What a respray really costs, and when a smart repair will do
Paint is one of the biggest repair costs in salvage. Full panel, blend or smart repair: what each costs and when to use it.
REPAIR · 4 min read
Paint is where budgets blow out
Underestimating paint is one of the most common salvage mistakes. A number plate light is cheap, a professional respray of several panels is not. Knowing the difference between what needs full paint, a blend or a smart repair is what keeps a flip profitable.
Full panel respray
Replacing a damaged panel means painting it to match, which at a pro shop runs from around £150 to £400 per panel depending on the car and the colour, more for metallics and pearls that need blending into the adjacent panels. Budget the blend, not just the panel.
Blending versus full paint
You rarely paint a single panel in isolation on a metallic car, because the new paint will not match perfectly. Painters blend into the neighbouring panels, which adds cost. This is why a one-panel repair can quietly become a three-panel paint job. Count it in.
When a smart repair wins
For small dents, scuffs and stone chips, a mobile smart repair (SMART stands for small to medium area repair technology) costs a fraction of a full respray, often £50 to £150 a spot. On a car that is otherwise straight, smart repairs can transform the look cheaply and are perfect for tidying a flip.
Pricing it in the Analyzer
The repair model separates panels that need replacing and full paint from panels that just need a blend, because the cost is very different. Set who is doing the work (pro shop, independent or DIY) and it scales the paint cost accordingly, so your profit figure reflects the real paint bill.