Custom paint ..cost?

[KelseyRae92]

Hey. So, im planning on buying a white bug and then getting it custom painted. I found a pink one on Craigs list and feel in love but it had a load of miles. I was wondering about how much it would run to get it painted just a plain light pink, nothing special. Also do you have suggestions on where to take it. I live near Austin, but Houston and Dallas aren't to far. ..Any info would be great! = ]

[NBTurboFreak]

I would first go to a few different shops and get some estimates. By then someone in the area may speak up.


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Admins: this may need to be moved to the 'paint and body'

[turr520]

You can try Maaco. Every January to March, they run a 50%-off promotion on their regularly $400 paint job, which makes it $200. Many people warned me about Maaco's work, but with this price to me it seems I can get my car re-painted every other year or so. I had my 1993 Toyota Celica GT coupe painted last year and it's still looking pretty good.

[marvins_dad]

I was told that Lewisville VW does a pink New Beetle a year (they sponsor our show).

One of our club members talked to them about that and I think they said it was something around $6,000 for a proper paint job...that is pulling the engine, painting all the inside door panels, around the edges of the doors...basically anywhere there is paint, it is repainted pink.


BTW - I'm moving this to the paint forum.

[Evanrude]

Here is a really nice pink one with only 25k miles on it... on Autotrader.

http://www.autotrader.com/fyc/vdp.js...r_id=243712650




Not sure how far that is from you, but I thought I'd mention it it is in Rhode Island.

You could have it shipped to you, or you could fly out and road trip it home

The little car shop that has this JUST painted it pink, so it's brand new, fresh paint

[jazzcat]

maaco does a good job at the ones i have done business with as long as you have someone else(be it yourself or whoever) do the prep work...be prepared to wet sand the hell out of it if you want a show car


start calling shops with the paint code that you like and see what they charge..remember you get what you pay for though

[KelseyRae92]

Wow thanks for all the tips!!

Does Maaco also do the indide of the car?

[KatieBug27]

yeah def call around. My friend got her car painted for 1500 but it wasnt a beetle either! so it didnt have all the interior painting to do!

[jazzcat]

Originally Posted by KelseyRae92

Wow thanks for all the tips!!

Does Maaco also do the indide of the car?

they can but i wouldn't let them go further than the door jambs

[ShiftyTDI]

I'm in Oklahoma City but I've painted lots of Texas VW's! I'd be happy to paint another bug!

[SMG]

It's really hard to say because average painting costs vary from area to area and shop to shop.

I'm getting my car resprayed this summer for $3000, and that's not a colour change.

[vwgary]

I really needed to get a 69 Karmann Ghia done for an upcoming show. As my luck would have it the shop I always used was booked and wouldn't be able to get to my project before show day. I did all the prep work and removed all lights and trim and hauled it over to Maaco for their $299 presidential special. There was no color change involved and it was a 35K OG mile car (door jambs were fine) so it was exterior only. It's been 4 years and the car pretty much looks the same tho it does get garaged. I'm not endorsing them by any means, just sharing my experience.

[Uptowngurl]

it seems i have a second thought on repainting my bug. seems like the price is high and i don't have that budget yet. i think i have to hold for now and wait tell i have enough money.

[rob axel]

..remember your paintjob is only going to be as good as the bodywork (added cost). AND you do get what you pay for, get EVERYTHING in writing regarding what you expect done. Ask about what brand of chemicals to be used, you get what you pay for here also. A gallon of cheap (inexpensive) lacquer primer is $40, a gallon of epoxy primer PPG DP90 w/hardener is gonna run almost $200...That is JUST PRIMER....a "scuff and shoot" is what you will get from Macco for a couple of hundred dollars and you will have to pick a color from their "stock" paints (stored in 55gallon drums). Rule of thumb regarding colors, " the darker the color, the higher the price". Reason being pigment in the paint, plus MORE bodywork. A black/dk blue paint job usually will be priced twice as much as a white paint job if the guy takes any pride in his work (dark colors show every imperfection). They won't exactly do a great job masking off edges either. Ask about a warranty, yeah, they might "back up their work", but can you live without your car for warranty repairs if stuff fails?
For a custom paint job / color change expect to be without your wheels for aleast 2-4 weeks. This is NOT a TV show, yes the paint on TV looks great but it is a chemical process and ALL of the under paint chemicals (primer, filler, surfacer sealer) needs to "cook off" or cure before you top coat it or it will "shrink", and you will see "scratches" under the paint in a few months...
Do some research, ask questions, and BE REALISTIC. Asking what it costs to paint a car is like asking what it costs to build a house...there are a lot of variables.

[MyOtherRidesAVette]

Thank all of you. Ppl thought I was out of my mind when I told them a decent job was easily $2k-$3k, factory type paint and clearcoat, additive for paint on rubber parts. No body work, No color change, and most parts masked, not removed. And ditto rob axel, even if you know someone who will shoot it pro-bono, with you doing all the prep and in between coat prep, your going to spend $400 for materials.

MORAV

[rob axel]

I just quoted a crotch rocket paint job and the chemicals NOT INCLUDING PRIMER & HARDENER was just under $200....That is paint, reducer, clear, hardener (yes it is different than the primers), and bonding agent, when painting flexible parts -abs plastics and bumpers this is MANDATORY or the the paint/primer will peel off or separate from the substrate/surface.
When I reshot my own vehicle the cost was $800 plus and I did all the work and had some supplies left over from other stuff.