painting fastback

And it IS very expensive to produce paint. Lots of chemistry, lots of research, VERY expensive equipment, very expensive to maintain EPA guidelines, and the price of their raw materials if very high.
Only this part of your post was related to my statement. But protecting the manufacturer and their astronomical markups by justifying paying $1000 for a gallon of paint is rediculous. That's like two people who want to go from the office to the supermarket, but one buys a $35k Hyundai and the other buys a $120k Cadillac. Do they still get to the supermarket at the same time? I'd say yes. Personally I wouldn't give $200 for a $120k Cadillac but there are alot of (smart?) people who would.