Scott,

I am no expert by any means but I have been doing some research because I
want to get my 85' repainted. Everyone says when it comes to a paint job you
get what you pay for, however I have talked to several body/paint guys who
do this for a living and they all say that Maaco isn't the best but they do
a pretty good job for the price you pay. So from what I gather as long as
you aren't looking for show quality but want a decent job for little $$$
Maaco isn't too bad of an option.

I am sure a lot of people will dispute this - and they may be right. I am
just relaying what I was told by guys who are currently in that industry.
Opinions will always vary.

Thank you,

Jeff Lincoln
85' GL
-----Original Message-----
From: Vanagon Mailing List [mailto:vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com]On Behalf
Of SD Kraning
Sent: Thursday, March 06, 2003 4:22 AM
To: vanagon@GERRY.VANAGON.COM
Subject: Painting Carat: Maaco OK??

Hi All -

I am nearing the point of repainting my 90 Carat. I want to do this right
and have it look very close to the original (Orly Blue and Graphite)
*however*   I'm not planing to show it or anything, so it would be a waste
of $$ (IMHO) to spend $3K on the job. I know Maaco is not the best by any
means, but they will do a "premium" or two stage process for around
$900.00 - and that is actuall AFFORDABLE for me. Has anyone had any
experience with this?

The perfection is so often in the details here - that's why I would probably
do all the taping and prep (not sanding or body work) myself, just to make
sure it was done right. I mean...they're spraying on color then
clearcoat...how much better can it look for an extra $2K? If it really would
look that much better, I would just wait and save up, but just don't know
what to do!

thanks,

Scott

PS: my Westy is for sale - please check out www.optikascenic.com/bus