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Is original paint valuable?

947 views 5 replies 5 participants last post by  bassrr94 
#1 ·
Hello!

I am a new owner of a 1991 3000gt SL, and weather has not been kind to it. It sat for about 28 years in outside, uncovered in NY. Then it was driven for the last few years, but still parked outside.

The car has not been painted at all in the 30 years of its existence. The paint is... bad. It is supposed to be red. Both side mirrors are pink. The paint on the hood is in surprisingly good shape. Most of the paint on the spoiler no longer exists in this realm, as there are large patches of a grayish/black to be seen where the paint once was. I plan to repaint it, but when I was buying the car the owner was very insistent that the original paint (in its terrible condition) greatly increased the value of the car.... I was wondering if there was any truth to this?

He said not to paint it, just to buff it. But I think that'll be hard on the parts that no longer have paint. He made it sound like I would be ruining the car's value if I painted it, and I am wondering if this is the case.

-Also was wondering if the strip of car above the spoiler is supposed to be white (the white part in the picture) It doesn't seem to match the rest of the car.

I would love your guys' opinions on this!

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#2 ·
Original paint in good condition is worth a lot. In your case a repaint isn't going to make your car worth less.
 
#4 · (Edited)
original paint in excellent condition undoubtedly adds value. I think the paint is going to depend on buyer preference, paint condition, and model rarity. A "purist" will want original everything. It "tells" the cars story in a way, and can take you back to that time. There will be others who want pristine paint and condition. I think I would make my determination on how rough the paint is. You definitely don't want bare metal where rust can start. Being you have an sl and the paint is pretty rough, I don't think a good paint job would hurt the value. I think it would actually add to it. Just my 2 cents. Also I think the faded white paint color on the hatch is supposed to be "lamp black". Someone correct me if I'm wrong, but I'm pretty sure that's what I read in the body manual. Good luck!!
 
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