I got an estimate yesterday for the cost to paint my arches--$2,000! The problem is that I have an aero kit and they said this creates a problem. The lower portions of each arch are part of the front and back bumpers. They said that to complete the job they would have to pull the bumpers and paint the entire bumpers. It would also mean I would have to trash my clear bra and purchase another. Ouch! Has anyone else run into this when painting the arches with an aero kit? Has anyone just sanded and painted the black trim piece on the bumper without painting the whole bumper? The paint shop said that just painting the black trim piece would result in that paint flaking off.

Help!

 

I paid 225 for my 6 pieces of arch trim to be painted. He didn't sand but used some kind of bonding/adhesive to make the paint stick. The results turned out astonishing.

I'd suggest in getting all new trim and get that painted. Also find another painter because he's charging way too much.

 

What is everyone's experience that have done this?

Painted arches is on my list of things to do this year. As a consumer, I want high quality and a reasonable price; preferably from someone with a smile on their face who appreciates MINIs (though that isn't necessarily a deciding factor).

I won't sacrifice quality, so if I have to pay more I'm OK with that. But what price range should I really be expecting? I have the factory aero kit, and I "assumed" I'd end up spending $2500ish. But based on the prior post, I guess that's way too much.

More input please............

 

I got a quote for $1900, but that included ALL new parts, including the rocker panels which are a total of $490. Delete those (and I assume they can be re-used) and it'll be around $1400. Of that, I think $400 is parts.

That quote includes filling and sanding to get rid of all texture.

Uncl3, got pictures of your car?

--Dan
Mach V
FastMINI.net

 

I've heard many stories of outrageous prices for painting the arches++ for the aero kit. It was part of my decision to leave the arches black on mine, though I do kind of like the look better with the stock arches. But I think, if you DO pay to have it done, make sure they give you a satisfaction guarantee...

 

These photos were taken at the Dragon.

 

^ That looks great!

 

Super sharp!

 

Call NuWay down here in Portland, They do a great job on all the Rasmussen aero kits and have done plenty of private jobs, and I can't imagine it's that expensive in comparison to your bid.

You can at least get a fair number and then see if the shops in Seattle/ Fife that do Puget Sounds MINIs jobs, are comparable.

 

Also, PM shooler and ask him about his... he did it at NuWay and has used them for many paint jobs.

 

After seeing the photos of pdxmini and Uncle3's Minis, its pretty obvious why this is a sweet mod to do. I want to do it right, but don't want to break the bank or upset the Mrs. I will contact NuWay and maybe take a long weekend trip down to Portland to have them do it if the price is right.

I would be interested to hear if anyone has painted just the black trim on the bumper without repainting the entire bumper, and if they had any problems.

Thanks for all the great feedback!

 

I just ordered all of the trim pieces to paint the arches, sills, and the lower part of the front and rear bumpers on my wife's car. With the stock front and rear bumpers (not the aero kit), there are fourteen separate pieces that have to be painted. The cost for the parts from Pelican was $440, including shipping. I probably could have gotten them a little cheaper from somewhere else, but I like Pelican's website and they had everything in stock.

The sanding will be free, except for some time and a few dollars for the sandpaper. For paint, I figure I'll need a quart of adhesion promoter, two quarts of primer/sealer, and two quarts each of basecoat and clearcoat, plus flex additive for the primer and basecoat. That's probably more paint than I need, but one quart each of primer, base, and clear might not be quite enough, and there's nothing worse than running out of paint midway through a project.

I haven't priced the paint yet, but from past experience, I'm expecting about $200 for the quantities I need, bringing the total cost of the job up to about $650, minus what I can get for the used trim pieces.

Now I just need some time and nice weather...

 

Here is the thing....

I spent some time researching this and you have to sand the arches and any parts that are rough to do it right. I saw a few examples where they used this 'filler/special' paint and I'm sorry but it looks like crap compared to the real deal.

What I mean by that is that your arch should have the same mirror finish that the body panels do.

To do this correctly each piece has to be hand sanded to get it as smooth as humanly possible. Then they must you a special and expensive paint for plastic that will expand and contract with both heat and cold. Many body shops won't use this paint and you will get flaking and chipping over time. Don't be screwed by someone who wants to do a cheap job.

Yes they have to remove and repaint your bumpers completely. it woudl be impossible for them to mask off and paint such a small area and garauntee that it blend perfectly. remember that on an aero kit the trim is actually part of the bumper and not the same piece.

I had this done on my car but I only have the aero front bumper and they pulled my side skirts and I gave them all new arches to work with. Keep in mind that my aero front bumper was already done and paid about $1200 to have the arches done and the side skirts and rear bumper. That was a deal because they know me... The regular price they quoted a friend for everything was $2K

Should you have seen my car at the Dragon I was the one with new fenders that the chrome grill is now gone and only the S remains.

One of the things we did was to bond the arch to the body of the car and fill the seams. If you are going to spend the money repainting have them do tha is it looks so much better!

Also my suggestion is to avoid the standard body shops and find a good custom shop. Someone who does nothing but custom work on cars.

good luck and have fun.

The biggest piece of advice is you get what you pay for. If you know they do good work then it is worth saving the pennies and paying $2k.

chris

 

There's nothing inherently wrong with using a high-build primer/sealer to smooth the texture on the pieces, but it's not a magic bullet - most of the time that you save by not having to sand down the plastic pieces is spent wet-sanding the multiple coats of primer/sealer instead. If the end results looked lousy, it's just because the painter got lazy and didn't sand the primer/sealer enough before shooting the basecoat.

Also, there isn't anything special or expensive about the paint that you use for plastic parts- it's regular automotive paint with a flex additive mixed in. The flex additive isn't cheap, but you don't use very much of it.

 

Yes it is big bucks! I should know, i got the aerokit installed and the arches painted to match as well. But the end result is worth every penny!

 

I beg to differ.

After talking to my painter, he said he didn't need to sand them. He also said that sanding them would make them slimer and possibly cause the plastic to jag or something.

The painter I used works on classics so apparently he knows what he's doing. The end result was amazing. There is no texture on the arches, it's a clear gloss finish with no bumps.

If I get a chance this weekend I'll try and get a close up shot to show you the results.

 

Im specially fond of the last pic in the rain/fog!

 

 

Beautiful

That's what I want done to my MCSC. Now to find someone in San Diego that can do it right.

 

Wow, the C20's look gorgeous on your car!

 

Someone knows thier HRE wheels ^

Thanks for the positive comments guys Ive got updated pics i have to load up. Since these pics, Ive installed the JCW-CF mirrors, blacked out the side vents and added a Blue "S" decals to match the blue calipers and tow hook. The car def gets alot of looks in town. Must be the wheels!

 

Getting rid of the black trim was the best thing I've ever done for my MINI.

 

Another possible issue from sanding the plastic is that the heat generated by the sanding process may cause more of the heat activated mold release to come to the surface. When I had my arches painted we started with brand new arches. These were chemicaly stripped after that process there were multiple skim and guide coats, lightly sanded between each. Lastly the color was shot folowed by a clear. The results speak for themselves.



Since other paint work was done at the same time and lumped into one invoice I cannot break out costs accurately but a gestimate would be in the $1500 range.

 

^ That is one amazing looking car.

 

Hafta agree, painting the arches really makes the car look finished and of a piece.....