[NannuBhai]

Hey Guys,

I purchased my Audi A4 in April 2011. It's exterior is Phantom Black color with cinnamon brown colored interiors.

I was getting fascinated by this Matte Black finishes that I've been seeing around in various pics. I was just wondering what would be the costs like for getting it done.

When I asked my Audi workshop guys, they quoted around 2.5 to 3lacs!!!

I read somewhere on the internet (the US guys) that there's a cheaper way out by putting in the Matte Black Vinyls.

I wanted your expert opinions on this. Let me know what you guys think about this.

Thanks in advance.

[brraj]

Contact Motormind they are best in this business.

[NannuBhai]

Originally Posted by brraj

Contact Motormind they are best in this business.

Thanks brraj. I'll touch base with them and keep you'all updated.

[GTO]

Originally Posted by brraj

Contact Motormind they are best in this business.

Interesting. They appear to specialise in vinyls. Thanks for sharing.

@ NannuBhai : If you are satisfied, go the vinyl route. But do NOT strip down your A4 for a different shade / paint finish. The A4 is an extremely complex car; you can & will lose the Audi build quality, and might face reliability issues too.

[NannuBhai]

Originally Posted by GTO

Interesting. They appear to specialise in vinyls. Thanks for sharing.

@ NannuBhai : If you are satisfied, go the vinyl route. But do NOT strip down your A4 for a different shade / paint finish. The A4 is an extremely complex car; you can & will lose the Audi build quality, and might face reliability issues too.

Hmmm....Interesting. I'll keep that in mind. I'll probably first have a word with the Audi folks themselves and see what they say about this, if it'll interfere with warranty or any such thing.

[mobike008]

Originally Posted by brraj

Contact Motormind they are best in this business.

Thanks for sharing this information. I checked out the Cruze mods and it look HOT.

Do you know the approximate cost for getting the Cruze with those vinyl body kits?

[brraj]

Originally Posted by mobike008

Do you know the approximate cost for getting the Cruze with those vinyl body kits?

No idea, you need to contact them. Only way i came to know about them is by seeing a beautifully done BMW 530d in Bangalore, you will not believe instead of shopping i was starring at it for at least 1/2 hour.

[PowerFool]

Originally Posted by NannuBhai

Hey Guys,

I purchased my Audi A4 in April 2011. It's exterior is Phantom Black color with cinnamon brown colored interiors.

I was getting fascinated by this Matte Black finishes that I've been seeing around in various pics. I was just wondering what would be the costs like for getting it done.

When I asked my Audi workshop guys, they quoted around 2.5 to 3lacs!!!

I read somewhere on the internet (the US guys) that there's a cheaper way out by putting in the Matte Black Vinyls.

I wanted your expert opinions on this. Let me know what you guys think about this.

Thanks in advance.

If you want to go the Vinyl route then Cherayu Bendre is the best consultant, if you want to paint then Four Seasons Automobiles have done this on two vehicles with excellent results. Either way, your car will look and get super hot as matte black will retain more heat and it is difficult to maintain so don't go for it if you park regularly on the streets...that to unsupervised.

[NannuBhai]

Originally Posted by PowerFool

If you want to go the Vinyl route then Cherayu Bendre is the best consultant, if you want to paint then Four Seasons Automobiles have done this on two vehicles with excellent results. Either way, your car will look and get super hot as matte black will retain more heat and it is difficult to maintain so don't go for it if you park regularly on the streets...that to unsupervised.

Just a question though. My current color is black. So, why would a Matte Black finish make the car any hotter than what my current car becomes? Unless the matte finish absorbs more heat.

[Akshay1234]

Motorminds is all the way in Bangalore. If you want someone closer go to streamed graphics in Mumbai, Chirayu bendre as was posted above. He too has done matte finish of a couple of cars like the matte black 650i and a matte white a4.

There is no way puttin vinyl can void any sort of warranty on your car.

[Karan1981]

Hello Everyone,

I was thinking of how much will it cost if i were to get my audi painted in brilliant red (Audi Shade only) and where can i get it done from? Some questions in my mind:

1. Can this be even achieved (Read: Same color and finish)
2. Any warranty issues it may cause if done outside Audi?
3. Any warranty the dealer may offer on the color?
4. Any other part warranty i may lose if i do it outside?
5. Any rough idea of the cost in both Audi vs. other dealers?

Thanks in advance for your help.

Mods: If incase my post belongs to another thread, please feel free to re-route.

[PowerFool]

Originally Posted by NannuBhai

Just a question though. My current color is black. So, why would a Matte Black finish make the car any hotter than what my current car becomes? Unless the matte finish absorbs more heat.

Originally Posted by Karan1981

Hello Everyone,

I was thinking of how much will it cost if i were to get my audi painted in brilliant red (Audi Shade only) and where can i get it done from? Some questions in my mind:

1. Can this be even achieved (Read: Same color and finish)
2. Any warranty issues it may cause if done outside Audi?
3. Any warranty the dealer may offer on the color?
4. Any other part warranty i may lose if i do it outside?
5. Any rough idea of the cost in both Audi vs. other dealers?

Thanks in advance for your help.

Mods: If incase my post belongs to another thread, please feel free to re-route.

Nannubhai matte attracts/absorbs more heat than glossy as glossy reflects some of the heat away, hence a matte colour will be hotter than a matching glossy. It doesn't really matter in cold climates (Europe) as they are looking to absorb as much heat as they can or if you are a nightbird and use the car for your nocturnal jaunts. That the car looks wicked is beyond doubt. Whether you vinyl it or paint it, it is a noticeable change and you will surely have warranty issues as explained below.

Karan1981 if you get your car painted the same colour from a reputed garage there is a lesser likelyhood of the dealer noticing unless of course you are changing the colour altogether If that is the case you have no option but to toe the line with the dealership as they will surely void the warranty on the entire vehicle(all parts/engine etc). I get my work done at Four Seasons Automobiles and so far I have not had any issues with the warranties due to paint but I have NOT changed the colour. Cost wise it would be about 60% of the dealership quote.

[Sahil]

Originally Posted by akshay1234

Motorminds is all the way in Bangalore. If you want someone closer go to streamed graphics in Mumbai, Chirayu bendre as was posted above. He too has done matte finish of a couple of cars like the matte black 650i and a matte white a4.

There is no way puttin vinyl can void any sort of warranty on your car.

How much does Stream Graphics charge approx?

How durable are these vinyls in our condition of heat and traffic- does the heat cause premature peeling and how does it handle minor scratches that are inevitable in our driving conditions?

[scopriobharath]

Originally Posted by Karan1981

I was thinking of how much will it cost if i were to get my audi painted in brilliant red (Audi Shade only) and where can i get it done from? Some questions in my mind:

1. Can this be even achieved (Read: Same color and finish)
2. Any warranty issues it may cause if done outside Audi?
3. Any warranty the dealer may offer on the color?
4. Any other part warranty i may lose if i do it outside?
5. Any rough idea of the cost in both Audi vs. other dealers?

1. Not exactly. There will be a slight mismatch between the Factory Red and your A.S.S Dealer Red.
2. If you go for Exterior only Painting, Warranty will be valid. Once the car is stripped, even at an A.S.S warranty will be void.
3. 6 months/1 year warranty on painting. Warranty covers cracks on paint and fading only.
4. answered in point 2.
5. Audi will charge you close to 3 lacs for stripping and painting. A local dealer will charge you 1 lac at the max for external only painting.

Other Thoughts:

• You will lose factory build quality and will face associated problems if you strip and paint
• RTO endorsement process is a pain in the neck in india
• You will NOT get the same factory shade at all. The ratio of paint proportions are not shared outside the factory. The paint-shade calculations and mixing are 100% computerized. Humans cannot match that.
• Try Vinyl Stickers

On a personal front, i dont recommend stripping even an Alto, forget an Audi .

OR

If you are prepared to spend 3 lacs in painting, Why dont you sell your Audi and buy a new Red audi. yours is relatively new and would not depreciate much and the 3 lacs that you spend on paint will offset that.

[Karan1981]

Originally Posted by scopriobharath

If you are prepared to spend 3 lacs in painting, Why dont you sell your Audi and buy a new Red audi. yours is relatively new and would not depreciate much and the 3 lacs that you spend on paint will offset that.

Thank you so much scorpiobharath, i completely agree and you make a lot of sense. So no paintaing or stickers for now, i guess i'll wait and watch whats to be done

Originally Posted by PowerFool

Karan1981 if you get your car painted the same colour from a reputed garage there is a lesser likelyhood of the dealer noticing unless of course you are changing the colour altogether

Thank you powerfool, from everyones suggestions i guess paintaing should hold off for now which leaves only the alloys to be changed. I've thought of getting them changed after a year or so whereby it can be changed with the tyres, hope you know what i mean