Crazy or sane? Help me out here!!

[RT]

Hey all,
Heres the deal. My 93 C2500HD is used daily as a work truck. I bought her in Texas so the body is in really good shape but the paint is shot and peeling off. Its checked so badly that the whole truck needs to be taken down to the metal and completely redone. I have taken it to two bodyshops, both of which are owned by friends and the cost to do a quality paint job is $3000-$3500. The truck has 206K and although its in pretty good shape I would like to replace the injection pump (original), injectors, do the 97 cooling mods and an intercooler in future as well. The reason for doing the paint is rust protection, pure and simple. The winter is tough here and many other trucks of this vintage in NE show what happens when the paint goes and salt gets in. Most people I know think I am nuts for even considering this. They tell me to get another truck or just keep driving this one until it rots away. Can't stomach the payments on a new one and don't see the logic in not keeping an otherwise reliable and "known" vehicle in service. So am I crazy? At a minimum $3K will need to be spent and closer to $5K if I do a few of the other things on the list. Crazy or sane? Lets hear it! Thanks, RT

I should mention that I am a carpenter and self-employed so the work on the truck is a write-off at tax time. Still have to spend the money but this does help....

[markelectric]

If it is protection, not perfection you are looking for I would lower my standards to a MAACO or Earl Scheib style paint job. I believe they come with a warranty. Might try the local autoshop classes to see if they need a project.
I personaly would have a hard time spending near book price of a vehicle on a paint job.
Do like Jeff Foxworthy and " Say it with Krylon"

[rjschoolcraft]

If you like the truck and it seems worth it to you, what makes the difference what anyone else thinks? Book value is not the only indicator of a vehicle's worth. When you're done, you still have a truck that you know and enjoy, plus you've added value to it. Furthermore, no loan payments.

[catmandoo]

ronnie's right ,so you go out and buy a newer pickup to keep up with the jones'es and what do you get loan payments and the newer style computer,no more paper clip code checks.and for what. if you want the newer look put in the newer grille like i did,do the repaint and tell everybody it's a 1999.heck 95% of the people won't be able to tell the difference anyway.i painted a truck for a guy a couple of years ago and he wanted to save money ,he needed rocker panels and both floorboards and cab corners,and i said if he wanted to do them himself so that all i had to do was give it a final primer coat and paint i would charge him 500 to paint,he bought all supplies,the paint(dupont chromabase) alone cost him darn near 1000 time we got the clearcoat figured in,he brought me the box on a pickup frame made into a trailer and the pickup minus the box so i could do the front of the box back of cab.so even doing his own bodywork he still had about 1700 in it.most body shops don't like doing full body paints,it takes too much time they make their money on the insurance jobs,fender here door there deer damage etc.if you could do most of it yourself it should save you some money. see what they would charge to just paint?

[Hye]

Did it come with all the add-ons? If it did, I'd be sure the block and heads are in good shape. Run a compression test and cooling system test before putting anything like $3-5K into it. It gets pretty hot down here, and cracked cast iron isn't uncommon.

If you did those mods yourself, then you probably know the engine pretty well. And if you get another 100K miles, that's just another nickle a mile for a great truck.

[ 09-22-2004, 06:08 AM: Message edited by: Hye ]

[cruzer]

I'd love to spend your $$, rather than mine, but I doubt you'd let me keep it my driveway. When my engine went south, the way I looked at it was... How much can I get for the truck as is and then add your 3-5k to that # and see what that will purchase in a used truck. I found my truck was better. I didn't want somebodys high mileage newer truck. I would have liked a new truck but not the payments. It would put a crimp in the future toy dept.Just my 2cts.

I prefer mech. injected trucks too.

[markrinker]

In my area, there are two companies that refinish trucks. They are well known to any heavy truck dealership. Basically, they will sandblast frames and do minor bodywork, usually painting outdoors or even onsite. I have been quoted as low as $800 to sandblast frames and repaint (white, no trim work) my work trucks.

For $1200, you can get the doors jammed, hood jammed, etc.

Look for an outfit like that...under sandblasting in your yellowpages.

[Beedee]

Right now, at one of the body and paint shops in town, the owner is swamped with people bringing in their rust buckets, having the rust cut out and repainted. With the price of a new truck in this part of the world being what they are, it only makes sense.
Pay the body shop $5-6000 and get another 6-8 years out of it.
As to the question of are you crazy or sane.... ;)
My $0.02
Good luck