Anyone thinking about getting their car repainted?

[Hamza7]

Man I trained you guys right! Congratulations, most of you have graduated the Hamza7 school of Advanced Vehicle Ownership and are on your way to swirl free way of life! Good Job

[dabocx]

Im just going to live with it and try and get a clear bra soon.

Eventually i do want to repaint.... turquoise!

[Mr. Mcoupe]

Yes, I am process of getting my car painted British Racing Green with a couple yellow stripes down the middle. Tallyho!!

[ayau]

spend your money on opticoat like many have suggested and don't tailgate vehicles.

http://www.camaro5.com/forums/showthread.php?t=233695

[Filipino Royale]

so just clear bra the front then opticoat the rest, isnt the shine will be different? will it be noticeable?

[David-Fermani.com]

You have got to be a moron if you are seriously considering repainting your new car because you feel the paint is too thin. You think you have problems now, wait til you have it repainted! Learn how to maintain your finish properly and it will stay looking incredible for decades.

[911fanatic]

Originally Posted by David-Fermani.com

You have got to be a moron if you are seriously considering repainting your new car because you feel the paint is too thin. You think you have problems now, wait til you have it repainted! Learn how to maintain your finish properly and it will stay looking incredible for decades.

Don't sugar coat it David, tell us how you REALLY feel! LOL! As David stated, painting your car will not solve the problem as aftermarket paint is softer than factory paint. As well, to paint that car PROPERLY will set you back upwards of $4-5k. Properly means absolutely nothing is masked off except the holes where the glass was. If things are masked off instead of removed, I promise that the clearcoat will eventually peel back leaving you with a bigger mess. Clear bra the high damage areas and Opti Coat the rest. You will be way farther ahead.

[DBacon1052]

I got my Raven FR-S on May 24. Ive washed it and waxed it. I dont know much about opti-coat, but can I still get it done.

[jarviz]

Originally Posted by boredstudent3

DD is a great place, isn't Big "A" Detailing in Queens...11357

Andrew is a good guy also.

I spoke to Andrew and based on hearsay, he seems pretty good. But he said that he doesn't do clear bra installation, just detailing of the car. I asked if he did opti-coat - he said he normally doesn't but he could get some and apply it if I really wanted it.

I know I wanted the clear bra and I just didn't want somebody who didn't work with opti-coat regularly to apply it on my car. That's how I ended up at detailersdomain.

[David-Fermani.com]

Originally Posted by 911fanatic

Don't sugar coat it David, tell us how you REALLY feel! LOL! As David stated, painting your car will not solve the problem as aftermarket paint is softer than factory paint. As well, to paint that car PROPERLY will set you back upwards of $4-5k. Properly means absolutely nothing is masked off except the holes where the glass was. If things are masked off instead of removed, I promise that the clearcoat will eventually peel back leaving you with a bigger mess. Clear bra the high damage areas and Opti Coat the rest. You will be way farther ahead.

I agree with everything above except the portions I highlighted.

A/M finishes can be soft, medium or hard just like OEM ones. Depends alot on the paint system and the hardeners used.

Remember - a shop isn't necessarily going to be doing anything other then applying an additional layer or two of clear. They still need to prep the panels to go edge to edge with the paint which is very labor intensive, but nowhere near $4-5K.

My thing is that this type of proceedure isn't going to be good for resale. A shop isn't going to be able to perform a seamless paint finish like the factory does and it can and will be detectable. Plus, factory paint is baked and therefore is much more durable then A/M so you're going 2 steps forward and 6 steps back my refinishing a new car because "the paint is too thin".

[mikenap]

To those complaining about "thin" paint on these cars, where is this coming from? Has anyone actually measured the paint on these cars, or is it just because you've gotten a few rock chips here and there?

FWIW, I've already worked on a half-dozen of these vehicles AND measured the paint thickness. I've consistently gotten readings of over 120 microns, which is well above average for most Japanese cars. Hell, my Mazda brand new never measured over 100 microns on any panel, with some readings of 75-80.

The paint on these cars isn't any thinner than any other car in its class. In most cases it's actually better.

[picus]

Originally Posted by mikenap

To those complaining about "thin" paint on these cars, where is this coming from? Has anyone actually measured the paint on these cars, or is it just because you've gotten a few rock chips here and there?

FWIW, I've already worked on a half-dozen of these vehicles AND measured the paint thickness. I've consistently gotten readings of over 120 microns, which is well above average for most Japanese cars. Hell, my Mazda brand new never measured over 100 microns on any panel, with some readings of 75-80.

The paint on these cars isn't any thinner than any other car in its class. In most cases it's actually better.

You know how it goes. A lot of people say a lot of things when it comes to paint. FRS/BRZs have similar thickness to most Japanese cars; it certainly isn't any worse.

[911fanatic]

Originally Posted by David-Fermani.com

I agree with everything above except the portions I highlighted.

A/M finishes can be soft, medium or hard just like OEM ones. Depends alot on the paint system and the hardeners used.

Remember - a shop isn't necessarily going to be doing anything other then applying an additional layer or two of clear. They still need to prep the panels to go edge to edge with the paint which is very labor intensive, but nowhere near $4-5K.

My thing is that this type of proceedure isn't going to be good for resale. A shop isn't going to be able to perform a seamless paint finish like the factory does and it can and will be detectable. Plus, factory paint is baked and therefore is much more durable then A/M so you're going 2 steps forward and 6 steps back my refinishing a new car because "the paint is too thin".

Based on my experiences David, I have yet to see a respray that didn't marr much easier than a factory job. Having said that, almost all of the work I have seen has been done by the same 4 or 5 local shops. My price quote was based on a respray, not just adding a few coats of clear. My apologies for not being clearer. Not sure what quality work goes for down there, but I'll stick with my $4-5k quote for my market.

[David-Fermani.com]

But remember, they are not doing any body work and not applying any color to the car. That's a huge cost and labor savings over a "complete respray".

But, if we're talking about refinishing a complete car with base and color and minor body work then yes, $4000-$5000 is certainly realistic.

FYI - they also sell scratch resistant clears to body shops and other high solid paints that are very strong.