auto body cost question

What "ballpark" am I looking at?

What if I tore the car down to bare shell, and take it to a quality auto body shop to have the paint stripped, usual rust in quarters and windshield pillars cut out/ replaced, then primed? The trunk, rails, and floorpans are perfect.

I know there are SO MANY variables here, but any ideas of what I am looking at here?

I know a lot of you guys here have had that done, which is why I am asking here.

Thanks in advance.

Eightlitermopar

A-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha !!!

A couple of weeks ago I had a bodyman come and look at my '69 RR to give me a "ballpark" quote. Basically the same stuff as you and finish in orange. This is body only - no final assembly ... $50,000 !!!!

It was hard to keep a straight face.

The question I have for you is why you're even asking such a ridiculous question on here. There are SO many variables and not one person able to see your car you can't possibly hope to get an answer to this here. You have to start calling local guys and having them look at the project.

The "ballpark" is what your willing to spend, and the quality level you expect to achieve based on your budget, you'll find shops that will do it for several thousand dollars, and you'll find shops that will quote you into 5 figures easily, of course everyone wants the cheapest price along with the highest quality...ain't gonna happen, plus prices vary across the country, so it depends where the car is/or going for it's work


In the end, whatever quote you get, double it, so that your prepared for any price increase, because it will happen...

I've seen these guys advertise, but I don't know of anyone who has done it:

U.S. Car Tool

Sounds like a bargain, compared to $50,000!!

This is what I started with last year and where it is now. PM me if you would like details. I hired all the work out.

Because I have never done this before. I don't know what to prepare myself for. I know it does need to be done, but I don't know where to start. I figured my fellow mopar guys who have been down that road may be able to give me some direction.

The $50,000 dollar quote on your ride gives me an idea of what I might expect while I am getting bids.

I suggest anyone thinking about US Car Tool looking into their rep.

You can start here

https://board.moparts.org/ubbthreads/ubbthreads.php/topics/1525193/u-s-car-tool-scam.html

I saw this ad several years ago and was quite skeptical. Turns out, there have been many reasons to be skeptical! Thanks for the reminder for anyone considering this company for their body work.

eightlitermopar

Let's be very clear that based on what I told the guy I wanted to end up with, $50,000 was absolutely ludicrous! I want to end up with a nice "driver", I have all the sheet metal, I would have the body blasted at my separate expense. There was no way he could justify the cost based on the turnaround time he gave me.

Primed and not painted? Did I read that right?

Car on a rotisserie and cleaned up underneath too?

I stripped my dart of everything including all the paint so the body shop guys could see what they are dealing with. Anything not wearing the original paint and they will pad their number to help cover the unseen/unknown. Strip the paint off yourself to save $$$ if you have to. I did because my car was on a waiting list to get in + I had nothing better to do.

Blocking and fitting panels seems simple enough, but it takes time to do this stuff right, and this is what sets an ok paint job from a really great paint job. Figure $1,000+/- to complete a lap of block sanding.

Also, I would stay clear of regular collision repair shops if you want proper old school hammer and dolly work, welding, etc. Around here the generic body shops beat the panels to the rough shape and then cover everything with filler and sand it all down again. They save time fixing the dents by covering up so-so metal work only to loose time sanding the filler to the right shape.

Most restoration shops here in NE Ohio charge $65 to $100 per hour. Most will also want paid weekly for the hours they have in. Most will want the car together to make sure everything fits. The more you can do the more you save. My 68 GTX was taken to the shop first and after they were satisfied with fit of panels bumpers glass ect. They gave it back to me and we tore it down to a piece of metal. It comes down to what level you want to take the car to and how much you can do on your own. Its not cheap to have someone restore a car for you. If you have a shop replace panels you will be in 20 to 30k range easily.:(

Time and material. Most good shops won't do a ballpark. No telling what secrets are hidden a body.

Hmmm..., thanks for the input.

It is a driver 1971 roadrunner. The paint is starting to have hairline cracks on the roof, which is why I want to strip it to metal so nothing gets left underneath.

My quarters and wheel well lip has some rust starting to come through. It will most likely be a panel replacement (Full or parital I don't know until I get it uncovered).

I have never welded quarters in before and I don't want to risk messing it up, but stripping the body down myself is fine. I have more time than money. LOL.

A friend of mine has done 5 or 6 ground up cars the last 10 years.
He takes them down to a shell puts them on his rotisserie and takes them to a shop for body and paint work only.
He gets everything else ready for reassembly while the body is gone.
Everyone of his cars gets the bottom painted.
All of the sheet metal installed and aligned.
On the low side he has spent $8000 on a car that needed no panel replacement to $30000 for one that needed extensive repair.
This Road Runner was on the low side, a rust free California car.

$8,000 - $12,000 depending on the metalwork needed and the shop you go to.

It will be high. Most body shops won't even want to touch it, their bread and butter is insurance jobs. Let's face it, us car guys are picky nazis when it comes to our cars and I've never seen a paint job I've been entirely satisfied with. I was at the chevy dealer picking up some parts for work and I was dismayed at how orange peeley the paint on the new corvette in the showroom was.

Do you just want the car covered in epoxy primer so it doesn't rust and sent back to you or are they finishing the primer? To get a nice finish, the shop will apply multiple layers of high build primer, block sanding between each layer. This gives a smooth finish that fills minor imperfections. This adds lots of labor. Add to that your rust repair. Is the inside and underside getting done by the body shop as well or just the outside?

Epoxy primer only, I can finish it. Of course, this may be one of those unseen variables. The underside looks pretty clean. As long as it does not have metal that needs to be replaced underneath, I could sand and paint it myself. The main thing is removing and replacing rusty panels, as well as some possible repair to the windshield "a" pillar.

Who and how is cleaning the underside prior to primer? No body shop is going to want to hose on some primer without the bottom being cleaned and prepped.

MCR quoted me $15K just to paint a perfect body on a buddies black hemi runner. No bodywork; just paint.

That's a fair price believe it or not for a PROFESSIONAL paint job done correctly on a Mopar

I doubt MCR will just lay paint on a body, I bet part of that quote was to go over the body and fine tune it before painting.

IMO, figure in the 15k to 20K range.
If it has rust , expect that to increase and I guarantee more will show up once its blasted. Doing a 68 charger now, and practically every panel on it needed work once it was blasted clean . Its almost ready for paint now, and its rapidly approaching $30K just in body and paint ( this includes labor and materials )

Maybe you misread that ... that's 15 THOUSAND dollars - just for paint.

Let's just say 5,000 is for materials (just paint), at an exorbitant rate of $100 per hour that's 100 hours JUST TO PAINT - no bodywork. Are you kidding us !!!!

I spent 22K on everything, small patches in the quarters, part of a floor pan, trunk pan, rear valence, sail panels repaired, on a rotisserie, US car tool reinforcements, stitch welded all over, 3500 was just 5 star paint, PPG clear and DP primer...so I bought quality materials. Just needs a good wet sand to polish it up. This was a guy in his garage. Did excellent body work, sucked spraying the clear though. Tim

If this is a 71 RR where are you getting the parts? I thought quarters and other sheetmetal was hard to come by.

Assuming you need both quarters "Fixed" and the A frame I'd say you have 6 days right there, best case.

You'll have three days for minor body and two days to roughly block it out

That's 11 days or 88 hours so $8800.

There will be $2000 in materials.

That's you supplying all the parts and getting a car in primer that will still need final blocking, sealer and paint.

And it's probably best case - $10800

Maybe for that kind of CASH I ought to sell off all my Carpenter tools and get the 263 piece Harbor Freight Auto Body and Paint Kit with the instructional DVD, $19.99.

The only place I am aware to get quarters is auto metal direct. If needed, this is where I would most likely get my metal. I have seen (as I am sure many of us have) many projects that have been started, stripped and abandoned because the cost was too much. I just don't want to jump in and end up with a car that is useless. Right now it drives and looks good from 25 feet. Thanks for the info guys, this is good information to consider.

Minimum. More if the guy is blasting and priming the undercarriage, inside floor pans, truck, engine bay, etc.

You might want to check these guys out. They don't do blasting and they don't do paint but I don't think you'll find a better, less expensive shop to do panel replacement properly.

http://www.amdinstallation.com/

I can spend $3000+ easily on paint products as I won't prime and paint with junk or cheap crap, and 100 hrs can easily be spent blocking a car prior to paint,plus jambing, underchassis prep/paint, interior, trunk, etc, as well as actually painting the car, plus color sanding, buffing/polishing, etc

Plus a shop wants a "cushion" on the costs when/if something goes wrong during the paint process, as product/time to repair/redo something can eat into any profit quickly, a quality resto shop is going to have a paint/bodywork rate at $85-$100 per hr

Something that's always intrigued me is guys will spend thousands on an engine which an engine build is not that labor intensive. On the other hand those same guys will baulk and squeal when they see body and paint work costs. You get what you pay for. I've hung quarters and block sanded panels until the tips of my fingers bled and I'm a hobbiest. No matter how ya cut it, it's really hard work.

It can be an expensive hobby and a car owner really needs to research exactly what it takes to get their car to a standard in which they can live with.

I always tell the one's that complain constantly about what it costs to do a car. If you don't like spending the money then maybe take up knitting.

Your reply breaks it down correctly in my opinion. If it was mine I would not send it to a shop that would do it as " fill-in" work, you may grow tired of the project before you ever see it again.

My RT needed both quarters patched with front, rear, and lip panels, outer wheelhouse and drop fab, a door jamb cut out due to a hit, a few super small spots welded, etc. without pulling engine and doing under hood it was over 300 hours at 45/hr. Self employed body guy whose car won 67 b body atCarlisle several years back. This included trunk, paint, cut, buff. He is inHarpers Ferry WV if you are interested. Pay as you go.

Yep, you missed the point ... "quoted me $15K just to paint a perfect body". Note the "perfect body" part !!!

Nope didn't miss the "point", I've quoted $10-$15K "just" to paint "perfect bodies" (which really are never that perfect, only in the owners mind, esp when they want a black paint job)

I'll assume your talking, prime, and blocking? I can spend $800-$1200 just on primer, and an easy 60-100 hrs blocking the car and components in primer, as far as the cost of paint, sky's the limit, depends on brand, how many stages, and quantity required for the job, I can expend up to 400 hrs into a finished paint job, if the vehicle is going to be painted top to bottom, inside/out, along with additional components that need to be painted off the vehicle, scoops/flares/spoilers/etc/etc, color sanding would consists of taking to car from 800 to 1000, to 1500, to 2000, to 2500, all the way up to 3000 (that's 6 times minimum around the vehicle color sanding) grit paper finish, most shops will cut the car with 600/800, then compound the piss out of it, then polish, only to have it re-orange peel a month or 2 down the road as the paint gases out, you get what you pay for, FYI...I know a few high end painters that get $30K minimum, "just for paint"

If you don't prep or paint, (which most don't) then you have no clue what your asking of a bodyman/painter when you outline the desired requirements for the vehicles finish

But I watched Chip Foose do it in a week......

400 hours into a paint job ... talk about monotonous work! No wonder most painters are alcoholics!

I am by no stretch a professional but I do my own paint and body work. I have gotten pretty good at it over the last 30 years. Even a relatively straight car has issues that must be sanded and worked to make perfect. If not you will have wavy panels. This is especially true if the car has been sandblasted. If you do it right that can quickly add up to hundreds of hours. Then you have to do work to prep the car to paint, paint, clear, cut and buff... That's a lot of time. Not to mention paint and supplies aren't cheap. I don't paint for other people but if I did I would easily charge 10K to paint a straight car. It's brutal, tedious work if you want it to look good. If you want a quick spray go to Maaco but don't expect much. You get what you pay for.

Sorry no alcoholic here, just a dedicated, and meticulous individual...here's approx 30 hrs a week (actual work hrs), for 3 months straight just for paint, from epoxy coat, to prime/blocking, to paint, color sand (3000 grit finish) to polish...do the math, it adds up quickly

Mike

Take it to Canada to get painted, with the exchange rate a $ 15000 paint job will cost you $ 11500 US

The problem is getting the correct paint into Canada.

Plus you will lose that delta on all the money you blow on Molson while you are there.

After painting I spent 70 hours sanding to 3000 grit, 3 pad buffing/polishing, and clean up on a 69 GTX! But it is nicer than 99.9%.

Gawed!!!
That is one Be-You-Tee-Full paint job.
Would LOVE to see an example of that kind of work in...
Medium Blue metallic.

I assume this was a sarcastic comment, but I still must reply to it because I hear this a LOT.

yes he CAN do it in a week.

but there are a few things you don't see.
first there are probably at least 5 guys working 12 hour days doing the job. that's 60 hours used in 1 day. multiply that by 5 days that's 300 hours in 1 week. yes it was done in 1 week but a months worth of labor was used.

second his top of the line paint jobs aren't done in 1 week. primers and top coats need time to properly cure. I don't care how much you heat them to cure the primer, and use special short wave lamps to speed cure. it takes time to properly cure primer and top coats until it fully shrinks and fully gasses out. also even the really high solids primers still have solvents in them. I use the newest PPG high solids urethane primer. it cures quickly but I have seen jobs months later and they still soak down and shrink. not as bad as the older stuff but it still shrinks.
I also use water based speed primer. it's not as fast it's advertised and it shrinks also. I also really don't care for how it sands.
the only exception I have seen to this is UV cure primer. I have only seen this used in paint school. prime, UV lamp for 5 min, sand. biggest problem is $$$. the primer is $$$ and the lamps are $$$. and the lamps only do small areas, so the side of a car takes longer than regular primer.

ok rant off.

You can all the paint you want here....and even more beer!