Can You Fix a $1600 MAACO Paint Job? (Extremely Satisfying)

[@TsuDeltaChi]

Honestly, I think it turned out really well. Maaco is fine as long as you do one thing: moderate your expectations. You're not getting a $20k paint job for $2k. You're getting a $2k paint job for $2k. I had my 93 Firebird Formula painted by Maaco last summer and people wouldn't know it was a Maaco job because I took the extra time to remove stuff when I dropped it off. I pulled up and started stripping the car. I pulled all of the exterior lights (tail lights, side marker lights, everything), pulled the exterior weatherstripping and metal tracks that the weatherstripping fits into (so no hard line at the edge), removed the door handles and fixed up some coat hangers so they could pull them and open the doors, pulled off the plastic cowl and wiper arms, pulled the windshield surround molding (the windshield had a crack anyways and was replaced after the paint job), put on some junk wheels and tires, pulled the inner plastic fender wells, removed the antenna base and back masked the hole, removed the side mirrors (and pulled the glass from the housing), removed the trim that the side mirrors bolted on to. Tons of small stuff like that. Took the trim home with me, scuffed it all up and painted them either gloss or satin black and when the car came back from paint I wetsanded it and put all the new trim back on. Looks like a much higher quality paint job, but I did more of the work myself and took it upon myself to fix the deficiencies that Maaco is known for (orange peel, hard paint lines, etc). If you moderate your expectations on what Maaco will do for cheap and put forward the extra effort, you can wind up with a good driver quality paint job.

[@Bitchy_poo349]

Hey man fellow f body firebird owner, I got a question? would u recommend on paying for a thumb size dent removal on the rear fender panel an extra $500 or $200??? The reason why I'm asking is because I'm going to get my trans am painted this week and I'd like some advice from a fellow firebird owner. P.s thanks

[@TsuDeltaChi]

@@Bitchy_poo349 Depending on the type of dent, it would probably be worth it to let them handle it. I had a few dents / dings in my passenger side rear quarter panel and was able to massage most of them out and skim / sand it myself and then hit it with some primer. I would ask them upfront how they propose to fix the dent and have them spell the repair out in writing. That way they don't do something stupid and stuff it full of body filler and paint over it without actually trying to fix it correctly. Not saying they would, but you never know. Some people are shady!

[@itsjussjerry]

What “stage” did you go with?

[@TsuDeltaChi]

@@itsjussjerry I went with the base coat / clear coat package. I kept the factory color so the door jambs and engine bay wouldn't have to be touched and I could keep the cost down a bit.

[@kevinbryant6459]

I 100% agree

[@austincramer1657]

Gotta say, it's been great seeing all your progress over the years. Always been a fan of detailing so I'm very happy to see this episode

[@kbzworld]

Right I remember when it was just the Miata

[@remind1232]

It's awesome they let you film and showed you how to do some of the work

[@_Gingium_]

Yeah Detailers Products was awesome to work with!

[@joshhalterman5701]

I was quoted $1500 for a similar job for my Miata, so about the price of the maaco job

[@calebb5106]

@@joshhalterman5701 damn, im really undercharging, ive been charging $1000-$1200 for full car re-sprays and polishing... i guess that's what i get for not advertising and getting my client base and demand up ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

[@Cynsham]

@@calebb5106 Man you either need to rethink your prices or reevaluate your skill level in painting cars xD

[@calebb5106]

@@Cynsham my base price is cost of materials + $15 per hour, with all receipts saved and handed to the customer and hours tracked online

[@dawson1373]

Yeah that was extremely satisfying. You’re an absolute gangster Gingium.

[@potatoskin3796]

I have to agree

[@fuckngreat8955]

Baldium, whole lotta gang shit

[@isaacsrandomvideos667]

@@fuckngreat8955 Compton hood innit real gang gang

[@g32k]

@@isaacsrandomvideos667 wtf

[@isaacsrandomvideos667]

@@g32k we just a copul pimps no ho’s so bang bang skeet skeet anega

[@mikenonameneeded3485]

A great detailer can save your a$$ all day long. Those guys don’t get enough love. I have much respect. A detailer made my 2016 Tundra look like a new truck. All for under $300. Heck of a deal!

[@maybeitruns]

The survivor look is always a good look in my book. I would hate to have something perfect for fear of messing it up.

[@jord5626]

Very well put 👏👏

[@vtecbanger3180]

I’ve had bad luck with perfect rare cars. One of my cars got hit 3 times in 1 year. I have many stories

[@karumaman]

Nice work! Glad to see you were down to dabble in some detail work. Really think detailers are under appreciated. Been doing the work for 15 years myself and can say that a detail can totally transform a car. Props.

[@natedetailscars]

With an extra couple grand in detailing, you turned your $1600 paint job into an OEM job. Well done guys.

[@mmonkeyman1403]

This is just what all good paint shops would do for a car. Maaco is like spirit airlines in that you get flown somewhere, but every additional service or amenity will cost you extra. Looks pretty dang good now!

[@redsquirrelftw]

Wow so shiny! It really is satisfying to see it all come together. One of these days I need to learn how to do body work and detailing and fix up my F150. It probably has just about as much rust than your Previa had lol.

[@StanleyKubick1]

detailing won't fix rust ;)

[@Rekt-M8-v4]

@@StanleyKubick1 bodywork will though.

[@LooseWheelFilms]

Don’t say the forbidden Previa name

[@redsquirrelftw]

​@@StanleyKubick1 No but every time I hit it with a hammer some of the rust falls out. In theory it should be rust free at some point right? :P But yeah I'd need to do serious body work to it.

[@droboyjr]

Dude it’s a PIA but the finish product is usually worth it

[@Logistiz]

You are definitely my favorite car youtuber. May not be a millionaire with 25 built cars and a shop with 17 lifts, but you are incredibly smart and talented! Awesome video

[@haydentakara4369]

Adam lz lol

[@gamenerd4695]

My 84 mustang gt got a $500 maaco paint job back in 01 (previous owner). There was orange peel but not to your extent. With a 2 hour wash, buff, and wax, it came out as good as that.

[@butchrowerakamannyfraker955]

Man that car and especially the dash is giving me flashbacks LOL I'm 40 when I was 20 I had a 94 Plymouth Laser.. the laser eagle talon and eclipse we're all pretty much the same car

[@Purpiii]

It's looking so good now, can't wait to see what wheels you put on it

[@_Gingium_]

Heck yeah!

[@VonD00M900]

Some 5 spokes would look gooood

[@actontreadway1168]

@@VonD00M900 no. Spinners.

[@loganculver9058]

As a professional painter and DSM owner, that paint job hurts my soul.

[@butchrishel1505]

2 helpful hints.they make a thin flexible rubber block that works great on curved surfaces.also if you use a little dish soap with your water,the sandpaper slides easier.still,you are doing a good job.

[@joannaatkins822]

Oh I am absolutely stoked to see how this turns out! I love getting to your videos early

[@joannaatkins822]

Yesss! Gorgeous work, what a fantastic bit of paint correction! I can't wait to see what wheels and tyres you get for this old girl, I had a Peugeot 405 wagon with 14" TSW alloys on it, and they weighed a freaking tonne. I chucked a steel spare on the front and the steering got 200% lighter lol

[@quest8795]

Watching a professional detailer work is always really cool. Great video

[@willgotsch7292]

As a maaco employee, I have to give you props. We've really butchered some cars in that shop lol. Patience goes a long way with wet sanding and polishing.

[@Captaindan7141]

Thanks bro I needed this. I painted my car a month ago and it's time for me to wet sand and buff it.

[@TinyTurboVW]

Omg dude. This car is looking epic. You've gotten this car looking amazing. Thank you for bringing this old DSM back to looking better than new. :)

[@SNapRicardo]

Its really interesting to see this. I had my Renault Clio mk1 painted in that same red and it cost me 600€ in a garage that I usually go to. The paint has a better look before it got detailed. I'm waiting for the paint to cure 100% to do so. Great results!!! Gotta love red cars (and I used to hate red cars except for Ferrari 😅)

[@Trapper50cal]

I could make it 10%-15% better with a can of Satin Black and 20 minutes.....get that window trim matching and the overspray on the radiator support and frame blacked out. Maybe those mirror mount panels too....

[@Wingspan_5]

Night and day. Looks great. Wonder if the total cost of the MAACO + wet sand is less or more than just paying for a better paint job up front

[@generalexhibition]

This.

[@jritechnology]

It depends. As with any paint work, surface prep is going to be the key and if MAACO did any worse at this on this particular red, the cost of correcting it vs spending $5000-$6000 and having 2-3% defects that are unremovable (instead of 20-30% here) might make you think about shelling out the extra $1500 - $2000. I personally would not have touched this car for less than $1200 (with a ceramic coating application also).

[@rise4097]

Personally I'd pay more to save time and labor on my end.

[@markw1791]

@@jritechnology he paid 1600 for this crap? its a 300 dollar paint job.

[@marcodesantosmacias2117]

I wasn't so into this build at the beginning, but now I need to see all this process, I need to see the wheels

[@FranRuiz]

awesome transformation man!! but the thing that i loved the most is the music.. just perfect! Have your like sir! and cheers from Argentina!

[@shadowdragonmusic9419]

I work as a detailer at a collision shop in New England, and I have to say, you did an amazing job for just starting out with buffing. I highly recommend you get yourself a 6 inch buffer so you can keep learning how to shine up your cars. Possible a Rupees or Milwaukee buffer. Loved the video as always! Keep up the good work!

[@bananielx3]

Flex is the king 😇

[@TRIPLE_SIX_OFFICIAL]

I know the channel isn't super over the top with crazy high horsepower cars, but there's something about the vibe here that puts this channel undoubtedly at the top of my watch list for cars right next to Donut.

[@jacobbabb2540]

I work for shine supply! Love to the products at work!

[@glendon6367]

My back hurts just watching this vid. Detailers product is the real hero here! Keep up the great work.

[@flyboynextdoor]

Nice work..The Talon/Eclipses look better with a black roof and pillars

[@aeroman5239]

Yeah, the red door window frames look weird.

[@sweettee3647]

Looks great. All tho usually when the buff and polish after wet sanding. Usually it's a 2step process. 1st buff with wool pad then use a 2nd polishing compound. But it looks like every one does it different. It turned out good.

[@TameToothSGA]

Yo i was literally just looking into wet sanding and buffing my car and what goes into and BAM!! Gingium uploads what i wanna see

[@TJ-rx4zl]

I got my maaco paint jobs for under $400 and had very few imperfections. Fish eye here or there but the one here sprays pretty well if you actually let them know your somewhat particular. I did all my own prep and they just had to mask off windows and spray.

[@redsealjourneymanreviews6647]

1500 used to be a lot of money for a paint job. used to work at Maaco, edmonton, had my prelude painted there as well. they are good bang for buck. some shops do custom work. COOL!

[@JMRRebuilders]

Another banger brother. I absolutely love the difference. I think the thing lost in these videos is the amount of time and effort that goes into just this job. It is insane the amount of work. But man cant beat it once it is done. LOVE IT BROTHER. Great content again.

[@danr3778]

oooo i like that sanding block with the clamps on the ends.

[@gorillahd9247]

That turned out awesome! Throw an outdoor rated cover on it and protect it. It is worth the effort now!

[@jaskatin]

Watching this made me happy since I do my paint correction at home with non-ideal tools, and I have got the basic idea of how it works, apparently.

[@tedbragg74]

Nothing more satisfying than wet sanding gawd-awful orangepeel and feeling it smooth out right under your fingers! ❤

[@markprice2225]

13:39 I'm getting some serious Dr. Evil Vibes!!! Scott!You're Just Not Evil Enough!!

[@ThomisticAmerican13FOX]

Very cool car, and the red stands out, best color on that generation Eclipse. I have seen GSXs run sub 11s without a tremendous amount of work, way back in 2003ish in Bithlo FL.

[@itsstocky1955]

Car looks fantastic!! Such a transformation already! Great work gingium

[@bleeneo101]

I had to do the exact same job on my car in 2012. Took me 3 days but the car was perfect. You guys did an amazing job and for the price you can't beat it. Beautiful job 👌👍👏👏👏🔥

[@chrisSVT]

I'm currently in the process of doing this to my '03 Pathfinder. It was bought new from my father and is mint (aside from the horrible orange peal). It is black and has 94k on it. The interior is mint (the carpet has zero wear...it looks brand new).

[@yunus_aros]

What a terrific change you made to that dull paint job. I am impressed how far wet sanding and buffing can take you. Good job!

[@agerrgerra1361]

5:56 looks like my Miata hood, it's inspiring to see such great results from paint correction

[@jacobenglish5940]

Gotta say, extra high quality filming in this one Gingium

[@kyleroberts4841]

Caleb. You might be taking longer to put out content but man is quality leaps and bounds better than its ever been. Loving every video so far. Keep at it my man and it will pay off.

[@802Garage]

Wow huuuge difference. That red really POPS!

[@sgsax]

Impressive that you can get it looking this good. Lucky there was enough clear coat to be able to sand it back like this. Looking nice!

[@matthewquinn937]

wow what an improvement. That all looks like a crazy amount of labor

[@Christosan88]

The results you got make me want to get my Bugeye professionally detailed.

[@04dram04]

When going with Marco I suggest only getting a single stage with a color without metalic. That way you don't have to worry about buying through clear during wetsanding. Plus it's much cheaper to get.

[@paulmeijer6163]

Looks amazing man. At the start it didn't look right with the red and black but all red looks so great. I would definitely want to pull the front bar and paint the core support black again

[@driftnoodle]

loved the music in this video, it fit's my mood perfectly

[@2liter8valveABA]

So glad I found this channel. Great content! That eclipse is sick too

[@whipshinedetailing]

You're right, this IS extremely satisfying. Nice video!

[@arc_of_the_covenant]

Keep up the good work dude ✊🏽 fuck the haters, you’ve been one of my favorite you tubers for 5 years now

[@giovannifebus3700]

Damn that made such a big difference. Absolutely loved the process 🔥💯

[@calebb5106]

hey caleb at 9:41 you can hear the sandpaper "zipping" when that happens its time to either clean the paper or replace it -sincerly Race car, sports car, and supercar body&paint guy

[@vertrox3435]

The car looks about as close to perfect as anyone could achieve, but I’m curious. After the sanding/buffing/detailing, was this process still less expensive than a professional paint job? By how much (percentage-wise)?

[@evrlastngcherry7727]

I bet he got a deal for advertising the place

[@nigelmcclean4166]

good point...but this way lends for more/better content.

[@vertrox3435]

@@nigelmcclean4166 very true lol

[@aidan-8100]

You can very easily spend a Saturday and do this yourself, maybe 200-230 bucks in materials and tools if you buy a polisher. just did this on my Miata for all in maybe 1000 because I did the bondo work and took all the lights, mirrors etc off when I dropped it off at Maaco. Cut and buffed it over 1 full Saturday and it’s 90% of the paint job any other place would do. I just painted the door jams myself

[@TheBookofLab]

with a harbor frieght paint gun, d/a sander and buffer plus some ebay paint and clear you can do all of this for under 500 bucks the whole thing paint and polish

[@FreakinRican]

Absolutely stunning bud!

[@tougewagon]

I can't wait to see it in person! My homie did an awesome job❤

[@componentsquid9043]

Same bro thats my brother yano

[@oof578]

You should really look into like PPF protective film + ceramic coat on top. The film is basically clear vinyl and it works so well with protection. Scratches repair themselves.

[@mako4vr]

Gingium has to be my favorite car channel. dude is so entertaining

[@simplesi6513]

Keep it going fella, loving the content. Who said “you can’t polish a turd”, it’s far to easy these days to buy a brand new car car and stick a few things to it and make a better brand new car.

[@emillkim13]

Found your site. Really dug the video. Super satisfying.

[@stuartingram7327]

My question is 1600 for the paint job + what would what was just done to the cars paint = what ? Is it really cheaper to get a macco paint job or would it actually been cheaper to go to a better paint shop ?

[@rockman53yt92]

now this is the real question, id hope it would be cheaper if you're just looking for a good enough/well done vs a professional paintjob

[@El_Chompo]

Yeah I think you're right. The small amount of time the Maaco saved by cutting some corners turned into a huge time investment to fix those issues. It would have saved a lot of effort in total if they had just taken an extra hour to do things more correctly. But there is also a third factor involved that we don't know the effect of, which is what was the state of the car going into Maaco? I've heard that if you do the prep work yourself and bring it to them just for finishing and paint then they do a great job. If you spend the hours needed for sanding and taping off glass and lights carefully and bring it to them ready to put paint on then they don't have much to fix so they can just do a good job putting on paint. It's the prep work they skimp out on when you just bring them a car totally unprepared for paint. At the same time though you can definitely see that Maaco made some mistakes during the actual painting process too and it wasn't totally a case of just skimping out on prep. They vary in quality by location too, I think the Maaco on Hoovie's garage does a great job.

[@deporterdetailing]

So a full body wet sand, compound and then polishing would run about $2,000 starting for a vehicle. So then after the $1600 paint job plus $2,000 minimum for the wet sanding and al that done in this video you’re looking at $3,600 minimum. So it may be better to pay more for a better quality paint job. Unless you have the time, skills and experience to do the wet sanding and all of the other work. But that’s a multi day process.

[@deporterdetailing]

@@El_Chompo Also, I watched another video and if you do the prep work yourself and take it to Macao it voids their warranty….. so another reason I wouldn’t use them because you have to let them do crappy prep to have a warranty that they probably have a lot of loop holes to begin with, so it may be worth doing the prep work yourself anyways.

[@El_Chompo]

@@deporterdetailing Yeah it seems like a losing battle either way at least at the particular Maaco from this video, or maybe the workers just had a bad day. Because if you figure even if he had done all the prep work himself saving Maaco hours of tedious sanding and masking, there was still solvent pop in the paint. Actually I'm not sure now if that is from the prep process or not. Does that mean there was solvent left over from the cleaning and degreasing processes before the paint was laid down? And the fact that some paint was textured and other wasn't. There are just too many questions with ugly answers. Either they didn't sand the car flat to begin with or their painting process itself was flawed by having a bad mix or timing or application thickness. I would say do your research and if you can find a good Maaco like from Hoovies garage then go for it. It's a lot of work no matter what you do at the end of the day you can't get around it. Competent jobs cost a ton of money and doing it yourself takes a ton of time, maaco you are rolling the dice and understanding it won't be perfect but hey that's still way better than old faded chipped paint (normally, depending on the car and style preferences of course. Like old chipped paint on a classic muscle car is kind of cool but on a more modern car it just kind of looks bad).

[@largol33t1]

I've been told by one shop that put a video on youtube that they always always completely spray their paint area with water and keep the entire floor wet. They're so serious about it that they have assistants constantly dripping small cups of water around the floor. Why? It attracts and traps the dust and keeps it to an absolute minimum. Of course, they do have installed air filters in the spray area that can suck up incredibly tiny particles of dust. This is so expensive that it's only used by a real paint shop, not amateurs like Maaco. But this is one way they get their paint jobs looking so smooth and glassy. Of course, the other vital step is compound polishing every square inch of the car. That's why you'll wind up with a bill for $5,000! And I've seen a video of a Porsche being repainted and they billed the owner $15k!! To their credit, you absolutely cannot tell that the car was repainted even with the camera inches from the surface.

[@makeitorleaveit1]

That period correct music to the year of the car is a vibe

[@projectbluelightphiladelph4378]

from a auto body / paint repair man with over 25 years experiance no matter if the paint job cost 1600 or 200 hundred as for orange peel this can be avoided by turning up the air pressure on the spray gun most paint jobs are sprayed at 32 psi if you turn the pressure up to 34 psi it does away with the orange peel also when you are wet sanding lift your finger tips up off of the paper because if you dont you will put finger marks in the paint and are hard to wet sand out as far as pitting, and fisheyes it all come down to how the car was preped so no matter how much the paint job was some times wet sanding and buffing cant fix some things and has to be repainted

[@ClungerMax]

Hey bruh long time chilling with you keep up the work man I know you work so hard on cranking out vids so I appreciate you homie

[@TheYz250fmf]

Wow that guy did an amazing job, killin it

[@jundialhaqiqa9907]

Glad that shop is in my area, I will have to check them out

[@fl4shb4ckGaming]

I knew a good full detail would help but damn I didn't think its be that much better. So much better

[@Stingyduce]

You could mix u some clear coat and use the opposite end of a touch up stick drop it in that pit let it dry then sand it goes away

[@tag_76]

Nice work fellas. The best thing you can do after all of this work is at least 2 layers of a good quality ceramic coating.

[@imjustbored97]

yeaaaa shine supply. thats my local shop!!

[@jcooper4923]

Looks so odd without the black roof and mirrors. Makes it look a lot closer to a starion/conquest.

[@markstorer7204]

Massive improvement Caleb, it's good to see what would have been described as a beater slowly morph into something desirable 👍

[@hoaarts6700]

This makes me want to get a cheap maaco paint and then detail my NB myself too. Super cool!

[@Girz0r]

Done right! Looks amazing now.

[@wh4070]

Nice work! Gonne have to flat black rattle can behind the bumper to hide the overspray, and make it look even more complete

[@bmlkohs]

The car is looking great! I've always wanted one of these eclipses, but when it in the budget I can't find one and when it's not I see a bunch for sale. I guess that's the world's way of saying no. Glad you're building one and taking us along for the process.

[@mitchio83]

That Viper sticker is such a nice touch.

[@arcea5919]

I'm really curious which to know which paint option you went with. I know Maaco has a "Urethane + gloss enhancer" and their most expensive package: "Base coat + performance clear coat". Most Maaco paint jobs have the clear mixed with the base coat as a single stage paint but you mentioned you had clear on top of your base coat on min 2:40. My question is: Is there any effect or disadvantage to applying nano ceramic on the urethane + clear - single stage paint job? Is it safe to do? Of course, this is considering the whole paint correction process has been completed.

[@Sloppyjalopy123]

Can't complain looks pretty good man!

[@jv6miata]

Man this paint job is fire!

[@codydonovan7356]

They don't lie when a good paint job is all in the prep

[@brodymoto3849]

I think a lot of people don’t understand that any new paint job needs a nice cut and buff. No matter how nice the paint job is initially I think they could always use some detail work to make them look really good.

[@lowdnlow5spdgt]

Absolutely loving this series, Caleb!

[@ford_probe_garage_studio]

Great video. Excellent outcome. Skilled craftsmen. 👍

[@richboy271]

The final product is impressive ! Love it

[@xozindustries7451]

Really smart way to do a video, especially in your current situation

[@dmotts]

Oooo I hate wet sanding. Great work!

[@cmscms123456]

MAACO can be good. 1. Shop around, there are usually a few MAACO shops in your area. Go to all of them, look at cars in process, and finished cars. Im in SoCal. Costa Mesa MAACO bid over $3000 just to strip down old paint and body work... before he would even make a estimate on the paint. I went to MAACO of Orange and got the whole thing done, 2 stage paint, color sand and buff for $2800. I complained to MAACO Corporate and the just said every shop is independently owned, nothing they would do about it. So.. SHOP AROUND... SECOND... if you are handy at all with tools, or get help from a friend, remove as much trim items that you can. Headlight bezels, grills, side trim, once at the shop, remove the tail lights, maybe even bumpers, if they are chrome. You will get a much better job.

[@bobogoesbananas7734]

That car looks brand new, you guys did an amazing job fixing the paint 👌

[@MasteringHow-To]

Can’t believe you wet sanded the entire car by hand. Wow!

[@robbalinski1606]

the bubbles in the paint are more then likely from the paint gassing out through the clear, basically they didn't let the layers cure long enough.