E30 Zone

Hi Everyone
Hope you can help, first of all like to say hello to everyone, as I haven't been on the site long!
Im currently restoring my 89 325i sport in dolphin grey. Got the car for a good price, but am aiming to make the car as mint as my wallet will allow! I'm sorting out all the mechanical bits myself, but was wondering if anyone knew roughly how much a full respray would cost. Has anyone gone down the scary route of the main dealer??!! I'm not sure whether to go for bare metal etc. Is there a big difference if not?
I'm located in kent so if anyones from down here can you recommend a good bodyshop?
Thanks in advance!
Simon

dont know about costs of respray exactly but i'd reckon at least a grand for a good job..

with regards to BMW dealers-see this thread....

http://www.e30zone.co.uk/modules.php?na ... ight=paint

The price will depend on how much prep work your willing to do.

For a good job all the windows will have to come out, so in an ideal world you need to strip the interior out as well.

Any rust will add Ԛ£'s to the cost

Stripping down to bare metal will add loads to the cost... but will give the best results.

I've never dared ask how much, but I reckon an OK ish blow over will cost Ԛ£1k+++

A semi decent concours job just under Ԛ£2K

And a minter of a paint job Ԛ£2k-Ԛ£3k+++

Then again IÔš'm just guessing! IÔš'm a spark not a sprayer

A ballpark figure is Ԛ£150 a panel, but you get what you pays for! Go on recommendation every time.

i once saw a figure from a reputable paint shop for a complete colour change - that is, strip EVERYTHING off the car (bare shell) and remove old paint/respray...this is using normal paint of course...Ԛ£7k

Just got hold of a 316i Lux which had a "respray" 12 months ago (found the receipt in the car) and rust is already showing round the door edges etc.etc. Actual paint finish is pretty good but bill was Ԛ£700!!!!!!!!! I would advise anybody going for a full respray to go to someone recommended by a previous customer from at least 2 years ago. If the job still looks good it was done properly.

Ԛ£7k...ouch!! thanks for the advise, definately won't go to a main dealer after reading that previous thread!! I am hoping to spend Ԛ£2000 max, so hopefully will get a decent job. I've watched wheeler dealers so I can prep the car myself
On a totally different note, they never take the mechanics labour into consideration when selling the car on that program!!...doubt he works for a fiver a day!!

about 2 grand without favours, but if u can get a deal then u might get lucky! should do a v good job for that though or the mans a cowboy

Has anyone ever done the prep themselves?, then just got it resprayed?
If you have the time its not that skilled if you have a good eye.
Rust and welding are different issues of course.
Helped my old next door neighbour when i was young in prepping his old MK1 golf right down to the metal. When it was sprayed it looked better than my dads new (at the time) golf. So it can be done, if you have the time etc etc

I also read on the old BEN that a few of the US guys had actually done the spraying themselves (rigged up a old barn/garage or something to be dust free) Has anyone ever done that here?

I got a price of Ԛ£1200 off my mate Brian who has done work for a few of us Zoners now - and i must say that even 2 years down the line my cabby still looked pucker as well as the sport which was 4 years down the line.Well recomended and he's based in Edmonton (Eley estate) N/London.

I've sprayed a few cars in my time.....

Most have come out OK, had a nightmare with a Capri once, but that turned out OK in the end....

Preparation is the key, and a totally clean dust free environment. You can get a good finish at home with cellulose, but forget using two pack in the garage!

Don't waste your time masking off the trim, locks, windows etc. Rip them out and spray away.

Also if available use a spare set of wheels, you will never get any over spray off the tyres/wheels.

Like others have said, try to view cars that have been sprayed 1 or 2 years back, that should still look mint.

[quote="Gwynleym10"]Has anyone ever done the prep themselves?, then just got it resprayed?
If you have the time its not that skilled if you have a good eye.
quote]

Not yet, but I'm going to start once I have stripped the car further! I'm still looking into the best way to do it, but I've heard that about a 600 wet and dry works well for most of the paint work to provide a good base. Unless you go back to bare metal...not sure I'm up to that yet!!

Thanks for the info nelly....how much prep did you do beofre you took it to your mate? I have only practiced on an old montego before now!! still a bit worried about going near the car will wet/dry as most the car is good, but there are a few rust sports around and I want the car as mint as possible!

i`m lucky my dad can do any bodywork i need doing, it just costs me the paint

If your going to do some prep yourself, even if your not taking it back to metal.Get a nice cheap DA sander, youl take for ever trying to prep a whole car with some wet n dry paper mate!

Thanks for the info nelly....how much prep did you do beofre you took it to your mate?

I didn't do any - he done it all for me as well as Karan + ivorlottahorses and correct me if i'm wrong but i think 6pot Will has spoken to him as well???

E30spirit wrote: I'm located in kent so if anyones from down here can you recommend a good bodyshop?
Thanks in advance!
Simon

Hello neighbour..!

I have had Penfold Panels recommended to me by a guy who works at my place who is extremely fussy about everything, including his cars... Not sure if you know anything about them as they are in Folkestone themselves.

I had a full respray done on my sport at the very end of last year it coast me Ԛ£2350 I have to say its one of the best jobs I have ever seen done to perfection he took 98 hours of work total. Well worth the money I say

Also all the work was done at my work so I got to see it step by step

For a top notch job, you'll be looking between Ԛ£2k to Ԛ£3k depending on how much prep the garage has to do, cause as mentioned before, how the finish turns out is all down to the prep in the begining. Most painters will insist on preping the car themselves to avoid a crap finish though. My mate who sparyed my car done it in just a booth without an oven and the results are very impressive. This time round he's going to spray it in a oven, so hopefully the results should be even better.

im a car painter & in away everyone has a point
in their own way
but just make sure that the people you choose in
the end use a decent make of paint like glasurite/
ppg/standox etc etc
especially the primer !!!
i would do your car myself for two grand and prep it myself but im just about to move premises & its guna take awhile to get sorted
& im probably to far away for ya anyway(south beds)
but ring AROUND & good body shops will anwser any questions you have!!

Splondike wrote:

E30spirit wrote: I'm located in kent so if anyones from down here can you recommend a good bodyshop?
Thanks in advance!
Simon

Hello neighbour..!

I have had Penfold Panels recommended to me by a guy who works at my place who is extremely fussy about everything, including his cars... Not sure if you know anything about them as they are in Folkestone themselves.

Hi Splondike!
Good to find someone close to this corner, can be a bit lonely for 325 sports down here! I think I might have seen you a while ago, remember a VERY clean sport like yours heading off down the A20 for some fun There are hardly any e30's down this way. I think I have had most of them!!
I'll give Penfold panels a call and see what they say.

Thanks everybody for the advise. I'll hopefully post some pictures up of the progress soon, as my car is currently in five millions boxes!!!

Hi dude - could well have been me, been known to hoon along the A20 lol

I have not seen any of their work as the car he had the work done on he has now sold, but he said they were pretty good.

You are right about the lack of E30s round here for sure, I have put an E30 zone flyer on every car I have seen, but none of them have joined as far as I know... Be good to catch up sometime mate - if you need a hand with anything let me know.

Cheers
Mark

MY GOD!!! I didnt realise how much a repspray is in the u.k.!!!!, just got a quote of about 400squid for my diamond black cab this includes: prepping and taking off the original clear coat, knocking a few dings out, masking etc, ICI paint, sprayed and baked in a proper fume controlled oven, primer, two coats black one coat clear, curing, polishing and removing masking (re-fitting lights wheels etc) i.e. drive in drive out. I have seen the guys results (a Thai old boy) one a mates GMC van three years old and still looks very good.

Just goes to show once again, rip off britain, silly thing is that to ship your car to Bahrain sea freight would be about 500quid, so essentially you could send your car to bahrain, paint it, then send it back to u.k. for cheaper than what sounds like a poor job in u.k.

feel sorry for you guys!!


mr lee

Well I've just paid Ԛ£2000 to have mine done. Almost everything was sprayed except the roof. That included painting and fitting Mtech door pods and skirts, sorting a dented wing and various rust spots out on the boot lid, sills, doors and a couple of holes in the boot compartment. They removed all locks etc and did an excellent job.

It's a lot of money but well worth it if you love your E30 IMO

Splondike wrote:Hi dude - could well have been me, been known to hoon along the A20 lol

I have not seen any of their work as the car he had the work done on he has now sold, but he said they were pretty good.

You are right about the lack of E30s round here for sure, I have put an E30 zone flyer on every car I have seen, but none of them have joined as far as I know... Be good to catch up sometime mate - if you need a hand with anything let me know.

Cheers
Mark

Hi mark
Thanks for the help offer mate, i might well need it soon, as i'm putting my head back together at the mo, and getting a bit too excited when i started to strip the car, i forgot to take any pictures of how eveything goes back together!!! duh!!!
Still been put back a while now after my finger and a circular saw had a litle chat this morning!! blood everywhere!!! trip to hospital and some sticthes and i have all ten again!!
Be good to meet up some time. I'm looking forward to coming along to a meet once the car goes!!!
simon