alright, my front bumper cover looks really ****ty. there are alot of chips, and a ton of those spider web cracks from the thing bending (its that plastic-rubber stuff). So, I was thinking of getting all the paint off it, priming it and sanding it really smooth, then just painting it w/ cans. they sell the gm purple pear metalic color and the clearcoat at paintscratch.com . Would it be possible to do a decent job this way? it will cost 75-100 to paint it this way, which is quite a bit. What do you think a place like maaco would charge for a bumper, off the car, thats already been prepped and just has to be sprayed? thanks

 

Don't go to maaco they screwed up enough cars around where I live take it to a good shop if you do the prep work it should be around 100-200 bucks

 

i dont know how much it would cost for specialist to do it but i dont think it will be a good idea to try it your self

 

well if its too much i'm pretty much going to have to do it on my own. I have very, very limited amounts of cash, and I want performance mods more than anything, but this bumper is just so bad, I really don't see how it could look any worse. thanks for the advice tho. I'm hoping someone has done it at some point and will lmk their results..

 

Why fix it when you can hide it
Get a bra!

 

I have one.. but the problem is, the way the paint catches the light, I think the whole think looks beautiful until you see the nasty black bra on it...

http://kevman.haxorz.org/kbcar.jpg

 

Naw man, it will look like crap. Maaco will definetly do a better job. Maccos main problem is their prep work. Its usually horrible, resulting in a horrible paint job or paint everywhere. If you think you can do a better job prepping it, just take it there. Even if you don't they'll still do a better job than spray cans, trust me. I've done enough spray-canning cars in my life. Only works on the lower half of the car.

 

yea I could do a decent job of prepping it. how much would they charge for a bumper that just needed to be sprayed?

 

Can't be much, they advertise like $275 to do your whole car. The prep work does take a bit of knowledge though. You don't wanna start sanding through the plastic, and your don't want it looking wavy. Better to just have it stripped, but your cash strapped eh?

 

yes. i'm probably only going to have about 200-250 to spend, and I wanna take care of some interior stuff too, so If I could get it done for like 100-150 that'd be fine

 

Whichever way you go as far as, cans, Macco, decent paint-shop, I think you could save yourself a lot of prep trouble if you put your old bumper-cover on e-bay, try to get $75 or $100 for it, and then buy one on e-bay that comes primered. (It would be a LOT less prep work that way.) They sell on e-bay for around $130 to $140 NEW. (Aftermarket, though) The $40 to $65 that you spend will be well worth the hassle you will save!!!

 

The problem with Maaco is that each shop is individually owned and operated....so....there might be a ton of great shops out there...but the few bad apples spoil the reputation. The interraction I've had with 2 Maaco shops here in Atlanta has been fantastic. They really did great work. The majority of the complains I've heard on this list from other people has, in fact, been about Maaco's prep work. If you will prep your bumper cover yourself, and take it into them...they'll charge you for the paint/materials, and the time it takes to spray. As far as what it comes out to...I'd be surprised if it came to over 100 bucks. Especially if they didn't have to do any prepping.

In short, I'd definitely do the prep RIGHT, then take it to Maaco...you'll be happy. Remember, they guarantee their work, so if you aren't happy with something...you're still covered.


-Mike

 

Any tips to prepping? I'd pretty much planned on sanding it smooth, then primer, then a fine grit sand paper, then primer again, etc. few coats til it was really smooth. Should I let them paint the black part around the headlights? or would that look better in the body color?

 

Yes, it can be done. I did my whole front with rattle cans...
http://groups.msn.com/Fbod/94instrip...to&PhotoID=391
http://groups.msn.com/Fbod/94instrip...to&PhotoID=389

And here's what I ended up with from my first 2 local car shows...
http://groups.msn.com/Fbod/94instrip...to&PhotoID=399

2 first in class and spectators choice.

Robert

 

No offense RS, but I can definitely see a difference in sheen from your hood as compared to the bumper itself. Now, of course, that may just be the pics. For a rattlecan job...it is STILL pretty good though.

Kev, for the money though...go to Maaco's. Prep work...I'll give you a link to Brent's (one of out Moderator's) site. http://www.bfranker.badz28.com/fbody/repaint.htm He's really got a KILLER site with TONS of helpful info and great pictures. I think I visit there nearly every day for one reason or another. (THANKS BRENT!) I think blacking out the headlight area would look awesome! But it also looks really good in the car's color. If it were me...I'd have to flip a quarter! (of course, to black them out...it'll be a bit more work, but don't let that make your decision for you. Do it how you want the FIRST time.)

-Mike