Cost breakdowns

[Tremelune]

I've been ruminating about painting a car for a while. I've never done it. I see a lot of numbers thrown around ($10-20k is the most common). These are giant numbers, and I'm wondering if there is a cost breakdown of the different stages and depths of repainting a car.

Labor costs vary wildly from region to region, so I think it makes sense to break out labor hours vs parts cost. I'm only concerned with "good" paint jobs done properly, but that doesn't always involve pulling the glass and seals and what not. Without trawling through a dozen threads to discern what was done and what it costed and where, I'm wondering if someone with experience painting these cars in various different ways has a good set of data for estimation. Like, how might these different cases break down:

1) Respray.
2) Glass-out.
3) Dissassembly, glass-out.
4) Dissassembly, glass-out color change.
5) 4, but including the frunk, engine bay...
6) Down to bare metal.

I mostly ask because the final number factors into my purchase, sale, and restoration calculations in terms of winding up with the exact car that I want, color, body style, and all. I also ask because I wonder where a talentless hack like myself could save money without compromising the final product (probably only during disassembly, and that's probably least helpful).

[echecsqueen]

I would like to know also. Bump

[Dpmulvan]

Massive job doing one right now. Strip car down to tub, strip all paint, metal work, epoxy prime, 2 k prime, sand, more 2k, sand , more 2k, sand, sealer, 2to3 coats base, a couple coats clear, sand with 800 to a 1000 down to 1500 or 2000. Cut, buff. Buy all new rubber seals $1000 to $1700 depending on car. Refurbish or buy new every exterior part because new paint and old parts don't look good together. Almost forgot new Chipgaurd,gravel guard after spending hours removing old. Bottom line if you can't afford at least $10,000 and you don't have the tools and know how to do it buy a car with good paint.

[Tremelune]

I've heard $10-40k, and that is a difference of buying another 911...I'm hoping to learn what you get for $10k, $15k, $20k...

[962porsche]

it's not like you get this and this for 10K
and this this and this for 15K and so on as the pricing goes up .
it's what your car needs to have done and for the budget you have to work with .
not every car will need the exact same things done . some cars you can leave the glass in if there is no rust to deal with under the seals . at times you can just take a piece of rope and slide it under the glass seals to lift it away from the body to paint it .
just like not all cars need a new front suspension pan .
when it comes to refinishing a car even the top coat ( paint) costs range greatly .
you can buy enamel paint and the cost will be pretty low cost 500 or 600 hundred for the materials or you can go with top of the line top coats and you could spend thousands just on the materials for that .
you can do what is called a peal and ship ( you unmask it and don't color sand and buff it ) to spending days color sanding and buffing it and every thing in between.
that too you can spend nothing on to a few grand on .
then there is does the car need to be stripped to bare metal ?
some time no not at all to maybe you only have to say strip the hood to bare metal .
you see what i'm getting at not all two cars are the same so it's not a cut and dry thing to costs and what you get for the cost .
then there is the shops and shops over head this too effects costs .
the labor rate in different states and even with in the same state will very . the southern part of CT. ( closer to NY city stamford norwalk area) has a higher labor rate then say were i am on the shore line of CT. ( new haven area) .
before i retired the over head at my restoration shop would make your head spin just my electric bill every month was higher then what all the over head is now at my little one man shop .