C4in mesa

My 2004 black C5 Z06 has bad paint. It looks great from 10' but after you get up close you can see all the flaws. It doesn't need body work. I am not against sanding the minor rock chips to prep for a wrap job. The limits of a wrap are round tail light areas where the seams show are my cause for asking whether to go with a wrap vs a paint job. The cost of a wrap is the big plus. I've been quoted $3k all the way up to $25,000 for a paint job. I've been quoted $1600 for a wrap black closest to the factory black paint color. I am told by the shop owner 3M has a 3 year guarantee on the wrap material. A cheap MACCO paint job will cost a thousand bucks more but will definitely hold up longer than 3 years. I will keep the car out of the sun unless it's being driven somewhere. Regardless of paint or wrap the sun is the biggest threat. I'm curious what other Corvette owners think about this new alternative to paint?

tdogg21

I'd wrap it. It's cheap and looks just as good as paint. I'm thinking about wrapping mine to do something fun. I was told it should last 10 years.

Dave1

https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=...tWEHSCyCHatGnQ


~here is the number one thing you need to know when it comes to making a decision whether to wrap your car or paint your car:

If your paint is good, you wrap. If your paint is bad, you paint.

Vetteman Jack

That was an interesting article. Thanks.

4XLR8N

In my experience, a high quality paint job on a Vette starts around $10k...

A-Tak

Nothing looks nicer than a fresh coat of black paint...

tdogg21

That was an interesting article, but I think it oversimplified things way too much. Maybe it varies by area, but a high quality Corvette paint job in my area starts in the $10k to $15k range. And goes up from there. A high quality wrap job starts around $3k - $4k.

Yes, a wrap will show imperfections and won't adhere if you have really bad clear coat. But it will show less than it does unwrapped and it doesn't sound like the OPs paint is too bad to be wrapped. I plan to do something fun with my C5. I know I have a few stone chips that will show through if I don't fix them, but I'm fine with that. They will be less obvious then they are now simply because it'll all be the same color, not red with a white stone chip.

The Rabbi

Black is easy to paint as long as it's sanded well. Get the best Maaco or inexpensive paint job, make sure they mask it well. I had a door repainted and top of rear bumper and mirrors refinished for about $850 at a local shop. 2 other shops wanted to repaint the whole car for 7-10K.

Forcedvert

I would drive my car into the ocean before taking it to Maaco.

Good paint could probably be done around 5k.

why not see what a good detail guy can do first

Crosis

Vette has nothing to do with it. A high quality paint job for a vette should cost the same as a high quality paint job for a mustang, a malibu or a vista cruiser. Yet funny that I can get a high quality paint job for a Malibu for well under 10K. Dont pay the corvette tax.

4XLR8N

I am not a painter or body man, so I will defer to those who are, but from my understanding proper panel prep on the fiberglass or composite panels of a Vette takes quite a bit more work and expertise than the typical steel body panels. Maybe it depends upon whether actual body work is involved vs just a sand and respray.

tdogg21

Not just a Corvette, but any "collector" car is going to cost more than a Malibu. You are going to demand a much more complete and higher quality job if you have a collector car of some sort. They can say it's the same job, but I guarantee the quality will be different.

STALION

If you're handy do a wrap! I just finished helping to do my friends stealth in carbon fiber and it looks totally fantastic!!! It takes many man hours but for the price it's totally worth it!

Lexybird

Man Don't waste money on covering the car in a wrapping . It won't last and won't help resale if you want to dump the car . Wrapping is gay .That's what kids do that drive ricer cars .this isn't an average car .. This is a corvette not a chevette . Do it right and get a base coat clear coat paint job . No reason you can't find a decent painter willing to spray it for 5-7 k .

Jeff T.

STALION

How is wrapping a car gay? High end cars will only do wraps as to not hurt resale value and it can be removed. It is extremely durable and is more resistant in many cases then paint! I'm talking 3m wrap or similar not crap from pepboys. Btw, c5 are no longer the unattainable super Cars from the 90s it's a car selling less then the value of a civic in some cases. Not trying to out our cars down but they are outdated by 2 generations now.

Velocity_Vette

LOL yeah C5s are pretty old now and they're as average as a Civic. Going to be some time before they're "collectable"...

The only concerning thing about a wrap would be the jams and such. Typically on a color change wrap most either don't do the jams or pay the extra to do them. It takes a lot of work on the curvature of the door, hood, and trunk jams to get it looking "right". As you plan on going with a gloss black wrap you might get away with it but there's potential for obvious variances when you open the doors and such.

Again too I'll echo what someone said above; you might ask a local paint correction specialist if there's anything they can do with the paint. Paint correction work can really work magic on scratches and fade.

tdogg21

What are you talking about?? Wraps are super popular right now, probably more on super cars than ricers. Now that the materials are improved and the techniques have improved, you can't always tell it's wrapped. A good quality wrap job look better and be cheaper than an average paint job. Of course if done right and taken care of, a paint job will last indefinitely. But if done right and taken care of, a wrap will last 10 years.

cv67

right on the money period!
Wrapping looks like ghetto and cheap, sorry just my .02
Fresh black paint, youl love it every time you look at it. NO reason it should cost 10k.

STALION

That depends on who's doing a wrap and what they are using. I've seen some crap jobs using inferior materials, and some fantastic ones. For example, I came across a Mercedes AMG in an off white with black accents. It was simple and super clean, then the owner tells me the car is actually black and that he has a wrap on it. If he didn't say anything nobody would have known! That's what a good installer can create!