Repaint 84 Deville?

[chaosklima]

Hi all -- New to the forum and first-time poster.

Early last year, I bought a clean, well-kept '84 Deville from my dad. It's got 94k miles, runs nicely, super clean interior, and has no major mechanical issues. It has a few minor rust spots, and the hood, roof, and trunk lid are weathered but otherwise, the body is clean, neat, and straight. The paint condition overall is what I would call survivor quality, but it definitely could stand a refresh. My question is, given that it's a base model, is it worth it to repaint the car if I'm planning on selling it in the next year or two? And if so, at what price point would it not be worthwhile to repaint it? Meaning, would it just be best to keep it covered and sell it with the paint condition as-is, rather than investing money ($2k+?) into repainting it?

Cheers!
BK

[TJ Hopland]

IF you plan to sell it I would say leave it as is.   Let the new owner decide if they want it painted and if they do what quality of a paint job it gets.   A bad/cheap paint job has the potential to cause a lot more problems and cost a lot more to fix than the original.   

These cars are not especially valuable or sought after just because of the era they came from and the terrible engines.  Even less value if its a Sedan vs a Coupe.   Coupe has some value because that was the end of a true land yacht with 2 doors.   Sedan you could get more or less the same car 80-93 and only 82-85 had the least reliable and power engines so most looking for a sedan would get a 80 with the last of the cast iron Cad motors or a 90-93 with the Chev TBI 350.

[Mike Josephic CLC #3877]

I agree with TJ.

You will not get a quality "paint job" for $2k --
especially if you are dealing with some rust
issues.

If you are not planning to keep the car I
suggest that you sell it and save yourself
the trouble and expense.

Mike

[Barry M Wheeler #2189]

If you wish to keep the car for a little while, you might wait until Maaco has another sale. I had my local shop paint my wife's 1979 Fleetwood (same basic body). Make sure they know what you want done and ask to be there and inspect the body before they paint it. I think the total cost was a little over a thousand dollars and believe it or not, the car won a CLC national first prize in class at Savannah some years ago. People would not believe it was a Maaco paint job.

If the manager is not willing to spend a little extra time on the job a sort of an advertisement for his shop, forget it. Mine did and we were both well pleased. And, if the plastic (front and back) needs replacement, forget it and sell it. Best of luck.

[Eric DeVirgilis CLC# 8621]

On one of these, most of the money sunk into the car will never come back. Polish, dab and detail the car to the best of your abilities but by no means start shelling out $$$.

[cadillac ken]

Today's $2K paint jobs look like the $200 paint jobs 30 years ago.  Not a good idea to repaint the car to enhance the sale of it. 
Personally, I like to see the original paint with all the areas that will need attention.  That way I know what I'm getting.  A "cheapie" repaint (and yes $2K to $3K is today not a a good paint job) may be seen as a quick cover up to major issues.

Plus, remember, Paint is one thing.  Repairs to the body prior to paint can get real expensive real fast.

Keep the car inside, enjoy it, and when it comes time to sell accept what the market tells you it's worth.  What may seem like a lowball offer maybe really isn't in today's market for the model car you have.

Best of luck an enjoy your Caddy!

[chaosklima]

Thanks all for the sound input and advice. I appreciate it!

I threw the $2k number out there as a guess. I wasn't sure how much a decent-quality paint job was going for these days.

For now, I think I'll keep the Deville for Sunday drives and save the money I would've spent on paint for that 71' droptop Eldo I've been coveting...

Cheers!

BK

[TJ Hopland]

Sounds like a great plan.   Get used to driving and caring for a land yacht and then keep trading up till you get yourself into a 59 or two.