Repainting my BMW?

[W.S.]

So after 12 years of New York winters and Balmy summers, my BMW`s paint is on the way out. The roof, hood, and passenger`s front door are all victims of clear coat failure. The trunk lid( a 2 quarter size spots), roof (about 1/2 dime size spot at the spot where the windshield seal and roof meet), front right fender (1/2 dollar bill size "pocket"), a tiny spot inside the gas filler area, and a spot on an inside seam of the driver`s door). I believe that the PO left the car unpretected outside 24/7. I have devoted my efforts to reviving the interior this year (I am going to leatherique the interior and re-dye as needed. Then I will install the manual rear sunshade accessory from BMW to prevent the rear head rest leather from becomming rock hard again).



So back to the outside, should I get only the areas that need repainting done? I am severly worried that the orange peel will be nocticibly different (to me, the absolute perfectionist) and the colour may be slightly off from the still okay original paint (again, perfectionist to the concours level). Irealize that this route would be easier budget wise, however if I am going to have any paint work done, I want it to be perfect the first time.



If I were to have the entire car done, should I have it enitrely stripped to bare metal, including the door jams or Just have it resprayed? Which would look the best and maintain an excellent finish for atleast another 10 years?



I know that this job will cost $$$$$ to have done right, whether I have the minimum done, or the entire thing done, especially if I take it to a quality shop (which I would be willing to go quite a distance too).



Please help me:bawling::bawling::bawling: As a detailer, I am always disappionted that my car cannot finish as nicely I want due the its many paint related problems.



Wade

[Accumulator]

[Note that Accumulator has a `97 M3 sedan with some real paint issues on certain panels]

So after 12 years of New York winters and Balmy summers, my BMW`s paint is on the way out. The roof, hood, and passenger`s front door are all victims of clear coat failure. The trunk lid( a 2 quarter size spots), roof (about 1/2 dime size spot at the spot where the windshield seal and roof meet), front right fender (1/2 dollar bill size "pocket"), a tiny spot inside the gas filler area, and a spot on an inside seam of the driver`s door)...

That`s quite a few areas but it`s not the whole car.

..should I get only the areas that need repainting done? I am severly worried that the orange peel will be nocticibly different (to me, the absolute perfectionist) and the colour may be slightly off from the still okay original paint (again, perfectionist to the concours level). Irealize that this route would be easier budget wise, however if I am going to have any paint work done, I want it to be perfect the first time...

If you`re even remotely serious about the "absolute perfectionist", "concours level" and "perfect" references, then having the whole car painted is the only way. But for a driver it`s a judgment call and it`d depend on the car itself (and the owner).



Mine is sorta similar but, I suspect, not nearly as bad...but it does have some chips/RIDS/etc. on a all the panels. My painter`s initial thought was that I was nuts to paint the whole car but then he shrugs and says "well, it is *YOU* we`re talking about..." Note that I expect a paintjob that will be *much* better than factory.



Most colors, and virtually any OE level of OP can be matched by a good painter but they can`t work miracles. As the new paint is exposed to UV, and old paint *continues* to be exposed, differences can crop up.

If I were to have the entire car done, should I have it enitrely stripped to bare metal, including the door jams? Which would look the best and maintain an excellent finish for atleast another 10 years?

Not necessarily. I always thought that bare-metal/glass-out was the only way to go but I`ve recently changed my mind, at least with regard to certain cars.



Properly cared for, your repaint should last indefinitely, but of course there will be stone chips/etc. You don`t always have to go to bare metal for the repaint to last but a lot of it depends on what`s on there now and you`ll find out more as the work progresses.



If you don`t change the color, and there are no issues with the paint in the jambs/etc., they you probably won`t need to have them fully repainted, but the painter will fade into them. How well this is done is an example of what separates the great painters from the OK ones. Lots of other stuff does have to be done, the disassembly/reassembly for a good repaint is *extensive*. I often sorta-joke that the factory didn`t use any masking tape when *they* painted the car..food for thought.

I know that this job will cost $$$$$ to have done right, whether I have the minimum done, or the entire thing done, especially if I take it to a quality shop (which I would be willing to go quite a distance too)..

My best paint guy (who`ll be doing it) quoted me at "maybe less than ten, unless you *really* do want to win shows at the national level" (which I don`t). It`s all time and materials and they can only get so close with their estimates. IMO you need to set a budget that`ll cover it, and then just pull the trigger let it happen. In my case, I sorta suspect that it`ll come to at least the $10K. BTW/FWIW, my guy has a very low hourly rate but I figure he`ll have around 250-300 hours in it plus the materials. Note that amounts to nearly two months` worth of full work-weeks, and my car has zero rust/damage AFAIK (famous last words ), it just needs new paint.



Yeah, that`s a lot of money and the painter has said a few times that having him repaint my M3 is kinda silly. He doesn`t work on many drivers and he doesn`t see this car as anything all that special, so he figures "why not just sell it and buy something with better paint"- but, they only made 100 in this color so it`s not that simple.



Others will say you can get it done for a tiny fraction of that amount, and I`ve had sorta decent repaints done for ~$4K. But "sorta decent" isn`t even close to what I want these days and you sound pretty particular too. Remember the "time and materials" bit, and a truly great paintjob takes *time*.

[W.S.]

From one Bimmer perfectionist to another, thanks for the advice! My color is also rare, so I want to keep it the same color, but obviously I want better paint to detail than I currently have. I *think* that maybe panels as needed are the way to go right now. I can always repaint, but never get the *exact* factory finish back (sorta a for better or worse thing).



Wade

[Stanger'66]

A good paintjob shouldn`t cost $10g. I honestly think $6g should do it. Bare metal is only necessary if there is too much film thickness(i.e. repaint) or if the current paint is not a good foundation(i.e. checking). Otherwise, a good, solid sanding will do the job.

[Invigor]

Others will say you can get it done for a tiny fraction of that amount, and I`ve had sorta decent repaints done for ~$4K. But "sorta decent" isn`t even close to what I want these days and you sound pretty particular too. Remember the "time and materials" bit, and a truly great paintjob takes *time*.

90%(if not more) of the time spent on a paint job is prep.

[Accumulator]

A good paintjob shouldn`t cost $10g. I honestly think $6g should do it..

I knew I`d elicit a comment or two like that and a lot of it depends on who`s doing the work and what they charge. If somebody can get satisfactory work done cheaper than I can more power to them!



I`ve had a *LOT* of cars painted by a *LOT* of guys, and I know what it takes to satisfy me. The guys who`re good enough for top museums and for the highest-level concourses won`t repaint most cars for $6K because it simply takes them more time than that (the out-of-sight areas finished as nicely as the hood, etc.). As I said, it`s all time/materials and my good guy`s rate is well under the norm (~$30/hour *less* than another shop I use).

[qballjr13]

Having just had a car painted I would MUCH rather pay the $10-12K up front than pay $6K now and maybe another $6K in 7 to 10 years. Painters are like good detailers...you get what you pay for!

[Stanger'66]

You have to find an enthusiast that is as much of a perfectionist as you are. This person also has to enjoy their work and want to do the car. You almost have to be a body/paint guy to know what to look for. If a car has no bodywork to be done, I just can`t see paying 10g. I would honestly paint my own car if it needed it because I trust noone else. I`ll be painting my `66 Mustang sometime within the next year, I`ll post pics when its finished and detailed. I plan on spending less than 1g on materials. I think you guys will be surprised at what can be done with patience and $1000.

[qballjr13]

I agree Stanger, if the car does not need body work than painting will be much much cheaper. If it does need bodywork and then needs to be skim coated and leveled and all that then expect a much higher price.

[W.S.]

Well, the car does have some rust spots as well as a lot of door dings. Obviously, I would need some body work before paint.:thx:wavey:nervous:

[Accumulator]

We`ll see what my M3 actually costs when I get it done, if it comes in way under $10K I`ll be very happy, but I`m gonna leave a big budget just in case. He and I settled on "more than five, probably less than ten" the last time we talked about it.



In my case, I have bubbling around one of the rear license plate holes and some *very* minor surface rust under the battery and where the spare has rubbed some paint off in the trunk. And the spring-clip that holds the jack has broken off and needs to be welded (ditto for a threaded post on the underneath near the fuel tank). Other than that I don`t expect any bodywork, but, well, we`ll see. There`s still gonna be lots of disassembly/reassembly work to get all the non-metal parts off the car along with the panels that`ll be removed before painting.

[EricDawg]

well you could sand down the panels yourself, have a ding remover (paintless dent remover) get the dings out, fill ins the bodywork yourself, and either paint it yourself or have someone do the paint for you after doing all the bodywork.



I`m no expert. I bought some books on painting your car yourself, and did the same bodywork to an old Ranger of mine. Then took it to someone local to have it painted. The prep work was a lot of time. The paint was a few days and about a grand.



Then again... it`s an 89` Ranger.



Options abound.

[WhosRich]

i got a quote for 2200 to paint my entire car. original color not including door jambs and such. too good to be true?

[Accumulator]

i got a quote for 2200 to paint my entire car. original color not including door jambs and such. too good to be true?

Maybe...it would be in my area. Find out what he plans for prep/etc. The cheapest painter I use only charges ~$30/hour but he`d want more than that.

[Flashtime]

Kinda late but... $2200? That`s much too low. Around $7000 is what you want to

be looking at for a decent job.