paint color question

[VegasSpeed]

What are the most popular colors for the NSX? Now I don't mean what was the most produced in such and such color. The reason I bring this up is that I have some flaws that require repaint on my front and rear bumper and I have considered doing a repaint of the whole car since the economy is bad and people are looking for work. So then the thought crosses my mind of painting it another NSX factory color. So the question follows with what color would look good with a tan/black interior. I will take a picture later and post it but the actual carpet is tan as well as the middle of the seats. The remainder of the car is black like most cars. I have brooklands green as my color now and I wonder if changing the color will hurt the value or make it more sellable in the long term if I make it more appealing to the masses. I have decided that I won't keep this car forever. So what are people's thoughts on Brooklands Green and other colors that people like? I personally like Rio Yellow, GPW and either blue that is out. I am considering doing a nice white if I repaint it.

Here is the original for sale ad from six months ago and you can see the interior there.

http://www.nsxprime.com/forums/showthread.php?t=127978

 

[s14_tat]

I think the Long Beach Blue Pearl is a very very sharp color.

edit: sorry Vegasspeed, I thought I was talking to Fourringpilot. When I was typing the reply I was thinking "didn't fourringpilot sell his nsx not too long ago? Why is he thinking about painting a car he does not own?" Probably because I always thought you had a nsx already vegasspeed. I hope no offensive was taken.

 

[tbromley]

Vegas,

I wouldn't do this for several reasons:

1. It's not the original color and that is always a bad thing for collectors - but then you may feel your car is not ever going to be viewed as a collector - but there is no substitute for original baked on finish - staying stock is always the best advice - traditionally speaking - but of it is done real well it could be very nice and your seats have obviously been reupholstered.

2. You won't get your money for the paint job out of it. A good paint job is a bunch of cash especially to change the color - cuase you gotta take the engine out and paint every little bit - not worth it in my opinion - these cars aren't to the point a 356 Porsche is as far as historical value.

3. I think it would be harder to sell when the time comes too. People always wonder why you did it.....if you do - then take pictures of it like it is and then record it by date. It mabe fun to do a clone of an NSX-R. But now we're talking major bucks now.

In the end of course it's up to you - take a while to think about all the pros and cons - this is no inexpensive deal here! Good luck.

Tim

 

[VegasSpeed]

Those are some good points about the cost vs. the questions people will ask regarding the car. I always wondered if the car was a different color would it sell better. I think the green is less desired by most NSX buyers.

I see what you are saying in regards to taking the engine out though. That would be a huge pain in the ass to get it done right. The paint has normal wear for a 94 with the miles it has. I do see a lot of questions coming up if I repaint the whole car.

What is involved in painting the car another color that you don't have to do if I just redo the Brooklands Green?

 

[Racerxjling]

I disagree with the value decreasing for a car that has high mileage. It's not as if you are painting a $50k+ valued 2003-2005 NSX. I am not saying it would not decrease the value just that it would be minimal. If you take several good pics along with a newspaper that has the date on it that should be proof to the future owner that you only painted the car for cosmetic reasons. The date on the newspaper and the date of the painting of the car should be close of course. You can also take good progress photos to prove it was done right. You have the ideal black color base to paint a car where I wouldn't bother dropping the motor. It looks fine black in the engine bay. Just do it, you only live once. Just do whatever color you like the most.

Jeff

 

[angus]

I would first say that the brooklands green is a double edged sword - it is rare so from some collectors' standpoint should be left that way, even original paint with minor flaws is more desireable than a repaint -

On the other hand, as the OP says the actual color is less desireable to the general public.

I would say , paint the bumpers and keep the original paint even if you need to wetsand / touch up / polish.

If you really want a color change, research shops and know what you are getting into before you start, as Jeff said you should document eveything.

You need to decide how complete a job you want , being green you could leave the underhood and engine bay , but would not be pulled off as well as if your car was actually black.

I think if you were to do it black would be my first choice , followed by maybe yellow then a silver (silvestone) or one of the blues (LBBP or monaco)

Personally I would avoid colors that are "trendy" as your brooklands once was, since you will later end up in the same scenario - that's one reason I like black, grey, silver, white - not many people really object too much to those "colors"

 

[d1 guy]

Either go big or go home I wouldnt consider one that was repainted unless it was repainted everywhere. Think about it, nearly every day Im asked to open my engine bay. What if you went with blue, gray, silver, or even black? It would still be green under the bay and under the hood. It would be a MAJOR job to do it correctly. If your car needs maintenance though, you might do the paint job while the tb/wp is getting swapped. That would be a good option. Im gonna say that you couldnt even get close to a complete job for 5k. Probably more like 7k-9k.....but then you would almost be at engine rebuild prices. Also, my car is brooklands green on black. If you just recovered your interior in black, you might be happier and just painting the bumpers. That would be a ton of money saved and you would still be able to say that your car has most of its original paint. Usually repainted bumpers are easily accepted due to rock chips, road debris, etc.

My suggestion is save the money for something that'll at least be more fun

 

[nsxtasy]

You will never recoup the money you spend on repainting an entire car a different color. From a financial standpoint, you are spending thousands of dollars, and the car will re-sell for less money. Even if you consider it a more desirable color, there are many, many buyers who would never even consider buying a repainted car (even a high-mileage one); and any time you reduce your potential market, it has the effect of lowering the price you will be able to sell it for.

If you want your car to be a different color, and you don't mind taking a big financial hit to do so, by all means go ahead; it's your car!

What is involved in painting the car another color that you don't have to do if I just redo the Brooklands Green?

All the parts of your car that don't need repainting if you just do the bumpers. That means all the body panels, and the interior compartments (under the hood, the engine compartment, and the inside of the trunk. And all the dissembly/re-assembly necessary to paint them. It's a lot of work, which is why a complete repaint is so expensive.

 

[ChopsJazz]

If you want your car to be a different color, and you don't mind taking a big financial hit to do so, by all means go ahead; it's your car!

This is good advice.

If you are worried about resale value, don't do it. If you want a different color car, paint it.

 

[VegasSpeed]

I appreciate the help and this does give me some guidelines. Nobody explained it just right but the combination of all the answers gave me what I was looking for.

Here is the deal. A friend said that he had this great deal for repainting a car that would cost the same to paint it the same color or a new color. I know realize that this guy didn't do the paint job 100% right and that is why it is so cheap. (you get what you pay for 90% of the time, right?) so I looked into painting the car another color if I could get it done a the right price with people looking for work. I like detailing my car(s) and I wish the finish was a little better on the NSX so I could make it stand out better. Now it could be my skills with the DA polisher aren't the best but it could look better compared to NA2 cars. The bumpers need fixing at the very least. The rear has some clear coat coming up and off the bumper and the front has a big scratch that can't be fixed unless the bumper is redone. I have no idea how it happened but just discovered it this weekend. It sucks to see it now.

 

[tbromley]

Paint the bumpers - everyone knows that is needed. Touch up the paint and respray the clear coat. Have someone professionally prepare the surface just right. If you paint be prepared to find the best you can to do the job correctly or you'll be spending money for nothing and actually instead of making your car look good it will devalue cause it is a bad job.

In the Porsche world - take the 356 for an example cause they are old - as in 46 years old and there are very damn few indeed that haven't needed a respray. It's one thing to fully restore a classic car where everything is coming out of the car as well as the rubber seals and it taken down to the bare metal and all other parts as well - you are always smart to go back to the original color but when you are completely rebuilding the car with a "nut and bolt" restoration - it is easy to change the color and it is done even in the classic world of restoration and in that case you may have such a great reputation for quality restorations that people hoping to get one of yours wouldn't mind that you picked another color for the restoration cause it would be super tasteful. Like that Healey that went at Barrett Jacksons in Aston Martin light green metalic - but this ain't that.

This is not that case - you are hardly talking about a frame off restoration. You are talking about cosmetics and the interior of you car is already redone nicely - there is no need at this point to consider a complete restoration and color change - maybe in another 20 years. So for you, do the thing that is going to give you the best results for your car while keeping it in stock form - color wise and won't kill you financially. These guys that are saying things like "go for it" and who cares if the engine bay, under the hood, door jambs are all Brooklands Green - it's close to black - type comments - are all spending your money and have no idea what it is they're talking about - sorry guys but that is just BS advice and if you don't know it - save it for yourself when you go to Earl Scheib for one of those "great" paint jobs -or maybe it's uh -oh - better get MACCO - geez - this is an exotic and we're trying to preserve these cars - not make frankenstien models that are half ass done - ok. GEEZY PEAZY! Might as well get out the fuzzy dice dude and get all rad....put a noise maker on it and do some doughnuts in the parking lot.

So be careful with your investment - take care of it - treat it like the exotic it is and if you don't like the color - sell it and buy one you do like. I thought the pictures of your car looked good. It is what it is - ok. Be proud of it - Brooklands Green was a color that Honda was proud of - what does that tell you. Hey you could always pull the engine and put a V8 in it and just use it as a track car and destroy it's value. Or do it like COZ - see his widebody kit and talk with him a while - he'll educate you - he restores Panetaras. Write him for some real professional advice! That's my 2 1/2 cents worth. Don't mean to sound like I am the know it all but my advice is classic - check it out. You can't go wrong with this advice - you start just painting the outside and not all the "hidden" parts you WILL BE SORRY! And so will many of the rest of us on Prime.

Over and out,

Tim

 

[Honcho]

Vegas, you have a very rare color so if you do not plan on keeping the car forever, a color change is going to hurt your resale value. If selling in the future is your main concern, then I think you should just get the original color refreshed.

With that said, personally I tend to agree with Ken. It's your car- do whatever you want! If you do a color change, do it right. Send to a reputable shop who will strip the car down and paint everything correctly. One cool idea might be to pick a Japan-only optional color...

What are the most popular colors for the NSX? Now I don't mean what was the most produced in such and such color. The reason I bring this up is that I have some flaws that require repaint on my front and rear bumper and I have considered doing a repaint of the whole car since the economy is bad and people are looking for work. So then the thought crosses my mind of painting it another NSX factory color. So the question follows with what color would look good with a tan/black interior. I will take a picture later and post it but the actual carpet is tan as well as the middle of the seats. The remainder of the car is black like most cars. I have brooklands green as my color now and I wonder if changing the color will hurt the value or make it more sellable in the long term if I make it more appealing to the masses. I have decided that I won't keep this car forever. So what are people's thoughts on Brooklands Green and other colors that people like? I personally like Rio Yellow, GPW and either blue that is out. I am considering doing a nice white if I repaint it.

Here is the original for sale ad from six months ago and you can see the interior there.

http://www.nsxprime.com/forums/showthread.php?t=127978

 

[VegasSpeed]

I think I will just fix the bumpers and let it live. I don't really want to spend lots of cash on cosmetics when I care more about performance honestly. I need to stop spending so much $$ on cars anyway. I can live with it and I agree with Bromley to just get another color car down the road if I want white or some other color.

Thanks for the advice as always.

 

[fourringpilot]

Don't paint it! I will probably buy it back from you in a couple of years - spending too much on travel, wedding, and more travel in the next two years. After that I will be getting a NSX again. Yours would be perfect for me!

Just do a vinyl wrap on your car. Cost about $2-3k and can be removed. Only problem is vinyl wrap is a flat color. It looks great in a black or dark grey, but that is about it. Wrap it for a few years and then take the wrap off. At the very least you will protect the finish for a few years and save some $$$. Don't spend a ton of money on a new color unless you intend to keep it for a long time.

 

[VegasSpeed]

I decided against it. I will just get the front and rear bumpers done since they have some scratches that need cleaning up more than other areas. It isn't a top priority either. I just had a guy tell me he knew some great paint deal. After some investigation I found it wasn't as it seemed. At the very least the paint job is suspect so I am going to a reputable shop if I ever did that. It had more to do with a certain friend telling me he knew a great deal for getting a paint job done. This guy knows very little about the NSX world anyway so he didn't get that the engine bay and every little crevice needed repainting if it gets painted a new color. Case closed, I won't bring this up again.

 

[MCM]

"we're trying to preserve these cars - not make frankenstien models that are half ass done"

You nailed 59.37% of all NSX's in that one statement.........:biggrin:

 

[vh_supra26]

I wouldn't mind having a green NSX. Black is the color that I like the least.