Jumping in on this one off topic from Maaco, but about repainting:

I got my 300E repainted over the summer. Half the car was covered by insurance and I fronted for the other half. Went to a local insurance-recommended body shop and they charged me $1400.So that would have been about a $2800 job.

The car is Black Pearl and looks almost brand new. The body shop advised to wait 6 weeks before any waxing, for the readons cited above. Apparently the paint solvent degasses for almost that long as it dries. I counted up and circled the day on the calendar, then used Zaino for the first time (why not start out right, plus I didn't have to remove any previous coating).

Car looks great, certainly better than at any time in the last three years or so. I'd do it again in a second....

Bob

Johnson Chan:

Rarely does it actaully occur if you've waited at least a week..so I don't think you have anything to worry about. Some of todays finishes are able to be waxed almost immediately and their solvents escape the paint very quickly, but those paints are the types to stay away from. They dry fast..and harden fast..which means that if you out too much weight in the hood..or in some cases even slam the door to hard, the paint could chip. I like to restore fiberglass sportfishing boats for fun, and painting is perhapes my favorite part of the hobby. I know that when using awlgrip..you should add just the minimal amount of hardener/catalyst, because a great deal of it will cause the solvents to escape the paint too fast.. and this causes a "brittle" finish. Take the car to a good body shop, and have them do a good, quality job. You'll spend extra, but it will be worth it. If you can't afford it now..wait a couple months, save up, and then do it. I woulden't do it this time of year (unless you live in a warm climate) anyway, as the weather is harsh and can easliy damage a new paint finish.

__________________
"Damn the torpedos, four bells full speed ahead"
-Admiral Farragut




-1987 300E Smoke Silver
-1997 S320 Black on Black
-Soon To be E55 AMG
-27 foot Grady White Offshore Sportfish.

Capt,

I just had it repainted about a couple months ago by the mercedes benz dealership. After my maaco lession, I learned where to take it, lol. I never had to have a car repainted before, so I saw those maaco commercials and ads, and was like, oh ok, they are nationwide and stuff, so they must do good work, boy was I wrong, from now on, I ONLY take it to the benz dealer. Money is no object, the quality of the work is much more important to me. We had a very bad hail storm in st.louis a few months ago, so a lot of cars, including mine, needed to have body work done of some sort.

Thanks for the advice and tips everyone. :-)

Well I'm glad that you took it to a Mercedes-Benz dealer. The body shop that does work for the local Mercedes dealer is near my home, and I frequently see many a Mercedes outside his shop. This guy does excellent work; he's German born nad speaks with a heavy accent, and a true perfectionist. As a matter of fact he also does work for the local Porsche, and Audi dealerships. You should see his shop; according to his employees he is fanatical about the paint enviroment, IT MUST BE CLEAN.

Do the job the right way the first time and it will co me out cheaper.

__________________
"Damn the torpedos, four bells full speed ahead"
-Admiral Farragut




-1987 300E Smoke Silver
-1997 S320 Black on Black
-Soon To be E55 AMG
-27 foot Grady White Offshore Sportfish.

I had a Cressida painted by Maaco during a February $ 399 special two and a half years ago. The work was excellent. The car is never garaged and cleans up beautifully. They had the car for five days three of which were to let it cure.
Most importantly I got the name of the Technician who did the work. If he is working at Bertoluccis (expensive) or Earl Scheibs that is where my cars will go.

__________________
Happy Benzing
Darryl, Hill
2005 SL55 AMG Kleemanized
1984 500 SEC
1967 W113 California Coupe
[SIGPIC]
https://picasaweb.google.com/lh/myphotos

I had mine done by an independent shop, a one-man outfit in a little industrial park. He was recommended by a neighbor who is a used car dealer.

It cost $1200 and I'm extremely happy with it. The price included removal of some rust spots, which entailed cutting out the infected metal and welding in new metal. He also pulled out and/or smoothed over some minor dents & dings. He said it's between 6 and 8 coats, including topcoats. It needs a color sand to eliminate a few dust flecks and some minor "orange peel" on the lower halves of the doors, after that it'll be perfect.

I removed ALL the trim myself - I mean everything, leaving only the door handles and the front/rear windscreens. That was tedious, but even more tedious is putting it back on because I wanted to thoroughly clean & restore or replace everything that I put back on.

- Nathan
'83 240D "Steiner"
'00 New Beetle TDI