Thread: Maaco/budget paint job pics.

Anybody had their car shot at Maaco or similar? Post some pics. I know you can save a lot of money on these jobs by doing prep work yourself, and I've also heard it's a good idea to tip the guy who sprays it for you.

My '93 SE-R just looks absolutely beat right now. I don't care much about looks, usually, but it's kind of embarassing to be seen in.

you obv. havent seen my car..lol

Personlay I would do all the prep work like u said as I had my old rx-7 painted by mako and they did some small rust repair on the rocker pannel and it bubbled threw one year later . As far as the paint quality it not top notch but looks good from 10ft away !

As with any paint job, it depends on prep-work and experience. Where 1 maaco painter may do amazing paint jobs, the next one may suck ass.

All depends on the painter. No 2 are the same.

maaco has cheap paint and expensive paint. if you go cheap, you get the cheap paint, if you go expensive, you get the better paint. so it also depends on the paint package you buy from them.

^At the end of the day, cheap paint or expensive paint will make no difference if the prep work is not great.

I would suggest doing the prep work. My car was sprayed by maaco probably 7-8 years ago maybe even longer. Its a basic crappy single stage job. Here is how it looked when I hit it with liquid clay bar:




That was back in Summer of '08 (don't mind the date, lol). Here is a more recent picture:



I will be prepping the car in a month or so for my buddy to spray it. Thinking of going green but not sure.

Nismo94tuner: That looks really good for a basic single stage job that's that old.

Keep the pics coming.

Luckily my car has no rust and I just want a basic spray that will look good from 10 feet or while the car is going down the road. Something I'm not embarrassed to be seen in. It does have a fender wrinkle and a dent, worried about how much that is going to cost to straighten.

Like everyone else has said, doing the prep work yourself is your best bet as that is the time consuming part, and where you really need to pay attention to detail. Basically, make their job as easy for them as you can.
Also, I'm told their pricing determines who paints the car. Pay for their basic package and you get the guy who's been doing it 6 months and makes $20/hr.
Pay their better prices and you get the guy who's been spraying for 20 years and makes $50/hr.

That's what I've been told anyway. Doesn't hurt to ask.

If the fender is hurt your probably better going to a place like Keystone that sells replacement body panels. Fenders usually go for $50 IIRC.