OK, I called about 7 body shops in the Visalia area and asked them how much would they charge for a "complete" paint job on a 914--painting it the original color--bahia red. We didn't get into any type of paint. I told them the car had been completely stripped down to bare metal and sits primed, stripped of all chrome, weatherstripping, bumpers, and interior (see attached pictures).

I recieved estimates ranging from $4500 to $8000. I know its been a long time since I've had a car painted but these prices seem way to high. I thought I could get it painted in the condition that it is in for around $1500. Am I being ridiculous?

Any suggestions for a place to paint my 914 around Visalia, CA? I've heard some of you talk about a place in Mexico called Los Panchos??

another

los panchos....

from this....


to this


whole new front fender sectioned in.... lots of finish work on the flares.... etc......

cant say the price i payed but its about half of your lowest estimate

Los panchos is the shit...I got my car done there body work and all under 1500 and a good job...pay a little more...get a better job, etc. Dr. Evil has a new guy and if you check the threads and get hold of him you'll be very pleased. See....

Not in the Valley, but that is awfully steep considering you have most of the prep work done except maybe block sanding.
I am currently getting my car color changed including trunks and jams, body work (welding in patch panels, hand dollying and stripping all old body filler), prime and block sand and complete 2 stage paint job. Including smoothing the top and filling many non-usefull holes in body like antennae and warts wtih metal. Painting all valences and rockers.
$3K

You might want to consider taking the car to "Sout o da boder."
You would be ahead lots of money with renting a trailer to do the hauling.

Seven years ago, I was quoted $3000 to have a tub completely sprayed that was stripped and prepped, much like yours. This was at a shop well known on this board for quality work. Seven years ago, mind. Los Panchos has a good rep here, but you're not going to get their kind of price anywhere in California.

A good paint job is very expensive, no two ways about it.

$8k is crazy, but $4.5k isn't bad depending on what you're getting. Since it's stripped down so far, Miracle actually does a hafway decent job of spraying paint. Just don't ask them to mask anything off. They're not usually too good at that. Basically, painting isn't expensive, but prep work and finish work is. Figure $1000-$1500 for good quality paint (just the liquids) and then another $500 to spray it, depending on the labor rates. Anything else you can pay would go into doing some body work and then even more would get you some color sanding when it's done.

Those prices better get you a very high quality job. I just got an estimate from a shop in Colorado Springs to do same color $1500 or go back to origional color $2500. Car was black and the trunks still are. Would be doing jams and doors to go back to black. This guy has done several '65/6 Mustangs for me and a '76 F250 so I know the quality of his work. They are very presentable street cars but certainly not concours show jobs. Mabey everything just costs more at lower altitude

Los Panchos sounds good but that would be four 8 hour driving trips plus a wad of gas money hauling the 914 with my truck....hopefully I can find someone closer. Those of you that have used Los Panchos...how long do they generally have it? Perhaps I should get the spray can out!

QUOTE (computers4kids @ Feb 9 2006, 11:19 PM)

...  Perhaps I should get the spray can out!

Worked for me -- Entire car (exterior) in OSH black, preparation is the key

Do you want it done cheap or done right.

Doesn't mean an expensive place will do it right, but if it's a cheap job where are they cutting corners.

If I was a shop (I am not) I wouldnt quote you anything more than a range over the phone. They cannot see your car, see the prep work done so far to know if they have to redo it, or know your expectations. If they want your business in that way, they will quote low to get you to their shop. A high quote means they probably do alot of insurance work and dont chase restoration one-off work, or have acustmoer base that expects high quality. More often than not, you get what you pay for, select a shop based on their provious work, be clear about what you expect and balance that with your budget.

Is the car ready to spray? So all they have to do is tack cloth it down a bit, tape it up a little and spray paint on it? Are they spraying just the exterior panels (not the jambs, trunks, engine bay, interior, undersides of trunks, etc.)

If so, those prices are high.

But if the car isn't ready to spray (i.e. needs ANY prep work, block sanding, removal of panels, etc.) the door is wide open.

my car is at the body shop now, should be done next week. total tab will be north of $6800. this includes: fender repair, dent repair everywhere, block sanding, filling trim holes, some grinding, welding and filling, and of course the paint (including valences and door jambs). they're doing a lot of work, so i don't mind spending the $$.

removing all the trim helps some, but good work and good paint aint cheap.

also, i've noticed that i really enjoy having it done nearby. i can drop by any time to ask/answer questions and look at the progress.

~a

From your picture it looks like you have a great air compressor and regulator setup. Why not give it a try yourself. You might surprize yourself. Look at 1bad914's thread with the VW he just painted and there are a few others that have done theirs.

Bob..............

I have all of about $100 in the paint job on this. I got paint we throw out at work. If you have the space to do it give it a try. Just dont forget to wet the floor like I did I now have a pink floor. Just get a GOOD resperator.

As noted, Los Ponchos likes to have the car for a week so the paint can sit for a day or two before you pick it up. They did my race car last year for $1800 and that included striping off 5 paint jobs to bare metal, welding an unused gas filler hole in the hood and reattaching the flares (rivet on). I used their paint which has a clear coat. They polished it before I picked it up. Unless your car is to be a concours class car or a historically significant race car, I would be very hesitant to spend big $$$$$ on any 914. Mine is a race car and could be wiped away in the next race. Of course they did bring Ted's 356 back from the grave after he rolled it at Palm Springs last year and that was $2000 or so. You can search for the picts of mine and his paint jobs.

Another thought. You could lower your cost a bit, by spraying the compartments yourself, and letting the professional spray the exterior. That's what Joe and I did. He shot both trunks and the engine bay, and then we undercoated the "cabin" and the underside ourselves, and our body/paint guy took care of the highly visible exterior.

I am spending around 4K for my paint.

Color change form black to granite green metallic.
Door jams
Targa strip paint to match
Blending flares

be patient, look around and decide who will be best for your needs.

QUOTE (TurtleGirl @ Feb 10 2006, 08:57 AM)

Another thought. You could lower your cost a bit, by spraying the compartments yourself, and letting the professional spray the exterior. That's what Joe and I did. He shot both trunks and the engine bay, and then we undercoated the "cabin" and the underside ourselves, and our body/paint guy took care of the highly visible exterior.

That's a good way to do it.

If they can just pull the car into the booth, tack and tape it, and shoot the color, it shouldn't cost more than $1000-$1500.

That would be at most 1/2 day of labor (most of the time just letting it dry and sit between coats) and at most $500 worth of paint (unless you are using really expensive paint like Glasurit or something). A gallon of ready to spray, good quality paint like ChromaOne would cost less than $400.

QUOTE (computers4kids @ Feb 9 2006, 09:28 PM)

I recieved estimates ranging from $4500 to $8000. I know its been a long time since I've had a car painted but these prices seem way to high.

i paid $5500 for a paintjob at a bodyshop that is considered "upscale" ...

that included minor bodywork and primer, but *excluded* the factory porsche paint (~$600 ) ...

my car was completely stripped as well, then sandblasted ...

that was in CA. so i think your quotes are somewhat accurate for a complete repaint inside-out ...

looks like you have a roadtrip to mexico in your future!
Andy

QUOTE (SirAndy @ Feb 10 2006, 09:30 AM)

that included minor bodywork and primer, but *excluded* the factory porsche paint (~$600  :o ) ...

the problem is their paint, like their beer is regional. It's no good if used outside the country...

QUOTE (neo914-6 @ Feb 10 2006, 09:34 AM)

the problem is their paint, like their beer is regional.  It's no good if used outside the country...

naaa, it's no good when used with the wrong thinner ...

which sucks even more because i know for a fact the package from Kraut-Land *included* the right thinner ...
Andy

I have about $500 in the PPG "Omni" primer, colors, reducers, hardeners and clear.

That makes about 3.5-4 gallons of material.

Labor was in trade


KT

well I don't mean to gloat -- but -- it is going to cost me 800.00 to paint my car using house of color kandy paint --


my friend paints cars for a living and is getting a discount on the paint and we are painting it in the booth at his shop -- then I am paying one of the guys that works there to color sand and buff it

Artiaga's Collision Center in Bakersfield Ca. Good guys good prices great work. Tell them Mark R. sent you. Their #661-328-9740 ask for Reuben.
Later

$4k is about right for a good job. You can pay $10k easily... depends on who's doing it and how straight you want it.

Like anything else with these cars, dig around. If you prep it yourself etc. you might be able to find a friend with a good gun to squirt it for you.

Mine goes into the shop today. Stripping (actually sanding) and painting it black, was quoted 3500. I expect it to be more than that but I don't think more than 4000. Quite a few of the body shops I talked to won't paint whole cars. They can make more money on insurance claims.
Elliot

ell-yut

what color choo painting it mang?

back to yellow? or badass black?

flaring/stretching the fenders?

Elliot your not taking it South for the paint Job??

I'm keeping it "bad ass" black. I found a good shop close to the house. They come highly recommended. Pretty much gave up on the idea of shooting it myself although I still want to try it some day. Keeping the fenders stock.
Cheers, Elliot

QUOTE (Elliot Cannon @ Feb 10 2006, 12:59 PM)

I found a good shop close to the house. They come highly recommended.

So you still living behind

I'm sure this has been said many times before, but a good paint job is 80-90% PREP. Certainly the proper materials and equipment can be expensive, but the majority of the time or dollar investment is in getting the car disasembled, stripped, rust-free, smooth, and primed for the "paint job".

You may be able to save a little or a lot by doing some of this work yourself before bringing it in to the pros w/ the spray booth. (FWIW here in SoCal I would not even imagine/try to paint a car at home...I'd be lynched by my neighbors and/or "*" instantly). Even if you don't save significant $$$ by removing trim and other bits before hitting the booth, it is still worth it in terms of quality, i.e. avoiding overspray and masking marks beforehand and potential reassembly goofs or scratches later.

My other advice is to pay serious attention to replacing or refurbishing rubber seals, trim, and glass! This can make a HUGE difference in the final result, and also can add hugely to the overall cost/time investment. An early 911 I did a few years ago cost over $2K just for seals and plating/replacing the detail trim parts. You don't even want to know what the overall body/paint bill came to. Actually, -I- don't even want to add it up, either.

Bottom line is you need to figure out what end-result you are trying to accomplish, and then kind of "back into" it and figure out how to get there from here.

QUOTE (Headrage @ Feb 10 2006, 02:08 PM)

QUOTE (Elliot Cannon @ Feb 10 2006, 12:59 PM) I found a good shop close to the house.  They come highly recommended. So you still living behind

I wonder if Earl Sheibs son is still in the sammer. I think he was convicted of arms dealing or something.
Elliot

Los Panchos

$800

This included removing side markers, fixing dent in trunk lid, repairing rust around windshield and antana. Also painted inside both trunks and doors.

One week. (Sat. - Sat.)


The cost in gas may not be near the amount extra you spent having it done localy (like thousands less! )


I have a better picture somewhere, I promise.

Betty's car was done first. We drove the car in and handed them the keys. They repaired all the fire damage, some minor rust repairs, a complete repaint and reassembly over 3 months.

We paid 8K for hers.

My car needed extensive body work before painting. With all the body work, the installation of the flares and the Mauyer and GT stiffening kits, the custom flare work on the rockers and valences, and painting everything, including in the trunks, inside and under the dash, in the gas tank well, and underneath.

We paid 12K and it took a year.




I am a fuching masochist......

it's like david blaine or the amazing kreskin. magic, your volkswagen turned into a porsche.

k

Here in San Diego they used to have this program called ROP, may even still be around. Anyway, it's a free training program, anyone can join. They had a class on auto body and paint. I joined, did all the body work and first coats of black in their paint booth. All it cost me was my supplies and time. The supplies cost over $1500 for my paint, but the rest was free, the help I recieved from the instructor: priceless.

Maybe there's something like that where you live.

Take Care, Don

is that
Los Panchos Auto Repair
4930 S Main Street - Los Angeles, CA
323-231-7576

At those prices, it's almost worth it to drive my car out there for them to do it. It would be around 4500 miles round trip, but even with the price of gas, it would still be cheaper than having it done locally.

QUOTE (newto914s @ Feb 11 2006, 11:39 AM)

is that Los Panchos Auto Repair 4930 S Main Street - Los Angeles, CA 323-231-7576 At those prices, it's almost worth it to drive my car out there for them to do it. It would be around 4500 miles round trip, but even with the price of gas, it would still be cheaper than having it done locally.

No.

That's Los Panchos
Avenue Revolution
Tijuana, Mexico

QUOTE

You don't even want to know what the overall body/paint bill came to. Actually, -I- don't even want to add it up, either.

But it was beautiful...

Lots of great advice...thank you!
After interviewing a few local shops, (I brought a portfolio of color pictures with me to show them) I had question that kept popping-up at each place.

Do you want a single stage paint and then color sanded and poished?
or
Do you want a base color with a clear coat?

They both end up costing about the same in the end.

What do you think?

I got a base paint with clear coat.

Looks great even after two years of being parked and driven outside weather conditions.

QUOTE (Flat VW @ Feb 11 2006, 12:53 PM)