What if I take Maaco the paint?

[Brandon73fjord]

Is it the quality of the paint they use that makes them bad. Or is it the prep work done before hand. Has anyone had there car sprayed by them and been happy? Of course I would get the top spray that they offer along with wet sand/buff.

[pyite20v]

Someone once made a good point that these guys spray more cars than anyone so they do have good spray control down.

Really with any paint job the time comes in the prep work. The paint they use isnt really that bad either.

I have had a car (not an 02) painted before when I was in highschool, and was pretty happy with it. Except for the one door that was a different color. "Snake" told me that was because it hadnt cured yet properly and in a month it would all look the same. A month later I brought it back and had them do it right, and then I was happy.

[esty]

yep...the quality or end result is directly related to the body work and prep...you can have the worlds greatest painter spray the world's most expensive paint but if the car's crap before he starts, it'll look like shiny crap crap when he's finished...in fact most new paint jobs accentuate the poor body work

i believe the quality the products used by all of the national paint houses is comparable to a good quality paint

want a good looking daily drive...i'd take it to maaco or the likes...you won't beat the value for price

[pureaudio]

Maaco uses good quality paint, like others have said, it is the prep work. My first 02 was painted by Maaco and there was paint on all of the gaskets and trim. The paint job itself was fine and for the money is hard to beat.

[rdeeble]

Anyone know if there is someone in the Seattle area that does good quality prep prior to having it sprayed at a maaco or the likes?? Im in the same situation with my daily drive... and no garage to do it myself (other than trim removal).

[JohnW]

Try to get an idea from others about the quality of work done at the specific Maaco location you're considering. Each Maaco is different.

I had an Audi 4000s painted by Maaco a long time ago and it was $500 very well spent. It turned out very nicely. The car even looked good five years later.

[Guest Anonymous]

dollars by taking an automotive body/spray paint class at your local communtiy/junior college (hopefully they have an autobody program). They will provide all of the tools and equipment, you simply provide the materials and sweat. If you apply some effort you can end up with a paint job rivaling what you would be charged $10K to $15K for in the outside world.

shermanmartinez@hotmail.com

[ole1.6]

My experience was:

I stripped the car of all glass, trim ect. They had me circle the bodywork areas and still missed some of them. painted my wire harness in the interior. tried to re-negotiate the price during the job by asking if I wanted to upgrade the paint for better adheision??? and refused to do the body repairs that I marked after it was "done". Tried to charge me for the touchup paint that they included in the original deal.

After a few years the paint settled into the bondo and cracks and bubbles start to show.

I spent $1200 about 8 years ago and I was disapointed at the level of dishonesty that these people acheived. They are gone now, but not forgotten...

[rdeeble]

dollars by taking an automotive body/spray paint class at your local communtiy/junior college (hopefully they have an autobody program). They will provide all of the tools and equipment, you simply provide the materials and sweat. If you apply some effort you can end up with a paint job rivaling what you would be charged $10K to $15K for in the outside world. shermanmartinez@hotmail.com

Im liking this idea... assuming i can find a class that only meets on weekends, my wife lost me to car a long time ago anyway : )

[AlexB]

Anyone know if there is someone in the Seattle area that does good quality prep prior to having it sprayed at a maaco or the likes?? Im in the same situation with my daily drive... and no garage to do it myself (other than trim removal).

If you don't have a tight time line you could call up to South Seattle Community College for a paint job. They can't charge labor as the students do the work, but it does take time. They would do the whole shi-bang!

[thehackmechanic]

Nowhere is the phrase "you get what you pay for" more appropriate than in paint and bodywork. I once took a 323i to Earl Schieb for a $79.95 paint job. They literally didn't even wash the car. But what do you think you'll get for $79.95?

I had a Maaco job done on a '74 tii 20 years ago. The paint on the hood was completely cracked so they recommended that that be sanded. It came out ok. Think I paid four hundred bucks.

If the paint is not cracked, and the body panels are level (free of dents and dings), it may look just fine. But if that's the case, it may also look just fine if you compound and polish the paint.

Remember that old rubber, old chrome, old pitted glass all look like shit against brandy new shiny paint. This is how you wind up veering across that line from paint to outer body restoration.

Personally I love 2002s with that patina of age on the paint.

[TobyB]

You won't find a cheap paint job in a hurry that's any good-

it's the old saw- Cheap, Good, Fast, pick any two.

It's even harder around here because everyone buys new cars every

few years. Shops can only make real money off collision work, and the

cars have changed so much, no- one wants a resto.

If you do ALL the prep, and buy your materials (filler, mostly)

and have them JUST do the shoots, (sealer, p/f, color) a willing shop would proabably

'only' charge a few thousand. A deal if you know what you're doing but

don't have access to a booth. Otherwise, not.

t