It’s a regular complaint: why do I have to pay extra for metallic paint?
LIKE MOST CAR BUYERS, I couldn’t see why I had to pay a premium for a metallic or pearl paint finish. After all, they still have to paint the car, even if it’s a solid colour, right?
And just to back that up, how come the price varies so much from manufacturer to manufacturer? Porsche, Mercedes-Benz and BMW go for the doctor. Mazda used to include metallic finishes, other than Soul Red Crystal but now charges $495 for that colour as well as Machine Grey metallic and Polymetal Grey metallic. Suzuki charges $495 for metallic paint on all but the white model, even though the white paint on a Suzuki Swift is metallic. Surely this is just another way to increase profits?
Metallic paint is also known as mica, metal flake or polychromatic paint, although most just call it “metallic”. Small polished flakes of aluminium and other metals are added to the paint to produce a glittering effect and this adds definition to the body surface by better reflecting body contours.
Proprietor of Custom and Classic Car in Mount Barker (SA) Paul Henshaw (www.customandclassiccars.com.au) is a whizz with a spray gun, so we asked him if he thought we were being ripped off. “Mate,” he said, “if you can get a metallic finish on a new car for $600, grab it!” Huh? Paul explained that the cost of automotive paint does vary and metallic paints need a clear coat over the top if they aren’t going to fade and lose their lustre. “The cost of paint to do an average car in a solid colour is about $600,” he explained. “To do the same car in a metallic finish is $1000, plus the cost of the clear coat. And we have to paint it twice, so it takes twice as long.”
Of course, the car manufacturers are applying the paint on a production line so it isn’t quite as critical, but Paul tells us that it all has to be done at one time or in a climate-controlled spray booth or different panels can end up looking different.
The other variable is that even the same manufacturers charge different prices for metallic finishes on different models. And then there’s the situation where a $2000 metallic paint option in Australia can be a $400 option in the US.
So, as usual, you pays your money and you takes your chances. Metallic finishes certainly look good and may make your car easier to sell at resale time. Small scratches and dings won’t be as noticeable with a metallic finish (silver is best) and some professionals claim metallic paint is more resistant to fading than solid colours.
On the downside, deep scratches that need sanding and the application of touch-up paint can be much harder to repair properly and will always be harder to match than a solid colour.
There is no consistency to what car companies charge for metallic paint – basically they can charge whatever they think they can get away with. But at least according to our expert, metallic paint does increase the cost of production, sometimes by even more than the premium being asked for it.
So well done Mazda, Subaru, Lexus and any other car companies that include metallic finishes in the quoted price. And boo hiss to those companies that still impose an enormous surcharge.