Here’s my situation: I drive a 1998-model Honda Civic that has served me well since November 1997. I recently got the spark wiring replaced but everything has been hunky dory. Great car. Reliable. Love it.
But here’s my dilemma: This car BADLY needs a paint job. Like, yesterday. It’s embarassing. The problem is, if I get the entire car painted (which I would pretty much have to do, since the paint is worn off everywhere), it would probably cost a significant fraction of what the car is worth. I don’t know how much economic sense it would make to paint it. But I love this car, and if not for the paint job I’d happily keep it for another 5 years. It only has 64k miles on it (I only drive it about 10-20 miles per week these days.)
It’s not the status that concerns me so much (if I was worried about social status I wouldn’t be driving this car in public!), but I’m worried that the body of the car is more likely to corrode or rust without the paint to protect it.
What do you guys think–is this just a cosmetic issue (in which case I shouldn’t worry about it) or would getting it painted protect the car body?
I don’t have the handyman skills to paint it myself.
Is there some kind of cheap-ass local place like this one that used to run constant ads on late-night TV? Even if the work is crap, it’s probably better than what the average Joe could do him/herself.
I think Maaco still does the $225 [del]Ambassador Package[/del] You Get What You Pay For Package. If the car’s paintwork bothers you, and you plan to keep it 5 years, who cares if it makes economic sense? Paint it.
ETA: You don’t paint a car after 12 years to prevent corrosion. You paint a car when it’s new to prevent corrosion, or when it gets damaged. If any of the bodywork is already exposed to air, the damage is done (although I wouldn’t worry about it too much).
After reading a bajillion terrible reviews of Maaco on the internet, I definitely wouldn’t go with them. If I’m going to get it painted, I’ll try to get it done decently, even if it costs more. “How to get it painted for cheap” isn’t really the burning question–I really just want to know if I should get it painted at all.
Keep sharing your opinions…(I can’t promise I’ll abide by the consensus, but at least it will give me something to consider.)
This car continues to serve you well. Many men would like new wives too. It can be very expensive to change horses.
You could always get a cheapy paint job at Maaco when they have specials. I’d probably do nothing. That paint did not fall off of it overnight. You have been living with it. Continue on course. It might really be in good shape with only 64,000 miles, but I’d like to look before confirming that. You might not be the best judge of that. If you have done nothing, maybe lots of stuff is ready to go. Keep the blinders on and flog this horse until the finish line.
My car is a 1999 model which I bought in 2004; it has slightly over 101,000 km on it. The only times it has been to the mechanic have been for checkups/liquid changes, to change the tires (once) and to change a wiper. It runs like a beauty (well, one with too few ponies, but given the trend to lower speed limits that’s not much of a problem). The one thing I’ve never liked about it is the color: it’s grey and doesn’t have one of those keys that make the car beep back, so finding it in a large, unfamiliar parking garage can take a while.
Last week I found out what’s the paperwork I need to do with our equivalent of DoT if I take advantage of the case of “scratches all over” the car has (since it’s old enough that its papers don’t list color, nothing). Next step, getting references for a good paint place. Step three, a dark red car!
Drive it for years and years till it crumbles to rust/dust. Then buy a “great, reliable” used car from some fool for cheap who would dispose of a car just because it needed paint and drive *it *for years and years.
As with considering the price of significant mechanical repairs, the thing to consider is not the resale value but the transportation value. If you really like the car, it’s in good mechanical condition, and the body is sound, giving it a quality paint job can make perfect sense. Which would you be happier/better off with: this car, nicely painted; or its replacement, being something you could buy with however much you could sell this for as is plus the price of the paint job?
If you’re not in a hurry to sell it when the time comes, the combination of low mileage and good paint may provide a nice resale value.
It’s a balance, it’s just not a way to get from point a to b, but it’s your way to get from point a to b. You would like something decent, though it becoming a status symbol is over the top. Fortunately a 13 yr old (non-exotic) car is not going to be a status symbol so you don’t have to worry about that. You just have to try to balance what you need to spend to make it a acceptable ride for you. The suggestion of a low cost paint job sounds perfect for this.
I had a car just like that once. Older car, but great to drive. It was mechanically sound, but needed a paint job because of corrosion and oxidation. Also needed a new muffler. So I had the muffler replaced and got a decent, but not overly expensive paint job. Car looked fabulous! Within a few weeks it was stolen off the streets! Never recovered it. Moral of the story: Sometimes it’s safer to have an older car looking more dilapidated, at least safer from thieves!
I spray painted my old beast of a Pinto during University when I worked at a radio station. Then I actually bought a leftover half can of blue exterior house paint and covered it all up and sold it off.
I’m in the camp of a paid off reliable car is a great car. If the paint really bothers you, yes find someone that will paint it for $200 or DIY if you like projects. Don’t put lipstick on a pig and drop a lot of cash on a paint job that will still be an almost 15 year old Honda.
Call local high schools and find out if any of them have or are attached to trade schools with auto-body departments. Then see if the auto-body kids need a practice car for finals.
I drive a 1998 van with 155,000 miles on it. I drive it because it’s paid off. I told my parents I was going to trade it in, for the sole reason that the rust spots are getting bigger and bigger and I’m downright embarassed to drive it anymore.
So my parents gave me an “early birthday gift” - spending hundreds of dollars having my rust spots fixed
I told them you “can’t polish a shit”… they apparently think otherwise. I’ll die before that damn van.
