Maaco Franchise review: paint and preparations

12 Feb 2009 I received an estimate to repaint our 1996 Dodge Ram 3500. The estimate was to include stripping the existing paint to the metal due to pealing factory paint and new paint would not adhere to the original primer, as I was told by Dave, the owner. The top quality paint job was chosen with an extended 5 year warranty. "Six coats of clear sealer was applied", so I was told by Dave.

The first paint job immediately showed signs of particles in the paint but we were told that this is normal. I could also see an uneven surface along the bedside indicating that the paint had not been stripped to the metal. "Reconditioned", as stated on the receipt. After about a year the paint had turned yellow, supposed to be white, especially noticeable on the hood. When I took it back I was told they would redo the truck at no charge because of a failure in the material.

A few years later I started noticing cracks in the paint surface. We had moved out of the area and were busy with other details so I wasn't able to get back to the Maaco shop until around July 2015 and when we did Dave was on vacation. His assistant took pictures and said Dave would be getting in touch with us as soon as he got back. I spoke with Dave on 29 July 2015 and he said the best he would do is to repaint the truck for 50% off the regular price. Since we have lost our trust in Dave we did not want to take him up on his offer, mainly because there would be no guarantee and the distance we now live from his shop, approximately 3-1/2 hours drive.

We also payed Dave $2, 000.00 to paint our horse trailer a matching color to the truck. He was asked to seal the top since it leaked. The top had to be done a second time because it leaked first time it rained. He said he would apply the same material they use for truck bed liners which was flexible and would make a good seal and he would fiberglass all the seams. I noticed that they had broken the skylight over the tack room and didn't say anything. The skylight was old and needed to be replaced but to have been told it was broken would have given me time to replace it before it rained and got our horse tack wet. When I replaced the skylight the new "flexible" material on the roof cracked. Dave redid the area and repainted it. Upon checking it this past July 2015 I found the paint curling up or pealing. The seams were opening up. Another reason not to trust Dave with any new paint jobs.