Repainted 2 cars b4. Full car respray, exterior only, same colour.

Car 1, an old C-segment (now only eq. to B segment in terms of size) was 2.1k in yr2011. Using Nippon primer/base coat and Glasurit 923-255 HS clearcoat. 4 layer clearcoat. Minimal compounding so got moderate orange peel but that's the way I wanted as I prefer thicker clearcoat over thinner but mirror finish look. Whole process took 3wks due to issue at shop side.

Car 2, a 2010 C-segment car, was 3.7k in 2019. Using Cromax primer/base coat and Cromax CC6400 HS clearcoat. Also 4 layer as car 1. Also minimal compounding to keep clear coat as thick as possible. This is a black car and whole process took 9 working days coz include repainting of front grille, wiper arms, all exterior painted plastic parts.

My advise is never go for cheap respray as they will compromise on both raw materials (paint, reducer, clearcoat, putty etc.) and workmanship (no. of coats, thickness, sanding etc.). And if I have a choice again, I will never ever repaint my cars.

Just a few pointers

1. Always go and observe at the paintshop both the semi-finished and finished product. It can tell you roughly the quality of workmanship you can expect.
2. Don't ever go to those accident repair workshops especially panel workshops, if possible.
3. Check with the boss on what brand of base/paint (Nippon, Alesco, PPG, Cromax etc.) and how many layer.
4. Ask what reducer, clearcoat is he quoting? High solid or medium solid and what brand is it? (Cromax, Nippon, Glasurit etc.) How many layers and waiting time b4 next layer.
5. Check with him if he is gonna use plastic primer for the plastic parts (bumper, garnish etc) and what brand/model.

With these infos collected, you can search online (shopee/lazada etc) roughly what costs are involved. And whether you are ripped off of your money.

Hope this helps.

You know there is a saying "1st coat of paint is the best paint" right? there is definitely some truth in it. I know a lot here will say OEM paint system from H la, T la or whatever brand, to be very chekai la, too thin la, cheat material la etc etc. But believe it or not, that coat has the best consistency long-term wise. All you (car owner) have to do is to understand its shortcomings and maintain it appropriately.