MGB Register Forum

Hi. Has anyone got any recent prices for a respray on a GT, preferably for a built up car not a bare shell. Cheers Geoff

Hi Geoff,
a very difficult question!
# the spraying is only one part of the cost of course.
# the stripdown of the body - are you going to remove everything and do a thorough job? Alternative is to just do a lot of masking and just do the external panels.
#changing the colour? If so then you really need to do a complete stripdown and respray it all.
# previous repairs, rust, panel gaps and surface imperfections will need to be addressed and will be a big part of the overall cost.
# if using modern 2 pack paint for durability then this requires quite a bit of extra kit and a proper spray booth - suggests you would need a professional outfit and not cheap.

As with most things, you only get what you pay for. You will find big differences in quotes, and I would be wary of the cheap ones.

Probably not very helpful, but a few things to think about.

I do my own spraying with cellulose, which is fine if you are careful and sensible about where the solvents are going as you spray.
5 litres would do it I think, perhaps £2-£3 hundred. You need a good compressor and the spraying equipment which are not inexpensive. You also need good neighbours, or no neighbours!

Ian F

I rebuilt a roadster about 18 months ago. By the time I had finished with welding the new panels, there was a lot of prep work needed to get it ready for painting. As I have no skills in prep or painting I entrusted it to a local bodyshop. They must have spent many hours on it and when I collected it the finish was stunning. The cost was £5,800. That may seem a lot but the amount of work was large and I was happy to pay it.

Hi Ian , Bumpa
Basically I am having to sell my 73 Harvest Gold GT due to my increasing physical disabilities. It will never be a pristine example due to excessive use of underseal by one of the 12 previous owners! There are half a dozen areas that if they were repaired and resprayed would make the car look really good and more saleable. I have just taken the car to a body repair shop and he has quoted £1200 for a full respray addressing the half a dozen areas. I was surprised how cheap. I have used the guy for repairs to my main car and he does a good job. The guy said that the car would look as if it had just come out of a showroom. Maybe this is what I need to do to help sell the car as the respray will make the car look cosmetically good and someone else can do whatever they want at a later time. Also I should be able to get a fair proportion of the £1200 back by increasing the selling price. Cheers Geoff

How much were you then expecting to put her up for sale for Geoff with the new paint ?

Well that’s a good question! I ain’t got a clue!My car is on Autotrader at the moment and out of 70 cars for sale mine is the cheapest but one at £4950. What is a respray worth to a potential buyer? Who knows? Glass’s and Parker’s are of no use! So it boils down to what someone is prepared to pay for a classic car and the question “how long is a piece of string “ comes to mind. My gut feel is when the work is done (not until the end of June)- rewrite the advert (I have the advertise until sold option) and raise the price to £5950. It would still be a cheap car. Have you any thoughts? Take a look at the ad and see what you think. I’ve had 1009 views since Sunday evening but only one phone call. Cheers Geoff

It looks a good car Geoff, assuming the underneath is solid and sound. What goes against it somewhat is the colour. Bolder colours seem more popular. I reckon it's worth more than you are asking even now, but if you've not had much interest, maybe I'm wrong. I wouldn't use Autotrader myself. I have had good results from carandclassic.com, and they don't charge for the ad. I think the classic car buyer is more likely to look there.

Hi Bumpa
Get your point about Harvest Gold. Went to the 60th Anniversary bash at Gaydon and out of over 1000 cars only saw a handful of Harvest Gold. But if you’re looking for one it’s like looking for rocking horse poo! I did find one at the Pride of Longbridge event and I parked next to it and took a photo. I think the car has had work done to the floor as it seems quite sound but not done by a professional judging by the coating of under seal in the spare wheel area. The front wings have been replaced. Thanks for the tip about Car and Classic. A free advert never does any harm. Cheers Geoff

From a buyers perspective I would be wary of a vehicle that has just been resprayed as you never know what it may be hiding? a repaint that has been done say three or so years ago would be a better bet as any nasties underneath the new paint would have manifested itself by then, offering it for sale as is potential buyers can see what they are getting, the cost of a proper respray is not cheap nowdays when I 1st started respraying cars 40 yrs ago paint was about £5 a litre and 5 litres of thinner (cellulose) £5 but modern 1k and 2k is now very expensive as is the labour as it is the preparation that makes a good respray. If you do respray before sale take plenty of photos at the varying stages of the work so you have some proof.

I have to agree with Rommel here, a freshly resprayed car would always ring alarm bells for me, unless of course it was done as part of a comprehensive and documented restoration.

Ian F