To repaint or no to paint.

[Ducati]

So I have a 2000 Champagne pearl metallic LC I bought used with 147000 miles.The passenger side is faded and the clear coat is all gone. However the drivers side is still in good shape. The hood was so bad I Duplicolord it the roof is fine.
I have been slowly making sure that all maintenance is up to speed.
Now it's time to start with the upgrades, lift, bumpers, armor, roof rack.... Etc...etc...
My delemma is do I repaint or leave it the way it is.
If I repaint it'll just get scratched up anyway, if I leave it the way it is I save money for other things.

What do you guys think?

 

[camino70]

Don't spend much on paint. Maybe try opticoat to see if it offers uv protection and possibly give it a nicer more uniform appearance. At the most I'd see if someone would scuff and reshoot clear or plastidip the whole thing. The least I would do is take it down some trails and l proudly leave it dirty and pin striped.

 

[aging fleet]

If it were me, I'd likey not spend the money painting it. I'd simply drive it and enjoy it.

 

[Emcd]

A mediocre paint job will run you about $10k. My vote is no. Only touch up any spots of bare metal and call it good.

 

[LEX]

Do you wheel it often/hard? Look into getting it wrapped.

 

[montegofd3s]

I am having the same issue. About 6 months ago I had a few bubbles on the hood in the clear coat. The clear had faded on the sides, but that didn't bother me that much. Well the hood started peeling and ran really bad in the past few months and now I have to do something because I saw a little rust pop up. Not sure which way to go, but it drives me nuts because it is right in front of me everyday.

Someone suggested plastidipping the whole truck (it is white already). I may do that, and if things get messed up I can peel that panel and reshoot that piece.

 

[ENGINE er]

My dad had good luck painting just his hood when the clear started to peel.

My wife wants to wrap ours, I don't mind the faded white.

 

[montegofd3s]

This one is flat white plati-dipped. I actually don't mind the faded/flat white on the rest of the truck either, but my concern is that I have some on the driver fender edge also so that has to be re-shot too. Doing that will put new clear on all that, and I am afraid it won't match the flatish old paint on the rest of the vehicle. I am torn on what to do.

 

[pcut]

Don't waste your money- get out there and put enough cowboy pinstripes on it that it looks like a wrap job- kind of like mine!
Spend $ on building and using it is my 2 two cents worth, for what that's worth! After Mary Ellen Gulch and Kane Creek Canyon combined with Arch Cyn and multiple trips to Cedar Mesa, Comb ridge, the Abajos, the Maze etc, the paint on my '06 Sonora Gold looks beat, just the way I like it.

 

[montegofd3s]

Don't waste your money- get out there and put enough cowboy pinstripes on it that it looks like a wrap job- kind of like mine!
Spend $ on building and using it is my 2 two cents worth, for what that's worth! After Mary Ellen Gulch and Kane Creek Canyon combined with Arch Cyn and multiple trips to Cedar Mesa, Comb ridge, the Abajos, the Maze etc, the paint on my '06 Sonora Gold looks beat, just the way I like it.

If it didn't look terrible and now showing rust I wouldn't worry about it...trust me.

 

[abuck99]

Wrap it-

better than dipping it, cheaper than paint. Good vinyl is durable, polishable, replaceable, etc

 

[jahawk]

I would just let it be, but If you have a decent air compressor; go buy a cheap Harbor Freight paint gun, and go to your local auto paint store and get the cheapest single stage white paint they have. Then shoot it yourself.

An "ok" paint job is easier to do yourself than you would think, and white is hard to screw up. A little prep work and some taping and you're set. Far cheaper than other options.

Jim

 

[LEX]

A nice wrap is also expensive. It all depends what you plan on doing with it. If it were me, I'd probably leave it as is, add the stuff you want to and enjoy. Low mileage for the year and maintenance is up to date. Drive the wheels off it and worry about paint later.

 

[jcrandall]

FYI, I used a wrap for a while, and had some frustrations. If you get someone else to do it, you're probable in a higher cost bracket than you'd like. 3-4K iirc. If you do it yourself (as I did), it's an art that is not easy to get even competent. In addition, if you're a perfectionist at all, you'll be annoyed at corners and minor issues. And when you remove it, questionable paint WILL be damaged further.

My .02, if you plan on keeping it forever, consider something like Raptor liner. I did and am thrilled with it.
If you expect to sell it, I'd just drive as is. Bedliner basically decimates your market of potential buyers.

 

[Ducati]

Thanks guys.
Looks like I'll spend the money for upgrades to let nature pinstripe it.

 

[duggy]

Monstaline it

 

[WarWagon]

Monstaline would be good......or Macco $1000.

Wouldn't sweat it; just build it.

 

[ponytl]

Ebay paint enamel with hardner will cost about $100 on ebay + $25 shipping... sand prep and shoot... like was said above it ain't that hard