One of the best ways to get a fresh and new look for our car is by getting a new color. This process will definitely give you the feeling of driving a brand-new car without having to actually purchase a new one. However, there are several aspects we need to keep in mind before finding the auto body shop to do the job. From the costs, the complexity of the process, the preparation it requires, and the time it will take to be complete, these are some considerations to have when thinking about changing your car’s color.
As you may have guessed, deciding to completely change the color of your car will represent a significant expense. This kind of body paint jobs are not cheap, as with them comes a lot of hard work and attention to detail, that is if you go with a professional body shop. Getting a new color on your car can cost anywhere between $1,000 and $4,000, that is if you are looking for quality results. However, if you are under a more limited budget, the cheaper jobs can cost anywhere between $300 to $900. Just remember that, when it comes to auto body, most of the times you do get what you pay for.
There are many aspects that might determine the price range, including the type of paint and number of coats the shop applies on your car. However, the handywork that changing the color of a vehicle also represents a significant portion of the cost. This is because they must remove pretty much everything from the car, including the engine, the seats, the dash, the console, and even some pieces of trim may have to be removed. Removing all this helps professional shops achieve better and higher quality results, while cheaper shops will omit this process in order to get the job done in less time, but with poorer results.
Besides having to remove many parts of the vehicle, there is also much prep work needed before the painting job begins. Shops will check the body of the car in order to detect any imperfections such as dents or scratches. They have to make sure the body is in good shape, because leaving a dent behind could ruin the paint job completely. They also need to remove the wax and clearcoat, remove the old surface, and ensure the old color doesn’t bleed through the new coat.
Last but not least, we need to keep in mind that changing the color of our car is not an easy process, and it might take longer than we thought before being able to see the results. As we’ve mentioned before, every shop is different, and the time they take to complete the job might vary. In some cases, you might get your car back after three or four days, but it might take up to a week or two to get properly repainted. So, remember to ask your shop for a realistic and acceptable timeframe, so you can plan ahead and solve your transportation issues, if any at all.