Just got my car back last week from the body shop. It ONLY took 5 months. I did what I thought was home work, but I neglected what I now consider one of the top things to do.

Visit the shop over a period of time and inspect the inventory of cars and the progress they are making. If they have cars that seem to sit, make sure they are not the owner's or employee's cars. If they are NOT, RUN QUICKLY!! Don't get me wrong, I am extremely satisified (after they fix the hood next month) with the job they performed, but it took too long. I looked for a comprehensive list of things to look for in a GOOD shop, but couldn't find any. Here are MY recommendations for people looking for a body shop:

- Paint booth - Draw down is best, but cross flow is OK if they change the filters regularly.
- Cleanliness of the ENTIRE shop. Where do they do their sanding and body work? How close is it to the paint booth? Do they have ventilation to draw the dust out of the shop?
- Check back throughout a month or two period and check the inventory as stated above. (Got bit by this one)
- Make sure the shop accurately documents work done to the car and products used THROUGHOUT the entire process. If after a couple weeks the work order still only contains the original estimate, tell them to update it.
- Look at some of the vehicles they have completed. They should have people willing to show you their cars if they do good work.
- Try to talk to the employees. See how long they have worked there and if they like it and intend to stay. If you find someone that has been there for a while, ask them what the employee turnover is like. (This one cause the low productivity in the shop)
- Let your gut instincts guide your way. Do you like the people in the shop?
- Find out what kind of products they use and what they are familiar with shooting. Is it what you want on your car? If not, recommend looking somewhere else. Paints spray diferent. Even if a guy is not certified, he can usually lay some good coats if he's been using the product for a few years.
- Have a definite goal in mind and ensure it is conveyed to the person writing the order. Make sure all your initial concerns are documented on the original estimate. Do you wnat the doors, hood and deck lid removed? Doors taken apart? What parts are you giving them in addition to the car? What parts do you expect them to buy for you? Make sure they WRITE IT ALL DOWN.

I am by no means an expert, but just wanted to convey my frustrations and successes from the past five months. Feel free to add to the list or even dispute what I have written. Like I said, just my rant that may save someone else a HUGE headache.

 

Another shot

 

The front

 

umm best thing to do with shops is to leave them alone, how much work was done to your car? if you had them remove dings and dents everywhere and then repaint it hell yes its going to take 5 months... they have other cars to work on too and yours if yours is an all over job a body shop will post pone it to get smaller jobs done, but will kick A$$ when the time is right. Dont go in to bother them about progress with your car (it might get done faster, but short cuts will most likely take place...) Where i work we are reluctant to take a persons car when they show that kind of behavior... yes down draft booths are the best, cross drafts are old nasty nasty things but if you keep the floors wet and filters clean and sealed you should be alright with paint, just not clear, as it is best to bake that stuff (faster anyway...) and it is good to write down and have what you want done ready to tell them, because any normal shop acts as a production shop; the faster a car moves from body shop, to prep deck, to paint booth, to customer the more money they make, so speed is the goal of a reg body shop, so if you want those mirrors removed before they paint you better make sure to tell them that...

 

Had it all done. Here are a few in process pictures and a before picture. I visited them every day I was home (in the military and traveled about 40% of the time). Nitpicked every detail, too. BUT, when I took the car in, I told them I would visit every day and that I was an **** SOB. My exact words. I only got upset with progress once. After I traveled for four weeks, I returned to find my car in the same place and untouched. Don't get me wrong, I am EXTREMELY happy with the quality of work for the price paid. New side glass, windshield, dents, color sand, wet sand, buff and polish, cleaned and painted the underbody, and even removed and preserved the bumper supports. I just want to attempt to convey the lessons I have learned throughout the process and get others opinions.

 

The doors were removed and gutted, then repaired.

 

After primer, before final block sanding.

 

What is your opinion on clear coat and accelerators? I was told they did not add accelerator because it eventually causes the clear to turn yellow. They gave me a lifetime warranty against fading, peeling and cracking, so I trust it was done right. They used Chroma Base and Chroma Clear.

BTW, it was a classic car restoration shop specializing in mid 60 to mid 70 GMs. They do alot of insurance claim work on the side to "pay the bills" as I was told.

 

Here is the bfore. This was the worst side with a dent in the front fender that extended to the door. Other than that, only minor door dings. Also had never been in an accident.

 

Well for the amount of work done I think 5 months isn't too unreasonable. I will never take a car to a shop that doesn't let you pop in and check progress. Once you hit the few thousand dollar mark they should be treating you like their only client. Considering a peek to see the car and make sure everything is going the way you'd like takes 1 minute I don't see the big deal.

 

That turned out really good

If you don't mind me asking, about how much does a paint job like that cost?

 

They basically gave me run of the shop, sort of. I was able to go to the shop and look in, under and over the car any time I wanted. I was also able to talk to any of the techs whenever I wanted. REALLY good as far as I'm concerned. As far as the price... I'd rather not not discuss, but it was well over what the car was worth before I started.

Mike

 

I would like to add to your list of what to look for when picking out a body shop. some of these may be repetitive

Ask shop owner/manager how long will it take to do a great job ?
What kind of warantee do they offer? lifetime against peel, fading,etc... or no warantee at all.
Call your insurance company and ask them who do they recommend and who does the best work in town. I know for a fact you will get a quick recommendation since adjusters are in all different kinds of shops not just one shop.
check with friends and family members to find out who they recommend.
what type of paint do they use?
will they let you come in and check out their progress on your car or check out some of their other work in progress?
Is the price in the ballpark with other shops in the area? Sometimes you do get what you pay for.
Is the shop i-car/ase certified?



I go to 7 shops locally and can tell you that most body shops would rather work on collision work instead of overall jobs simply because it slows down production. This is probably why it took a little longer to do all the work. Judging from the above pics they did a great job.

 

Concur. The problem I ran into with i-car cert shops was that they were unwilling to perform "complete" paint jobs. They wanted the in and out insurance claim jobs. Can't blame them as that's where the money is. If you can find one that is willing to perform the job AND is within your budget, let them do it. I know a shop that actually hosts the i-car cert classes that repaired damage to my Infiniti QX56. I must say it was the best experience in a body shop I've had yet. And they let me visit EVERY day and gave me a two hour tour of the shop and their process BEFORE I decided to let them do the work.

Mike

 

hmm chroma sounds like Dupont stuff, and ive only worked with PPG stuff, althought the shop where i work uses dupont, i havent paid much attention to the products, but i know that i wouldnt use an accelerator, because if you cant bake it it is best to let it harden on its own, because thats what it does actually, it doesnt dry...
wow you had a lot of work to do... 5 months is a good amount of time for them to finish the job, and althought it took them 4 weeks to get started on your car there may have been complications in getting trim peices and decals and new panels to replace the old ones, all these things can delay the process because they may not want to attempt any work unless they have all the materials.

 

I have used depont. If u just use the faster reducer and act for the clear. It will dry pretty fast on its own. To fast for me I did not like it.

 

I provided all the trim, decals, and badges. No body panels were replaced. Only had to weld in new pieces where the rust was in both doors. They had personnel issues. A high turnover rate to be exact. They would bring a car in for a new employee and he would quit. They went through about three or four people before they found some who would stay. Hence my opinion above about finding out how long they have worked there and if they like it there.

 

high turn over rate is pretty common in shops. good body men and women are hard to come by these days. However, the shop should be willing to stand up behind their work if they care about their customers and want to have a good reputation around town. If they are not willing to back up their work well good luck

 

ya its because there is no longer any real money to be had in this business now...

 

U got that right. Unless u are a owner. But techs pay has went down down. And they wonder y they can not find good techs anymore.

 

I agree about the pay and the owners making the money. The owners still charge $50-$75 per hour for labor but pay the techs a fraction of that. It usually causes the good techs to open their own shops.

Derek the Great - It was Dupont Chroma series. Good product from what I've read. I wanted Glasurit or Spies Hecker, but they were not familiar with it.

91bluemetalicRS - The lifetime warranty against fading, peeling and cracking is good. I'll find out at the end of the month how it goes. They are going to correct a few discrepancies I pointed out at delivery.

Mike

 

Only five months I have been waiting on my friend to finish my car its been almost two years. And I bought new GM fenders and bummper covers for it. He took the doors apart and the hatch and painted the eng compartment.