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1990 Vanagon Westfalia camper: Cost to paint it?
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pushkick
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PostPosted: Thu Jun 25, 2020 10:46 am    Post subject: 1990 Vanagon Westfalia camper: Cost to paint it? Reply with quote

What price should expect to get my van painted
I intend to do body work myself
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4Gears4Tires
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PostPosted: Thu Jun 25, 2020 10:54 am    Post subject: Re: 1990 vanagon westfalia camper Reply with quote

What level of quality are you expecting?

Maaco - $700 for a single stage paint job, masking job will be mediocre, expect paint on your radiator and muffler, windshield trim, etc. Actual paint finish is fairly good. Especially for the price! The more disassembly you do yourself, the better Maaco becomes as an option.

The shop that has Porsches and Ferraris out front? Probably $10,000 as a general starting point.
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PostPosted: Thu Jun 25, 2020 11:39 am    Post subject: Re: 1990 vanagon westfalia camper Reply with quote

Those numbers sound about right. Not all Maaco shops are the same - some do better work than others (franchises I believe) so you may want to ask around locally.

4Gears4Tires wrote:
...The shop that has Porsches and Ferraris out front? Probably $10,000 as a general starting point.


Mine at such a body shop recently (Ferrari and Lambo in this case):

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PostPosted: Thu Jun 25, 2020 11:40 am    Post subject: Re: 1990 Vanagon Westfalia camper: Cost to paint it? Reply with quote

paint and material costs make a huge difference. Primer, base and clear can be anywhere from $1,500 for middle quality materials to $3,000 for higher quality materials.
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ProspectiveOwnergon
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PostPosted: Thu Jun 25, 2020 12:01 pm    Post subject: Re: 1990 Vanagon Westfalia camper: Cost to paint it? Reply with quote

pushkick wrote:
What price should expect to get my van painted
I intend to do body work myself


Location and level of paint are HUGE. I'm in SoCal and for a paintjob I've seen quotes up to $15,000. There is what's known as in Tijuana for full body work, paint and warranty with non-CA restrictive paints for like $4k max.

If you want full inside out (stripping the van entirely) even more money.
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PostPosted: Thu Jun 25, 2020 12:05 pm    Post subject: Re: 1990 Vanagon Westfalia camper: Cost to paint it? Reply with quote

Man, I get sad every time these threads pop up. Just deflated. Painting our van is really the last thing we need to do (already did engine rebuild, interior, new canvas, new wheels, tires, aux battery, radio, speakers etc etc).

Our rig is wearing original paint (majorly oxidized) and window seals. Window seals are leaking a bit in front (water on the floor under heavy rain) and there's slight rust under front window seal and rear. I know we need to pop windows out, sand off and fix seal rust, get new seals, and get a paint job.

But I've yet to get quoted under $7k. And the $7k wasn't even from that reputable of a shop.

For now we continue to embrace the fade and bring towels when it's raining.

Some day.

Edit: We're in LA. TJ is an option - but not since January (with the virus concerns). Sorry, don't mean to hijack btw. Just feeling ya.
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PostPosted: Thu Jun 25, 2020 1:08 pm    Post subject: Re: 1990 Vanagon Westfalia camper: Cost to paint it? Reply with quote

You can have a lot of fun with a van in original paint. Branches, door dings, floor jack handle just blend in. Stress free ownership.

Once you get that Lambo paint job, you will need to leave it in your garage under a cover with a controlled environment.
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PostPosted: Thu Jun 25, 2020 1:12 pm    Post subject: Re: 1990 Vanagon Westfalia camper: Cost to paint it? Reply with quote

Paint it yourself with a foam roller. Engine enamel. ~$150. It really IS an option. Can't tell from 10 meters, or at highway speed. Why would anyone want a trailer queen paint job anyway, these things are meant to have the 'been around' look. Give ego a miss. If you are already doing the body work, you'll be unhappy with any shop doing the finishing anyway, it'll never sync up with your expectations. If THEY do the body and paint, you'll more likely be either satisfied, or unhappy. Stick with the simple things in life.
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PostPosted: Thu Jun 25, 2020 3:07 pm    Post subject: Re: 1990 Vanagon Westfalia camper: Cost to paint it? Reply with quote

Paint it yourself with a roller and brushes for ~$250 all in, using Interlux Brightside. Looks just fine from 10 inches away. Smile Just takes time for all the prep - but it means you can deal with the rust, replace all the old seals, get the windows tinted (the major cost), and have the inside all insulated for a total of less than $1,600.
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PostPosted: Thu Jun 25, 2020 4:01 pm    Post subject: Re: 1990 Vanagon Westfalia camper: Cost to paint it? Reply with quote

MarkWard wrote:
You can have a lot of fun with a van in original paint. Branches, door dings, floor jack handle just blend in. Stress free ownership.



this is my feeling too... sure it would be great to have a nice new paint job, but the forest roads to Valhalla won't be kind to it. use it, slightly abuse it, enjoy it.
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pushkick
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PostPosted: Thu Jun 25, 2020 6:58 pm    Post subject: Re: 1990 Vanagon Westfalia camper: Cost to paint it? Reply with quote

Given all body work is done and masking is completed how much time to paint a van?
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4Gears4Tires
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PostPosted: Thu Jun 25, 2020 7:29 pm    Post subject: Re: 1990 Vanagon Westfalia camper: Cost to paint it? Reply with quote

bobbyblack wrote:
Paint it yourself with a foam roller. Engine enamel. ~$150. It really IS an option. Can't tell from 10 meters, or at highway speed.


This is outdoor furniture enamel from home depot. $9/quart. I shot it with a harbor freight paint gun.

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I should have spent more time with prep, but I honestly didn't care since the car was built to be abused. I just powerwashed it, wiped it down to dry it, and painted it.
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PostPosted: Thu Jun 25, 2020 7:38 pm    Post subject: Re: 1990 Vanagon Westfalia camper: Cost to paint it? Reply with quote

Pushkick - mine took all of 4 hours using both paint booths at the body shop. One booth had doors, hatch, slider, bumpers hanging in it, the other had the fully masked van.

That was a tack cloth rubdown, a white base coat, then 4 coats of Toyota Sunburst Yellow paint, and then it had to sit in the paint booth overnight. We came back in the morning.

That was two guys in the booth taking turns - holding the hoses, dragging them, tending to refilling the paint, one guy spraying, moving gear from one booth to another.

I ended up with the perfect driver paint job. Fantastic up to a foot away, super durable, and pride of ownership when people come out of coffee shops just to take its picture. The paint is so strong that a month ago I rubbed the slider against the powder coated ARB on the Cruiser for about 3 feet before I noticed. Paint is fine on the van, but there's powder coat on top of the paint in irregular streaks. Out of sheer stubbornness to accept my own stupidity, I've been driving it for a month without even working on the marks. Reminds me, was going to ask folks here how to get it off.
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PostPosted: Thu Jun 25, 2020 8:35 pm    Post subject: Re: 1990 Vanagon Westfalia camper: Cost to paint it? Reply with quote

YosemiteBound wrote:
Man, I get sad every time these threads pop up. Just deflated. Painting our van is really the last thing we need to do (already did engine rebuild, interior, new canvas, new wheels, tires, aux battery, radio, speakers etc etc).

Our rig is wearing original paint (majorly oxidized) and window seals. Window seals are leaking a bit in front (water on the floor under heavy rain) and there's slight rust under front window seal and rear. I know we need to pop windows out, sand off and fix seal rust, get new seals, and get a paint job.

But I've yet to get quoted under $7k. And the $7k wasn't even from that reputable of a shop.

For now we continue to embrace the fade and bring towels when it's raining.

Some day.

Edit: We're in LA. TJ is an option - but not since January (with the virus concerns). Sorry, don't mean to hijack btw. Just feeling ya.


I believe '85s did not have clear coat (mine didn't). Polishing compound can remove the oxidized layer and reveal fresh paint below that looks great. The paint coat will be thinner and require more attenion (wax, etc.) but all it takes is an afternoon with a random orbital polisher, various polishing compounds and wax. Maybe two afternoons.

My '85 after some clean-up in 2014...

Image may have been reduced in size. Click image to view fullscreen.

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Current: 1990 Westy Camper - Bostig RG4, 2wd, manual trans w/Peloquin, NAHT high-top, 280 ah LFP battery, 160 watts solar, Flash Silver, seam rust, bondo, etc., etc.

Past: 1985 Westy Camper - 1.9 wbx, 2wd, manual trans, Merian Brown, (sold after 17 years to Northwesty who converted it to a Syncro).


Last edited by jimf909 on Sat Jun 27, 2020 8:56 am; edited 1 time in total
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PostPosted: Thu Jun 25, 2020 8:43 pm    Post subject: Re: 1990 Vanagon Westfalia camper: Cost to paint it? Reply with quote

I have painted three Vanagons in my garage over the years. High end paint with excellent results. All were painted in one day. All took 10x that to get ready for paint.
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PostPosted: Fri Jun 26, 2020 12:38 pm    Post subject: Re: 1990 Vanagon Westfalia camper: Cost to paint it? Reply with quote

dobryan wrote:
I have painted three Vanagons in my garage over the years. High end paint with excellent results. All were painted in one day. All took 10x that to get ready for paint.


make that four... i'll bring the Westy over. hahaha.
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PostPosted: Fri Jun 26, 2020 4:55 pm    Post subject: Re: 1990 Vanagon Westfalia camper: Cost to paint it? Reply with quote

Gears - awesome! Great color, great chassis, great use plan for the chassis.

I should also add that I painted my Syncro with a gallon of Home Depot concrete floor paint and a brush in my garage. You read that correctly. It was intended to be banged around in the woods. My son bounced balls off it in campgrounds and Mr. Anal car owner (me) didn't care because I wanted it to serve as pure fun, which it did. I second whomever posited that expensive paint jobs change forever your use of a van designed to live in, around, and carry stuff for you.

Anyhow, I didn't mention it earlier because I'd never do it again as the brush took 4 hours per coat and I had to put 4 coats on it. Beyond tedious. Next time I'd use a roller as others here mention, or I'd wrap it with one of the cool vinyl films now available. I plan to wrap my project Supra once I get it reassembled.
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