What do you guys think of a Maaco paint job?

[Demosthenes]

I'm only 17 years old, so while I would like to have the job decently well-done, I'm not looking to pay several grand for a paint job, even if it will last forever..

Here's my situation: I drive a Nissan Sentra.. and while it is a fairly nice looking car, it's also sky blue. And oh yes, with a pinstripe that looks pink from a distance. Did I mention I'm a 17 year old male? Heh. Anyways, I was just wondering what you guys though of Maaco's jobs.. they seem to have really good prices, and it's not like I need extreme accident re-touching services, just a basic paint job so that my sky blue lam0r mobile can be a p1mp ride.. (well maybe not that far, but you get the picture) Thanks in advance for any advice!

 

[Emulex]

here's the deal. You need a good clear coat paint job. The $199 don't really have clear coats, they have 2 coats of integrated paint+clear. This will fade and won't look as shiny as a good ($499-599) multi-coat paint job with a couple of clear coats.

Second, where all the money is, painting the doors, trunk, and hood. A two door car = 2x75 (doors) 2x75 (hood/trunk) If you ever plan on selling this car, you best paint the rest of the car to match.

Any body damage?

So figure a good paint job, $599 + 300 + tax for a two door car.

They do an excellent job, if you pay them too, for $199 expect a mexi-paint job, and they'll probably paint your muffler too hehe

 

[perry]

A 'real' paint job will entail stripping everything out of the car and painting everything that is sky blue. If you pull your carpet back you'll probably see some body colored parts. Open the hood, there is body colored stuff in there. Door jambs, inside trunk, undercarriage, etc. If you sell the car, different colored paint can take away from the resale value.

Their 199 paint job is JUNK JUNK JUNK. Stay away. I've even been told to stay away from Maaco for any sort of work. Unless you feel like plopping down a g or more, live with the color. Maybe just remove the pin stripe if you're that concerned with it.

 

[Soybomb]

Sell the car if you dont like the color, the $199 paint job is going to ruin its resale color, not to mention just be extremely poor quality with sags, drips, runs, painted over tires/mufflers, etc.

 

[Bignate603]

How hard is it to do it yourself? I know somebody who is more than glad to lend me the equipment. I was hoping for nice high gloss black job on an older caddilac.

 

[Emulex]

bad idea . its VERY hard to paint a car..

 

[Bignate603]

hmm, he's done it before and was going to help me. I'll look at a few cars he did and decide whether or not it will turn out well. Worse comes to worse, I decide it isn't up to snuff and take it in to get it painted.

 

[John]

<< They do an excellent job, if you pay them too, for $199 expect a mexi-paint job, and they'll probably paint your muffler too hehe >>



ROFLMAO !

 

[Demosthenes]

Eek, exactly what I was hoping not to hear.. thanks for the imput, guess I'll scratch that off my list of things to do..

 

[Emulex]

they did a good job on my old bmw a couple of years ago. About $500 in body damage (3 small dents + 1 large), the paint job itself was $1900 total. $1400 to paint the vehicle. They had to go back and re-spray a few small accesory areas, It was good. Decent. 4 year warranty.

I saw the $199 paint jobs, they looked just like a $199 paint job should. Stay away.

There's a time when you need to save your nickels and factor the value of your current car in, and just drive what you have until you can afford something more your style..

I'm looking for a nice 93 or 94 corrado for myself to complete our new 01 jetta gls vr6

but for now since i just laid down my gf's down payment ($4k) on the jetta, i'm driving her old beater. I'll prolly sell it for $2k and add another 7-8K to get a pristine corrado. not much else interests me right now, and i don't care for car payments..


think about that. Spend money on a car that will still be the same fugli car or save up for something you'll truly enjoy.

 

[Jmman]

Yeah, you have heard enough to know better. Maaco is a no-no. As far as painting a car yourself, probably not a good idea either. Very difficult stuff. It isn't like painting the walls in your house or something....

 

[Kaoru]

What I want is an 88 Honda Accord, either Black or white. If its white it must have a leather nose cover. But our Cougar needs painted, all of the paint is falling off. Maybe we drive to fast.

 

[Emulex]

actually if you wash and wax your car, and the clear coat isn't defective from the factory, your paint will look like new 10 years later..

if you don't take care of your paint, well...

 

[BigLance]

My Blazer was painted at Maaco S-10 Blazer I got the one from the best, the Presidential or whatever. Cost me about $450 total. Not a bad paint job, way better than Earl Shieb. I too am 17 and couldn't afford a &quot;last forever&quot; paint job. However, even if they tell you they will sand and primer your car before they paint it they won't. So sand and primer your car yourself (At least sand) and then you will get a descent job.

Good Luck !

 

[SonOfZeuz]

you get what you pay for.

 

[db]

<< I was hoping for nice high gloss black job on an older caddilac >>


Black looks terrible if it's not done well and the body isn't *straight*.

As far as DIY (do it yourself) w/ a somewhat experienced friend:

-have a big sanding party with friends. Supply all the beer/whatever. Have lots of wet/dry sandpaper and
water available.

-prime it

-practice on cardboard. Then go to it. (Careful on the verticals).

(Masking is everything--be meticulous here because mistakes are forever)

 

[Soybomb]

I wouldn't try my first homemade paint job on anything you really like. Maybe an old beater, but not if you want it to look good. DOes he have all the equipment you need and will help you pick out what kind of gun you're going to need to use (HVLP, etc), etc? Supplies are quite pricey too. I'd recommend you live with it until you save enough money for a good paintjob, or get a new car.

 

[Bignate603]

this car is for fun to play around with, it's going to be my big toy basically. I would like to do it myself because that's more fun but I want it to look good too. I'll see what this guy can help me do first, but i'll keep in mind it's pretty hard to do.

 

[Pacfanweb]

Painting a car is very easy. All you have to do is have a paint gun, somewhere to paint it, an air compressor, and then just follow the instructions on the can. Very easy.

What makes the difference is the prep work. A great spray job is no better than the prep work underneath it. Great prep work takes time, and Maaco doesn't spend much time on any of their paint jobs, much less the cheap ones.

 

[Emulex]

by the way a lot of the quality of the paint job is curing it. maaco uses an oven that your car sits in for about 24 hours at scorching temps, then they leave the car indoors from 2-3 more days. It's important to bake the paint on

 

[Viperoni]

Emulex has a good point.
The paint MUST BAKE on, literally

Usually I find dealerships do really good jobs, especially when it's their own inhouse paint shop.

 

[Bignate603]

hmm, i bet a caddilac dealership would pain the thing, even though they haven't sold anything like it in 20 years... I'll look around at things like that when i get the cash.