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View Full Version : Have you had your e34 repainted?



IT Jedi
08-14-2011, 08:37 PM
I'm planning on having my car completely repainted since the PO really failed.

How much prep did you do or did you have the shop do it all?

Who did it for you (local or national chain)?

How much did it cost?

Thanks!

rshalati
08-14-2011, 08:42 PM
my dad did, he got a cheapo job done and it really shows

ChaosHawk
08-14-2011, 09:12 PM
I have heard several times that Maaco's can do a fairly good job if you babysit them. You need to have the car completely prepped and masked, and just let them spray it if you want to get good work out of them. Otherwise, they will usually screw it up.

DUDMD
08-14-2011, 09:16 PM
I have had mine repainted completely. The shop did a pretty good job. Costed me $2500 with a rear quarter panel replacement.

Hodge
08-14-2011, 09:29 PM
I did my own E34, and since it's a daily, I didn't want anything that cost money.

I spent about $100 (probably less actually even with all the supplies needed).

This was taken in North Carolina at Brevard College on vacation last month:
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v241/Disastr20/120_0342.jpg

I rolled the Rust-O-Leum on with 4" high density foam rollers from Lowes.


This is NOT for everyone mind you. It's very textured and you can still see lines in it. However, if you DO take the time necessary (which I neither had nor wanted to do), you could wet sand each coat and get a smooth glossy finish. I did 2 coats primer, 5 coats of paint, and have had I think 1 rock chip in about 7-8000 miles (lots of highway trips and the like). This stuff holds up great.

BTW, it has almost been 1 year since doing this paint, and I have not waxed it. It looks fantastic (to me), and I actually enjoy it more than my E30, which I had professionally repainted about 5 years ago. I just love the lack of care that it needs. It reflects light like mad, I can't even look at it in the daytime without sunglasses on (I have pretty sensitive eyes though).

And just for a fun fact, every person that has seen it and felt it in person has loved the texture, probably because of how different it is. The car was originally granitsilber by the way.

3axap
08-14-2011, 09:35 PM
My repaint cost me $3500 back in 2005. I basically dropped the car off and let the shop do all the work. Big mistake. Although the quality of paintwork itself is good, the quality of the prep work is not up to par. I have discovered quite a few imperfections like sanding marks, contamination in the paint and evidence of crappy filler skills. Most people do not notice any of these imperfections, but I certainly do. My advice would be to do as much prep work as you possibly can do yourself. Remove trim, bumpers, lights, etc. I'd even go as far as to fill, sand and primer the car yourself if you have the space and skill to do it. It'll save you money and you'll know that the critical prep works has been done properly. HTH

Hodge
08-14-2011, 09:37 PM
My repaint cost me $3500 back in 2005. I basically dropped the car off and let the shop do all the work. Big mistake. Although the quality of paintwork itself is good, the quality of the prep work is not up to par. I have discovered quite a few imperfections like sanding marks, contamination in the paint and evidence of crappy filler skills. Most people do not notice any of these imperfections, but I certainly do. My advice would be to do as much prep work as you possibly can do yourself. Remove trim, bumpers, lights, etc. I'd even go as far as to fill, sand and primer the car yourself if you have the space and skill to do it. It'll save you money and you'll know that the critical prep works has been done properly. HTH

My dad and I did tons of prep work on the E30 before bringing it to the shop and there are still imperfections that they didn't get. I too, notice such things :(

Psykick5
08-14-2011, 10:04 PM
My dad got it done cheapo by some Mexican. It's already peeling after 4 months.

Kyler Relyk
08-14-2011, 10:08 PM
^^^ Welcome to Utah

daddeez
08-14-2011, 10:45 PM
I have heard several times that Maaco's can do a fairly good job if you babysit them. You need to have the car completely prepped and masked, and just let them spray it if you want to get good work out of them. Otherwise, they will usually screw it up.

+1 I had my Chevy Avalanche repainted by Maaco (theft recovery with clean title) after I had some of the bodywork replaced and did the prep work (masking, etc) myself. I also supplied them with the paint myself as a friend told me that sometimes their paint is crappy/old. I also stayed around to "watch" and let them know that the owner was still there and asked who would be painting my vehicle..and mentioned that "lunch was on me" ;). Gonna do Jezabel after the kids head off to college..I'll be able to save some $ then lol

IT Jedi
08-14-2011, 10:57 PM
My dad got it done cheapo by some Mexican. It's already peeling after 4 months.

You know that some of the highest quality auto painting is done by mexican americans, right? Ugh.

As far as prep, I'm going to have the shop do it. The car is dent and rust free but it needs complete stripping as the current paint is literally ripping and sliding off the hood, roof and doors. (done by some guys in MA - I can't be sure but I think they were Americans :p )
Anyone in NY, CT or PA have a <$3000 paint solution? This is my DD but it needs/deserves quality protection.

Jcbe34
08-14-2011, 10:58 PM
im in the process of painting mine right now.. there are details in my project thread. How good do you want it to look? I've spent $700 on supplies so far, and that doesnt include sandpaper, primer or sealer. Do it right if you plan keeping it for a while

e34moneypit
08-14-2011, 11:19 PM
You know that some of the highest quality auto painting is done by mexican americans, right? Ugh.

As far as prep, I'm going to have the shop do it. The car is dent and rust free but it needs complete stripping as the current paint is literally ripping and sliding off the hood, roof and doors. (done by some guys in MA - I can't be sure but I think they were Americans :p )
Anyone in NY, CT or PA have a <$3000 paint solution? This is my DD but it needs/deserves quality protection.


I'm thinking of goiing this route too, and shop scouting. Do you have any solid leads?

Also, talk to Brady Kessler (HE53 here on the boards). He sells/deals with/knows a ton about automotive paint. He's given me a ton of advice before.

Psykick5
08-14-2011, 11:43 PM
You know that some of the highest quality auto painting is done by mexican americans, right? Ugh.

As far as prep, I'm going to have the shop do it. The car is dent and rust free but it needs complete stripping as the current paint is literally ripping and sliding off the hood, roof and doors. (done by some guys in MA - I can't be sure but I think they were Americans :p )
Anyone in NY, CT or PA have a <$3000 paint solution? This is my DD but it needs/deserves quality protection.

Well this Mexican did not do the highest quality auto painting.

E34Gabe
08-15-2011, 01:04 AM
^^ Come on, guy. Mexican? Really? Any ethnicity's capable of doing a bad job if the person doesn't know what they're doing.

E34Gabe
08-15-2011, 01:04 AM
^^ Come on, guy. Mexican? Really? Any ethnicity's capable of doing a bad job if the person doesn't know what they're doing.

E34Gabe
08-15-2011, 01:05 AM
^^ Come on, guy. Mexican? Really? Any ethnicity's capable of doing a bad job if the person doesn't know what they're doing.

Dagunster
08-15-2011, 01:55 PM
Good quality automotive paint is SUPERexpensive.
95% of the work is in block sanding, you must block sand if you want the car to look better afterwards than before.
unless you have a high performance air compressor, use the Harbor Freight turbine. ( Search harbor freight for SPRAY TURBINE)

I have used this gun on my old Porsche and an Audi to do the black around the windows and the black across the tail lamps. it's great.

you can paint out doors, but find a way to block the wind. sand out any bugs that get in the paint.

if you are patient, have over 500 bucks and are meticulous then you can get a professional job.

before you start, be very good with buffing out your existing paint, for practice, because you will be buffing or the new paint will look like crap.

You may find that clay bars and buffing may give you what you wanted though. I am only painting the trim work and bumpers on my 95 540

e34Croak
08-15-2011, 01:59 PM
I'm planning on having my car completely repainted since the PO really failed.

How much prep did you do or did you have the shop do it all?

Who did it for you (local or national chain)?

How much did it cost?

Thanks!
Goodluck dude.

TONS of prep, did it myself. (Thank God for the DA)
Roughly $800 materials.

theczechone
08-15-2011, 02:21 PM
I painted my own car in December, I used a friend of mine's paint booth which was a major helping factor, I also have two years of auto body and repair school under my belt. The car had severe oxidation on the hood roof and trunk and was in a minor fender bender by the previous owner. I spent $700 in materials alone as I wanted the best available. I worked on it for 12 hours every day for 10 days, it came out pretty good but if i had to do it for someone else I would probably charge somewhere between 2500 to 3000. If you want the work to be done well, that's the price you'll have to pay. And even working on it so hard for that long I still found imperfections in the paint afterwards, whatever you do thou, don't use a roll on paint job, that's sad to see on an E34. Also the darker the color the more difficult of a job it is. Minor imperfections show much more in a darker car compared to a lighter one... mine is orient blau :mad. anyway here is how mine turned out, after a few months I stopped nitpicking everything and I'm really happy with the way it turned out.
http://i66.photobucket.com/albums/h270/greentroublez/Heidi/th_DSC03413.jpg (http://s66.photobucket.com/albums/h270/greentroublez/Heidi/?action=view&current=DSC03413.jpg)