So the paint is in horrible shape on my truck. I hate scratches, fading paint, peeling paint, etc. That's why for so long I was very careful about taking my truck off road as I didn't want to tear it up. Last year some berries fell from a tree in our yard. Little did I know they would eat away at the paint. The clear coat on my bed cover started peeling and looking like crap. Anyway, I just lived with it. During hunting season I tried to go down a trail and it scratched the crap out of my truck. Then to top it all off, I had to park my truck under that berry tree again when it was broken down with the transmission. I covered it with a tarp this time thinking it would protect it. When I pulled the tarp off today to check it out, I noticed the juice leaked through the tarp somehow and now the paint on the hood is messed up. It's not peeling, but has a place about 1.5 foot by 1.5foot that looks way lighter than the rest of the truck. It's not even looking either. So pretty much that coupled with the bed cover that's peeling makes the truck look like ****. Then the scratches all down the side don't look good either.

So I'm debating if I want to paint it and have it look decent again. It was once a great looking truck. Or if I just want to leave it and not worry about it. After all it is a truck and now I don't have to worry as much about scratching it. So what do you guys think?

How much on average does it cost to paint a truck this size? I've gotten quotes for cars, but never a truck. Do you guys think a paint job will raise the value much at all? Or value wise would I be just as well off to leave it like it is now? I can't decide what I want to do as imo it was a great looking truck that's not so great looking when up close now. Still looks good from a distance. I'm almost embarrassed of it. Then again at the same time I feel that I don't have to worry about using it as a truck anymore as I wont worry about scratching it up.

 

It really depends on what kind of paint job you are wanting. For just a cheap job with no clear coat you could get away with paying $500. In fact, Earl Scheib has a coupon for their lowest full body paint package for $250. But if you are wanting a more factory looking paint job which I am guessing you do, I would expect to pay no less than $1500-$2000. Also, if you are wanting any body work done or any other addons (engine compartment, door jams painted), it could easily be $3000. There are also extra charges for prep.
The more work you do before you take it in would help. For example, removing any stripes or trim pieces, you could mask off everything you didn't want paint on, if you sanded and primered it yourself you would also save a considerable amount of money. The less the shop has to do, the cheaper it will be for you.
Your best bet is to just call around and get some estimates. And unless you are doing all the prep work yourself I would avoid Maaco and other national chains unless you personally know the people working there. I have heard many stories of them not even washing the vehicles they paint. I went and looked at a car a while back that I was planning on buying, I called the guy and he said it had just been painted at Maaco. I went and looked at it and immediately turned around and left. The paint was white and looked like it came from a rattle can and they hadn't even masked anything off. There was paint on the headlights as well as all the black plastic trim.
I am lucky enough to be working on a house for a guy right now who said he would repair all my rust, scratches, and dents, and paint my truck back to factory color with clear coat for $550. But before that I called around to a lot of different places for estimates.

 

I had mine done at a Maaco place. They did a very good job. No major body damage needed fixing, but there were a few dings and such they repaired. It was just over $1000. I took the rear bumper off so they could paint behind that. That also included new decals for the tailgate. I'm very happy with the paint job, but you have to remember it's only a $1000 paint job. It's a high volume kind of auto painting place, so some of the taping-off they did could have been a little bit better. But it looks a lot better than it started out as. Ask to see some examples of their work (wherever you go) before letting someone paint your truck.

 

My dad keeps saying that painting his car was the worst decision he ever made. He's constantly worrying abut scratching it, washing it, waxing it, etc. Maybe get the real bad spots touched up but I wouldn't get a full paint job done.

 

So far I have done the hood and roof. $23 and I have a bunch of sandpaper and paint left. It is a labor of love, give me some more time and I will have pics, and be able to tell you if the do your whole vehicle for $45 is possible or good looking. I personally can't see going for a 2K paint job on a truck I am going to use as a daily driver and be really happy to take off road or down a trail hunting. I do miss the prettier days, I but then again I feel a lot better dragging down a mesquite tree these days than I used to.

 

I am thinking of Getting the entire truck sprayed with Linex . I had a nice paintjob.....but I also like to have fun offroad . My really sweet custom paint is starting to look like sh*t . If I prep the truck I believe I can get a great price on LineX with Xtra .

 

My suggestion is to cover all the scratches and dents with good ol MUD!

works for me

 

Paint isn't cheap, and having it done right isn't either. If someone says they'll do your truck for $500 bucks, run. Maaco is a hit or miss, depending on the shop.

Expect to pay $2,000-$6,000 for a good paint job. $2,000 being an average paint job with minimal body work, and $6,000 for a show finish paint job.

 

Yeah, I know of a really good body shop that does amazing paint work. I've had him paint stuff before, but I've never had something as big as a truck painted. Or even just a hood and bed cover. I think I payed around $600 or so to have 2 bumpers painted.

 

I say use your truck for a truck once and for all... don't bother painting it yet. But then again, if you painted it you could get that door dent fixed that looks sooooo terrible