need advice

I have a 97 Tacoma 4x4 V6 im looking to paint it again but dont really want to spend a ton of money on the paint job.. ive looked into maaco paint but ive heard nothing but horror stories.. so i thought about just rhino lining the whole truck but i have no idea how much that would run me can anyone let me know

 

consider asking around local forums to see if anyone is interested in a side job. i'm sure you can find a painter that would be interested in some extra money.

i don't have first hand experience, but i've "heard" that if you can do all the body and prep work yourself, a macco paint job can turn out pretty decent. just don't do a single stage paint job b/c they don't last long without proper maintenance.

 

Hey man, now don't take this wrong but let me give you some words of advice from my years of victorys and defeats with dealing with cars/trucks.

first off how bad is your paint? now i got my truck last fall, she came from west Texas, (little rain, no rust!) and I have spent the last week on her paint. it was in very bad shape, dirt, oxidized, faded ect. and has lots of stone chips in front of hood, but you will be surprised with some work, how well paint can come back. I don't have lots of money, but lots of elbow grease.
for the time being for the hood, I am going to sand her down about the first 12 inches and primer and use 3m carbon vinyl, till I can do a good paint job.

I have had several friends do Maaco, one washed his off at a car wash one month later...... none ever lasted more than a year.
good paint, and the supplies cost money. I am not talking about a show car paint job, just one that will last 5 years or longer without chipping off, if you get caught in small hail or a hard rain. do your homework and find a good local paint shop, talk to the owner, when I was young I did the prep work on my stang, sanded primer myself and took off all badges and trim,
sometimes Maaco wont cover the wipers! and usually its a bait and switch, sell you a cheap job and then they start they call you and start telling you what you need now. anyway think long and hard, take care, going out to finish waxing.

 

DO NOT USE MAACO! Their franchises get paid by running cars/trucks through in volume, not quality. I know several people that have had a MAACO job done and one friend who owned a franchise............all left unhappy and screwed. Find a local reputable shop where references can be verified. Take your shot at polishing out the old paint like Robert mentioned, you couldn't hurt it too much.

 

West Coast Customs Line X a Tundra that came out great

 

By no means am I'm pimping Maaco and I do agree that for the most part they suck big time.

But the actual only experience I have is through a friend who used them to paint his 72 K5 Blazer. The paint was brutal on the truck and he wheels it a lot, so he didn't want to spend $4000-5000 on a real paint job only to start dragging it across branches, etc...

So he went to Maaco and got the middle option (in terms of price). 5 years later it still looks nice. Granted it's nowhere near show room or even close, but it is what is and what he needed... and it's holding up fine.

That's my only personal knowledge of a Maaco paint job.