deep scratch

[Bert Man]

300 miles on the damn car

I have no idea how this happened. There was what appeared to be some kind of chalk substance over the area where the scratch is. I got almost all of the substance off but whatever made contact with the bumper pulled some of the paint off as well. If you look at the close-up pic, you can still see some of the chalky stuff in the scratch itself.

Is this fixable without having to paint the whole bumper?

Ive tried in the past (on previous cars) using touch-up paint and building some layers of paint then sanding/polishing etc. Of course it never comes out perfect I know that. Damn car is a week old and Id rather leave it to the experts at a bodyshop but Im just wondering if it needs a complete respray

Thanks

 

[Mark63021]

If it were just the two smaller areas, I could probably live with it after a little polishing compound, even being a brand new car. But that long scratch appears to be thru down to base plastic in one spot. Damn.... I feel your pain; but as they say -it could be worse (hit and run smashed door or bumper?)
Anyway, I would try a detail shop for an opinion about repair options before jumping to what I'd consider the last resort of a bumper repaint.

 

[marty5marty]

the 5" looks a bit serious....I'm sure you can hide it with scratch paint and stuff....however I'm not sure how well it will hide. Bodyshop will cost you around $400-800 because they need to respray the whole front bumper not only those areas. Just ask your bodyshop and get a quote. Definitely ask various bodyshops and get their quotes. if you don't mind spending that much i would go that way.

 

[waveman]

That sucks. I found some bad scrapes near one of my rear wheels when my car was about three months old. I ended up paying around $700 to have it repaired (they had to do a lot of painting), but it ended up looking like new. I don't know that I'd do that again today, but I agree with the recommendations to get some estimates.

 

[Top Gear]

A body shop is overkill for something like that, and will be a lot more than you think. I really swear by paint blending services that work on-site. They will sand it down and airbrush the exact paint back over the specific area and you'll never know the difference.

 

[jnc2000]

A body shop is overkill for something like that, and will be a lot more than you think. I really swear by paint blending services that work on-site. They will sand it down and airbrush the exact paint back over the specific area and you'll never know the difference.

X2 - Also consider that after thousands of highway miles your front end will not be the same, and you may want it painted fresh again.

 

[Bert Man]

Went to two top quailty shops for an estimate. Both said whole bumper needs a respray and cost was 500$ and 550$.

I was schedualed to go in for a 3m clear film wrap on the front bumper tomorrow. That pisses me off the most.

Both shops said I should wait 2-3 months before getting the wrap after fresh paint. However, the shop that was doing the wrap for me said as long as the new paint is baked at 250 degrees (instead of the 210 degrees body shops normally do) the wrap can be installed right after the new paint.

If i have to wait 3 months for new paint to cure before wraping the bumper then whats the point? I would be so lucky if I could 3 months without getting a small rock chip driving back and forth from brooklyn each day.

Never heard of paint blending. Is that something body shops do or more of detailing service so to speak? Neither shop made mention of paint blending.

 

[Top Gear]

Body shops are geared for large scale repair, like major crash damage. A mobile blender service comes to where you are and is more like an airbrush artist, with minimal intrusion into the car, sanding only what is needed, matching paint and clear coat exactly. It's in between detailing and body shop repair. I'd say the cost would be half your shop quotes, $250 or so. I've had mine done (newlookbodyworks.com) and it was outstanding, seamless work. I'll be going to them again soon, probably every year, because of rock chips, etc. Again, a full shop will want to remove the bumper and other parts, sand the whole thing down, repaint parts that don't need it, it'll be $1000 or much more before they get too far along, they'll have the car for days or weeks, and it will need serious cleanup from being exposed to their paint-dusty shop. It's WAY over the top for just a few scratches or gouges. A blender will be done in a couple of hours at your convenience and can finish off every scratch on the car. Shouldn't be too hard to find a top-notch blender in the NYC area!

 

[marty5marty]

If i were you...i would just go to the bodyshop and repaint it OR call a mobile scratch fixer ( a top recommended one around your area ) and get it fixed asap. Knowing that you only have 300 miles in your car will keep bothering you until you do something about it. It would to me especially if it's a brand new car....so it's up to you!

As for rock chips and small scratches you get on the upcoming years are unavoidable. I think of them as wrinkles and hair loss. You can definitely avoid those by keeping your car in your garage and never driving it though

 

[Bert Man]

Body shops are geared for large scale repair, like major crash damage. A mobile blender service comes to where you are and is more like an airbrush artist, with minimal intrusion into the car, sanding only what is needed, matching paint and clear coat exactly. It's in between detailing and body shop repair. I'd say the cost would be half your shop quotes, $250 or so. I've had mine done (newlookbodyworks.com) and it was outstanding, seamless work. I'll be going to them again soon, probably every year, because of rock chips, etc. Again, a full shop will want to remove the bumper and other parts, sand the whole thing down, repaint parts that don't need it, it'll be $1000 or much more before they get too far along, they'll have the car for days or weeks, and it will need serious cleanup from being exposed to their paint-dusty shop. It's WAY over the top for just a few scratches or gouges. A blender will be done in a couple of hours at your convenience and can finish off every scratch on the car. Shouldn't be too hard to find a top-notch blender in the NYC area!

thats a good idea. imo something this small shouldnt need a complete respray and I can live with blending process even if its not 100% perfect looking.

Any suggestions for the long island area?

______________________________

Help support this site so it can continue supporting you!

 

[Bert Man]

Spoke to two mobile paint repair services and they both told me that white pearl paint can NOT be blended and the bumper has to be re-sprayed

 

[snork]

Spoke to two mobile paint repair services and they both told me that white pearl paint can NOT be blended and the bumper has to be re-sprayed

The white pearl paint is a 2 part paint. Even the Hyundai Touch-Up paint for this color is 2 part. Also considering your body shop quotes are both ~$500...I doubt they know this color is a 2 step paint. A full respray of the bumper will need the 2 layers of color + clear coat, which is 3 trips to the paint booth instead of the traditional 1 layer of color + clear coat.

 

[Top Gear]

Bert, mine is black pearl metallic, and was perfectly blended. A top-notch blending service will be able to blend any stock paint (and most custom paints if coded) and will yield perfect results. Believe me, you will not be able to tell a good blend from an undamaged stock area, and I wouldn't say so unless I was confident in Newlook (they can't be the only one in the US). This is a show car quality craft. Some of those cheap paint fixer services that work the new car lots are NOT the ones to hire - the same is true of body shops. My car had minor transport and dealer damage, and the "paint guys" used by the dealer turned out to be total hacks I wouldn't let mow my lawn. You have to shop around to make sure you're hiring the show car level people who do show car quality work. You could look for someone through exotic car dealers and shows, or you could even call Newlook for recommendations in your area. I know it's frustrating, but it will be worth it.

 

[Bert Man]

appreciate the help everyone. Could not find a top notch painter to do the blending service in my area. Bit the bullet and paid the 500$ for a re-spray with lifetime warranty on the paint. came out just as good as new