Ok no not wanting to botch the body work myself I decided to bite the bullet and check out some prices to get my paint job and body work done. I went to two different shops and got two COMPLETELY different answers and I know generally you get what you pay for so I figured I would ask people that know more about this than me before I go blowing my whole wad and getting a garbage job. First let me say I know that giving an estimate without actually "physically" seeing the car is hard but please shoot me some info and if you need more pics i will be more than glad to take more just let me know. The first shop I went to seemed to be a bigger more commercial shop they estimated 1700 for body work and same color paint and 2300 for a dark blue paint. Not to bad I wish it were less but I will always wish it were less right. The second shop, quite a bit smaller family owned shop maybe, 4600 for same color almost 6000 for dark blue. I want a decent paint job but I am not looking to win shows or anything remotely close to that. Macco is cheap but I also know you do get what you pay for there so I would like to avoid a place like that. I have a ton pf pics if you click on my name in my album and like I said if you need more just let me know and I will take more. Thanks for reading and any help you can offer. Or if your near Sycamore IL and wanna take a look maybe make some extra cash I have all the equipment (minus booth) to paint a car but absolutly no skills in that department

Not sure on what shape the resto of the body is in,but it they need to take out small dings and straighten anything out I'd say 4000 is average.

Talk to both the companies and see what they are offering. $1,700 is very fair but sounds to good to be true. I've painted cars before and I know you can get a very high quality paint job for $1,000. In that price includes primer, base coat, and clear coat + additional items such as sandpaper, polishing compound, and bondo. I'd say the finished result is 75% work ethic and 25% materials give or take. Some things to take into consideration is how many coats of base and clear they are applying. Base coat depends on how it is applied. We use the method of flash curing so its really hard to determine how many layers are being applied. I would suggest atleast 3 layers of clear coat though.

Having the car painted a different color is far more complicated. You have to worry about the engine bay, door jams, hatch, ect. For 2,300 I think they would be cutting corners.

Hey Totalchaos, I own a small body/custom shop and I know where you are coming from when you look at the price dif. With the larger more collision directed shops you will get a more basic paint job (sand, tape, spray and out). No wet sanding no buffing no parts removal and the materials with be of the comercial grade. All that is extra and can make or break a paint job. With other detailed focus shops you'll most of the time get a higher price because they are going to take the time to do a more complete job and use the materials that are going to make the paint job last. Now you should be able to ask questions about the job like is there sealer being apllied befor the topcoat and what kind of paint (basecoat/clear or single stage)and so on. You can get a decent same color paint job for $1700 if there is NO bodywork to be done and they use a cheaper single stage paint system. I see it all the time how people who dn't know what's involved in a good job get ripped off with a crappy one.

Check it out

That is very correct. As I was saying it's all in the process. You can have great A materials but if you dont take the time to do it right you can end up with runs, orange peel, discoloration, dull finish, ect. You can make spray paint look more than decent if you take the correct preporations and use an automotive clear coat.

Big Dog Chevy where is your shop at maybe I will swing by and you can give me an estimate

You need to ask lots of questions.A proper paint job would include disassembly i.e bumpers, ground effects, door handles,trim ,etc.
If a color change is done does that price include all jambs and underhood area?
Also need to find out if it will be a base coat clear coat job.What brand of paint will they be using.
What type of body work will be done?ALL dings dents rust scratches?
At the end of the paint job is the car going to be color sanded and buffed?
Will there be any warranty on the paint?
How long will it take to get the job done?
A mom and pop shop may be more $$$ but they may do a more quality job instead of worrying about production.

It's over in Harvey IL. I'll send a pm with the details and my number. You can also see some of the cars that I've painted/built.