Discussion
Since the beginning of summer when my triumph Spitfire 1500 failed it's MOT on some structural rust i have been considering getting the car resprayed as it had loads of paintwork flaws and bubbles/scratches that needed sorting. After some careful deliberation i decided to go for it and get it done in the original factory color, but make sure to get the work done properly.
I promptly ordered all of the replacement panels for the rust repair and removed all the components from the car that would possibly get in the way of a respray. the car as it sits now is just a rolling tub with the engine still in place (most accessories removed) giving great access to all repairs needed and very little work required to remove the body from the chassis. i then removed all the rust i could access with a wire wheel on a grinder and sanded down all the defects, as well as keying the whole surface for some protective primer to be applied.
I then started looking around for local garages/restores who would be able to do the welding work required and get the car stripped and then sprayed properly. after phoning a specific company who i liked the look of the owner of the company came down to view the car and check it over, he seemed impressed with the work i had done so far and said it would make their job much faster since i had done lots of the stripping/sanding/repairs myself. I was then quoted a reasonable amount for all the work to be carried out, somewhere around the £2000-2500 and agreed for him to send me a written quote.
a few days later the quote arrives and to my horror the price has gone up slightly, only to an eye watering £12000... which is around 5 times what i was originally quoted. i thought this might have been a mistake so i called the company to figure things out, and the owner seemed very uptight about his mistake and assured me the £12000 was correct, even before i'd mentioned that he'd quoted me £2000.
I'm not really sure where to go from here because either i have seriously underestimated the cost of a sill replacement and respray or This company just doesn't want my business.
i'd like to know what something like this SHOULD cost at a normal price so i'm sure i'm not overpaying for the work to be done
Any advice welcome.
I promptly ordered all of the replacement panels for the rust repair and removed all the components from the car that would possibly get in the way of a respray. the car as it sits now is just a rolling tub with the engine still in place (most accessories removed) giving great access to all repairs needed and very little work required to remove the body from the chassis. i then removed all the rust i could access with a wire wheel on a grinder and sanded down all the defects, as well as keying the whole surface for some protective primer to be applied.
I then started looking around for local garages/restores who would be able to do the welding work required and get the car stripped and then sprayed properly. after phoning a specific company who i liked the look of the owner of the company came down to view the car and check it over, he seemed impressed with the work i had done so far and said it would make their job much faster since i had done lots of the stripping/sanding/repairs myself. I was then quoted a reasonable amount for all the work to be carried out, somewhere around the £2000-2500 and agreed for him to send me a written quote.
a few days later the quote arrives and to my horror the price has gone up slightly, only to an eye watering £12000... which is around 5 times what i was originally quoted. i thought this might have been a mistake so i called the company to figure things out, and the owner seemed very uptight about his mistake and assured me the £12000 was correct, even before i'd mentioned that he'd quoted me £2000.
I'm not really sure where to go from here because either i have seriously underestimated the cost of a sill replacement and respray or This company just doesn't want my business.
i'd like to know what something like this SHOULD cost at a normal price so i'm sure i'm not overpaying for the work to be done
Any advice welcome.
my budget is somewhere around the 2-3k range. and that may include me buying new floor panels as well, seeing as when i inspected the car it looks like they could have been repaired instead of replaced.
just looked up RPC auto finishing, couldn't find anything online. got a phone number for them?
just looked up RPC auto finishing, couldn't find anything online. got a phone number for them?
Why not DIY Painting is a real simple task, it's the prep thats the most important, but if you have mostly new panels then the prep ain't gonna be a factor here.
I've done loadsa resprays, cost is simply the materials and electricity and your labour. So even with quality Unusual/expensive paint you're only looking at £200 max. If you use paint from one of the many car autojumble suppliers cost is gonna be less than 3 figures, since you're spraying the whole car there's no color matching required.
The quotes you had are a joke, these rip off merchants proliferate, I'm surprised the insurance companies haven't investigated the prices they get charged for accident repair resprays.
Hope this helps
I've done loadsa resprays, cost is simply the materials and electricity and your labour. So even with quality Unusual/expensive paint you're only looking at £200 max. If you use paint from one of the many car autojumble suppliers cost is gonna be less than 3 figures, since you're spraying the whole car there's no color matching required.
The quotes you had are a joke, these rip off merchants proliferate, I'm surprised the insurance companies haven't investigated the prices they get charged for accident repair resprays.
Hope this helps
S47 said:
Why not DIY Painting is a real simple task, it's the prep that's the most important, but if you have mostly new panels then the prep ain't gonna be a factor here.
I did consider this approach but it's not just the painting that needs done, it's the welding of the sills, some a post repairs, battery box and a couple small patches on the rear arch and rear scuttle. i'm currently learning to weld but i'm so far from being able to do the work myself... plus i'd need to buy a welder/mask/PPE etc....not to mention i have very little space to paint a car, and my skills at that are a bit hit and miss.
Sounds like you've done a lot of the hard work already but if I were you I'd go a bit further to make a really nice job of it...take the tub off the chassis after the sills are done so you can clean and paint it all seperately. Generally you don't get much corrosion on the rear part but check the body mounts at the front footwells and the rear rails below the halfshafts. I'd unbolt the screen as well...
Oh, and just in case yhou're painting it yellow bear in mind Triumph had 2 shades of yellow both called Inca yellow ....been there!
I think 3 thou about right for the job but look around. I'm doing an e type at the moment but got a quote out of interest...£28 thou!!
Oh, and just in case yhou're painting it yellow bear in mind Triumph had 2 shades of yellow both called Inca yellow ....been there!
I think 3 thou about right for the job but look around. I'm doing an e type at the moment but got a quote out of interest...£28 thou!!
yorkebar said:
my budget is somewhere around the 2-3k range. and that may include me buying new floor panels as well, seeing as when i inspected the car it looks like they could have been repaired instead of replaced.
just looked up RPC auto finishing, couldn't find anything online. got a phone number for them?
sorry phat thumbs on the key board.... try 01483 268111, actually called JC refinishing. He did the body work on my V12, he was the only guy who gave me any confidence that he was as passionate about the car as I was... the amount of so called restorers who would say, why do you wanna rebuild that!!! Speak with John, go and see him and hammer out a deal..just looked up RPC auto finishing, couldn't find anything online. got a phone number for them?
SV8Predator said:
tbc said:
at £12k :even a Rolls Royce is about £5k max
tbc said:
at £12k :even a Rolls Royce is about £5k max
must have thought you've come up the Thames in a bubble of piss
A top job will be about 5K without the welding, i had a mates rate paint job on an MGB 2 years ago, cost me a grand just to lay it on and cut and polish after and that was VERY cheap for a profesional job
A mate recently had the rear bumper on his A6 painted and 7 scratches removing from the boot lid, it cost him a grand.
Half the trouble is to be a propper paint shop you need to use water based painting systems, an oven, extractor and filter system ect ect it all adds to the cost of the paint job but then if you really want a back street job that will fade, fall off or bubble up with rust inside a year then fine, 2G will cover it.
With prices like that seemingly widely accepted Thank God I don't live in SE England
I had a car rotisseried, thoroughly blasted, all front panels replaced, various shell strengthening welding and 2 repair panels and a full (very proper) re spray to concourse standard for £6000
See pic of the Fiat Dino on my profile for the result....
However it was an 80% stripped shell and i did send it to Ballygawley in County Fermanagh for the work... £800 transport on top!
Still sounds cheap to what other posters are implying.
For £12000 on a car as small and simple as that I'd expect to get it back retrimmed, tuned, MOT'd and ready to win a show!
So in response to the OP - get a few more prices as your £12000 price is a joke, even way down there!
I had a car rotisseried, thoroughly blasted, all front panels replaced, various shell strengthening welding and 2 repair panels and a full (very proper) re spray to concourse standard for £6000
See pic of the Fiat Dino on my profile for the result....
However it was an 80% stripped shell and i did send it to Ballygawley in County Fermanagh for the work... £800 transport on top!
Still sounds cheap to what other posters are implying.
For £12000 on a car as small and simple as that I'd expect to get it back retrimmed, tuned, MOT'd and ready to win a show!
So in response to the OP - get a few more prices as your £12000 price is a joke, even way down there!
Having endured sill replacement and A post surgery plus rear inner arches, boot floor etc etc on a MkIV Spitfire I think £2k would be a bargain.
You aren't really looking for a respray, it's a restoration of the whole tub isn't it? Having said that £12k is a clear indication the company does not want the job.
Suggest:
Robsport used to flog Californian rust free tubs...
Send it to Poland (or County Fermanagh, probably similar transport costs) where overheads are lower.
Get a welding specialist to do the crunchy bits for you and then ask the paint shop to quote once done. Not the same paint shop, clearly!
Or park it round the back for spares and buy the best Spitfire you can find, it will be less than £12k still!!
You aren't really looking for a respray, it's a restoration of the whole tub isn't it? Having said that £12k is a clear indication the company does not want the job.
Suggest:
Robsport used to flog Californian rust free tubs...
Send it to Poland (or County Fermanagh, probably similar transport costs) where overheads are lower.
Get a welding specialist to do the crunchy bits for you and then ask the paint shop to quote once done. Not the same paint shop, clearly!
Or park it round the back for spares and buy the best Spitfire you can find, it will be less than £12k still!!
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