paint looks like garbage (due to cutting corners) so i just try to stay away from it altogether.

[kevin@dambrosio]

the maaco in frazer does good work for the money, had them paint a bumper for me and use them whenever I need something. they do great work. no issues at all.

[MKIIISUPRA]

the maaco in frazer does good work for the money, had them paint a bumper for me and use them whenever I need something. they do great work. no issues at all.


i heard the one in montgomeryville also does a very good job....i just always hear horror stories about them, its hard to believe

[MKIIISUPRA]

You have NO IDEA the amount of work it is to properly prepare/paint a car then.

I have some idea but definately not the extent.

The fact is here though, i don't want/need a $10K paint job. I'd MUCH rather spend the money on other things then paint on a car. Just looking for a temp solution. Like i said, This paint only needs to last me a couple years TOPS. As long as it looks decent, i'm cool with that.

[bmatyeah]

That is so cheap for a paint job. Thats the price L.I.P (north wales pa) is charging to spray a new door and blend it for me. (My neighbor backed right out of their driveway while on the phone and wrecked my door. 1800+ in total)

[evomike]

This dude won't touch a car for under 2 grand, and I don't hand sand anything I d/a it all. 2000sr all the whole laying of metallics and such doesn't matter when you seal everything, and they make pads for a d/a so it won't cut super hard. Hand sanding and wet sanding are old school. But I can get you a god job it'll just be expensive bur good paint jobs always are.

[yellow2000S/R]

I have some idea but definately not the extent.

The fact is here though, i don't want/need a $10K paint job. I'd MUCH rather spend the money on other things then paint on a car. Just looking for a temp solution. Like i said, This paint only needs to last me a couple years TOPS. As long as it looks decent, i'm cool with that.

What you need to do is find a painter from one of these shops that do "side" work. Their rates are lower because they don't have huge overhead costs and the money isn't trickling through many peoples hands.



This dude won't touch a car for under 2 grand, and I don't hand sand anything I d/a it all. 2000sr all the whole laying of metallics and such doesn't matter when you seal everything, and they make pads for a d/a so it won't cut super hard. Hand sanding and wet sanding are old school. But I can get you a god job it'll just be expensive bur good paint jobs always are.


I hand sand the edges of panels / body lines.


As for saying sealer prevents flops and stuff... :bs: . Seen it too many times. Sealer will only fill light scratches. If it is a person new to painting/body work, they will most likely press too hard trying to rush.

In my opinion, if you get to the point where you say "aww, sealer will fill those light scratches", you are beginning to cut corners and your quality begins to go down. What's to stop you there?


As for the DA pad. I have a foam Hookit II interference pad that I use on slightly curved surfaces. Its around 1/2" thick and a softer foam. I think that's what you are talking about.

The only "wet" sanding we do at work is with 3000 on a DA. The pads have like a 1/8" foam backing that hold water pretty good.

I didnt know about shops doing dry sanding till I got to where I work. At WyoTech, anything above 220 was wet.

[igo4bmx]

sounds like you're looking at Earl Scheib, which is just like maaco.

[underpressure02]

Good luck with that 800 dollar paint job. First of all you keep saying you want a nice deep dark gloss finish. You do know that the darker the color will show everything. So if you cheap out on the sanding and preping the car it is going to look like crap once it is sprayed.

I have a guy near allentown that does great work and is really reasonably priced but I don't think he will be able to come close to a grand for what your looking for. The last car he painted for me, by the time I was done buying the paint, reducer, clear and so on it was almost 700 dollars, Now granted I went with a pearl color but supplies are not cheap.

If you are interested in having him look at your car shoot me a pm and I will give you his contact info.

[MKIIISUPRA]

Good luck with that 800 dollar paint job. First of all you keep saying you want a nice deep dark gloss finish. You do know that the darker the color will show everything. So if you cheap out on the sanding and preping the car it is going to look like crap once it is sprayed.

I have a guy near allentown that does great work and is really reasonably priced but I don't think he will be able to come close to a grand for what your looking for. The last car he painted for me, by the time I was done buying the paint, reducer, clear and so on it was almost 700 dollars, Now granted I went with a pearl color but supplies are not cheap.

If you are interested in having him look at your car shoot me a pm and I will give you his contact info.


Cool.

Another thing guys...im willing to do any sanding prep work which should take out quite a bit of the cost i would think...

[underpressure02]

Cool.

Another thing guys...im willing to do any sanding prep work which should take out quite a bit of the cost i would think...


It would and I have done it in the past but the painter will still want to go over the car and sand it to make sure everything is straight.

[yellow2000S/R]

It would and I have done it in the past but the painter will still want to go over the car and sand it to make sure everything is straight.

Correct.

[igo4bmx]

Good luck with that 800 dollar paint job. First of all you keep saying you want a nice deep dark gloss finish. You do know that the darker the color will show everything. So if you cheap out on the sanding and preping the car it is going to look like crap once it is sprayed.

I have a guy near allentown that does great work and is really reasonably priced but I don't think he will be able to come close to a grand for what your looking for. The last car he painted for me, by the time I was done buying the paint, reducer, clear and so on it was almost 700 dollars, Now granted I went with a pearl color but supplies are not cheap.

If you are interested in having him look at your car shoot me a pm and I will give you his contact info.

dude i remember seeing ur copper colored catch back in the day- how much does he charge for a civic coupe?

[MKIIISUPRA]

I haven't prepped a car for paint before, quite a few of you guys seem to do it quite a bit. Suggestions on the prepping process? Ie, sand paper type, grit, paint removal amounts etc.

[yellow2000S/R]

I haven't prepped a car for paint before, quite a few of you guys seem to do it quite a bit. Suggestions on the prepping process? Ie, sand paper type, grit, paint removal amounts etc.

Wash the car with DAWN dish liquid 1st. (Just so you dont have to use as much Wax & Grease remover). Once completely dry, wipe down with Wax & Grease remover.

Mask / take off any trim and windows.

If your existing paint is still in decent shape (ie. good adhesion) just sand with 800 till all orange peel is gone.

If its not in good shape, you will most likely have to take those areas down to metal.

[TurboTagTeam]

I haven't prepped a car for paint before, quite a few of you guys seem to do it quite a bit. Suggestions on the prepping process? Ie, sand paper type, grit, paint removal amounts etc.

Get a DA (Dual Action Sander) It's air powered. If you dont have air tools, I recommend having someone else do it. I'd HATE to have to sand a whole car by hand.

[JKrome]

Since this tread is already up... might as well get some opinions of my own..... Im thinking bout getting my car painted black... where should i take it in Chester County if i do decide to do it ??? and what kinda ballpark $$ am i looking at here ???

[MKIIISUPRA]

Wash the car with DAWN dish liquid 1st. (Just so you dont have to use as much Wax & Grease remover). Once completely dry, wipe down with Wax & Grease remover.

Mask / take off any trim and windows.

If your existing paint is still in decent shape (ie. good adhesion) just sand with 800 till all orange peel is gone.

If its not in good shape, you will most likely have to take those areas down to metal.

Paints in poor condition, clear coat is coming off readily, a few surface rust spots here and there. A common problem with black MKIII's for some reason. This should prove to be fun :roll:



Get a DA (Dual Action Sander) It's air powered. If you dont have air tools, I recommend having someone else do it. I'd HATE to have to sand a whole car by hand.


Ill look into them, i do have air tools so that should help big time.