Hey guys, well the time has come to paint my camaro, and before anybody says I should sand it and primer it myself, well it's not going to happen. So, on to the paint job.

Right now it's a teal colored t-top camaro, and I'm switching it to Pepper Grey Metallic (the color of Eleanor in Gone in 60 Seconds). The quote I got from Maaco was $2500. I know that's a lot for Maaco, but it is a DAILY DRIVER, and it's the best of what they have to offer. This is what I'm getting for that quote. . .

Stipped down and primered

Fix all my dings and scrapes

Jam everything out except the engine bay

Their Signiture Series Paint Job ($800), which is the best that they offer. The color is DuPont Pepper Grey Metallic, code 44490.

Another coat of clear coating

Paint the headlight sockets Velvet Black (ref. IROC-Z's)

. . . so what do yall think? I went to a couple of places and the lowest I got was around $4000. The biggest thing to most people was the color change. And just remember, it a daily driver, not a show car. It will probably get some rock chips and srapes. Alright guys, let me know.

no way would i let maaco paint my car, much less change the color. i wish you lived close me, my buddy that paints would do it alot cheaper and i guarantee you the work is immaculate!! we both work at the same body shop and he paints for us and does side work. good luck though, maaco just makes me cringe when i hear that name

Wow, that sure is a lot of money to spend at Maaco. Its also a lot of money to spend on a daily driver in my opinion. If I were you, I would wait til a time when you can do the engine bay too. It would be one thing the the engine bay was black, but teal and pepper grey metallic don't match. Maybe some day you'll have engine problems and you can pull the motor and do the engine bay as well. Just my opinion though.

A freind of mine at work took his camaro to maaco ,just to get the front spoiler painted,it was faded a little,he spent $250.00 to get it sprayed,honestly it did not look all that great. good luck with the paint job.

Gunny,

Make sure you get some other estimates.

Oh, I will. I just wanted to see what you guys thought about it, because so far it's the best I've gotten. Like I said, everything else was up into the $4K range.

All i can say is u get what u pay for. I painted my car and to do a good job it takes alot of time and work.

I've never had a car painted at Maaco, but a guy I work with has a 72 Cutlass, and he had Maaco paint it dark metallic blue with white racing stripes. I must say in Maaco's defense that the paint job on that car is incredible. I've looked it over very closely and it is flawless. He said he only paid $1000 for the job. But he had already sanded and primered it himself. I'm seriously considering having my GTA painted there. Matt

Thats a RIP OFF job if I ever heard one! For 300 bucks more, ANY of the Pro shops down here would do that job and it would be WAY better than Maaco. It looks like they saw you coming!

Really though, do all the body work yourself, it's really not that hard! Then spend the $800 at Maaco and be done. It's a daily driver, dont spend more than a $1,000 on paint work!

FYI - Maaco is a fast in and out paint shop. They make their money on being fast and cheap (volume) by doing vehicles that they dont have to spend time on. Thats why they charge an arm and a leg for little body work, prepping, and ANY extra's, cause it takes them TOO much time when they could have sprayed 3 cars with way less work instead of doing yours.

Run man, run. Or save an assload of cash and just take one day of your time and prep your car.

Post pics either way!

I have a macco paint job, its been on the car for 5 years or so. To put if frankly its a 700 paint job, white top grey bottom and red pinstrip, copy of orginal paint. They had to repaint my rear half of the car because they had got what looked to be steel wole in the paint and it started rusting. (just a little spot) and earler this year they repainted my hood insert (for free out side of waranty)

but all in all it was worth the 700, they fixed a small ding in the fender, and a very small dent in the door. If it had been something like a 1/4 panel I wouldn't of let them do the body work. Some do good jobs and some do not. They kept my car for a week, and the car turned out well. If I had it to do over again I would of had it done in urathane "spelll" Now I want to put a nice paint job on it and I have to strip off all the macco, thats alot of work

Hey bubbz89, I live in ridgeland, MS and am looking to have my 78 Trans Am painted, how far away is your shop and do you think I could get a fairly nice deal?

Check their current cars, ask questions, and follow up with them, stop by everyday to check on the car.....

You will get a good paint job.....

Remember $2,500 is ALOT for Maaco, I would say $1500, $1700 is a good price range for a color change at Maaco.....

Try and talk them down...

I got a $180 paint job from them over 2 years ago...


Car sprayed artic white, was already primed & prepped.


They taped it & sprayed it.



The paint shines like a **** 2 years later (except body panels I've had to replace... )


Make sure you ALWAYS keep a few coats of wax on it. $2500 for a maaco job is a little scary.. Try and find a mom&pop garage that needs to the business.

as someone said already macco is a fast in and out shop, that is part of the reason they cost less than other shops, and why they charge so much to do extra work. You do have to remember, each one is independly owned, and each one has didnt sprayers. i had my 89 camaro painted there and for $275 it was nearly perfect, i found one small run in the paint that i wouldnt have ever noticed if i wasnt laying under it, right on the bottem corner of the gfx. $2500 does seem high i would say more like $1200-$1500

$2500 does seem a bit high. I know guys that could shoot it for $1500 or less - body, jambs and under hood. For $3000 you get a full on show quality job, providing there isn't major body work to be done. And then it goes up from there.

But, same thing's been repeated lol.

Funny thing about Maaco is, some paint jobs turn out great, and some turn out not so great. The ones that turn out great are probably done by people who actually care, which you most likely will not get that quality of paint job even for that price, which seems a bit high for Maaco.


You really do get what you pay for. I'd much rather spend $4000 on a paint job because the quality will be better and last longer. Most of the work in painting a car is prep work. A paintjob can only be as good as the prep work.

Maaco tends to cut corners. Proffessional shops mask and remove all all the neccessary items while taking their time.

It will take much longer and cost much more for a proffessional paint job, but it is really worth it in the long run if you plan on keeping your car for a long time.

wow man u crazy u need to find some links just dont go anyplace to get your paint done. with 2500$ i could get a custom paint job, look around talk to some people see if they know anyone. if u were out here i could hook u up with a nice paint job that will last a long time for just 800$. come one man going to maaco is like going to a dealer to get your car fixed point is hunt around dont waste money. goood luck

hey the kid who had my car before me repainted the bird at macco people i know that have seen my car can tell you yea after 2 years the paint looks good but in person you see it cracking badly bubbling and just looking like **** in many spaces thats why i'm desperate to get it repainted at a decent body shop. Maaco is a cheap paint job just liek the cheap prices...dont put your $ on them at all unless you have the $ to repaint it every 2 years which is a waste of your time and $ jsut spend more and get a better job done. trust me you'll thank me if you get a better one done instead.