Hey, StreetDreamsGT.
The final cost in actual paint was about $25 to $40 (it was several years ago, I don't remember exactly how much I used)
Something I think I should tell, I preped the car for real paint, using quality automotive feeler, etch and 2k primer, then blocked. The idea for spray bombing it was only to protect all of my prep work for winter <- It was getting too cold and I wanted the outside temp warm to make sure the finish would cure right. At first, the spray paint was only to be thin coat, that I would sand off the following summer, then seal it and spray with 'real' base coat/clear coat. After starting it, the spray bomb paint was laying decent and I thought, what da heck and laid it on thick.
I then I color sanded, like you would 'real automotive' finish.
I'm guessing the guys above, that are saying the paint won't last, have never painted on a properly preped surface, then cleared with spray bomb. The paint will absolutley last, BUT true, it's no comparison to 'real paint'. After about a year, it will come close, but never reach the hardness real paint will. Also, the spray clear will yellow slightly after a few years or the clear I used did, but then again, I used $1 wal-mart spray enamel. Maybe a better quality spray paint would have done better?
I don't recommend doing it, mainly because when you finally go to shoot it with real paint, you would have to strip the enamel off -> the spray enamel won't have a good foundation and it isn't compatible with real paint.
Below is what the car looks like now. I'm in the process of striping all of the paint to bare metal to giving it a good foundation.