kriz

So now that summertime's rolled around and I'm not broke as hell (just mildly broke) I can finally get back to working on my car. I've decided to put my plans for rims and sound system on hold to fix up the car as it is now before I add anything else to it.

My car is fairly old and at this point it has a good amount of scratches and stuff which, the car being a very reflective shade of black, are quite noticeable and just ruin the looks of it. What I'm wondering is if it would be worth repainting, and how much should I be expecting to pay for a paint job thats at least as good as the stock paint (I've been told paint jobs from places like Maaco can run $300 but they are horrible in quality) or if it may be a better idea to just get the car properly waxed to at least get rid of the majority of the scratches. Any help/guidance is much appreciated.

Keep in mind I'm a noob with no ability or capability to paint the car on my own.

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cjvictoria

Dude 300 dollar paint job for a whole car sounds like shit work to me... Don't get me wrong tho if someone said they would paint my car for 300 bucks I'd have to consider it. But I would check out some of their other $300 work before making a decision.

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kriz

Right thats what I'm thinking... Its just I don't know anyone that has had a paintjob done at maaco to see how it looks and I doubt they would show me a real one if it was shitty work.

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efalex

My buddy had his car done by them. They dont paint door jams and shit, there work isnt bad. They do a great job for 300

cjvictoria

Dude actually, now that I'm thinking about it, the place I bought my car at did a full paint job on an accord around the time I was up there... I'll ask them how much they charged.

They do pretty good work, too.. They took in a EK Civic with MAD fuckin rust in the rear qp, cut out all the bad stuff. Then redid the majority of the panel with a sheet of metal, not filler. And they did a super sweet job of matching the shape and welding it in seamlessly. Not to be forgotten is that they did a good ass job on the paint too.

I'll get back to you on that tho..

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CAFROG

As most people know...its ALL in the prep work. If you get it ready and make sure no dents are
around.....hell you could even take headlights, tail lights, etc off so they dont half-ass it and yo get
a nice look for cheap. But the key is (obviously) your gaps and absence of dents but thats all
prep work that I would do and only let them spray it. Most newer car paint is easy to apply...the
hard part is the clear coats (drips/runs/etc) I always pic my friend's brain about it (he paints
Harleys and such). And some mistakes in clear can be sanded out but thats a finese thing and
inexperienced or sloppy work will show up (especially when a detail oriented anal bastard like
me looks at it at the stop light)

The more work you are willing to put forward...the better the $300 paint job will look

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blackdahlia6

my dad got one of those $500 paint jobs on his dodge dart for temp until he could afford a really good one. for 3 years or so those paint jobs seemed to be pretty decent. but id look around because i remember my grandmas friend had the same idea my dad had only within 3 months the paint was peeling off the doors like crazy, i saw it first hand. talk to some people and find a local place with good rep, thats your best bet

eg6sir

no need for repaint... just a little clay bar and some buffing and those scratches should come right out.. as long as they're not deep

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95b16coupe

I have had 2 cars painted at maaco. Both cost about $700. Both were fantastic paint jobs. all you have to do is inspect the car before you drive off the lot. they guarantee their work.

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CAFROG

Everything is relevant to some degree. Yes a maaco job could come out nice

But my dad has paid over $10k on a paint job for one of his hot rods (yes its show quality so its pricey)

I would say the average shop will re-spray (means no jams or engine bay) for around $1500-2000


So if maaco guarantees it and you're detail oriented (meticulous when checking their job) then
it sounds like a decent deal

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eg6sir

muuuuuch cheaper than a paint job.. and if you're not comfortable doing it, pay someone.. its still cheaper than repainting

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eg6sir

here is a before and after i found online

before


after

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CAFROG

Clay is nice but is more about removing contaminants that are above the clear

Buffing will take some stuff out (so will wet sanding with 3 stage sanding (1500 starter)
But both of those are touchy finesse and an impatient person could ruin their paint real quick. We've all seen some idiot with a black SUV and the swirls remind you of a van gough swirl background.

But patience and elbow grease can sometimes do the impossible (AKA polish the turd lol)

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eg6sir

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eg6sir

yea... clay removes the contaminants from the paint.. something you wanna do before you buff the paint anyways... thats why i suggested paying someone who knows what they're doing.. much cheaper than repainting..

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CAFROG

/\ true.
Those pics you posted are hilarious

One car in the shade...the other not
Before picture.....car is filthy lol

I truly think anyone can do the buffing but they need to be patient and plan on sweating a ton

Years ago...I talked my dad into buying a Ski Nautique (boat) it had stickers all over the place
Stickers off showed the pretty gel coat paint and the rest look oxidized as hell. I wet sanded the
crap out of that thing (3 diff. grits) and then buffed it twice and three coats of wax. I had about
15-18hrs in it when it was done. but I believe wet sanding gel coat is easier and more forgiving

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kriz

A friend of my stepdad's does this kind of crap for a living so I was giving it some serious thought. Only two problems with it, some of the scratches I believe are too deep for buffing to get rid of them (almost like they keyed the car) and there are some small dents on the passenger door which Maaco could fix and would make the car look that much better.

I appreciate all of the input guys, I'm gonna check out the local Maaco shop and see what they can offer as well as have the car looked at by my stepdad's friend to see what he thinks about buffing.

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boostin4fun

Buffing and a clay bar will make the car look good for a while. But when the paint is that old it will oxidize fast again. The same thing happens when you buff on old headlights, the shine wont last forever by any means. I would avoid maaco all together if you can. The problem is the car does not get prepped before being painted. They do not sand or scuff it before they shoot it. It comes in, gets masked, then sprayed. My buddy had his integra done there and paid around $800, less then 3 months later the paint was chipping off. The paint underneath had more of a shine then the paint on the outside. My advice is if you are going to have them spray it, prep the whole car yourself. This is coming from someone who does this work for a living.

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double0Si

You definetly have to do the prep yourself as has been said. Also they will not pull dents for you. As cheap as they are they only make money if they keep cars moving through there so any extra time on a car is money lost. Therefore they don't care to take the extra time to do it right.

Not to say they are bad painters though. Most of them know what they're doing and if you talk to them a little bit you can find out if they would be willing to make some cash on the side by painting your car right. They dont make a whole lot off of the paintjobs they do there so if you offer them what you're getting charged at Maaco in the first place they'd probably jump on it if they have the means (place to spray, tools, materials, etc.) Thats probably you're best bet.

Shop around as a paintjob is a big investment in your car, but dont be too cheap as its also an important one. Paint isnt just for looks, it also protects the underlying materials. And take good care of the paint and it will last you a lot longer.

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Quote:

Originally Posted by 93civicracer I'm a real enthusiast for Japanese cars, I like the small things here n there that are different on jdm vehicles like lips, foglights, and the tiny differences especially the emblems for some reason.

95b16coupe

so you are telling that when i paid to have my car prepped, they didn't really do it? come on now. And if it chipped in 3 months, he could take it back and they will warranty the work.

Like I said, if you give it a thorough inspection, you will get a decent paint job that will last 2-3 years.

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BrutalB83

The quality of Maaco's paint jobs really varies from shop to shop. Some of them are great. Some of them are complete shit. I would ask for examples of their work, or references...

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double0Si

If you payed the extra cash to have Maaco prep it they may have. But if you didnt pony up and didnt stand there and watch them do it chances are they didnt. Ask them, theyll tell you they dont do much more than clean the car first.

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Quote:

Originally Posted by 93civicracer I'm a real enthusiast for Japanese cars, I like the small things here n there that are different on jdm vehicles like lips, foglights, and the tiny differences especially the emblems for some reason.

kriz

Assuming that I were to try to do the prep work myself, are there any references/tips you guys could give me? Also would it even be a good idea for me to do it being as I've never done anything like that? (IE could I mess up the car badly if I do something wrong?)

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BrutalB83

By references I mean ask them for the names of some satisfied customers (private or businesses) that they've done work for. Check with those people and see how satisfied they are...

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95b16coupe

how much is your time and effort worth? to do it right will cost you time and a lot, LOT of arm work. unless you rent or borrow equipment. you would be better off just paying $200 to prep it.

the only time maaco doesn't prep is when you pay the $299 ambassador service or whatver they call it. and you just have that done when you want to flip a car for a quick profit.

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