Hi,
My car is showing white patches/paint peel etc. on the roof and parts of the trunk, i guess sign of aging and the weather beating, thus I’m looking to get my whole car re-painted. It runs absolutely fine but since its an 12 yr old car, I’m not looking to spend much. The idea is to keep it with me for another few years until I buy a new car. Any suggestions on good and reasonably prices body/paint shops that would cut the deal. I live in Allston/Brighton area.
Thanks.
Watch for special offers from local affiliates of the MAACO chain.
When they have a special, MAACO’S “Presidential” paint service is a very good value.
While it will not be of “factory” quality, it will definitely be decent enough for a 12 year old car that you only plan to keep for a few more years.
For those old enough to remember the Earl Scheib chain (nicknamed “Earl Slob”), MAACO will give you a paintjob that is far better than anything that Scheib ever turned out.
I agree with the “Earl Scheib” comment. I would also check any technical schools in your area and see if they teach automotive bodywork and painting. The best paint job I ever got was at a technical school and the only cost was the paint.
I had a 1988 GM car with the infamous peeling paint. At 10 years old, 1998, I decided to get a MAACO paint job. I chose the middle priced one where they don’t take the bumpers (chrome) and trim off. The paint looked good till I sold the car 9 years later, in 2007. I dinged a front fender before the paint job and the total cost, including a replacement used fender came to $1350.
A perfect paint job as quoted by the very professional paint and body shop which sponsors Public Television programs and deals mostly with high end custoners, would come to $4500!
In general, MAACO offers good value for money; if the body is good, you can fet by with avout $500 or so and have the car look respectable.
Paint it black, and the same gloss level you have now. That way you don’t have to paint under the hood, in the trunk, or inside the doors.
How particular are you? Do you just want the car to look pretty good if you don’t look at it closely or do you want a fully professional job that looks original? (The latter would involve spending much more than you’ll recover when you sell it.)
With a 12 year old car remember that “pretty good is good enough”.
The MAACO specials that VDC and Doc suggested is perfect for this purpose. I’ve had an old vehicle that was painted using this service, and had the same experience Doc did. It looked great until the day I gave it to my son. MAACO has these speciials every now and then, a total overspray with minimal prep included for $299 in my area.
JT has also added some good advice. For that price they don;t strip trim (they do mask it) and don’t do disassembly (necessary to do doorjams etc.). Sticking with the original color eliminates the need for that extra work.
They do a pretty good job. I’d consider it.