What factors contribute to cost of the paint color?

Alright. I'm going to do it. Get my car painted finally. For those that know the condition of my 93, it isn't the prettiest.

I'm completely stripping it all down, including interior, but I am leaving the wiring inside, etc. I'm only painting the exterior, bay, and jambs, but I don't want any potential overspray to get on my interior parts. I will probably remove the brake lines and fuel lines to get the engine bay painted properly, but I am replacing them anyway. So if the painter can get around those without issues, I will probably leave it on.

I haven't talked to the guy, but a buddy recommends him, and i like his work. With minor body work, exterior paint and engin bay paint and jambs, he quoted about 1800 for an integra. Given more body work, I'm hoping to pay less than 2500. The car will be completely disassembled, fenders, hood, vents, whatever, all of it! So he will just need to prep and shoot.

So I guess onto my original topic...in choosing a paint color, what factors contribute to the cost of the paint? Metallic more expensive, certain colors more expensive, factory color vs custom, etc?

My car is black, oem single stage crap. I like black, but hate it. I'm looking for a charcoal-ish metallic color. Pretty much darker than "dark grey metallic" or whatever. I'm just curious what my options are to get the cost down on paint color, or so I don't scew myself into getting a paint color that is actually quite expensive.

Thanks guys!

Bryan

Find a friend that can get you the paint. I got lucky with my paint. My friend sourced me the 09 GT-R Red for cheap.

I just woke up, so I hope I remember this right. Red is the most expensive pigment. White tends to be one of the least expensive paints. Silvers tend to fall in the middle. One of the large factors of paint cost is brand. If you go with something like House of Color, it can be a couple hundred more for paint, but you also get a 5 year warranty on the paint itself. Other brands might cost less, but you can still find a good brand that has something like a 3 year warranty. Also remember clear coat can be part of the cost, when they charge you for paint. I would expect you to pay $300-500 for paint depending on these conditions. You may be able to get the paint yourself, but it can sometimes be good to let he painter to get it, because they tend to know what to look for and what to get. Painters can also sometimes get the paint cheaper, and if they are willing to work with you, they can pass that deal onto you.

Here is a good example. The first time I had my car painted silver, I used a $100 paint. I knew nothing of paint. Granted, my painter was also a jackass, the paint sucked. Six months later the paint was chipping off and fading and there really was nothing that I could do about it. This time I bought a good brand of paint. The paint was closer to $400, but it also has a three year warranty. While its not on yet, I have seen work by this painter that is over several years old and when taken care of the paint still looks brand new on these old cars. I really don't know paint brands too well, but luckily I have a very experienced painter, so he was able to make the selection for me.

I've been out of the paint world for so long that anything I used then will be obsolete now. You can check out this forum: http://www.autobody101.com/forums/ for more current discussions about all things autobody related.

I do agree with what Coldiron said though. Paint cost can vary widely for a lot of reasons and just because a paint may be expensive that doesn't mean it's the best. You may find a moderately priced paint that's just as good.

1) paint will not get in the interior if the door is masked off properly. Shouldn't be an issue just to leave the whole interior in there and get jambs done etc. Just need to remove some panelling like sill trim and other places to ensure paint reaches that far back so that when you cover it, it seems seamless.

2) if you prep as much yourself to cut down on work time like primer wet sanding, then it will save you money in the long run. Considering we took my friend Jonnos car in twice for primer sprays with wetsands in between, before the final colour spray, the paint came out very well as we went to 800grit instead of a standard 400grit that panelbeaters will go to.

3) the more additives like metallic flakes, the more it will cost. Also, if you damage the car, the more it will cost to get the paint to match with your "custom colour". I suggest looking at the colour charts/pallettes that the panel beater should have or be able to direct you to. No, there are none on the internet, and you really need to see the colours in the light. Stock colours are also cheaper than you fancy candies or custom flakes and are easier to fix when repairing.
And stock colours done right can come out very well, example:

12 year old paint/clear coat just cleaned - 2007


Same subaru colour code paint, just brand new, 1 month old, no buffing yet - 2009


The colour mixed up came out deeper and more purple than what the UV/sun faded paint was. Even though Jonno had issues with light reflection at shows (he got told it was the hardest car to photograph because it was so shiny lol) with the old paint, the new paint was mint!

There are many stock colourways to choose from with various metallics and gradients of colours between the different manufacturers. I suggest you start ringing around and asking to have a look. A friend Nick is using a mitsubishi red on his skyline if that is any indication.

Flat


cleared


time given for paint/clear to harden properly (and this was shot in Nick's garage - though his bro in law is a spray painter lol and shot the blue thing above)


Just of note, Jonno was going to go for either a Toyota magnetic grey or a lexus red. The Lexus red paint cost him a pretty penny to buy, but lets just say that he's glad he didn't go for the lexus red. No sprayer would gaurentee the shoot quality and we're talking shops that regularly shoot up show cars on the hot rod scene. And then this happened..







94 year old driving at night. Impacted on the corner of the car on the night we were towing the car over to my place to then go to the dyno place in the morning. Lets just say, Jonno was not a happy camper. Ripped off the lower side skirt piece, cracked the widebody in around 3 places and mashed the bumper.
Two panel shops have said that they can take on the job for the insurance claim but can't guarentee the final work will be up to what the original work was.

Stock colours done well should be sufficient for you

Hey thanks for the responses.

Yeah I planned to just browse through parking lots at dealerships to look for the color that i'll like. I'm just looking for something that looks good, but I'll be able to easily pick up a color for if my car has any accidents later, or need to respray a body part, etc.

I feel metallic doesn't quite go as well on our cars as just solid colors, but I will probably just go with metallic anyway. I'll have to talk with the painter and see what his opinions are for costs, etc.

Bryan

Certainaly brand and type of paint. You could pick up a cheap single mix acrylic and use that - what most back yard sprayers i've met use because law demands a special vented booth for 2 pak. Theres nothing wrong with it, but theres not much right with it either. 2 pak paint is best baked, unlike the heat lamps you can use for acrylic. The best brands like HoK are premium paints because they have a premium dense color pigment which makes all the difference. Just avoid fish eyes and orange peel. No matter what the paint type any flaws in the body prep or application will show themselves pretty quickly. One of my car buying rules is never buy a repainted car, classic muscle excepted.