Miracle, Maaco, etc. are chain paint shops that give you a cheap paint job. I'm in the process of learning to paint and hopefully this summer I plan to paint my Comet. While learning, preparing, talking to painters, etc. I can tell you a few things that I have learned.
First off, the paint that most of these places use is very cheap. Paint is incredibly expensive and one can easily spend hundreds of dollars on paint alone. A body shop needs to prime, paint, and clearcote your vehicle and it costs a lot of money just in these materials.
Secondly, the quality of the techs at these bodyshops is like shooting dice. A family acquaintance swears by the quality of their friend who owns a Miracle by me and says it is just as good as any body shop. I'm skeptical but the point remains, that hes probably a rare find. I've heard stories that some chain shops have hired someone without certs because they showed the manager their self-painted vehicle.
90% of the work required for a repaint is prepwork. Just like detailing a vehicle, almost all of the work goes into preparing the surface for those waxes. This entials rust, dents, chips, removing trim, and masking. Some shops will let you do your own prepwork for a reduced cost, but I've had body techs tell me that they hate it because many times a customer ends up doing a poor job at it and they have to manage. Chain paint shops are notorious for cutting corners here by poorly masking, overspraying, not removing all trim, etc. Time = Money and prepwork takes the bulk of the time to repaint.
I agree with Mike that if you plan on keeping the vehicle for the long haul and care about a superb paint job, get a reputable body shop to do the work. If you're looking for an affordable quick solution, go with a chain paint shop. Just make sure you shop around too. Finally, you can always go the DIY way. It will be the middle of the road option PLUS its fun : D
