$2500 paint job, what to expect?

[DRP967]

Whats up guys, long story short my NB was keyed on Christmas Eve 2011. Its been in the shop for a couple weeks now and should be done next week. They already painted the body, just have paint the bumpers/lip kit. Now from what I understand the top notch paint jobs run $4,000+. I didnt wanna break the bank but I also didnt want a Maaco paint job either. So afer some shopping around I found a some shops that were smack dab in the middle of the price spectrum. Not dirt cheap but not crazy expensive either. My car is brilliant black, its getting repainted the stock color, just the exterior no jams/engine bay which by the way are still immaculate. Its gonna be a 2 stage paint job (do they even do single stage paint jobs anymore?) with Dupont paint, 2 base coats and 1-2 coats of clear. The bumpers, headlights, tailights, lenses, lip kit will be taken off for paint instead of being masked. Now I understand that the price of a a paint job not only varies by the products/labor but also by region. I live in the Northern California (Bay Area to be specific) and most of the shops I went to wanted $4K+ for the same amount of work so I was pleasantly surprised when I found this shop who would do the complete repaint for 2500 bones. Anyways anyone with a paint job in the California area with this price? If so how is the paint job quality/durability/finish/etc. I could be mistaken but I assume this paint job will be decent enough, not exactly show car status but definitely presentable. I had dropped in to check on the car and while it looked beautiful inside the garage under the nice white florescent lighting, im sure parking the car under the sun will show its true color literally and figuratively.
So what do you guys think?

P.S. I know this aint an EP3 but the same rules of thumb apply so please help out a former EP3 owner, input appreciated.

[AKEP]

really depends on the shop, for 2500 they might not have prepped the previous paint so it might not stick. or they just had some peon remove the lights/panels so they didn't have to mask them. not jambing causes lines where they stop painting. this is usually where it starts to peel or come off.

its hard to say what to expect when you don't pay the normal +4k for a whole car to be painted. really comes down to the craftsmanship and the legitimacy of the shop. i mean, if you just wanted the damn thing painted and done with then they could just "get it done" for $2500. no telling what corners they cut.

If you saw it in the booth, those lights are color corrected so it will look the same outside. they're trying to avoid metamerism (changes in color from different light sources)

[DRP967]

Thanks for the input, I will be picking up the car either tomorrow or Wednesday so only time will tell.

[j0000stin]

shouldve looked at previous jobs theyve done and what theyre reviews are online.

[nowhales]

labor costs drive up prices like crazy, so in theory its probably not a 2500 paint job.

[DRP967]

shouldve looked at previous jobs theyve done and what theyre reviews are online.

The reviews and examples of their work looked good to me. Just looking for feedback since I had the mindset that I need to spend 4K+ for a legit paint job. I think that 2500 bones should be more than acceptable granted the shop did a good job on prep since thats vital to a good paint.

[DRP967]

labor costs drive up prices like crazy, so in theory its probably not a 2500 paint job.

yup, labor intensive = $ and lots of it.

[Blah1219]

I've heard maaco does a decent paint job, but prep the car like shit. Theoretically most of the money for a paint job is all of the prep. If you get off your ass and do a week of prepping yourself. You can get a 4000+ paint job for under 1000. Yes even your candy paint shit.

[DRP967]

I've heard maaco does a decent paint job, but prep the car like shit. Theoretically most of the money for a paint job is all of the prep. If you get off your ass and do a week of prepping yourself. You can get a 4000+ paint job for under 1000. Yes even your candy paint shit.

Yeah I know a couple people who work at Maaco as painters, their prep is a joke but some of em are pretty good painters. But then again for a $200 paint job, one cant be to picky. Heck it costs 3-4 hundred just to paint a bumper, let alone the whole car. Its true that prepping the car oneself will save lots of money on labor costs but only that should be done if the person knows what they are doing. If not then the shop will just have to fix the mistakes and end up charging more.

[whatsvtec]

Most of work goes into the prep. If you want a perfect paint job the rub will take a while too... Did you have dents, chips and scratches fixed? That is going to add time too.

I'm interested to see how it turns out. Black is color that turns out great, or horrible. Pay attention to the rub, or if they do one at all. (Dust Nibs, Fisheye, Solvent pops, Orange Peel) My car I got painted white, bad choice. All over my car there are dirt nibs and sand scratches left over... I imagine it will take a few weekends to properly correct my paint at this point, hundreds in detail work if I had a shop do it...
I'm considering prepping the whole car and re-spraying clear at this point.

You pay for what you get, but sometimes good people charge less.
With the amount of threads you post, I know pics are to come. Lookin' forward!

[ep3colin]

I've heard maaco does a decent paint job, but prep the car like shit. Theoretically most of the money for a paint job is all of the prep. If you get off your ass and do a week of prepping yourself. You can get a 4000+ paint job for under 1000. Yes even your candy paint shit.

I agree 100% on this, I painted a beater of mine at maaco back in the day and it came out great for the price, it all depends on which maaco you go to and you must prep and remove all lights as well as tape things off that you do not want painted over. It's all in the prep.

[DRP967]

Thanks again for the input people, and yes photos are to come. :-)

[DRP967]

Most of work goes into the prep. If you want a perfect paint job the rub will take a while too... Did you have dents, chips and scratches fixed? That is going to add time too.

I'm interested to see how it turns out. Black is color that turns out great, or horrible. Pay attention to the rub, or if they do one at all. (Dust Nibs, Fisheye, Solvent pops, Orange Peel) My car I got painted white, bad choice. All over my car there are dirt nibs and sand scratches left over... I imagine it will take a few weekends to properly correct my paint at this point, hundreds in detail work if I had a shop do it...
I'm considering prepping the whole car and re-spraying clear at this point.

You pay for what you get, but sometimes good people charge less.
With the amount of threads you post, I know pics are to come. Lookin' forward!

Got her back a week ago, came out pretty decent I must say.

[nitrious]

lookin good!
bump for more pics!

[nowhales]

Got her back a week ago, came out pretty decent I must say.

make sure you don't wash it with soap just water the first time you clean it down. or else it will dull the paint. i've made that mistake twice....