Hi everyone.

I am driving a 2000 LS400. It only has 160,000km on it and the paint is in pretty good shape except for one chip on the hood and a small rust spot (the size of a dime) on the rear left fender.

I want to fix both chips/rust spot and then change the colour of the car.

It is gold right now. I am on a pretty tight budget.

I am getting quotes ranging from $850-$1,200 to plasti-dip the car, with the former using 5 layers and the latter using 7 layers. Both include the wheels too.

Anyone have any thoughts or ideas regarding Plasti-dipping?

Thanks!

 

I WOULDNT DO IT!
first..you can get a maaco paint job for half the price tho i totally understand the removable aspect
second..if you really care that little about the paint pay a friend some money to paint roll it! parts is $40 ^_^
i personally dont like or recommend plastidip from using it unless you really dont care that much..1200 is alot to not care

 

I would have to disagree with OKSTANCE as plasti-dip comes in tons of colors now, including pearl and other cool effects and costs less to do than to fully wrap a car, and can look just as good as paint if properly done with glosifier and such. Both dip and wrap have the removable aspect but to fully wrap our huge Lexus' I was quoted $2000 minimum by two different wrap shops.

IMO paint is dead. You can put something on the car that is removable and just a durable(wrap and dip) for the same price or less than paint. Yes you can get a macco paint job for 500 but that's with run's, they don't fix the dings and such, some don't sand very well and your paint starts to chip months afterwards. Any QUALITY paint job in anything other than basic black or white will cost $2000 or more.
If you're going to pay that much, why not wrap it. It's much easier to re-wrap or even dip a section of a car than it is to repaint.

 

the only problem i have with plasti-dip is what to do with the paint that go into the cracks and crevasses. you will not be able to peel it off without removing body panels.

at that price i would simply wrap the car instead. much better coverage and more color options but i understand that it may be limited where you're from.

ideal would be to actually paint the car, since rust cannot be masked by either.

 

let me rephrase.....DONT DO IT at that price as you have many other
more financially sensible ways to spend 800-1200 for a color-change.
BUT THEN there is the removable aspect which makes it unique.
Obviously if you really want to do it then your car will look fine but it seems like you could get a better deal than that

 

Great opinions all, thank you.
I want to add more info to help:

I am keeping this car from its current 160,000km to at least 300,000km and I drive about 12,000-15,000km/year.

I am in a tight financial position now (car wise), and want to:
a) protect the paint underneath
b) change the colour to black (with or without pearl or gloss, I am not picky)
c) be able to fix issues that pop up (rips and tears) inexpensively and easily

That leaves paint out, because I don't have a booth, and the paint underneath would be sanded or whathaveyou.

Vinyl and PlastiDip are my two options...and I can't afford the $2,300+ that a Vinyl job will cost.
(side rant: why do they call it a vinyl WRAP when it doesn't WRAP around any body panels...it should be called a veneer)

So it seems like plastiDip is the best bet at ~$1,000 for 7 layers and wheels...

I am still hesitant. It is quite a bit of money...then again chips are common in Canada and the paint could use the protection...and people do slam their doors into other cars in parking lots without a second thought...

I guess it looks like I am going down the road to dipping.

The point timmy0tool makes is excellent, and I will ask them to let me SEE the car after it is masked before they start spraying dip. It is the masking that prevents the crevasses from getting rubber in them...
(side note: some crevasses might see improvement with rubber in them, but that's for an engineer to tell).

Cheers all!