1991Formula350

I finally took my '91 Formula 350 to get stripped and painted like new. The cost is $2750.00 which is taking everything off and sanding down to metal/ fiberglass. Mirrors, spoiler, side moldings, rubber moldings are all coming off and having door jams, hood and runk painted too. Car is orignal paint but had too much clear coat peeling and got too bad to look at anymore. I will take pics and post on here, getting shop pics now of car being prepared to be painted. Worth every penny, I love car too much and interior was done a year ago. Andy

smallwood

That really isn't a bad price for all the work being done. Should look killer when completed.

Abubaca

iTrader: (3)

Yeah, that price sounds good, and pat yourself on the back....and the wallet....for doing it right! It's not worth doing it half a$$.

swerve-driver

$2750 sounds reasonable for a good job. Hope it turns out well- Are you changing color?

S-D

83firebirdS/E

That's gonna be kick ***!!! Pics!!

MetalliCamaroRS

iTrader: (15)

Sounds like a good price, what color is it gonna be?

EvilCartman

iTrader: (1)

That's a cheap price for the work being done. Usually be around 3500 bucks or more at a good shop here.

MdFormula350

yeah i hope that my car with be less than 3,000 also.. i am just getting plain old black..

good luck i hope it turns out excellent looking..

Kandied91z

iTrader: (7)

very fair price........going down to metal is not only costly and time consuming, but an overall long process that if you do one thing wrong your paint will peal.

i tremble everytime i see this pic...

Z28 Boy

yeah, thats a lot of money..but a hell of a deal from what it sounds.

-B

IROCKER

I agree with Kandied...sounds like a very fair price. For the amount of work that is being done I think that price actually seems cheap. If you want it done right it's gonna cost.

Kandied91z

iTrader: (7)

yeah, i'd be happy with it. it's costing me 750 just for my engine bay....

1992CamaroZ28

Where are you lcated at. Paint cost alot it seems like down here in Texas.

GarageToys

iTrader: (6)

Man are you getting hosed... Zepher's paint job only cost $1.99 a can!

Actually, that's a good price. My brother just had his truck repainted for $3500 and we did all the disassembly and reassembly.

1991Formula350

Sorry it took so long to reply, but the car was white and was still original, and the shop is in South Miami, Florida. It is a great price for the work being done, I known them for about 7 years so the price was pretty fair. It's being done factory white again. Andy

theSteve

eek. i dont know if i could pay 750 just for engine bay paint.

llvll4l2c91350

Hey I've been thinkin of saving up for a paintjob for my car but didn't know it would cost about 2,500 bucks. I asked this place around here that paints cars for cheap and they quoted me at about 400 for mine. They said they'd strip it down, paint it and clearcoat it. My ex boss had his early 90s Dodge Spirit done there and it came out decent looking but for that cheap I doubt the paint will last a long time. Can anyone tell me what exactly they do or don't do for a $400 paintjob compared to a more expensive one?

dxtrzfreex

that is a very reasonable price.....most of your cost is in the labor normally. I painted my 87Lt myself from bare metal...I spent jsut over 1200 in material alone...of course i used House of Kolor paint also. but, I spent many many hours in disassembly and prep work reassyembly and many hours sanding and buffing. I could not imagine what the labor costs would be. hope it goes great for you! :rockon:

IHI

iTrader: (1)

I'm currently going through the same thing. I took EVERYTHING off the car so all the guy had to do was sand, fix, prime and paint. I traded some work for a basic paint job, then had him make me a hopefully 1 of a kind hood, then the damn car was rotting from the inside out...looked like a good body when the paint was on it, had the usual peeling clear coat, guy at the track backed into me just as I was putting the beast into drive and crushed my driver side 1/4 near the taillights, after they took it down to the metal, found out the car had previous damages in the OTHER 3 corners as well, the rocker on the passenger side was gone-held together by the paint, both lower door corners had to be replaced, little pin holes in other spots, filled in the antenna hole, and some other misc. B.S. Originally bought the car because the body was "in great shape" physically. Good ole mid-west salt from the inside out. So, once he fixed that I said F... it, go all out. Now I got to trade more work out on his shop come this spring, oh well, anyway off the top of his head for where it was at and what I wanted was around $3700, the Torch Red paint did'nt help either, but WTF, write it off at a loss anyway, **** on uncle sam.

Kandied91z

iTrader: (7)

understand that in most cases the most expensive part of a job is labor so that's why places vary....that's also why some are willing to pay more than others because they know a painters style.

knowing what a painter can do before hand is alot better than going in blind.

$400 for a complete paint job is not good..........it would cost me 200 in supplies for just enough paint to cover half the car in a solid black.

you cut labor costs down by tearing apart the car yourself....you save more money as well by replacing really bad metal with new pannels or already having the parts the body shop needs to fix it.

the longer your car sits, the more they have to buy, the more time it takes in general the higher the price is.

i would say that 1200 is the absolute lowest i could see a paint job going for since that's about what you would need in chemicals and supplies to paint a solid color car.

anyone who gets a job done for cheaper is using cheap quality paint or getting something for free.

while i agree paying something what i paid for a paintjob might be out of range for most it was what i wanted so it was fine for me. although i would have only paid 2,000 to redo the car in it's original color as well so it's all about what you want.

llvll4l2c91350

Well whenever I get ready to paint it I want a quality job, not a halfass job that's gonna get ruined in a short time. I think these people were obviously BSing when they told me they use quality paint and would even have the car ready in one day! They can mess with other cars but our cars are collectors items and I want the best for mine, which means I'll just have to save enough dough. Man it sux when you wanna do so much to your car but then you realize,,,you gotta pay for things.

Kandied91z

iTrader: (7)

just make sure your informed and you'll be fine.

technically they could sand it, prep it, and paint it in a day. i wouldn't recommend it as a whole car is a little crazy. but, it could be done.

mine took 7 months........although it was attempted 4 times. the last time took roughly a week to get it ready and then it was painted over a 2 day period.

let it sit for 3 days to cure somewhat and then i took it home.....waited 2 months before i really washed it good or used any kind of polish. however it was lightly wetsanded and i did use a detailer to keep it clean up until then.

the more you learn the better.........good luck to you.

llvll4l2c91350

Thanks. I will definitely search for more information once I'm ready to do it.

92Transam

Dang Im looking to buy a car thats going to need a paint job and I don't want some half **** job, the car is in pretty good condition other than the paint, I was thinking about 1,000 or more for a good job. I found a place that will give me a 10 year warranty and give me 4 base coats 2 clear for 700 though?!

Kandied91z

iTrader: (7)

never in my life have i heard of a 10 year paint warranty not even from a factory car. who knows, good luck to you....

Big Jon

some insurance companies actually offer a lifetime warranty if you have it fixed at one of their guaranteed repair shops. Some body shops will do the same if repaires as per their estimate.

Painting a car complete is a pain for the shop too, as they are run with the theory of getting them in and out. A complete is a long, painstaking process, usually reflected in the price. I think $2750 is a very reasonable price, given all of the work involved. I would stay away from the one day specials, even with a 10 year warranty. Also, the prep work will always come out in the final product. Lousy prep=lousy end product. Make sure they are removing all of the trim, so the whole car will be sanded thoroughly. Anywhere that is not sanded leaves an opportunity for the paint to peel later on.

sorry for the long post, but people advertising a good product for $400 and done in one day irritate me....

IHI

iTrader: (1)

The guy that is doing mine has been doing body work longer than I've been around and he's a working supervisor at his dayjob doing body work. Before the project started-since we were trading work for work- he was telling me a "basic" paint job=maybe a ding here or there-nothing major, no total disassembly, no jambing is usually around $1500, that's w/ materials and this was a generic price as paint prices vary per brand, type, & quantity. If your cars in good shape and your just looking to make it prettier, that is'nt too bad of a price in my book. BUT, like Big John says to do it RIGHT is gonna cost some major jack. Some us on this board have taken cars totally apart and have actual first hand experience and understand WHY they get the $$$ if the shop itself tears them completely apart. These I would consider under the "custom" catagory because it's not your run of the mill, fix a dent, squirt and go. This is a project in itself that your asking them to do by the hour. It took me about 2 full days to strip my car to what you see below, then my paint guy took it even further yet, because he wants it "perfect-nothing less" that was after I traded more work out of course. Us older guys have all been where you younger fellas are at and you have to juggle the most bang for your buck, that's what makes building cars so fun. Then you get older and have a little more to spend and maybe more patience to have it done "right"
BTW, yes the winsheild is coming out before he lays the goods on so he can get the knooks and crannies that way the paint does'nt have a place to start flaking.

IHI

iTrader: (1)

2nd

92Transam

They said the 700 job would be a two day job and they offer a free rental car ( but of course im not 25 so I can't get a rental car)

ViciousZ

iTrader: (1)

Heh, mine's in the process of being repainted, for a mere sum of $4000. I had it media blasted, all dents and dings smoothed, new door hinges ($$$) and the color being changed. I had already tackled under the hood myself. The funny thing was, another place I took it to had quoted me $9307 to do the same thing this shop is doing for less than half that.

92Transam

So what do you guys think of the 700 job???

1991Formula350

Great to see a started a great post, but I saw mine today and it is still about a week away from getting back, looked *** like the red one above, all sanded and touched up at dent area. I have a lifetime warranty for the car, the shop is great as I said before, they do all BMW, Mercedes, and tec, so I have the only "cheap" car there, the guy is great and I have known him for a long time as I said before as to why I am getting a "great" price for what is being done.
In reference to the 700.00 job, you get what you pay for! I wouldnt trust that type of job. These are rare and classic cars now and mine being a '91 with the 350 in it, I want it done right and as if it came from the showroom new. Andy

1991Formula350

Got car back today here it is now. Andy

1991Formula350

her is my 2 Formulas parked

quadgoat

iTrader: (1)

Looks great! Congratulations!

-Paul

83firebirdS/E

Wow!! You have two really nice Formulas!!!

:hail:
:rockon:

IHI

iTrader: (1)

sweet lookin rides

85SportCoupeto89RS

Nice

smallwood

Must be nice to have 2.... Oh yeah. Nice cars.

1991Formula350

Thank you very much everyone! It was hard to get one and have a lot of restoration done and the second was from a collector who had it stored most of its life which is still like new honestly, even non-Formula say the red is excellent looking. The white I had since '96, both are '91's, one with 5.7 H.O. and the other the cheap 305 which is so much slower than the other. Andy

MdFormula350

very awesome!!!

92birdie

love the formuals
nice job man

SC82TA

I just got mine done too. Got all little dings fixed and surface rust removed...everything sanded down to metal, door jams, engine bay, inside hood, etc all for under a grand. Primer, base coat, clear, wetsanded and buffed It. was so cheap because for one I got it done in Mexico and second my dad called in a favor. Its a lovely job very proud and it sounds like they did a great job on yours too. Feels great to have new paint huh?
before:

after:

I just picked her up last weekend

Only negative thing about it is that now I'm worrying about door dings and stuff. I didn't worry about that before. Oh well the positive outwieghs the negative

92camaro44

wow...both jobs look really good...nice formulas too