Hey guys,
I may be interested in getting a new paint job for my black 2000 black 540 sport if I decide to keep it.

I don't know anything about Maco, but I've heard some horror stories, but then I don't want to pay out the ass for paint on a 7 year old car.

Has anyone had their e39 repainted, and what was the cost and quality?

Thanks for your help guys.

i took at painting and refinishing class at my local community college, CPCC here in Mecklenburg County, NC....its ranked 3rd or 4th nationally in community colleges...4 paint booths, 1 of which we parked semi-trucks in...it was a class of just the prep work...tape, sand, priming, sand, priming, sand, sand, sand, masking, sand, sand, more taping. and some more sanding. there is A LOT that goes into a nice paint job. instead of just spraying it.

you get what you pay for.

Macco would be the civic if you want to make this metaphor. there really isnt much guarantee with them. i doubt they do much prep work, if any. they are known to mask with newspaper. the paint they use isnt that great. i doubt they give proper application. it could stick anywhere from 2 weeks, 6 months, or a couple years.

i would suggest finding a shop that is known for good work, check out some of work they have done, if you can, walk around and see how they operate. dont cheap out.

I wouldn't let Macco touch my 14 year Camry or my 20 year old 944. e39............. F**k NO!!! A fine paint job will run upwards of 1500 bones...easily.

I just had my 5 painted last year I paid $1700.00 My wife wasn't very happy and I had them re-shoot the car it's a little better but not what I thought I should of got for the money......research, thats all I can say.

I've gotten good work out of cheap shops, but the key to doing that is to prep the car yourself. I've done 3 different cars this way, and while I was pleased with the results, it was a lot of work. Basically, you remove anything you don't want painted. Trim, lights, wipers, emblems, etc. When my cars hit the booth, the only taping needed was the windows and wheels. Done that way, a $500 paint job can look pretty good.

But - I still would go higher end on the 540. The cars I have done this with were in the $2K - $5K range. Your car should be $10K - $20K depending on details. I'd plan on spending $1000 for a nice paint job if you do the prep, and $2000+ if you drop it off. The materials used in a $1000 paint job really are a lot better.

For reference, my car is going to the body shop to repair where someone backed into my rear door. Insurance is paying to paint both driver's side doors and both quarter panels. Even with that much of it handled by insurance, I was quoted $1500 to get the rest of the car painted at the same time. I'm going to spring for it because the only thing worse than 7 year old paint is 7 year old paint on half of the car, and new paint on the other half.

I just had my 5 painted last year I paid $1700.00 My wife wasn't very happy and I had them re-shoot the car it's a little better but not what I thought I should of got for the money......research, thats all I can say.

Yep - Ask around local enthusiast groups to see who has a good reputation. Look at their completed work. Get references. Look around their shop - is it clean, well organized, etc? Do you trust the guy you're talking to or is he being a salesman?

I was told by a few reputable shops that it'd be $3000ish for my 528i.



Like others have said, you get what you pay for...and most of what you're paying for is the prep.

Don't even consider Macco unless you do ALL the prep because they do none. Besides looking fairly bad from day 1, you can also expect peeling before you know it.

Also, never let one shop do the prep, and then another shop do the paint. Otherwise, they'll just blame each other when it doesn't come out the way you want it and neither will make it right for you.

Research, research, research.

If someone recommends a shop ask them if they had their car repaired there, if they did see the car for yourself to see if you like the work they did.

I found the shop I use like that. Perfect work all the time. You can also find out the shop that the local dealer uses if they don't do their own work.

The dealer near my house farms it out to a local shop that does great work.

Their is nothing worse than a bad paint job. You will see it everytime you use the car and see it upclose when you wash it.

I had a detailer mess my finish up! Anways, the shop I conctacted(very , very , reputable, and awesome work!) quoted my close to $5,000 for a whole paint job. It would also take them close to a month to do it. So yeah, you get what you pay for really!

damn i would say 1500 is a good prepped paint job .. take it to pertty much any paint shop that has contracts w/car manufacturers

I just had my 01 540 painted & It was a mess. I removed all the parts from the car before they painted it & they still managed to paint just about everything else they could while they were at it. I had to spend at least 2 weeks detailing as I put the car back together. The paint job still cost $1400
for 2 stage paint & a color sand. Research, research, research. is the key!