crazandy

What's a good paint/body shop in Northern VA? I have my car stripped down completely, other than the front crest, side mirrors and door handles. I talked to wagon werks, the place the dealer recommended, and they wanted 5k. I then tried car craft collision and they wanted 4k. Is there any place that can do it for around 3k and have it look decent?

I don't want to spend almost what I paid for the car just to get it painted.

crazandy

Anybody in Northern VA?

BeerBurner

I stripped my 944 down and took it to *gasp!* the Maaco at Merrifield. (Everyone else wanted waaaay too much money!) I had the two stage paint done and some dents taken care of for $1.6k. All and all, they did a pretty good job, but there were some flaws in it. It could stand to be wet-sanded, too. However, the flaws that were there are easily worth the several thousand dollars I didn't spend because the car is a driver.

My only concerns were that it took the paint a while to cure (probably a fluke) and since it is pretty thin, it's easily chipped. But all in all, I'd probably do it again, if I didn't do it myself. <img border="0" title="" alt="[Wink]" src="wink.gif" /> It's a good "five-foot, five-mph" car.

Oh, and they body repair they did on my fender is ABSOLUTELY PERFECT, which makes me wonder if I should have thrown a little more money at them for the paint job...

The final product looks like this:

<img src="http://members.rennlist.com/bcbarrows/944_17.jpg" alt=" - " />
<img src="http://members.rennlist.com/bcbarrows/944_18.jpg" alt=" - " />
<img src="http://members.rennlist.com/bcbarrows/944_20.jpg" alt=" - " />

You're welcome to come on over and take a look. I'm about 30-45 minutes out of Alexandria.

BB.

crazandy

Can you give me your zip code, so I can judge about how far away you are. If you're within an hour or so away I'd like to come take a look.

Jamie944

Man, that is a pretty good job for that amount of money. I don't think I could beat that and I live in the cheapest part of the country. That's a smart investment. Like you said it's a driver. Why spends thousands on something that is going to get scratches and dings within weeks most likely. I just bought a 2003 model SUV and I hate it I am so picky with the paint. It's about to give me an ulser.

UDPride

I asked my local mechanic/body shop how much he'd ballpark for a repaint (same color) and he said between $2500-3000 to do it right, which meant they would disassemble all the panels, replace badges, stickers, stone guards etc. I think thats pretty reasonable for me not having to lift a finger and I trust their work. Thats my project for next year. I'll probasbly have him repolish/repaint the Fuchs while hes at it.

That giant sucking sound is not NAFTA, its more of my money down the toilet.

BeerBurner

crazandy: my zip code is 20165. I routinely drive from here to Alexandria, because I have family and friends out there. I'm down Rt.7, just past Herndon into Loudoun County.

Jamie: Thanks! And considering that it's already been tagged by a hit-n-run less than 10 months after I painted it, well, I guess that made it all worth my while...

BB.

BeerBurner

UNPride: When I was getting estimates, they all ranged from $5-8k for a good paint job. No, not a "great" one, but a "good" one. Yay Porsche mark-up!

I just couldn't justify spending that much on a car that might have been worth $6k at the time...

BB.

crazandy

According to mapquest you're only 31 miles away. Whens a good time this week for me to meet up with you? Maybe tomorrow or wednesday evening around 6?

BeerBurner

I probably won't be home until around seven tomorrow. In fact, that holds true for the rest of the week, too, unless it's raining (I'm working outdoors this week). Aside from that, my schedule is pretty open, so pick a day. I'll PM you my address and contact info, too.

BB.

crazandy

Alright, sounds good to me.

TimS

You can try Spectrum Auto Body on Four Mile Run in Shirlington. I think that they would be about 3K for an excellent full paint job. They do disassemble everything, and do excellent work. It is the only shop WagonWerks will recommend. I am not sure if the 3K inlcudes a new windshield (they often break), but I would add in another 3 or 4 hundred just to be safe.

zakk

BeerBurner: I live near that Maaco, and I've had bodywork done there (removing + repainting a pretty bad ice-caused dent in my A4) and they do pretty good work. They seem to be a nice hidden jewel (not anymore I guess!). They seem to have at least one guy there who's been doing this stuff for a long time and really knows what's up. I may have to consider a new paint job if they're that cheap

crazandy

I forgot to ask you the other night, is that factory color or is that one of maacos colors? I called earl scheib today just to see what they wanted and they said for factory color it would cost about 2k more (than the $600 paint job) just for the paint, instead of selecting one of their 40 or so colors. And if maaco is the same way I'll probably call Spectrum and see what their prices are, if they're not any better than Car Craft, I'll just take it there, since that is where my friend recommended I go, and he can tow me there for free. 3k + 1k in bodywork isn't all that bad I guess. I don't think the guy noticed that I had the car stripped down in the pictures that I showed him (he sort of took a 10 second glance at the front picture and said he can’t give me a good estimate without bringing the car in), so maybe it will be a little cheaper. At least I got a $900 check from the insurance company to fix the body damage.

coolhand

I'm going to school in Lynchburg this fall, is that anywhere near you guys? Know of any good mechanics in that area? Thanks