Car is in great shape besides the spoiler, which is really really oxidized to the point of no return. I'd like to get it painted, but am not sure how much I should be expecting to pay.
Anyone done this?? Thanks!

I would expect that you should be able to get a local paint shop to do it for $100 or less. It's not that hard to do and all they should need to do is sand it down to good paint and spray it. Should be a one day repaint. Stop by a couple of shops and ask. If you take it off the car it just makes it that much cheaper. No disassembly time.

Mark

quote Originally posted by Firefox: I would expect that you should be able to get a local paint shop to do it for $100 or less. It's not that hard to do and all they should need to do is sand it down to good paint and spray it. Should be a one day repaint. Stop by a couple of shops and ask. If you take it off the car it just makes it that much cheaper. No disassembly time. Mark

You would expect wrong. If they have to buy paint, do any priming, etc. materials will cost $50 to $80. If it's not sanded & buffed, you're looking at 2 to 3 hours labor. Shops charge any where from $45 to $70 per hour. Then if it's sanded & buffed, add more time & materials.
There was a guy on a Bimmer forum that got a quote for $750 to paint a bumper (about the same size as a Fiero wing). Pretty typical.
Folks think it's easy to do paint work "all you have to do is sand it a little & shoot some paint", but ask those who have started to paint their cars & found out differently.
~ Paul
aka "Tha Driver"

Custom Fiberglass Parts

Paul, you are spot on.

Ryan, let me ask the painter on Friday if he can do your wing when he shoots my nose. I don't know what he will charge me just yet, but I will see. You can use my sander to cut the cost down, but you will have to do it yourself. Nothing like sanding to help build muscle, and appreciation for the car.

Tony

It's been a few years, but I carried my spoiler into a body shop and they sprayed it for around $150. I saved a few bucks by not having them remove it and also not using flex additive, (which doesn't do much anyway, but the spoiler is rigid and totally doesn't need it).

With inflation it might be $200 but it's still a relatively easy job.

quote Originally posted by jscott1: It's been a few years, but I carried my spoiler into a body shop and they sprayed it for around $150. I saved a few bucks by not having them remove it and also not using flex additive, (which doesn't do much anyway, but the spoiler is rigid and totally doesn't need it). With inflation it might be $200 but it's still a relatively easy job.

Since most shops have paint mixing capabilities the cost of the paint for this is relatively low. I would expect the materials to run about $30 or so and the labor to be a couple of hours at most. Since this type of paint work would be done as a fill in work and cost less overall. I still expect roughly $100 from a smaller shop...

Ya, Mark is right. As a shop I can buy 1/4, or 1/2 a pint of basecoat color for $15-20. Figure 1/2 pint of clearcoat for 2 full coats at $15, and a coat of primer (1/4 pint, $2.00) and a few sheets of sandpaper. Id do one as fill for $100. For a full pay customer Id milk out $150-$200. I normally charge $250 per panel for just paint, less if there is more than one adjoining panel. Thats about the going insurance rate around here. And thats with bagging and masking, which a spoiler wont need.

Just for info. Maaco advertises it repaints any bumper for $99 right now. Id suppose you could substitute a spoiler if you walked it in the door.

[This message has been edited by rogergarrison (edited 06-16-2011).]

quote Originally posted by rogergarrison: Ya, Mark is right. As a shop I can buy 1/4, or 1/2 a pint of basecoat color for $15-20. Figure 1/2 pint of clearcoat for 2 full coats at $15, and a coat of primer (1/4 pint, $2.00) and a few sheets of sandpaper. Id do one as fill for $100. For a full pay customer Id milk out $150-$200. I normally charge $250 per panel for just paint, less if there is more than one adjoining panel. Thats about the going insurance rate around here. And thats with bagging and masking, which a spoiler wont need. Just for info. Maaco advertises it repaints any bumper for $99 right now. Id suppose you could substitute a spoiler if you walked it in the door.

Wow!! I didn't know. I heard Maaco was kind of a sketchy job sometimes??
If that's the case I'll get my front bumper and fin done.

-- Next month

As lots point out here, Maacos usual downfall is the prep. If you sand it yourself, you not likely to have any problems. Dont let them talk you into paying extra for hardener...they put it in anyway (so they can fix it if they mess up) I get lots of used cars shot at the one next door to me after I fix the bodywork.

so many variables. what Kind of Paint ? single stage ? enamel ? base clear ? how much prep ? is it White? Red will cost 3 times as much (Or any color that even has Red "in it". depends what you want it to look like. you dont want a Cheap enamel fin on a base/clear car, or the other way around.) sure wish I could find a paint store that will mix 1/2 pint of base ! not around here ! everything is Qt, or Gallon

quote Originally posted by Firefox: Since most shops have paint mixing capabilities the cost of the paint for this is relatively low. I would expect the materials to run about $30 or so and the labor to be a couple of hours at most. Since this type of paint work would be done as a fill in work and cost less overall. I still expect roughly $100 from a smaller shop...

Notice in my post above that I said "if they have to buy paint". Unlike Roger's paint store, most will only mix a pint, quarts, or gallon. A pint of base is AT LEAST $30 (usually $50+) for the cheapest good paint. Then you add the clear, etc. etc. Can you find a shop that will paint it for $100? Maybe. Maaco might. Can you get it sanded/prepped & painted with base/clear, sanded & buffed, professional, quality job for that? Highly unlikely. As with most all paint work, you get what you pay for.
~ Paul
aka "Tha Driver"

Custom Fiberglass Parts

Anyone who knows how to paint should be able to paint just a spoiler nice enough it wont need sanded and buffed. I took the hood off my CadiIlac and painted it on a stand because of chips. Its basecoat black with urathane clear. It came out smoother than the original paint on the rest of the car. All I did was bolt it back on and polish it. I buy my paint from Sherwin-Williams, BASF/R&M, and Ditler auto paint stores, all quality refinishing stores. Even my PPG and Dupont dealers sell me 1/4, 1/2 or full pints. They might not to a retail customer. Maaco shops usually have their own mixing system and can mix up a few ounces if they want to.

Roger and Mark are right. I'm sure I got milked at $150, but most body shops around here don't even want to deal with small jobs like that, and they felt as if they were doing me a big favor by even doing it.

The spoiler came out shiny new and they wanted to sand and buff it, but it was 99% perfect and since the rest of the car was sporting 20+ year old paint I told them not to bother. I can see how a friend would do it for $100.

My suggestion is to go online to one of the painting supply stores and have a shake can of paint mixed to your car color. These are about $15-20/can. I also bought clearcoat from the same store when I had to paint a small item on my wife's car. You should be able to paint the spoiler with one can. I would paint the spoiler off the car because it is easy to do. I bought a shake can of primer from my local auto supply and painted with primer, then base coat, then clear.
Jim