painting my 88 300e

[blueranger]

well, i would like to have my 300e 1988 painted my friend just spent
2000 in body work and 2500 to paint... well i about fell over...

now another fellow told me i must take it down to bare metal and i have to
use a chemical stripper because the mercedes paint will not act as a base paint.... is there any truth to this.... and does anyone know how to get a good paint job at a reasonable price.

[deanyel]

No truth to that whatsoever. Stripping to bare metal is just plain silly if the paint is adhering. Get some estimates. There's no free lunch but you can save some money by doing prep work yourself.

[blueranger]

thats good to know... i would have thought you could paint over mb paint.

what do you think i should pay...

[G-Benz]

Taking the body down to bare metal is the "correct" way to prep a vehicle if you a purist or a world-class restorer of classic vehicles.

A driver car doesn't need that kind of work. It is time-consuming and expensive, especially if you've farmed this out to someone else.

From what I've read, the typical cost for a decent (Mercedes-quality) paint job is around $5K. You can get cheaper, if you do some of the prep work yourself, but ordinarily, a cheap paint job will yield poor results...

[lee polowczuk]

I may get flamed for this ....but why would you want to do anything more than a decent re-spray on your 88 300e....

Some time in the future, I may take off the bumpers of my son's 300e, the trim along the doors and the headlights and grill.... then wet sand it down real good and take out the little dings. Figure two people x 8 hours max.


Prior to doing this check out some private paint shops and pick out the best one and give them 500 for the spray...and I provide the best paint they are capable of working with. Oh...i would also take off the taillights and turn signals when I got there... 10 minute job. I might even help them mask it (probably in my best interest)

Why would you put an expensive paint job on a 3,000 dollar car?

just my .02.

[divino2much]

if you car does not need any bodywork and the paint job would be in the same color just sand it (sand paper 1500 will be fine) and repaint the car.

I have done it in several of my MBz's

[lnkprksoldier]

where do you live? i know a place to get great paint, total amount will be cheaper than with your friend, and the paint job is incredible. but it takes about a week

[divino2much]

Originally Posted by lee polowczuk

I may get flamed for this ....but why would you want to do anything more than a decent re-spray on your 88 300e....

Some time in the future, I may take off the bumpers of my son's 300e, the trim along the doors and the headlights and grill.... then wet sand it down real good and take out the little dings. Figure two people x 8 hours max.


Prior to doing this check out some private paint shops and pick out the best one and give them 500 for the spray...and I provide the best paint they are capable of working with. Oh...i would also take off the taillights and turn signals when I got there... 10 minute job. I might even help them mask it (probably in my best interest)

Why would you put an expensive paint job on a 3,000 dollar car?

just my .02.

good suggestion

[blueranger]

1. I live in louisville kentucky,

2. I will try to talk my daughter into the same color paint..?

3. you guys are definately getting old did you not see pimp my ride where they put an 8k paint job on a 100 dollar amc pacer....this generation nevers says why put an 8k paint job on a 3k car... this generation says a kia cost 12k and i only have 8k in my car and its a lot more fun....


Perhaps I can get her to go the same color... she wants to go black and right now it is a blue or gray blue or gray i cant really tell.....


thanks for the advise....

[divino2much]

Originally Posted by blueranger

1. I live in louisville kentucky,

2. I will try to talk my daughter into the same color paint..?

3. you guys are definately getting old did you not see pimp my ride where they put an 8k paint job on a 100 dollar amc pacer....this generation nevers says why put an 8k paint job on a 3k car... this generation says a kia cost 12k and i only have 8k in my car and its a lot more fun....


Perhaps I can get her to go the same color... she wants to go black and right now it is a blue or gray blue or gray i cant really tell.....


thanks for the advise....

why you almost fell over when your friend spent $4500 for a complete paint job?


you ask for a suggestion and we are trying to give you the best and cheaper one.

[G-Benz]

It's no different than spending $2500 for top end work, or $1800 for A/C overhaul. Based on the car's value, yeah, it may not be worth it.

If you plan to keep it, then it's justified...illogical, but justified. I'm in that situation with a couple of my vehicles....far more invested than they're worth.

Consider this despite the rants regarding the car's worth...if it get's t-boned tomorrow, do you think the insurance company will award you damages including reimbursement for the expensive paint job?

[lnkprksoldier]

Originally Posted by blueranger

3. you guys are definately getting old did you not see pimp my ride where they put an 8k paint job on a 100 dollar amc pacer....this generation nevers says why put an 8k paint job on a 3k car... this generation says a kia cost 12k and i only have 8k in my car and its a lot more fun....

here close around so cal i know where to get a 5000 paint job for 1200. including sanding, taping and everything. they have done porches, benzes, bimmers and tons more with outstanding results. 4 coats of clear and 4 coats of color. i say its a good deal... oh and quality paint.

[Hatterasguy]

When I get my car done I will strip all of the exterior trim off my self and do a lot of prep, like sanding. This way all the body shop has to do is fix the dents and finish the prep.

This way hopefully I will be able to pay them to do a better prep and spraying job. My $3k will go further.

[mbzjag8090]

As a part-time Louisvillian myself I would recommend:

Saint Matthews Imports

Parson's Body Shop

They have done work on previous vehicles and their work was good. St. Matthews, being a larger scale operation, will probably cost more.

Good luck.