Maaco Paint Job, what should I ask for? Options

[wuhukf]

I know about some Maaco's not having a good reputation and having shotty work, but in all seriousness, i'm not about to spend more money on a paint job than the car itself is worth. I've decided to paint the car Gunmetal Pearl and I already got gunmetal rims too so i'm pretty anxious to see the finished product. The guy at Maaco suggested I go with the "supreme" paint job which is the mid-level paint job from them. It's a one stage polyeurethane paint job with integrated clear coat. He said their procedure is as follows:

1. Fix my dents and dings and rust and sand the car
2. Bolt on my side skirts and front lip
3. Tape off parts of the car
4. Paint it with the one stage paint
5. Bake it

The quote he gave me was about $1530 for everything and I'm pretty happy about that, but I know thats really cheap. This paint job comes with a 4 year warranty too, but i'm concerned that the paint will just get messed up by chipping off or something. Is there anything I can add or have Maaco do to make the paint job better? Maybe a couple layers of paint, clear coat, base coat, etc.? I really don't know much about paint jobs so I really need the help. Thanks a lot and please respond soon, they have my car right now but haven't started yet, so I want to call them to make changes ASAP.

[Clipsetuner]

1stage paint jobs will fade real fast in comparrison to a 3stage (primer, paint, clear) I would reccomend going to more shops and seeing what kinda deals they are willing to break you.

I have 2 prices on my car right now 700$ respray same color and I do most of the body work, and 1500$ for a complete color change, I strip everything, and do most of the body work.

DTE

[wuhukf]

What if I just have Maaco do a base coat, paint, clear then? Would that be a whole lot better than what i'm getting now, or is it not really worth it.

[Clipsetuner]

clear would be glossyer, last longer and would buff out really nice.

DTE

[playr158]

i paid 1700 for my maaco job

had a 6x6 inch piece flake right off....and it was then 2nd highest level of paint they had

[soulshadow]

Umm Maaco?? They do the greatest job of painting your car the way you dont want them too. I had my camry painted and it didn't even last a month. MAACO IS A CHEAPHO!!!

[orvillescelica]

I got a maaco job and am pretty happy with it. There was a bit of overspray, but i cant complain for the money. I got the entire thing repainted factory red along with my splitters and extensions for $1050. I was first quoted for $750 for the job, but then asked them what kind of serivce i could get for $1100. I got their highest level service and prep job and it looks great, but maybe i just lucked out with a good Maaco. I hear the paint job varies from shop to shop.

I would only get a super expensive paint job if i was building a show car. For a daily driver im with you, no need to get a $5000 paint job that will get beaten up everyday.

[wuhukf]

I'm getting the second highest level paint job which is $600 for the paint and the other $900 is to fix my rust and dents/dings and put on lip and side skirts. The next step up they have costs $1300 for the paint job alone and is supposed to be a base coat, paint, and then clear coat. But the guy there told me it was acrylic or something like that and he said that the $600 paint i'm getting might last longer because its polyeurethane. I dont know what the difference is, but maybe I should have him do a base coat, then polyeurethane paint, then clear coat?

[jgreening]

I got a maaco job and am pretty happy with it. There was a bit of overspray, but i cant complain for the money. I got the entire thing repainted factory red along with my splitters and extensions for $1050. I was first quoted for $750 for the job, but then asked them what kind of serivce i could get for $1100. I got their highest level service and prep job and it looks great, but maybe i just lucked out with a good Maaco. I hear the paint job varies from shop to shop.

I would only get a super expensive paint job if i was building a show car. For a daily driver im with you, no need to get a $5000 paint job that will get beaten up everyday.
[right][snapback]323943[/snapback][/right]

This is very true. I had a MAACO job on my CRX several years ago and I was very happy with it. I think I paid $300 for the whole thing and it lasted a long time. There was some overspray but it wasn't too bad and I knew the car was only worth a couple thousand bucks. The new paint job really made it look nice. I think MAACO is perfect for your average 10 year old daily driver.

[Galcobar]

Uhm....he's giving you a decently large load of BS.

Paint is supposed to be done in three stages -- primer, colour/base, clear.

Aftermarkets these days are typically two-stage (factory acts as the primer), unless you go with a high-end metallic job where there's an additional layer. Most standard metallic paints these days incorporate the flakes into the colour coat.

My car was painted by Maaco using their second-highest grade by the prior owner. It looked like 15-year-old paint within two years. Faded, pitted, etc. And I washed/waxed it often, so it wasn't for lack of car. Moreover, when I disassembled my car to get it repainted, I discovered drip lines, overspray, globs of paint stuck in seams....a truly pathetic job.

I spent $1600 on my re-paint, including a batch of dent removals. Maaco prices simply aren't good enough to justify their lack of quality in the paint, poor prep work, or lousy application work.

Best idea I can offer: go to a variety of paintshops, say you want to respray your car with colour and clearcoat, and tell them you will bring it in largely disassembled (bumper covers, lights, trim pieces, interior panels if you're getting the sills sprayed). That makes it easier for them and avoids sprays over the seams. Get estimates, and have them compete against each other. Also, when you pick up your car, don't accept it or pay until you've inspected it. The whole thing should be glossy smooth.

[tomazws]

What about Caliber Collision Centers? Do they do good jobs?

[Hanyo]

does anyone know how much it would cost to paint a fender that is taken off the car?

[soulshadow]

does anyone know how much it would cost to paint a fender that is taken off the car?
[right][snapback]325034[/snapback][/right]

you can do it yourself and save a bundle of money. Its not that hard really.

pull dent, putty it up, sand like crazy, primer, paint, wax. get yourself one of those spraying guns and it does the job even faster!

[celicagurl152003]

does anyone know how much it would cost to paint a fender that is taken off the car?
[right][snapback]325034[/snapback][/right]

a fender you'd only be looking at close to 150.00 (rough estimate) because the price of paint. But like the others were saying maaco is a joke i would never recomend them to anyone. Your best bet for a paint job, if you want a decient one is to primer, base, and clear. It will all together look better if you do this. A normal job to get this done would cost you about $1325.00 that would be with primer, one color base coat, a metalic or pearl over it, and clear. You can find so much better then maaco if you look around more...but if your gonna pay $$ to paint your car i'd make sure it's worth it. Depending on when you want your car painted sense your in MD I'm in the process of working on Mark_426's car and gonna paint it. If you want to get your car painted the price i gave you above it what i charge for my shop. If your interested once Mark's cars done you can see the work i do, or you can look at my car as an example. All depends on what you want.

But truthfully with all seriousness maaco paint jobs suck....
-just my opinion

~Christina~

[SoundSlut_dotcom]

1550?? u can get it done by a pro body shp for about 2000 ..