if its ur going to be ur temporary daily beater and u wanna make it look good like paint u can always prep the car ur self sand it and all that then take it to a reputable (might be hard to find) maaco etc. to get it paint it for the cheaps but just remember that those cheap paint jobs dont last so long maybe 1 year or 2 IMO to save some money and look good and the same time.
edit:keep in mind those tahoes yukons silverados etc. guuzle gas like mofos (hence the beutiful v8 ls engines lol) tlk bout like 60-100 bucks a week on gas i know that first hand and i fix them all the time. and if ur worried about ur mpg now with that monte just think about a truck