Painting recommendations
 

I have a '99 Boxster I just bought, and after looking around there's no way I can rescue the paint on it. So I need to repaint it.

What should a good paint job cost in Southern California for this car? I don't want to get ripped off. At the same time, I want a good job. I don't want the paint to start peeling a year later or anything.

And for extra bonus points, do you have a recommendation of a good paint shop in the general L.A./Inland Empire area? I live near the border of L.A. and San Bernardino counties.

Thanks for any advice you can give me. A woman taking a Porsche to a shop is prime hunting grounds for ripoff artists, and I want to avoid being taken advantage of. The more knowledge I have going in, the better.

A good paint job will cost more than your car is worth. You might want to try a Maaco paint job and then have someone do a correction on it.

Like this: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OPWhH8zPo-4

Good luck.

I had a Boxster that got the exterior repainted at $6800, including the prep work, that was done about 4 years ago in the Los Angeles area. It had a terribly faded exterior green color when I bought it. The trim pieces and body panels (clamshell, front and rear hoods, bumpers, doors) off the car when they were prepped and painted. It came out well and for a race car, I was really pleased with it. It's had its fair share of rock chips since then but it's held up really well. Below are a few photos.

Doing a quick search, I think these are also things worth reading. https://www.hemmings.com/stories/article/time-is-money

https://www.caranddriver.com/features/a27438340/cost-to-paint-car/


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Was quoted 6000 without prep work included at one place and 5500 at another without prep. Took it to TJ for 1200$ and couldn’t be happier. As other people mentioned, they are only painting the main visible parts but I’m good with that.

It does take a little bit longer but no complaints


https://imgur.com/gallery/rexAOrj


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I looked at the photos posted and have a couple quick questions. You went from silver to red and they painted everything (looks fantastic) including the underside of the hood and trunk, then what, you replaced the stock stickers under the truck lid?

Nope! I didn’t even ask and they took care of those parts. I’m pretty sure they only taped over it as they forgot to peel the sticker off the gas tank labels.

Also when I bought the car, all the plastic black trim were silver as well. They made it black without me asking which is what I wanted.

Plan to polish and ceramic coat this weekend.


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If you're painting it the same color, they should charge 25-30% less than Andy's since they wouldn't have to paint door jambs, under hood, etc that is required with a color change. Those are the items that take a lot of time (=$$$) to sand and prep for paint.

My knowledge of MAACO is OLLLD (like me), but based on what I know about them, I would stay away. I don't believe they do much prep work, so 2-3 yrs from now your nice paint will be flaking off. Speed work NEVER equals quality when it comes to body work / paint. Once again, MAACO may have changed but I would be very hesitant to have them do anything.

Not sure I'd recommend going to TJ by yourself or even at all. I'm sure they'd do a decent or good job, but you'd have bigger brass ones than me if you did. :eek:

it ain’t that bad! I don’t even speak or look Spanish. Had a wonderful meal 2 blocks away at Caesars, and walked back to the border through the main downtown street that’s lined with cops. Driving back with a red Porsche does stick out but there were a bunch of new fancy cars as well.

https://yelp.to/qTKq/MllV3ImVx8

I forgot to mention, if you pay them more they will take everything apart and paint every nook. Just not something I care for. There’s a place I was researching that has brought a bunch of cars to SEMA for their clients but that was way too far with similar prices.


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Yeah, even though I might get a great deal in Tijuana, as a woman I'm not comfortable with that adventure. Ima stick with the Mexicans here in L.A. :D

My mechanic is Mexican (or of Mexican heritage) and races Porsches in Mexico, including racing a Porsche in the grueling Baja 1000, and if he recommends someone he has a personal relationship I might take the chance. But otherwise, for a single woman such an adventure isn't worth the risk.

Maybe ask your mechanic if he knows of a good shop in TJ . Throw him $200.00 to be the middle man , assuming you trust him .

+1..


Perhaps offer your mechanic a bit more than $200 just for the pain that you have to endure getting back across the border..


As a 'certified beaner' I would acknowledge that TJ has great tacos and you can find awesome Tequila deals for brands that you cannot usually get in the USA, like the 3 liter '7 Leguas' for a bit over $100 :-)

PS: Sorry but I have to brag as '7 Leguas' is considered one of the best tequilas in México

All this talk of body work keeps reminding me of why I'm doing the paint/body myself. I mean $200 for being a middle man?!?! that's half of the money I have in paint alone. I know I won't have a SEMA ready paint job, but i'd say its a $1500-2000 job???


Paint and body is grueling, annoying, tedious, and slightly terrifying* work. So I guess that's why it comes with such an outrageous price tag.

* terrifying because if you do something wrong with the clear... you know you've gotta do it all again.

If you take the car to a good paint shop probably you`ll be charged for more than your car`s value, as pointed out above. And that`s not a rip off, that`s what it costs. But, perhaps you can find somebody on craigslist who can do it for a fraction of an official paint shop`s quote. A few years ago I had to have my motorbike repainted and went to a bike shop. They quoted me for $2500. Then I found this guy on Orange County CL who was working on cars and gave me o quote for $400. It was a bit sketchy, because I`ve never seen his shop, and he just disappeared with my vintage Honda parts worth way more than $500, but he probably didn`t know that. He eventually came back with the parts and he made a decent job. I know it`s risky, but maybe a bit less risky than taking the car to Tijuana...

I'm repainting mine right now. Almost done as i'm doing it panel by panel. I have $2000+ in high quality materials which included a few redo's and 3 coats of clear.

AzLvr...what brand of paint/clear are you using, I may have to do the same.?? Thanks frank

RM Diamont which is a sister to Glasurit and has very close color match at around $250qt. Clear is Tamco Euro high solids 2104 at $175 gal kit that you can buy direct, 3 coats. A lot of people luv Tamco.

EuroChem is a good starter paint. You can hammer on the clear and its really forgiving. Cheap too. A single car kit of HS paint is about $400. Which is pretty average.

BUT I feel like EuroChem is kind of a soft paint. It takes forever to fully cure IMPO.


I like the Limco finish I'm using on my box. I sprayed my RX7 with it and I can attest to the LC4000 limco clear being some tough stuff. I can almost hose my car off with gasoline. LOL Also about 4 years on that paint job and I've only really needed to buff it once.

Limco is a great DIY'er brand...decent quality.

I've used it many times - very reasonably priced. I just did my son's A4...front fenders, rear quarters, trunk, hood and front bumper cover. $400 in materials. BC/CC x3 each. Wet sanded and buffed. Brilliant black...such an awesome colour when shiny.

The major cost for a paint job is the labour to prep for paint.

Options:

If you ask around I'm sure you can find a painter who works for cash on the side and will produce a great result. Check with a custom shop who works on cool muscle cars...they'll know someone.

I've also seen Maaco jobs turn out decent, with a wet sand and buff. Remember, you can pre-sand your car for Maaco and ensure decent prep has been done, and remove parts for them. I assume if you're in the south there's no rust to repair, so a pretty easy prep job really. Don't be afraid to tackle it yourself.

By the way, just how bad is your paint? Clear faded/peeling clearcoat? You can fix that quite easily if so. There's 2K clear in rattle can that you can re-clear issues. Works like a charm...kind of like "cut in clear" used for touch ups by the pros.

Post up some pics.

Limco is also part of the BASF family only the next step below. Glasurit, RM, Limco, Norbin. Glasurit clear is about $750 a gallon kit but is good stuff, Tamco is a comparable product using fine German resins at a much lower price from a family owned company.

I might try Tamco next go round. How is the chemical resistance of their clear? That's all I really care about in a paint.


OP: What color are you painting your car? White?? or the dreaded black?? I wouldn't take my car to Maaco for a black paint job; white no problems (you can hide all kinds of mistakes in white finish).

Ocean Jade Metallic.

http://986forum.com/forums/uploads02...1596424649.jpg

Excellent they compare it to Glasurit only much cheaper. Lapis Blue, dark blue metallic.

Is that your car or a stock photo?

Why the re-spray? Have you tried calling a detailer?

There are quite a few mobile detailers around that will show up to your house and wash and buff your car with guaranteed results. Honestly they might be the ones to call to get advise on where to go get your car painted. I'm sure they refer people for paint all the time.

It's my car.

There is peeling clear coat (you can see two small areas of peeled clear coat on the lid for the convertible top in the photo), areas on the hood that are faded, and lots of chips and scratches. I might be able to get away with the horizontal surfaces (hood and trunk lid) painted and the rest detailed, if they can match or blend the color.

But I've already had detailers look at it, and everyone says it needs to be painted, unfortunately.

Any body dings or dents that you couldn't live with?

You might be able to get away with a Maaco job if you aren't apposed to doing some 320 or 500 grit sanding before you send it in. Take the headlighs, tail lights and intake scoops off too.


That's really simple work you can do with a Philips head screwdriver and some patience.

What kind of sanding is required? Just rough it up, or do I need to remove clear coat, or what? And does it matter if I'm doing it by hand, using an orbital sander, or a circular one? I don't have the faintest idea what to do, but I'll do the work if I can learn and it will save me buku bucks.

When I managed Porsche's new car fleet in 2003 they sent their cars to Class Auto Center in Long Beach right off 405 Cherry ave exit.

Great! Thank you. :)

https://www.harborfreight.com/9-in-x-11-in-wetdry-sanding-sheets-assortment-10-pk-63778.html

Get a box of 220 and a box of 500. That's the grit count (grains of sand per square inch I think).

If you have a garden hose that helps but a bucket of soapy water works too.


Using one of these is suggested, but depends on the contour of the piece you are working.

https://www.harborfreight.com/4-78-in-soft-rubber-sanding-block-69574.html?_br_psugg_q=sanding+block




Take all of these things, and start with the block and some 220. Dip the 220 in soapy water (or run the garden hose over the piece you are working). Work the sandpaper with the water running (the water flushes the paint so it doesn't clog the sandpaper).

Work the 220 until most of the big scratches and the clear is mostly gone. Don't work all the way to seems in the parts. Another words don't go to the edges where the doors are and where the trunks seal etc.


NOW give your car a good rinsing with clean water. Start with the 500. Do the same with the 500 grit paper as you did with the 220. Try to cross hatch it (do strokes perpendicular to each other). This step should take out most of the clear.


One thing you should NOT have when finished are areas that have flakes. If you have a flake under the base coat your base coat is probably gonna pull up. If you encounter stubborn areas you can sand in one direction away from the higher build area.








^^^^ BUT take all this as a grain of salt i'm only a hobbyist not a professional. Regardless this is what I'd do if I had about $1000 to spend on a paint job.

Thank you!

To supplement what Qingdao said (good advice), here's a good video showing the basics of wet-sanding.
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I have no expertise on the actual paint. But that OJM is rare and looks mighty sexy, wouldn't change it.

First, please verify what you're doing. Is your 986 originally Ocean Jade Metallic or are you changing the color to OJM? For some reason I have your car as red in my mind from when you were a member yrs ago. A color change from red to green is best left to the experts.

Second, my comments on the video... Use a sanding block as it keeps more sand paper on the surface of the car. Then do what I'll call cross-hatching motions - sand from 10 to 4 and 8 to 2 on a clock. Use long, sweeping motions. This keeps the sand paper on the contour of the body, with a 986 having a lot of contours. Going 9 to 3 will create flat spots or troughs.

Now for the tough part. To get a properly prepared surface, you'll need to sand it 4 times. Start with 220, next with 320, again with 400, and finally with a Scotch pad. Each time reduces the amount of scratches with the paint feeling almost "smooth" when the Scotch pad sanding is done. You could probably do the first 2 steps with a dual action sander but the last 2 would be best with sanding block for the 400 and by hand with the pad. When my dad and I were rebuilding wrecked cars in the 70s and early 80s, we didn't have dual action sanders so we did all 4 steps by hand. I haven't done body work since my dad passed away 34 yrs ago, but the basics haven't changed based on what I see on today's TV shows.

If you're changing colors, you'll need to remove all the parts that are attached (doors, hood, etc) so you can get paint on all painted surfaces. This means you'll also need to remove any attached parts too. LOTS of work. You won't have to sand these areas to perfection, but you'll have to rough it up enough so paint will stick.

I would assume a 20+ yr old car would have accumulated a few door dings over the yrs. You'll need to deal with them now, as you don't want to leave them and paint over them. This opens a whole new can of worms - body filler. That's a whole 'nuther set of YT videos.

I'm not trying to scare you out of doing it yourself. Just remember - the prep work is the foundation of a great paint job. It's easy to cut corners but the final result will magnify in a negative way any time "savings". It's not rocket science, it is very labor intensive, but it does require a bit of knowledge to get it right.

You must be thinking of someone else. I was not a member years ago. I've only recently joined since I bought this car in June.

Mrs. Peel's original paint color is Ocean Jade Metallic. That's what drew me to it. And I understand it's a rare color. So I'm not changing the color, I'm just restoring it.

You and others have convinced me that I don't want to tackle this as a DIY project, not even the prep. I'm just going to shell out the bucks to get it done right by a trustworthy painter. I'm not going to boat bed it.

What does that mean? Years ago I had a boat. That boat had a huge, irregularly shaped bed platform. I tried all sorts of things that were cheap solutions, including cutting my own foam, to put a "mattress" on that bed area. For three years I tried things and had three years of a crappy bed. Finally, I gave up and paid the bucks to had a custom mattress created, 6' wide at the top, curving to 9' wide at the bottom. It fit the space perfectly and I slept like a baby. From then on, when I consider cheapening out on a project to save a few bucks, I remember that I spent a lot more in the long run and had a miserable three years, and should have just sprung for getting it done right the first time.

No boat-betting for Mrs. Peel. I'm just gonna shuck out the big bucks necessary to restore her to her original glory.

My apologies. I have you confused with Porsche Chick who was a member several yrs ago. She had a red 986, then moved up to a red 987.2 and I think on to a 911 from there and stopped participating on this forum. It just made sense to me when you mentioned you found your original 986 that you were Porsche Chick.

So an exterior repaint will not cost you as much as a color change since you won't have to remove a bunch of panels and do a bunch of extra sanding / painting.

My first car was a 70 Mach 1 that was originally an olive green color (similar to Porsche's Peridot). I hated it and wanted to change the color. Dad was fine with that as long as I did all the extra sanding. Was a crap-load of addl work but was glad I did it. That was also the last color change I ever did (that was in 1976).

Before:
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We replaced the trunk lid, tail light, qtr corner piece and the bumper. Repaired everything else, including the qtr panel. This pic is when we got it done hrs before my JR prom. We didn't have time to put the Mach 1 decal on the back but it eventually got put on.
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I don't think she's looking for a concourse car. Just a simple re-spray on a $5000 car. No reason to shell out $3000 on a car worth just that.

FWIW I think a wee bit of wet sanding and a $1000 Maaco re-spray and the OP will be right as rain.

Ah, the wonderful energy of youth, eh husker?

Though I was much older than you when you did your work on the Mustang (hat's off to you, btw—a nice repair following a ton of elbow grease!), I was enough younger when I picked up the Boxster (2006) that I was constantly detailing her. Washing, claying, sometimes polishing, prewax prepping, sealing/waxing (sometimes BOTH), treating the vinyl back window, wheel care, etc etc. Would be nice to still have that energy! :)

I think maybe something in between Maaco and a Concours car. This 21-year old car is in great mechanical condition, with only 50,000 original miles on it. And as soon as I got it I replaced the clutch, the rear axle, convertible top, and a few other things because they had wear. My goal is to make it look and run brand new. It already runs like new.

Now I'm past repairs (for now) and the things I'm trying to fix are cosmetic, such as:

• Paint
• Restore worn leather seats
• Re-wrap steering wheel with leather threading the same color as the exterior paint
• Find or make floor mats with Boxster logo and piping the same color as the exterior paint
• When the tires are worn, replace wheels with 18" more aggressive wheels

Then make a couple basic improvements:

• Heavy duty brakes
• Change exhaust for tone and HP
• Short throw shifter
• Maybe upgrade headlamps

So, this is just part of a project. I'm going to be spending more than the car is worth, anyway, and I'm okay with that. I plan on keeping this car for a long time. And I'd like to be able to show it off now and then. :) I'm not going to pay $15,000 for new paint, but I'll pay $3,000-$4,000.

Base model?

I just got a set of LLOYD floor mats off ebay. They are REALLY nice little expensive but worth it. ($140)



IDK you've got nothing to loose if you attempt to block it down before paint. I mean they are gonna block it down if you go with a $4000 paint job. Try it out (worst case scenario you get a good arm workout) and post your results here and we can judge you.

If you want an inexpensive and quick repair, and it's just the clear coming off you can sand the top layers with 400 wet, then re-clear. No need to break through the basecoat into the primer layer and have to re-spray the entire panel. When sanding the clear it will be a white residue...if you see colour on the sandpaper, you're into the basecoat.

To re-clear you can get 2K clear coat in a rattle can - it has the activator in it, and the UV protection needed. Cans of the 2K clear are @ $35 each.

There's a ton of DIY clearcoat repair videos on YT if you want to tackle this project.

If you feel this above your skill level, a body shop can blow in your hood and top lid easy. They will be able to match the paint codes. Even a Maaco shop could do this for you.