I don't know what kind of deals everybody is getting, but am I weird to think that several months (let alone years) at a body shop is just a tad ridiculous?
I recently watched a friend go through that process with a local body shop and they had his '70 Camaro for 8 months... 'all they had to do' was weld on some quarters, line everything up, smooth, prime & paint. During that time, Gonzo kept giving them money (almost $6K, all said and done), and every time he went to the shop, they either hadn't done a thing, or had actually messed up the quarters, and cut out something that had been properly repaired (because they couldn't figure out how the quarters actually went on). The shop was raided by the cops and the owner found to be into drugs and other bad stuff... but Gonzo got his car back and won the court case.
On the other hand, another friend of mine took his '72 FB to a different shop, and had it back within a few weeks, for about half of what Gonzo paid. (I know where mine is going when it's time for paint).
I understand that some jobs take more time and money, and I understand that shops will cut a deal if timeliness isn't a factor. But damn - anything over 6 months just seems unacceptable to me (and that would be with lots of repair work involved). I can't see where my money would be any less valuable than a check cut by an insurance company. I get the whole "less work for more money" because insurance jobs are notoriously over-priced - that's totally out the window, because I would expect a body shop to know how much it'll cost to effect body work and paint my car before they get started. I can also understand some minor adjustment to the final price (no more than $1000 though) because of things encountered along the way.
I guess I'm just too impatient and less enthusiastic about having someone else do the work for me after all I've been through. Based on how bad off my car was from the start, if I'd had someone else do the work for me, I would be $40K into my project already or it would have a different VIN (as I'm sure nobody "professional" would've even touched mine, except to part it out).
Back on topic - I can't wait to see these cars come back from the body shop though... and I hope they're all worth the wait.
