Quote from another forum I'm on about painting caught my eye. I learned some things from it (this is NOT me):
I started my auto career as a body man in the early 80's, so the reason for asking what color is because it can make a big difference in cost/savings depending on which paint system to use. If you said a metallic color than you would have to go with a 2-stage paint system (base coast / clear coat) which became popular in the 80's and still used today. However, since you are painting it a solid color you can save a lot of money by going with a single stage urethane, which is essentially the same as bc/cc but they are mixed together and the painter applies it the same as enamel or lacquer was applied in the pre-80's days.
In addition to the cost savings, there is another huge bonus by going with single stage urethane black that non-professionals overlook. When you paint a car black with bc/cc all the little marks/scratches that develop from washing, drying, etc, are highly visible because you are not scratching the black, you are scratching the clear coat, which is white in color, so that is why all the swirl marks and scratches are highly visible. Whereas if you have a car that is painted black with single stage urethane, enamel, or lacquer, its solid black paint (no clear on top) and it scratches black, so all those flaws are stealth and your eye doesn't see most of them because the light is not grabbing the edges like it does on the clear coat painted ones. This is why higher end restorations on vintage cars use single stage urethane when it comes to black, because it has a more authentic look to it resembling enamel or lacquer, which is also very similar in appearance to the factory original bc/cc paint on a Fiero, because the Fiero bc/cc didn't have the same bc/cc luster you see today because it had a flexible enamel clear coat. You also want a "little bit" of orange peal in the paint texture when finished because that gives the paint character, as most people make the mistake of over-wet-sanding and removing it all. Last but not least, because the Fiero has enduraflex and fiberglass panels, the shop will add a little bit of flex additive like they do with all plastic bumpers.
In regards to finding a competent body shop, most body shops nowadays are busy with insurance jobs on newer cars and won't touch your car, and professional restoration shops are going to be very expensive, so you need to find a small independent operation (one or two man outfit) that does this type of work and has a good reputation. It helps to know some older people in vintage car scene in your region, because they know about outfits that are not advertised. If you find a small trust-worthy operation, remove most of the trim before dropping it off, have them use single stage urethane, and you can cut the costs in half compared to normal operations.
