Stan944

I went for a quote to Maaco; the basic spray starts at CAD799 (I know, the actual job including prepping is more), and the next day I see on TV (American channel) $249. Am I the only one who thinks we get ripped off here in Canada? Somehow I don't buy it that "the cost of doing business in Canada" is $550 higher.
I would possibly consider repainting my 944 in WA, but I believe the customs charge duty on the entire value of the car, not just he cost of painting, if they consider it "modified".

1 PGH 1

I think we get jammed for a lot of things in Canada, not just auto related stuff. Greeting cards for example ... 30% more!! Obviously a small cost item but it's the principal

Painting a p-car ... depending on the type of job you want done it could easily exceed $5,000 I would think, north or south of the border.

swbatte

I went to Macco a few years ago to look into getting a beater painted and brought this up when they told me they didn't have a $299 special.

They pointed out to me that the US add doesn't include any prep work such as sanding or even cleaning. It's just the price of spraying paint on a car.

Although that made sense, I went somewhere else because it wasn't any cheaper than a shop my family has used for years.

But yes, we do get ripped off. I checked out a new M3 in KW, and it was $82k. Same car in the US is $54k !!!

Dale Gribble

what's the quality of a maaco job anyhow?

Peter,
south of the border is even worst. I got quoted around 5000$ for a full strip and paint on my car, 3000$ if they didn't have to pull the interior, from a quality bodyshop that does a lot of award winning show cars. In the U.S., one guy couldn't and wouldn't believe that you could do it for 5. He was quoted 7 from a bunch of speciality shops he went to.

Mamooguy

A paint job has to be declared at the border?!?!?!?! That can't be right.

Should my aunt have declared her boob job too?

Dale Gribble

Pics or ban?

RyeHigh

First we to to establish how old his aunt is....don't be needing pics of a 60 year old.....Im just saying....

Brian 162

I think the wages are lower and so are the labour rates.
I helped a friend bring a boat back from Florida 2 weeks ago. The marina suggested to replace a leaf spring, hub, u-bolts and fasteners. The cost was $200 in total. The labour was $26 per hour.
You couldn't get that rate up here.

justinsrx7

Isn't their commercial "Uh oh, better not get Maaco". I would not trust them with my bicycle.

Stan944

that's so funny!

skruggs964

I got one of those $299 MAACO specials done many years ago on a beater pick-up I had. All I can say is that you get what you pay for! It was so "orange-peely" that it looked like someone painted the truck with a roller.....

kunkstyle

Shouldn't be, but it is. You can buy parts, accessories, etc. down south, but if you have them installed there you can be nailed with duty and tax on the value of the vehicle as it's been modified and can be considered a different vehicle. Just another retarded measure by the government to keep the Canadian dollars here.

To answer the second question, there's probably a form to fill out and taxes to be paid on those too.

Stan944

well, if the wages in BC car shops are over twice as in WA than it makes sense; I don't know.
I didn't plan to go for the cheapest job (the actual quote from Maaco in Langley, BC, was over $1500+tax, and included prepping, single-stage urethane paint, and a few minor fixes), but the numbers I wrote down earlier were for comparison of similar (and not great quality) jobs.

Mamooguy

I was sooooo tempted to google "senior citizen brest implants" and post a link to the most horrific thing I found there, but I'll tell the truth instead: my aunt (in her 50s) has never had a boob job.

Turbodan

Tax should only be on value added. so if you do a paint job on a car only the paint job should be taxed. same as putting on tires or steering wheel.