Paint/Body Shops in So Cal

[70cudaFun]

Hi All,

I'm searching for some auto body & paint shops in the Southern California area who could paint my 70 Barracuda.  I'm not looking for a show quality paint job as this car will be a driver.  I actually painted the engine bay myself and it turned out decent with single stage.  However, I don't have the space/booth for a complete paint job of the whole car and figure this is best to outsource to a shop who can handle it much better than I can.

I have talked to a few shops and have obtained quotes all over the place.  One guy said 4k USD, one guy said 8k USD and so on.  I know body work is a huge determining factor for a paint job so let's say there is no body work needed. I also know base coat/clear coat will be more than single stage.  What should I expect to pay for a single stage paint job or base coat/clear coat?

Anyone have any shops they could recommend me to?  I appreciate it! 

[Cuda Cody]

What color are you painting it?   It's not always better to use base /clear.  Sometimes it's better to use a single stage and blend clear in the final coats.  As for price, the cost of quality materials will be worth the extra cost.  Use top tier brands like PPG, Dupont, ect.

[70cudaFun]

What color are you painting it?   It's not always better to use base /clear.  Sometimes it's better to use a single stage and blend clear in the final coats.  As for price, the cost of quality materials will be worth the extra cost.  Use top tier brands like PPG, Dupont, ect.

I'm going with Vitamin C.  I don't mind going with a single stage by any means.  I know the top tier paint brands demand a premium so I have stayed away.  I have heard decent things about BASF and their economy paint line LIMCO®.  Glasurit® which is their high end line is $$$.  I'm looking for a budget paint job, nothing show quality by any means but nothing cheap looking.

[Cuda Cody]

$3,000 to $4,000 is on the cheap side and the expectation should be fairly low.  Quality paint jobs would normally start above $10,000 and show paint jobs will be $20k to $30k and more. 

There are things you can do with single stage to make it look incredible and hood up as good as base / clear.  Glasurit is good paint.  The most important is the clear coat quality.  Whatever you decide, have your painter do several spray out test so you can see the final color you will get.  Also ask for previous customers info so you can contact them and see some of the work that the painter does.  Plus that gives you a chance to check and see if they do what they say.  I've heard so many people getting screwed over during paint.

[70cudaFun]

$3,000 to $4,000 is on the cheap side and the expectation should be fairly low.  Quality paint jobs would normally start above $10,000 and show paint jobs will be $20k to $30k and more. 

There are things you can do with single stage to make it look incredible and hood up as good as base / clear.  Glasurit is good paint.  The most important is the clear coat quality.  Whatever you decide, have your painter do several spray out test so you can see the final color you will get.  Also ask for previous customers info so you can contact them and see some of the work that the painter does.  Plus that gives you a chance to check and see if they do what they say.  I've heard so many people getting screwed over during paint.

So I'm curious, what exactly is the difference between the 4k paint jobs and the 10k paint jobs then?  Is it purely the body prep and paint supplies? 

I think I will have to be okay with the 4-6k paint job since I do want to drive this car a lot and I don't want to think about jumping off a bridge if a get a door ding or even worse a fender bender.  Unless I find some shops that guys from this forum recommend will do a decent job, I will have to Yelp it or something and ask around for more prices.  I will for sure check previous work and try to go with someone who has decent reviews.

Most shops don't want to touch cars like this for under 10k specifically because they can make $500 to a $1000 fixing/spraying a damaged bumper on a newer Honda, BMW or whatever in 1 day vs working on a cuda paint job for weeks.  By the way, I had one painter tell me that flat out.

The paint decision has definitely been the hardest factor to decide on with my resto...

[Cuda Cody]

It takes me about 6 to 9 months to take my cars from a bare body to painted.  It's a lot of work to do right.  The time is mainly the steps to make sure the body is perfectly straight, gaps are perfect and everything is flat.  It's not for everyone.  The time and cost add up fast.  There are guys that will do good work pretty fast and can do it for a decent amount.  Sometimes I wish I just did it faster too.  I hate having so much time and money in my paint.  Like you said, chips and dings can drive you crazy after you put so much in to the paint.

[anlauto]

So I'm curious, what exactly is the difference between the 4k paint jobs and the 10k paint jobs then?

Exactly $6,000.00 

[70cudaFun]

So I'm curious, what exactly is the difference between the 4k paint jobs and the 10k paint jobs then?

Exactly $6,000.00 

I set myself up for that one 

[RUNCHARGER]

If you prep and paint a car yourself you will wonder how anyone could possibly do it for $6k at shop labour rates. It takes probably 10 times longer to properly prep a car than you would think. 10 hours work doesn't look like much when you see before and after results.

[1 Wild R/T]

Ok, so someone give me an idea of a fair price for this... Bodywork all finished to a high level, final sanding done with 400... Jambed, inside, engine compartment, trunk & belly already sprayed... I have two cars like this...  I can deliver to the booth, I'll tape everything up.. I have all materials...  I know what the invoice was I paid a shop to do the job in the past, I've been in the booth on probably 7-8 cars so I know how long it takes.... hence what it really should cost.....  The quotes I'm getting these days means I'm paying over $500.00 per hour...  I'll suck it up & pay a fair price but this is crazy...

[RUNCHARGER]

A deal like that where he sprays it only with no guarantees related to prep work I would say I would be happy to pay $1k plus materials in his booth. As you know it is the stuff leading up to the actual spray activity is where the $$$ is.
I don't know anyone that will do that job though as they are all afraid the prep work will ruin their spray job and their name is on the job.

[Cuda Cody]

If all the body work is done, the vehicle is completely jammed, and it's all taped off and ready to go?  Really?  That's 99% of the work.  I can squirt a car in less then a day if all that is done.  If you lived closer to me and had all that done to your car I would shoot the paint for you for a case of beer. 

Ok, so someone give me an idea of a fair price for this... Bodywork all finished to a high level, final sanding done with 400... Jambed, inside, engine compartment, trunk & belly already sprayed... I have two cars like this...  I can deliver to the booth, I'll tape everything up.. I have all materials...  I know what the invoice was I paid a shop to do the job in the past, I've been in the booth on probably 7-8 cars so I know how long it takes.... hence what it really should cost.....  The quotes I'm getting these days means I'm paying over $500.00 per hour...  I'll suck it up & pay a fair price but this is crazy...

[1 Wild R/T]

If all the body work is done, the vehicle is completely jammed, and it's all taped off and ready to go?  Really?  That's 99% of the work.  I can squirt a car in less then a day if all that is done.  If you lived closer to me and had all that done to your car I would shoot the paint for you for a case of beer. 

Ok, so someone give me an idea of a fair price for this... Bodywork all finished to a high level, final sanding done with 400... Jambed, inside, engine compartment, trunk & belly already sprayed... I have two cars like this...  I can deliver to the booth, I'll tape everything up.. I have all materials...  I know what the invoice was I paid a shop to do the job in the past, I've been in the booth on probably 7-8 cars so I know how long it takes.... hence what it really should cost.....  The quotes I'm getting these days means I'm paying over $500.00 per hour...  I'll suck it up & pay a fair price but this is crazy...

Well I've been quoted between $2700 & $3500....  In 95 when I was doing my current vert I paid a friend with a shop $100...  In 2003 I paid going in the front door of a shop I didn't really know $300.....   In 2005 a buddy paid $350....    I think the millennial's have bumped their heads....

[RUNCHARGER]

Yes: Way too much for that type of job. My guy charged me $5k CDN for this car all in. That's like $3500US, that included materials and he took it apart and repaired several very small dents along with doing all the prep.

[anlauto]

A deal like that where he sprays it only with no guarantees related to prep work I would say I would be happy to pay $1k plus materials in his booth. As you know it is the stuff leading up to the actual spray activity is where the $$$ is.
I don't know anyone that will do that job though as they are all afraid the prep work will ruin their spray job and their name is on the job.

This is a key point....The shop(s) I use won't want to paint over someone else's work