fredmills

What should I expect to pay for new paint job - not custom show car, but professional job equal to factory paint. Would appreciate some references in Northern Virginia. thanks.

Vetteman Jack

A cost of $4-5K for a decent paint job would be about right but could go higher depending on the shop and labor rates.

bikeriderga

Equal to factory paint?
7-10K

c4cruiser

I would say anywhere from $5K to $10K for a good quality paint job. Most of the cost will be labor: prep such as sanding and any body work. That is a very important process for getting a good spray job. Good paint shops will do a lot of hand sanding to insure a proper base.

The sealer, primer and base coat and then the clear coat cost can vary depending on the paint brands, the amount that will be used, and possibly even the color.

After the car is out of the paint booth, there is more labor; color sanding, polishing, and final cleanup.

The best thing to do is to get estimates from a number of body shops. They should provide you with pricing details, not just a single fee.

Dave concrete

This question. When I had mine done the more reputable shops tear the car down and that requires time. The car is painted in pieces. Other general collision shops painted pretty much in tact. This is the problem. I spent $10k and that was someone I knew, I also have zero orange peel. So labor hours for were high not only for taking apart and reassemble but countless hours of prep and wet sand. I had prices the low end $6k to as high as $16k. Do yourself a favor don't visit the car during this, seeing this many parts spread out all over the place hurts.

The Rabbi

Painting the car the same color doesn't require dis-assembly. You're not looking for custom and maybe it's a driver so don't invest more than necessary. Check with a Chevy dealer with a good body shop.

JR-01

Figure out how much your car is worth before spending that amount to paint it.

Forcedvert

How bad is paint now? Costs will very with quality, I would not consider a shop without a good recommendation from a known source! They can really screw up your car, be careful, a redo could cost way more! Good luck

envyz06

I would guess 5-10k for same color, probably more if you want to do a new color.

JR-01

Take it to Earl.

calvins

shooo... I remember when he'd do it for $29.95! Of course you had to scrape it off of the windows and figure out how to get it off of the bumpers and lights....

JR-01

I heard they did a fairly good job. You took your car to them body worked, sanded and masked off and they just sprayed it. It was extra if they did more than sprayed it.

calvins

for 30 bucks it wasn't horrible but overspray wasn't uncommon as were runs. But again, for 30 bucks... you got what you needed - a car that looked somewhat reasonable at least.

fredmills

I love it.

ttiros

I use D&D auto body in Rockville Maryland, not to far from you. He has worked on my 911 and a great job it was.

Marc@Vettenuts.net

I have a top notch painter who color sands the entire car for $3800 in Middle TN.

roadbike56

Many years ago I bought a 64 Buick Skylark convertible as a DD to stop putting so many miles on my 69 C3. The Buick ran great and had a really nice interior but the paint had crazed badly. We sanded it, removed almost all of the chrome and old Earl painted it metallic burgundy for around $50. Came out great. The guys I worked with were surprised at how good it came out. Still, wouldn't have brought a Vette there. But for a beater, it was great.

JR-01

Back in the early 70s I took a 66 Mustang to the local body shop, They did a ton of body work fixing rust and dents, primed, sanded, masked and did a color change with 3 coats for less than 300 bucks. A dollar went a lot further and $300 was a lot of money back then.

jdsaengine

I've got an estimate from a vette only collision shop just to take off hood and both head light covers to get rid of some minor rock chips, scrapes and scratches. $1000.

DJROBJ

Honestly, unless there is some sort of emotional attachment, you are better off IMO selling your current (needs a paint job) car. Then take those proceeds, and buy a newer, lower mileage car not in need of a paint job. If you factor in the cost of a professional paint job, I'm betting you'd come out ahead financially by taking this route. And, IMO no matter how nice a re-spray is, it still de-values a car compared to a factory paint job. Any knowledgeable buyer will always have the question in his or her mind as to "why" was the car repainted.

My 2 cents.