Paint Cost

[tsquared]

What is the going rate for a first class show quality paint job in black? How many months should it take to complete. Just curious because I am getting prices for my 69 Camaro. I am getting quotes from $8,000 to $15,000 and up to 9 months to complete.

[Knoxferatu]

It sounds like you've already surveyed the "going rate" at a bunch of shops in your area. "First class show quality paint job" means different things to different people, of course. According to what it means to me, it would include extensive, meticulous, and very time consuming body work and surface prep, and would culminate in a type of finish that I wouldn't be willing to drive around. The prices you've found would be pretty good for that type of finish, really.

[Blown73]

Black is a tough color. I would say 10-15k. With black, as stated above, there is EXTENSIVE body work as EVERYTHING shows underneath the paint. To do it properly, you would do body work on the car, paint the car, then sand it all down to find any minor flaws, then fix, prep, and paint. After all of that is done, I would park the car in a conditioned space and look at it, terrified to get any road nicks on the paint.

[Rick D]

Not trying come off as a A-hole here but if the shop has to PAINT the car to find flaws You don't want to be handing that kind of money for a paint job.

First question I would ask you is was the quote for PAINT or paint and body work? If it was for both then you are not getting a top notch job. If it was just to prep and paint then you will be in the 15K or higher range.

Couple of things to keep in mind, the black paint job is very labor intensive (any paint job for that matter) prime block prime block on and on. Make sure if they prime and block that when they are finished blocking there is not very much primer left on the panels. Primer is to fill the small imperfections, it is NOT to be used as body filler!

Second thing to remember is that the materials cost a lot of money ( they are petroleum base just like gas) so if the shop is using quality products then you will be in the 4k to 5k range just for the paint, clear coat, tape, sandpaper, and masking.

Now if you are talking body and paint then that is a whole different game. To many questions there.


Black is a tough color. I would say 10-15k. With black, as stated above, there is EXTENSIVE body work as EVERYTHING shows underneath the paint. To do it properly, you would do body work on the car, paint the car, then sand it all down to find any minor flaws, then fix, prep, and paint. After all of that is done, I would park the car in a conditioned space and look at it, terrified to get any road nicks on the paint.

[excessive]

I agree ..... If the shop has to paint the car to find the flaws , then thats not someone I would want to do the job . If they are just doing final prep work and straightening I would say $15k is about right . If they are doing all of the body work , metal replacement , etc AND you want perfection you might as well open the checkbook because it isn't going to be cheap ! ! Black sucks , but is worth it when you can stand back and see a perfect reflection of the car sitting 50ft away :)

[MuscleRodz]

9 months is too long for paint, you must be looking at collision shops. My show quality and yours may be different, and no high end shop is going to do it over some one elses work which means body work as well. You could easily be talking $20-$30k depending on your car and expectations.

[Blown73]

That wasn't exactly what I meant, but I will agree to disagree.

[c77owen]

9 months is too long for paint, you must be looking at collision shops. My show quality and yours may be different, and no high end shop is going to do it over some one elses work which means body work as well. You could easily be talking $20-$30k depending on your car and expectations.

I would have to agree. Body and paint done by the same shop and only the best materials by people who specialize in "show quality" finishes. Most collision centers, although do a fine job for your daiy driver Volvo, don't have the experience to take a car to the next level (i.e. perfect panel fitment, rust repair, proper polishing stages, etc.) I don't know where you are located, but I can tell you from experience that Hot Rod Express in Blue Springs, MO does some of the best show finishes in the midwest, if not the country, and have the experience and credintials to back it up. Good guys to call and talk to with questions on your build too. I'm sure they aren' t the only game in town...but I can attest to their work from experience...check them out

http://www.hotrod-express.com/

[mikes2nd]

200$ no ups, no extras!

Earl Schieb

http://www.earlscheibchicago.com/page/custom/en/PAINT-SERVICES/

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PtjdHaMeiiQ

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AkdtOOYdQOs&feature=related

[gak68]

A guy I met payed 30,000 for his paint job and bodywork on his '55 show car. It was an amazing paint job; black with flames that changed 14 different colors.

[66larkgs]

i cant see a nice paint job under 6-8k. not a show job just a nice paint job. i know around here thier isnt alot of body shops that want to do the old cars. good luck and hopefully you got deep pockets.

[Auto Rod Technologies]

I agree with the fact that finding a really nice paint job for under 6-8k would be hard to find. Their are always exceptions though.

But if you need a full strip expect to spend some money, their are always a lot of things hiding beneath the surface.
I don't like to quote jobs because you never know what you are dealing with truthfully until it's stripped to bare metal.

[ssx]

First Class, Show Quality and under $10K...doesn't seem like an option. $10K should give you a nice paint job, really nice in fact. But from what I've seen, an absolutely flat, deep and near perfect paintjob in black especially will run you closer to $20K if not more. From what I remember...the saying goes: Fast, Cheap, Perfect. Pick two.

[67rally]

I'm assuming that if you spend $20-30k on the paint job, you then frame the car and hang in on the living room wall right? I can't see someone spending that kind of money and then thrashing it on an auto x.

[rfrankb4]

Where are you located? A friend just did mine in 2 months on his time off and it looks amazing. If you are in the south east I am sure he can get you a competitive quote for top quality work in a time frame that is much more reasonable.

[72Z/28]

I'm assuming that if you spend $20-30k on the paint job, you then frame the car and hang in on the living room wall right? I can't see someone spending that kind of money and then thrashing it on an auto x.

Totally agree with you man, there is nothing worse than dealing with rocks chips and crap