Cost of full re-paint?

[djmatio]

This is a loaded, generic question i know. I'm need to get my super re-painted and i'll tell you I'm very frustrated right now. I live in the CA Bay Area and I've been to quite a few body shops (maaco to top-shelf types) and no one seems to want to paint my bug for under $8000. Typically they say $8-20K. Even then they are very negative and don't seem to want my business. They all give me the brush off. I have good $$ to spend, and I'm willing to do as much prep as possible.

I'm a smart guy, and I've done a lot of homework when it comes to how to paint a car, so I understand the theory and all the basics and why it can cost so much. The issues i find are that:

1) re-painting is not that profitable, especially in this area compared to collision repair
2) No one seems to care about a vw bug as much as I do here.

Can any of you recommend a body shop/paint place in and around the California Bay Area? Maybe one that loves bugs as much as we all do?

How much did you spend on average for your paint jobs? If you can please list:

- brand of paint
- type of paint (enamel/urethane, etc)
- single stage, 2-stage (color/clear) or tri-stage (pearl, etc)
- pan-off or on?
- wet-sanding of clear? (or color)

I'll post a pic to give you an idea of what i'm working with. The body is straight, stripped down of all exterior and interior parts and has been steam cleaned. The car was re-painted is seems not longer than 10-years ago, but there are some slight rust issues.

[djmatio]

A few pics of my super vw project now dubbed the "Black Plague" due to all the responses I've gotten from auto-body shops.
I personally don't think it's that bad, i'm trying to get someone to come in in person to take a look and give me a real opinion.

http://img125.imageshack.us/my.php?image=dsc0855iu3.jpg

http://img125.imageshack.us/my.php?image=dsc0872bq1.jpg

http://img125.imageshack.us/my.php?image=dsc0876gw6.jpg

http://img125.imageshack.us/my.php?image=dsc0878dy1.jpg

http://img125.imageshack.us/my.php?image=dsc0887tg0.jpg

http://img125.imageshack.us/my.php?image=dsc0888sx9.jpg

[davetaylor]

have you tried like, muscle car shops? the one near me quoted me a price of around $2500 to paint my convertible, but i'm not at that point yet. they're not as interested in quick turnover and big insurance checks as much as making cool cars.

then there's always the local friend who'll do it in his free time. that's cheap!

[djmatio]

I wish i had a local friend who would do it in his spare time! Most of the quotes that were higher than $10K were from muscle car/hot rod places. I'm still looking around and will start to focus on these shops and see if i can get a reasonable estimate. I would like a really good paint job. Just paint can cost easily $2k for a re-paint.

I'm not looking for a miracle el-cheapo job, i'm looking for something much better. With that said there has to be something in-between the $2K and $20K paint jobs.

Anyone else? Please list out how much you shelled out for a paintjob. I'm curious of the average.

[Kafer_Mike]

I can relate. I spent the better part of a year searching for someone to paint my car. Stay away from the larger production body shops. They're after the quick turn insurance work. Focus on the smaller, independent guys, especially in the rural areas and negotiate it a "filler" work -- but be prepared for it to take longer. I found a small shop 30 miles outside the city and they were 1/2 the price others were quoting me. They even picked up the body and returned it so I could work on the pan. Six coats (three each) of Dupont Chroma Premier base/clear. I ended up paying ~$5K and over 6 months, but it was worth it...

[jrinlv]

Nice paint Mike.

For me I went out and bought 3 paint guns, All around the $150, range most on sale , and am going to give this Duplicolor "Shop paint" a try. They say that there is no flash time between coats so you can start and stop at your own schedule. I'll let you know how it turns out. JR