Good paint shop in Toronto...

[Arshad]

Anyone have any recommendations?

About 8-9 years ago I had my front bumper repainted due to stone chips. Last year my car was sitting out in the elements a lot, and water got into some of the new stone chips and caused the paint to bubble up. This did not happen in any other areas with factory paint -- just where it had been repainted.

When I had it painted, it was by a very reputable shop, the owner had an NSX and he told me he knew how to paint aluminum. Obviously it wasn't quite up to par, and if I repaint the car I want to get it done properly this time.

Any advice on a good paint shop in Toronto that knows how to paint aluminum? I'm not looking to cheap out, but I also don't want a $25k paint job.

I'm also debating whether I should paint the whole car, paint just the hood+bumper, just paint bumper and get a CF hood, etc. The car still has original factory paint, and although it's a 91, the paint is in good shape, ie not faded. Should I leave the rest of the car alone or get the whole thing done while it's in there?

Thoughts?

 

[factorynsxtech]

I personally think you would only need to get your front bumper painted. Dave Crawford had his done and it looks great. See dave or bram. I would want to keep the original paint. A car with orig. paint will always get more money than one that has been painted. Once painted there is always the question of what was it like before.

 

[Arshad]

Thanks Rob. Yeah, there's always the questions that arise from a repaint, although I suppose I could photographically document the vehicle's paint condition prior to the job.

My hood is in horrible shape from the stone chips over the years. I think that needs a repaint too, or perhaps just replace with a CF hood.

Can anyone point me to a shop where they've had a good experience? Preferably one that was done a few years ago where the paint is still holding up nicely.

 

[GECKO]

Take it to Legendary Motor Car...........they will not only match the paint perfectly, but will buff the entire car and you won't be able to tell. As you know - you ALWAYS get what you pay for ;>)

 

[lithiumus]

Factory Formula Red is notoriously hard to match. The clear coat is tinted so only very fine paint correction (buffing) can be applied. I wonder how much Legendary Motor car would charge but if they can do it and perfectly match it (which is difficult to do) it may be worth it to just paint what you need and nothing else.

I may be interested in a little paint myself... depends on the cost...

BTW, I have the factory paint and repair manual. You could ask for them to follow those specific specs. Honda used special undercoating in the front to help resist stone chips. The manual is very specific about what to use down to the micron of paint thickness.

 

[kaz1116]

Take it to Legendary Motor Car...........they will not only match the paint perfectly, but will buff the entire car and you won't be able to tell. As you know - you ALWAYS get what you pay for ;>)

any good body shop should do the same thing

 

[lithiumus]

any good body shop should do the same thing

So you know of any that are good?

 

[Arshad]

I know Legendary will do a great job, but I don't want to spend that kind of money either. I'm not THAT in love with this particular chassis. For that kind of delta I'd rather sell my car and get a newer US car

 

[nikey22]

I wish we could see some of their work, prove is what I need.
Wouldn't it be neat for 3 of us all showed up at once to get our cars done.. hahaa.

There is also a layering issue. Factory paint job for the NSX is proprietary ofcourse, not many shops are able to reproduce it I'm sure... 7 layers as I recall??... anyways, close matches are what we should aim for.

 

[lithiumus]

So here are some generalizations that I have experienced with various shops both good and bad but I have found in general that the BULK of the shops out there are hit and miss.

This is not true for all but definitely what I have seen...

- a lot of shops want to use as little labor and as little paint and time possible which usually results in a job that "gets by" but isn't great

- all shops are capable of show quality / OEM quality work but if it's an insurance job, some shops choose to do the above

- if you know exactly what you want and know what you are talking about, either the price jumps 2-3 fold or they just won't have the time to do your job

- it's rare that a shop will expose how they do things, maybe because it's secret sauce or they want to be able to keep their various levels of quality processes under wraps

Painting is actually a fairly complex process and understanding it takes time and experience. I have no doubt that ANY body shop has the capability to do show quality / OEM quality work but whether they have the experience or willingness to do so at a "reasonable" price is really the question.

Legendary Motor Car will most likely do an excellent job but you are also paying for the name / prestige. Maybe it's just who you know but so far, it's been a hit and miss.

Ultimately, I'd like to get a great job at a reasonable / competitive rate. I was considering driving to pbassjo's place but it's a real hike from Toronto...

 

[Arshad]

Are there special considerations for painting aluminum? Specific primers or anything else that would potentially be out of the ordinary or anything else that the paint shop may not be familiar with?

Garrick: Are you looking at getting your whole car repainted or just some part of it? I'm now leaning towards just doing the bumper and leaving the rest as-is.

 

[lithiumus]

Are there special considerations for painting aluminum? Specific primers or anything else that would potentially be out of the ordinary or anything else that the paint shop may not be familiar with?

Garrick: Are you looking at getting your whole car repainted or just some part of it? I'm now leaning towards just doing the bumper and leaving the rest as-is.

From what I am learning, there is special considerations for all types of surfaces and materials. If you are chemically stripping the paint (rather than media blasted - not recommended for aluminum), there are specific types of cleaners meant for aluminum surfaces that should be used for a thorough deep cleaning of the base metal.

Primers vary and you'll want a waterproof primer formulated for aluminum surfaces. At least 2 coats before the base coat. I believe the primer is where you can use softer compound near the bumper to help prevent stone chips.

I'm only looking at a partial repaint but I'm deciding as well, how much I want to do. If I'm doing paint anyway, why not do everything I want to do rather than piece meal it later so I'm just saving up money... i.e. if you are painting the hood, why not just paint the fenders and bumper, etc...

 

[Arshad]

Garrick.. let me know if you come across any good shops that you're considering. Maybe they'll give us a group discount

 

[lithiumus]

Garrick.. let me know if you come across any good shops that you're considering. Maybe they'll give us a group discount

I'll definitely let you know!

 

[Red]

The guy to talk to is JPBasso - he is the #1 guy in the body biz for NSXs - He's in New Jersey, but with the CDN $$ the way it is, it may be worth the drive down there for a PERFECT job - failing that LMC is great, but get that blank cheque ready....:wink: