Getting my car painted. 10-22-10 update: DONE!!!!

stuartinmn · Post by **stuartinmn** » Oct 08, 2010 10:02 AM

Mr.ProjectCar535 wrote:Looks amazing so far, it's really coming along. How much is all of this running you, if you don't mind me asking?

Thanks! as far as cost, I'll quote myself from earlier in the thread:

stuartinmn wrote:I don't like to talk money about these sorts of things, but I will say that from a financial standpoint it makes totally no sense to paint an e28 like this.

My initial intention was to basically bring it back to OEM quality, but then it sort of mushroomed...there was a lot more rust than I expected (besides a lot of patches in the floors plus various other spot repairs here and there, I've replaced both front doors, the hood and one fender); we decided to go for a much higher level of preparation (there's a ton of block sanding in this thing) and I'm replacing virtually all of the exterior trim and weatherstrip.

Even with a pretty reasonable shop rate of $55/hr, in the end it's going to cost a lot more than the car is worth. A LOT. I'll probably have to drive it for the rest of my life to get my money's worth, but it's my car, I can afford to do it, and I'm happy with how it's coming out.

stuartinmn · Post by **stuartinmn** » Oct 09, 2010 11:51 PM

More assembly photos. If you look close you'll see some swirls in the paint, they'll be taken care of with a final buff once all the panels are bolted on.

Check out the reflections down the sides of the car...this sucker is straight.

Das_Prachtstrasse · Post by **Das_Prachtstrasse** » Oct 10, 2010 12:54 AM

oh yes.

wkohler · Post by **wkohler** » Oct 10, 2010 1:13 AM

Eta power · Post by **Eta power** » Oct 10, 2010 11:57 PM

Ohhhhhhhhh.......

Son of a · Post by **Son of a** » Oct 11, 2010 1:43 PM

Wow......

bkbimmer · Post by **bkbimmer** » Oct 12, 2010 5:23 PM

It is looking beautiful, I'm glad to see you are having it done the correct way despite the large barrel of cash you had to throw at it

I would have done the same thing.

ElGuappo · Post by **ElGuappo** » Oct 12, 2010 7:05 PM

Looks like glass, incredible!

stuartinmn · Post by **stuartinmn** » Oct 12, 2010 7:41 PM

bkbimmer wrote:It is looking beautiful, I'm glad to see you are having it done the correct way despite the large barrel of cash you had to throw at it I would have done the same thing.

Yeah, there are a lot of hours in this thing...you know as well as anyone how much work is involved in a really good paint job.

stuartinmn · Post by **stuartinmn** » Oct 14, 2010 6:33 PM

It's getting close...they're still working on the hood but it should go on in the next couple days. The door handles and outside mirrors were painted today and will also go on soon. The rubber on the rear spoiler was painted with a flex agent before it was installed; hopefully it will hold up as long as I don't abuse it.

It's kind of dusty in the photos and you can see there are still a bunch of swirls in the finish, but they'll do a final buff after it's all assembled.

The door weatherstrips are holding the doors out from where they should be. They'll let the car sit out in the sun for the next couple days and hopefully they'll squeeze down to where they're supposed to be. Then they'll do any final adjustments needed on the doors, and install the interior door panels.

Obviously, the front bumper and windshield have yet to go on, but I'm hoping it will be all done by the end of next week.

wkohler · Post by **wkohler** » Oct 14, 2010 8:19 PM

It's looking great. I love how everything is nicely mowed in Minnesota. I don't get up there as much as I used to.

Fox · Post by **Fox** » Oct 15, 2010 12:03 AM

Loving the progress!

Yeah it just looks like buffer trails from the compounding stage. Any idea on what type of finish polish they are using during the final buffing stage?

stuartinmn · Post by **stuartinmn** » Oct 15, 2010 9:21 AM

Not sure on what product brand they're using for the buffing, once it's all together they'll do a final pass which will take care of the swirls. They did say they recommend Meguiar's Tech Wax for waxing later on, after the paint is fully cured, so I suspect they're using Meguiar's products for the buffing.

Prior to buffing the car went through three rounds of wet sanding, starting with 1000 grit paper, then 1500 and finally 2000 grit (which feels about as rough as a piece of note paper.

)

The hood and front bumper are supposed to go on today, so hopefully I'll have a couple more photos to post tonight.

Mr.ProjectCar535 · Post by **Mr.ProjectCar535** » Oct 15, 2010 2:05 PM

That looks absolutely amazing!! They're doing a really nice job on that car. I'm jealous.

warezdog · Post by **warezdog** » Oct 15, 2010 4:45 PM

Unreal, looking fantastic!

Alfonso Bedoya · Post by **Alfonso Bedoya** » Oct 15, 2010 4:59 PM

Very nice! thanks for including us in this process, your car is SEX!

bunty · Post by **bunty** » Oct 15, 2010 7:30 PM

wkohler wrote:It's looking great. I love how everything is nicely mowed in Minnesota. I don't get up there as much as I used to.

x2

hubble1953 · Post by **hubble1953** » Oct 16, 2010 7:02 PM

Stuart: Now this is the way it should be done. Are you replacing a lot of bolts and small items like fuel lines etc; or is this mainly a very nice paint job??
Wish I could afford to do mine this way

Thanks for putting this all on the forum, it has been very helpful.
jm

stuartinmn · Post by **stuartinmn** » Oct 16, 2010 7:37 PM

This has been mainly a cosmetic restoration, they haven't touched any of the mechanicals. I have replaced most of the exterior trim, weatherstrip, etc., along with new fasteners where needed.

The car is still in pretty good shape mechanically, but as time goes on I'll address those things as well (but I'll let my bank account recover first.

)

stuartinmn · Post by **stuartinmn** » Oct 18, 2010 4:06 PM

Front bumper, door handles, mirrors and most of the Mtech body kit parts are on. Windshield goes in tomorrow, then the hood, and then the final clean and buff. Still waiting for the weatherstrip on the doors to lay down a little more, so it's out in the sun to heat them up.

Looks like I'll be picking it up and bringing it home on Saturday.

stuartinmn · Post by **stuartinmn** » Oct 21, 2010 7:37 PM

Here it is as of this morning. The final assembly was essentially complete and they were about to start the final buffing.

I'm picking it up tomorrow.

Karl Grau · Post by **Karl Grau** » Oct 21, 2010 8:02 PM

Congrats on getting it back. The car is stunning!

fukoa · Post by **fukoa** » Oct 21, 2010 9:20 PM

I enjoyed following this tread , was pleasure
this is no surprise for me how this car turned out , just look at the clean floor at that body shop
congrats man I hope you have a lot of happy days on the road[ or in your garage ] with this beautiful e28

warezdog · Post by **warezdog** » Oct 21, 2010 10:42 PM

+ billion!

Loved following a job like this but now I find myself hating you because I'll never be able to live with a $299 econo job and end up spending thou$and$ like you did.....DOOOOOHH

wkohler · Post by **wkohler** » Oct 22, 2010 3:20 AM

Wow. I've been glued to the whole process and can't believe it's essentially over. Congratulations, Stuart!

EuroShark · Post by **EuroShark** » Oct 22, 2010 12:21 PM

It looks awesome! Any plans to find another set of wheels?

pldlnr · Post by **pldlnr** » Oct 22, 2010 12:43 PM

What a great looking car! Congratulations! I would love to own that car.

Eta power · Post by **Eta power** » Oct 22, 2010 3:29 PM

The perfection that is your car is very enviable.

stuartinmn · Post by **stuartinmn** » Oct 22, 2010 7:50 PM

OK, here it is. These aren't the greatest photos; the sun was too high and bright, and there's a bunch of stuff in the trunk so it looks like it's too low in the back end, but it's DONE. I'll take some better photos and post them at a later date as weather permits.

It came out really nice, and I'm very happy with the work. If anyone within driving distance of SE Minnesota is looking for a quality shop with reasonable hourly rates, I can wholeheartedly recommend Bremseth's Body Shop. They're great guys to work with. http://www.bremsethbodyshop.com/

Coldswede · Post by **Coldswede** » Oct 22, 2010 9:07 PM

I'd be scared silly to drive it now!

It looks fantastic, Congrats!

MyE28.com

MyE28.com

Getting my car painted. 10-22-10 update: DONE!!!!

nice job