Why does nobody talk about the real cost of a cheap paint job?

I was having a beer with a guy who runs a detail shop, and he said he gets at least two cars a month from other shops where the clear coat is already failing after six months. He looked at me and said, 'You know why? They're mixing the clear too thin to save thirty bucks a gallon.' I'd always focused on our own mix, but it made me check the invoices from our supplier. How many shops are actually cutting that corner just to underbid the next guy?

3 comments

3 Comments

leo_park211mo ago

Remembered a buddy who bought a cheap respray for his old truck, said it looked great for a season. Then the hood started looking like sunburned skin, all cloudy and cracked. Turns out the shop skipped the sealer step entirely, so moisture got under everything. He ended up paying twice to have it all stripped and done right.

emma_morgan1mo ago

Ever wonder if the shop even knew they skipped it? Some of these cheap places hire guys who just follow a boss's rushed orders, not proper steps. Your buddy's hood probably got painted right over old wax or grease they didn't clean off, which acts like a barrier. That moisture issue starts there, not just with missing sealer. It's a full system failure from poor prep to the final coat.

mark_cooper1mo ago

Honestly my neighbor's deck stain did the same thing, peeled right off in sheets after one winter.