Thread: How much for new Paint??

yea it wont look bad i can tell you now, white hides alot and i rushed through my prep work and it came out good. bit i do body work everyday lol and my car came out better then i thought i didnt take it to maaco my friend did it for me before i had access to a paint booth with the shop im at now and it came out nice. check out my ride page

Again, Maaco uses crap quality paint material. I paid over $400 just for materials when we painted my Stealth, and in reality I got over $800 in material, I just had a huge hookup at the auto paint supply. That was even the "generic" paint.

If Maaco can do a base/clear job for $500 and still make money, then they are using crap quality material.

set up a garage/booth white single stage nason, omni whatever go to town on it.

Originally Posted by Jbruce308

So in turn should i just start doin my research for the summer when i set my garage up into a booth with ventilation. I mean that way i can at least buy professional quality paint. Ive never cleared a car with a HVLP gun but im sure its not to hard lol

Definitely. This way you know the paint isn't going to start looking like crap in a year, and you will gain a ton of knowledge in doing to job yourself.

maacos premium finish isnt cheap. Cheaper than a regular repair shop ya, but still a few g's. I believe that has a 5 year warranty

Cheapest I can get right now is from my bro in law, 2k bodywork, prime, bc/cc wetsand and buff.

Maaco premium is an oxymoron.

i would rather go and get dulip-color one step paint and paint my car with a wagner electric power sprayer, than pay for a maaco job.

the best was a lady i knew had no rust at all on her car, went to have it painted at maaco, (600 dollar job) and 6 months later it had rust all around her back window.

Id say around 3-5K for a decent at most shops. Ive worked for a Used Car lot/Body shop for 3 years, We deal with rebuilts, and Wrecks. Some cars have under 1K miles on them. I really dont have any faith in Single Stage Enamel. Real-World Lifespan is about 4 years in good condition. Base/Clear is the only way I could see to go. We get away with spending about 70 on a gallon of clear and about 30 for activator. Generally a Re-paint of same color will take 1-2 quarts for a full-mid size car. Generally prices are anywhere from 90-160 a quart depending on the color.


Doing a complete color change, Door jambs, Hood, deck lid etc would all take quite a bit. I would estimate between a gallon to a gallon and a half of paint alone to do a color change. All depends on the paint. How dense it is. (P Test) Gun nozzle etc.

A gallon of reducer will run about 35$. Figure Prep materials of 400 Wet/Dry, Some gray scuff pads and some scuff paste.

Not sure what your EPA laws are in your state. But down here they have been cracking down. Have to have a certified and inspected paint building with EPL lighting and EP Exhaust fans. Anyone caught spraying outside of a Building/Booth with a gun capable of holding more than 3 ounces is held liable for up to a $25,000 fine for both Sprayer and Owner.


We do occasionlly take on side jobs and do them for about half the price that a shop on-The-Clock would charge.

Look into the Nason brand of paints. Its basically Dupont in another can.

Originally Posted by stealthee

Look into the Nason brand of paints. Its basically Dupont in another can.

+1 Orilleys supplies Nason.

My Grand Prix from start to finish.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tW86qCJ8Lbo

i just got my car done at maaco, i went with the 600 job, with an intergrated clear and couldnt be happier. And my car is black, they did a fantastic job on it, considering i did the body work myself which are the only spots you can see. At maaco here they charge $100 per door jam to color change and then $100 for the overall so your probably looking at an added $6-700 on top of paint cost. But for the price there is nothign wrong with maaco.