How much does Mach 1 paint job cost?

[andy72]

I have spent the last 4 years going through a 72 Mach 1 I "accidentally" bought on Ebay.

It was a rusted cowl car. But it's loaded with options.  So...

Now the interior, engine compartment, trunk and suspension are done.

I know it's out of correct resto order, but I didn't know where this project would go 4 years ago when it started.

The car needs a nice paint job now to complete!

Anybody got any thoughts?  Anybody pay for a nice paint job recently? 5k? 6k? gulp, more? 7k?

A Mach 1 is obviously not a Normal paint job.  Especially the hood, using the stencil for the silver argent section, and all that.

I imagine it is going to be hard to locate a shop that has any experience in doing Mach 1's?

 

[Carolina_Mountain_Mustangs]

One of the members in Michigan just did a Mach 1 that he crashed do a search it was yellow. 

I can tell you this if you do a ground up restore just the materials to paint and repair one car is around $3,500 just for materials. I have a friend that does really high end restorations and that was his price for just materials. The last car he did was $135,000 and would sell for around $80,000 on a good day. Was perfect in every way but at $500 a day for labor it mounts up in a hurry. He did a 6 cylinder 65 mustang for an original owner and it was $85,000. You get what you pay for. The car the member got done did look great just the hood black was off some. 

BTW the templates are wrong as far as we know right now. 

If you got with a time and materials can get pricey so get a firm quote. A good body man can feel of a car and know how much work to get it straight. They were not straight new. I have a couple originals to show the sorry fit and finish.

 

[turtle5353]

The last car I painted was around $4500 just for materials. But I used good materials.... all PPG.

https://www.7173mustangs.com/thread-new-project-for-this-winter-71-mach-1

 

[Hemikiller]

Price range would be $99.95 to $30k.

All depends on the condition of your car and your expectations, what paint type is used, what shops get in your area and the willingness of a shop to deal with a restoration paint job and the owner.

One phrase you never tell a body shop - "I'm not in a rush, take your time" . If you tell them that, it'll turn into back burner hell and you'll probably have to sue the shop to get it back. You are a paying customer, your money is as green as anyone else's, so you need to be clear that you expect that car back in a reasonable time frame.

If you expect the hood to be painted, supply them with the stencil and EXACT measurements from the front of the hood molding and sides of the hood. Specify the sheen of the paint - do you want a gloss hood paint or the factory matte finish? Print out pictures of the door jambs and rockers so they can paint the lower body color like the factory.

Write up what you expect to be done to the car and let the shop quote off that after looking at your car. Do you expect the inner door shell and jambs to be painted. The underside of the hood and trunk lid? Should all the latches and hardware be removed, or are you okay with them masking those parts off? Who will put the car back together, other than the parts painted on the car, such as bumpers, trim etc. All of that will affect your quote. Leave nothing to chance and assume the shop will screw up or screw you any chance they get. When I had my car painted, it went as a running, driving shell. The painter jambed the body and assembled the car and set the gaps. I supplied him with a notebook full of pictures and information to paint it correctly. He still managed to screw up a couple things, which made it obvious he didn't really read my documentation.

 

[Kilgon]

I agree with Hemikiller on getting things in writing and be specific on what is to be done.   As with anything , prices are going to vary by the area you live in and the amount of work needed. Shops that charge by the hour are more than likely going to cost you more than those that give a fixed price. I currently have mine in being painted now. 

I had strip the car to bare metal and delivered to them in pieces.  They are doing the needed body work and painting the car to the instruction and pictures I provided.  They painted the jams and inside of the hood and trunk lid.  They have reassemble and aligned the body panels and currently are block sanding getting ready for final paint. 

The car will be returned as seen in the bottom picture painted with me still assembling a lot of the painted parts - quarter panel extensions - hood scopes - parking light trim etc.   I was able to get a fixed price due to the work I had done and they could see the amount of body work needed. 

Total cost $5,500.  Using PPG 2296 and sems hot rod black.

 

[6972boss]

I agree with Hemikiller on getting things in writing and be specific on what is to be done.   As with anything , prices are going to vary by the area you live in and the amount of work needed.  Shops that charge by the hour are more than likely going to cost you more than those that give a fixed price.  I currently have mine in being painted now. 

I had strip the car to bare metal and delivered to them in pieces.  They are doing the needed body work and painting the car to the instruction and pictures I provided.  They painted the jams and inside of the hood and trunk lid.  They have reassemble and aligned the body panels and currently are block sanding getting ready for final paint. 

The car will be returned as seen in the bottom picture painted with me still assembling a lot of the painted parts - quarter panel extensions - hood scopes - parking light trim etc.   I was able to get a fixed price due to the work I had done and they could see the amount of body work needed.   

Total cost $5,500.  Using PPG 2296 and sems hot rod black.

 

[6972boss]

$5500 for a complete is a bargain! Materials alone for that kind of work is $2500 alone. No way i am painting your whole car for $2500! If you have someone who is willing to do that work for that then i say go for it!! My paint jobs start at $8500. Find someone who can do a show finish for that and i will call you a liar?

 

[turtle5353]

$5500 for a complete is a bargain! Materials alone for that kind of work is $2500 alone. No way i am painting your whole car for $2500! If you have someone who is willing to do that work for that then i say go for it!! My paint jobs start at $8500. Find someone who can do a show finish for that and i will call you a liar?

I completely agree!! $5500 is a steal these days.

 

[delawarebill]

i didn't paint my car.. got it painted.. but with looking at it i can tell the car was disassembled ... hood, doors, trunk, fenders and painted separately. u living in calif i feel the price goes up.. to repaint mine in delaware i say $8k plus.

 

[jeremycfr]

Not including sheet metal, mine clocked in at 7k and this was 5 years ago. Based on other quotes, this was in the middle to low range of shops who could do a decent job.

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[kcmash]

My project total was $13K from the bodyman.  But that included:

1) Transport of the body and chemical strip of all sheet metal

2) A tug on the frame machine to get her straight

3) All Fender apron and shock tower repairs/replacement

4) Core support and primary crossmember replacement

5) All bodywork on doors/ fenders, rear 1/4 lower replacement

6) Epoxy primer coat of the whole car

7) Purchase and application of PPG grabber blue and argent paints, including ram-air hood pattern

8) Delivery of the painted body for me to screw up in re-assembly.

kcmash

That was completer in 2008.

 

[jpaz]

One of the members in Michigan just did a Mach 1 that he crashed do a search it was yellow. 

I can tell you this if you do a ground up restore just the materials to paint and repair one car is around $3,500 just for materials. I have a friend that does really high end restorations and that was his price for just materials. The last car he did was $135,000 and would sell for around $80,000 on a good day. Was perfect in every way but at $500 a day for labor it mounts up in a hurry. He did a 6 cylinder 65 mustang for an original owner and it was $85,000. You get what you pay for. The car the member got done did look great just the hood black was off some. 

BTW the templates are wrong as far as we know right now. 

If you got with a time and materials can get pricey so get a firm quote. A good body man can feel of a car and know how much work to get it straight. They were not straight new. I have a couple originals to show the sorry fit and finish.

That was me David, but I didn’t have the whole car painted. I do know that the paint they used used was 800 bucks a gallon. May have been bs but they told me that yellow is one of the most expensive colors to use. I also know that they only charged me 65 an hour shop rate though. Plus some of the paint work covered by insurance and some was not. I had them match the lower blackout, deck spoiler and my louvers to the new paint on the hood. It was all gloss black, including the stripes so I had it all changed to semi flat.

 

[keiths71]

If possible go to car shows or cruise nights and talk to people. Then interview shops. GET references. GET a written estimate and contract. The last thing you want is your car held hostage sitting around in bare metal if you are going that far. Also work the payment  schedule so you can take the car if you are unhappy with the way things are going. I was a tech/ sales rep. for an auto body supply company for 20 years. There are good guys and there are corner cutting hacks out there. Do your research it's worth paying more compared to having paint or body work failures down the road. If someone takes a quick look at your car and throws out a price you may want to move on to the next guy. Try to get a feeling that the people that do it look like they will stay in business for for some years to come. Good luck and hopefully you will get what you pay for.

 

[Stanglover]

If possible go to car shows or cruise nights and talk to people. Then interview shops. GET references. GET a written estimate and contract. The last thing you want is your car held hostage sitting around in bare metal if you are going that far. Also work the payment  schedule so you can take the car if you are unhappy with the way things are going. I was a tech/ sales rep. for an auto body supply company for 20 years. There are good guys and there are corner cutting hacks out there. Do your research it's worth paying more compared to having paint or body work failures down the road. If someone takes a quick look at your car and throws out a price you may want to move on to the next guy. Try to get a feeling that the people that do it look like they will stay in business for for some years to come. Good luck and hopefully you will get what you pay for.

 I'm no expert, but that seems like solid advice from someone who knows the business.

How much is a paint job is like asking how long is a piece of string? It depends on who's cutting the string! (or corners)

Geoff.

 

[andy72]

Thank you to all who replied!

I guess all the answers and comments were pretty much as expected.

I know it was a dream, but I was hoping some member of the website would be here in the bay area, CA, know someone and hook me up with a Mustang lover who appreciates these cars and wants to help a fellow Mustang lover get a decent job done without spending 10K.

Some of the prices mentioned are of course for show car level which I'm not interested in.  I just want a good spray that does the car worthy.

6972 Boss mentioned his paint jobs start at 8,500. That I can understand.

I'm at about 21k into the car and with a decent spray I figure it's a 30k car.

Also appreciate the comments about timeline.  I don't want to wait a year!

Funny all these shows on TV can dedicate themselves to a car and do it in a week or 2.  (I know, it's TV)

My shop (occupation) charges $125 an hour for labor, so I get that too.

All the shops around the bay area use cheap labor from south of the border. I'm not paying hourly labor.

As David has said many times, these cars were slapped together pretty hasty, poor fit and finish off the line.

I'm good with it just looking "factory".  I don't need color sanding, block sanding, clear coats, ect..

I just want an intact paint job.

I guess I've got a search ahead of me!

 

[keiths71]

You could try stopping in your local auto paint stores and ask them. Chances are there are some good 1or 2 man independents. That could do a good job at a reasonable price. They should know who they are.

 

[Kilgon]

As most of the replies pointed out it is going to vary widely depending on what you are wanting and where you live. I was wanting a good quality job for a nice driver - cruise in car. I spoke to 5 local shops and they were all over the place on price. Found one that was willing to work with me.

As I mentioned in my earlier reply: I chemically stripped the car. I disassemble and delivered to them. There was very minimal body work. All panels were drill with alignment holes for easy reassembly - all lines were already good. I do the bulk of the reassembly short of the doors, hood, fenders and trunk. I provide hood stencil along with pictures. I know a couple of comments were made on the current price I'm getting for $5500 as being a steal but I have taken a great chunk of the labor out of the cost of it by the work I did and am going to do.

I think if you are willing to do some of the labor as I did you should be able to find someone willing to work with you and save some money.

 

[Carolina_Mountain_Mustangs]

The actual spraying of the color is just maybe an couple hours of time. It is all the prep that eats up the budget. My X crashed a 1984 20th. Anniversary mustang. Had to cut from shock towers forward off and replace. Fenders, hood, nose all new. I did in the driveway at home and took to a body shop and paid them to shoot only the color. I paid for 2 hours in the booth that was all. I did all the prime and sand in the driveway. He wanted to hire me because I did better than his guys did. You can do lots of the work yourself if you get the info on how to use what. I not correct the paint will not stick and will peel. Today is much worse than in the 80's. Was easy then.

 

[mach71351c]

With help from a good friend and my brother both life long bodymen 7k. 3500 in materials. 400hrs. My brother said for this level of job would have been around 18k here in San Diego.