Anyone ever re-spray a car in Mexico? paint vs wrap

[re-animator]

So this is actually for my 2012 Evo which was parked outside a lot by the previous owner and has the dreaded clearcoat peel on the hood/roof/wing and now a little on the upper door area in the rear. i knew the paint was cooked when i bought it and factored in the cost of a vinyl wrap or re-spray into the purchase price - car was a stock, one-owner car so i was willing to live with some cosmetic imperfections.

i live in san diego, which is good and bad as a car enthusiast. paint is expensive and generally bad here due to environmental laws that limit the types of paints and solvents used by aftermarket guys here and everything costs more in california to begin with. i have heard of people crossing the border and getting paint and bodywork done in Mexico for half the cost or less and allegedly better quality work than the butchers at budget paint shops in the states. Anyone ever try this? I know budget = bad paint job in general, but i've heard people getting good results south of the border (there is some risk with any kind of international transaction of course)

I am basically weighing the option of getting a ~$1.5-2k paint job in Mexico vs spending that money on a vinyl wrap. Since the clearcoat is peeling, i know i will need to wet-sand and prep for wrap if i want it to look good (i am interested in gloss or metallic wraps that look "paint like" and not matte or patterned wraps). With paint that prep work is part of the cost of the service since they gotta remove the paint anyway. The car will be parked outside in my driveway, but i am good about frequent washes, spray ceramic coating, etc.

Color i'm looking for is probably going to be a gloss or metallic red reminiscient of the older JDM evos, but i would be open to re-spraying in the original phantom black if the original look/resale-ability can be maintained (i dont plan on doing the engine bay or door jams). This is a daily driver that will slowly be transitioning to a full time weekend/track car but i intend to own it for at least 3-4 years. Durability/longevity is a concern.

Anyone have any experience with a respray in mexico or comparing resprays to vinyl wraps?

[gtpvette]

I can't speak to respray in Mexico but have been looking into supplies to paint my C7 due to a clear coat failure. For a decent brand of materials, in the case Axalta Chromabase (formally Dupont) materials would be around $1500 if I'm not wasteful. Would your Mexican paint job be using decent supplies? Base coat/Clear coat or single stage urethane? Black in single stage can be OK if done correctly.

I've looked at wraps as well. The thing that steers me away from them is when it's time to sell, the buyer can't see what he's dealing with underneath. This makes the paint job more appealing for me at least.

[re-animator]

Originally Posted by gtpvette

I can't speak to respray in Mexico but have been looking into supplies to paint my C7 due to a clear coat failure. For a decent brand of materials, in the case Axalta Chromabase (formally Dupont) materials would be around $1500 if I'm not wasteful. Would your Mexican paint job be using decent supplies? Base coat/Clear coat or single stage urethane? Black in single stage can be OK if done correctly.

I've looked at wraps as well. The thing that steers me away from them is when it's time to sell, the buyer can't see what he's dealing with underneath. This makes the paint job more appealing for me at least.

Yeah I would definitely want multi stage paint. In Cali obviously the lowest rung is enamel based one stage paint that you get at Maaco etc. but I think most of the other paints have to be water based or low-VOC urethane which just isn't as good as what's available elsewhere (funnily enough you can't even spray a guitar with nitrocellulose lacquer anymore in California).

Material cost is a big deal but I think with paint shops in the US the overhead and labor are also huge. Some industrial supplies are cheaper abroad too due to environmental regulations and regimes (have no idea if paint falls under this category)

I think with a wrap you gotta accept that it is a pure outlay and doesn't add to the value of the car for future sale. It's kinda like engine and suspension mods only you can't part them out when you sell the car. Even a mediocre paint job has more value than peeling clear coat. I did get a quote from a local, fairly high end shop in San Diego and it was around $5k to respray the peeling panels and blend to the existing paint, not too much less than respraying the whole car, which would probably be the more prudent option since the parts that haven't peeled yet probably will in the next few years.

[bcj]

In Mexico most of the saving would be lower labor cost for the sanding and blocking.
Lots of hands on time rather than the actual painting.

[Dadhawk]

Originally Posted by gtpvette

I've looked at wraps as well. The thing that steers me away from them is when it's time to sell, the buyer can't see what he's dealing with underneath. This makes the paint job more appealing for me at least.

Also, wraps aren't as "permanent" as paint, so if you are going to keep the car any length of time, you'll be back to this question at some point.

It's different if you are wrapping a vehicle with "like new" paint. You can always go back.

[alex87f]

Originally Posted by re-animator

So this is actually for my 2012 Evo which was parked outside a lot by the previous owner and has the dreaded clearcoat peel on the hood/roof/wing and now a little on the upper door area in the rear. i knew the paint was cooked when i bought it and factored in the cost of a vinyl wrap or re-spray into the purchase price - car was a stock, one-owner car so i was willing to live with some cosmetic imperfections.

i live in san diego, which is good and bad as a car enthusiast. paint is expensive and generally bad here due to environmental laws that limit the types of paints and solvents used by aftermarket guys here and everything costs more in california to begin with. i have heard of people crossing the border and getting paint and bodywork done in Mexico for half the cost or less and allegedly better quality work than the butchers at budget paint shops in the states. Anyone ever try this? I know budget = bad paint job in general, but i've heard people getting good results south of the border (there is some risk with any kind of international transaction of course)

I am basically weighing the option of getting a ~$1.5-2k paint job in Mexico vs spending that money on a vinyl wrap. Since the clearcoat is peeling, i know i will need to wet-sand and prep for wrap if i want it to look good (i am interested in gloss or metallic wraps that look "paint like" and not matte or patterned wraps). With paint that prep work is part of the cost of the service since they gotta remove the paint anyway. The car will be parked outside in my driveway, but i am good about frequent washes, spray ceramic coating, etc.

Color i'm looking for is probably going to be a gloss or metallic red reminiscient of the older JDM evos, but i would be open to re-spraying in the original phantom black if the original look/resale-ability can be maintained (i dont plan on doing the engine bay or door jams). This is a daily driver that will slowly be transitioning to a full time weekend/track car but i intend to own it for at least 3-4 years. Durability/longevity is a concern.

Anyone have any experience with a respray in mexico or comparing resprays to vinyl wraps?

If you're planning on keeping the car for a limited amount of time (i.e. not a forever car), I'd stay clear of a colour change that doesn't include door jambs / engine compartment. This will hurt resale a lot, in addition to giving the car a slightly half-done look. In that case, do it fully or don't do it at all.

Have you looked at other nearby states? In any case word of mouth is probably the name of the game here, but for that you need people who have actually done a paint job recently and can recommend a specific shop.

Regarding wraps, it looks like they cost most of a paint job, don't look quite as good and don't last as long. I recall getting a quote do to my 86 in BRG for 1.8 grand. Those days are long gone!