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Any info on repainting a black c4 in Hawaii? I've been to 7 shops so far with quotes ranging from 2500-8000. Maaco in pearl city said they could paint it for 2500, but could only give a warranty on the sheen. He basically told me that any previous bodywork would make the paint peel off after a year or so. The car has never been smashed, (but it did go through one horrible repaint a few years back). I thought the price was steep for a job that would only last a year. He suggested I buy all new panels for the car, and he could guarantee the paint for life... However, I could probably pay for an LS swap w/twins for the cost of all new panels and a paint job on top of that. I know this car is not worth much for sale, but I like this body style the best and I plan on keeping it. So i don't mind spending 4-5 grand on paint. Just want it to last longer than a few years with good maintenance....
PPG has a relatively new paint out that does NOT require a clear coat. I understand that BMW is using it, and Brett (Blue Flame Restorations) put me onto it when I had my car repainted this spring.
Using pneumatic DA sanders and 80, 180, 240, and 400 grit sandpaper Brett and I prepped the existing paint for priming, and then sanded the primed surfaces in preparation for color painting with the PPG stuff.
It took the two of us together about 16 hours to remove some panels before sanding, priming and sanding again. Then on to the paint shop for color and initial buffing.
After buffing and then curing for about 30 days, I went over it with a Porter Cable DA buffer and Zaino's "PC Fusion".
I am thrilled with the results! The end product of the new type paint leaves nothing to desire compared to clear coating.
My "artsy fartsy" shot with the new paint...
With us doing the preliminary and the primer and sanding, the cost would have been more than double what it would have cost me for a "turn-key" job; partly because the car was already primed and sanded, and partly due to the one-step paint (no additional step of shooting a clear coat, tho the cost of the paint itself was higher than that for the original color/clear two-step process).
I defer the recommendation to "replace the panels" to an expert like Brett, but that sounds a little like to me, unless the panels were broken or otherwise badly damaged.
Last edited by Paul Workman; 09-23-2014 at 09:03 AM.
Unfortunately most of the larger shops on Oahu will only do insurance jobs or provide such a high estimate that they hope you won't bite as it will take time to do the car right. The only problem on prepping the car yourself is that they may not warranty anything under primer unless they do it all themselves. You could check Chucks corvette clinic in Kaka'ako
I hear ya. I asked the same question. But, the answer, according to the shop, was the new paint is more durable than previous clear coats were/are. If it were not for a glowing recommendation from someone I trust, someone that does this stuff all the time for some high-dollar cars, AND the fact that BMW has moved away from the dual process, I might have opted for the color/clear (traditional) approach. The cost of materials was higher than the combination of color/clear, but it is offset by the reduction in labor due to the one-step process.
I really like how it turned out. So, time will tell how good this new paint is, compared to traditional clear coat. But, for now, it is amazing!
I'll try to get the particulars today, and post it here if/when I do.
Unfortunately most of the larger shops on Oahu will only do insurance jobs or provide such a high estimate that they hope you won't bite as it will take time to do the car right. The only problem on prepping the car yourself is that they may not warranty anything under primer unless they do it all themselves. You could check Chucks corvette clinic in Kaka'ako
Thanks for the info... I contacted chucks a while back, I think he quoted 5200. But he is the one that suggested Maaco. Maybe he didn't really want the job.... All the panels are perfectly straight. There are 2 chips, one on the door and one on the roof. Both smaller than a pea. I thought of prepping the car myself, but didn't want to risk messing it up and being forced to buy all new panels... If that were the case, I'd probably just spray paint it flat black and live with it. Guess I'll keep looking. But thanks again for the info
PPG has a relatively new paint out that does NOT require a clear coat. I understand that BMW is using it, and Brett (Blue Flame Restorations) put me onto it when I had my car repainted this spring.
Using pneumatic DA sanders and 80, 180, 240, and 400 grit sandpaper Brett and I prepped the existing paint for priming, and then sanded the primed surfaces in preparation for color painting with the PPG stuff.
It took the two of us together about 16 hours to remove some panels before sanding, priming and sanding again. Then on to the paint shop for color and initial buffing.
After buffing and then curing for about 30 days, I went over it with a Porter Cable DA buffer and Zaino's "PC Fusion".
I am thrilled with the results! The end product of the new type paint leaves nothing to desire compared to clear coating.
My "artsy fartsy" shot with the new paint...
With us doing the preliminary and the primer and sanding, the cost would have been more than double what it would have cost me for a "turn-key" job; partly because the car was already primed and sanded, and partly due to the one-step paint (no additional step of shooting a clear coat, tho the cost of the paint itself was higher than that for the original color/clear two-step process).
I defer the recommendation to "replace the panels" to an expert like Brett, but that sounds a little like to me, unless the panels were broken or otherwise badly damaged.
Thanks for the reply, not sure I'm able to prep the car properly by myself... I'll keep looking tho...
I agree... no way I'm replacing the panels. They are in great shape.
Maaco...you went to maaco?? most quality shops would be about double what maaco estimates......just got mine done with a little body work for $5000....
Maaco...you went to maaco?? most quality shops would be about double what maaco estimates......just got mine done with a little body work for $5000....
Looks good. Was that done in Hawaii? About Maaco: sorry, getting drowsy explaining this so many times..... But A lot of people think that Maaco just gets a can of spray paint and paints over your exisisting paint for a cheap price. They will do that if that's what you pay for... Their entry level paint job is $600, But they also do high end jobs for much higher prices. My friend got his testarossa painted at Maaco for $7500 bucks. He won 3 car shows with it last year. They painted the car with the same paint that comes on the new Audi R8's... So don't let the name fool you. Their just as good as any other shop if u pay the cash.... But if you show up at any other shop and give them $600, you'll get the same job Maaco will give you for that price... The only problem I had was their warranty. The painter told me that they have had problems in the past with the paint adhering to old bodywork on the fiberglass panels, so he couldn't give me a warranty unless he took the paint down to the glass, then filled the body, sanded, primed, sanded, wet sanded, color sanded, then buffed and polished. That would have costed almost 8 grand for a base coat clear coat job. Unless of course, as I stated above, I bought all new panels which I'm not willing to do. Anyhow, still hunting.......
Maaco...you went to maaco?? most quality shops would be about double what maaco estimates......just got mine done with a little body work for $5000....
Btw... What color is that? Doesn't appear to be Corvette red like the one in the pic above yours. I also see that they didn't remove the body side molding and door handles. I specified to all the shops that I went to, that I wanted the car disassembled. Mirrors, bumpers, doors, side molding, etc... So far I got quotes ranging from 2500-8000.... I Don't mind paying a decent amount of cash, but I am looking for above average quality. Yours looks good tho....
it was red....picked another color red just to be different....asked them to paint the belt line and handles.....it's different, but it turned out ok...actually the roof is plexiglas..painted the underside black and top red...got tired of that florida sun beating on me....
09-22-2014, 09:04 PM
Paint Job
to me, unless the panels were broken or otherwise badly damaged.
