Thanks for your inputs guys. It's an interesting topic as you see the same thing wherever you go around the world. Basically, most share the same opinion and that is, repainting is not preferred. Heck..even an ordinary simple car takes a hit on value if it's repainted.

I personally believe that there are shops that can do truly epic work, comparable to factory stuff.

 

That makes sense.

Do you know if all OEMs have switched over to water based base coats?

 

I think Porsche does a great job with their paint my car with 150k looks brand new after a detail. My 2001 z06 when I got it still with factory paint, I did a cut and polish, my cousin who owns a car lot said it was repainted because it looked to smooth would never repaint unless I could just **** away 10k and really wanted a different color.

 

There are guys out there that can outpaint the manufacturers robots!
They are usually in the more expensive shops. If I were to do it, I would only take it to a shop that paints high end cars like Bently, Rolls Ferrari, Lambo etc. i would also seek to see if that shop is factory certified to work on the high end cars!

 

Another data point. I have used someone to do paint work on multiple cars (Porsche, Range Rover Mercedes). His typical question was "Do you want me to replicate the orange peel of the OEM paint or do you want it better?" The work performed by this guy is better than any paint job I've ever seen. Oh yeah he ain't cheap either.

 

There are I'm sure shops that can do epic painting but at epic prices.

Also, a high price is not a guarantee of the quality.

 

Speaking with some experience with my Boxster and my Turbo, both of which have had paint work necessitate by (thankfully) relatively minor accident damage, in some ways the body shop paint work is better than the factory.

I recall shortly after I finally got my Turbo back from the body/paint shop I was at a Porsche dealer and got to talking to a salesman who asked about my Turbo. I mentioned the Turbo had had some paint work and feeling pretty smug about the car's appearance I asked the salesman to spot the paint work.

In less time than I care to remember he correctly pointed out the panels that were new. I asked him how he knew? Lack of the orange peel that is typical with Porsche factor paint was his answer. He then told me he had spent years in the body/paint business and could spot a repainted car a mile away.

But except for the lack of peel the paint work was of good quality.

 

the manufacturers spend a lot of money on paint equipment. I believe all of the high end cars are wet sanded before leaving the factory nowadays.

 

I would more than gladly pay up for a top notch paintwork.

They do but they also do cheap work in some ways, for example clear coat. Factory cars tend to have a very thin layer of clear coat, some thinner than others.

 

One issue is most people can't tell the difference between a good and bad job. So it makes sense that most body shops do a bad job and fix it if the customer complains. In University I worked at a Mercedes body shop and they turned out lots of crap jobs. Most customers look at the car from 10 feet away and say it looks good and then pay and drive away. Occassionally the manager would tell everybody the owner of a particular car is very picky so we need to do a good job first time around and we would. Now whenever I take a car to body shop I ask them for a price, then I tell them I want it perfect and now is the time to raise your price if you need...they never do. When I pick it up it usually is perfect cause they know I am going to be picky. I never try to get a better price from them as that is an excuse to do a poor job.

 

You can pay for a top notch job but that is no guarantee you'll get it.

Trouble is it may be some time before you realize you didn't get the quality of the job you were led to believe you were getting.

For example:

A few years ago my Boxster was hit from behind while stopped at a light. Fortunately the impact speed wasn't that high maybe 5mph but when my car was hit it was pushed into the car ahead of mine. So the rear bumper cover and a tailight damaged from the initial impact were replaced and the front bumper cover and a headlight that popped out and hit the ground and broke which arose from the secondary impact were also replaced.

Both bumper covers were factory new parts and were painted by the shop doing the repairs. The work was done by a reputable shop.

Ok just recently noticed the clear coat on the front bumper cover is peeling. The untouched factory original clear coat on the front and rear trunk lids, fenders, doors and other body panels, and even the non-factory orignal clear coat on the rear bumper cover, is just fine. There is a bit of clear coat peeling on the tops of the outside mirrors. But the mirror clear coat is 15+ years old while the clear coat on the front bumper cover is just a few years old.

So my experience has been the factory clear cost is way better than that put on by a body/paint shop. Even one that is touted as being a good place to get good body/paint work done.

 

This thread is crazy! Aftermarket paint 99% of the time is nowhere near the quality of factory paint on a Porsche period. The chances of you getting a great factory quality re-paint if your not in the industry is almost zero.

-Your Pal
Fishey

 

@Fishey - i suggest you visit a shop that only does high end cars! I can guarantee their work can out due factory! I can say from first hand experience its all based on the shop and the cars they do! Period!

 

It's the other way around in IMO if you find a high end quality shop. Porsche factory paint jobs have lots of flaws, especially orange peel.

 

Good example, and unfortunately a bummer that it happens despite paying much. I guess it's like with detailing the car, depends on the person doing the job.


I do not agree on this, even though I am a believer that factory does a better job than most shops out there, but point of the thread is to discuss exactly that...is it doable? Can one better the factory?

I also see and have seen pics on Instagram from reputable detail guys posting pics on factory Porsche cars with horrible paint jobs. One guy was even told by a Porsche dealer to delete the pictures, and he did.