Anybody with Paint Experience?

[GLBL WMR]

About a month ago I was hit across the front bumper by somebody making a left hand turn from the right hand lane. It was just cosmetic/paint damage to the front right corner. Took it to a body shop that was recommended. They recommended that to "do it right", they had to remove the bumper cover, and sand and re-paint the whole thing. I got the estimate of $830, which the offender's insurance company paid.

They had the car for two days, and on the second day I got a call from the shop saying that they were almost done, but they did not have an air tool needed to buff the grill inlet, so I could pick the car up and bring it back in a week for them to finish once the tool showed up. I was also told that they were in the process of sanding the bumper in an effort to get the texture of the paint to match the rest of the car. I pick the car up to find that the top part of the bumper cover that they sanded looked just like that - despite being told that they "buffed" it afterwards as well, it was covered in sand marks and swirls. I was also incredibly pissed off to find that when they were sanding it back on the car, they sanded the bottom lip of the hood an the areas of the fenders that met the bumper (which I had to polish out). Why the f*ck did they not tape off the rest of the car? And the rest of the bumper that they did not get to sanding and "buffing", has horrible texture. I made a follow up call to let them know that I was not happy at all with the results thus far, and I am expecting a very refined finished product. They assured me I would be pleased, and that what I was seeing in terms of haze was normal for black paint curing - they said it just requires more work, which they'll do.

So I am taking the car back this week for them to finish, and my concern is that with all of this sanding, the paint is not going to be as durable, because its not going to have any clear coat left. I told them I want it looking factory stock (as they assured me they could do from the beginning), and that I want the rest of the car taped off so they don't touch the unpainted areas this time. I almost want to demand that the put another coat of clear on it once they're done with matching the texture.

So for you guys knowledgeable in this area, what should my demands be?

[dbotsfordtat]

Would help if you had some pictures but without seeing them I would say these guy's don't know what their doing or their letting some shop noob do your car.

[GLBL WMR]

I'll post some pictures tomorrow morning. I almost feel like telling them to redo it or pay a capable shop to do it or I'm making a call to the BBB.

[Nexus6]

That's why you pay when the job is finished.Then you could have walked in,looked at it,then said "im not paying for this shoddy work"

[Rookie13]

First let's address the service:

You are entitled to 1st rate repair regardless of cost because the other drivers insurance company is paying for it, not you. For each error/flaw you find, I suggest photos for proof.

Lastly, I hope you are speaking with the Business manager and not the shop foreman. Your shop foreman is trying to compensate for his workers lack of skill; the Business Manager/Owner will be concerned with his business rep and referral base.

Recommendation: take photos, discuss all future transactions with the Business Manager/Owner, have him annotate all flaws and future work on new estimate sheets or continued on subsequent pages of the original work sheet.

Quality of Work:

Unless you were involved in the selection of the Body Shop, not much you can do really. Be patient and work with them while they repair your car to factory specs as you requested. I would suggest a 3-strikes and your out rule. If you hit that 3rd strike, I recommend discussing the businesses problems with the local BBB. Before hand, make sure they are a member!! Don't know how it works over there, but that will have an impact on the service you receive from the BBB.

Lastly - style of work and methods:

Dependent on where the damage is should dictate the requirement to remove the bumper or NOT. If they didn't have to do any "body work repair" - just paint, I would have never removed the bumper. And like you mentioned, why they didn't tape off the remainder of the car for the job is beyond me. Now, for obvious reasons, they may have felt safer removing the bumper to do the job without the car itself in the paint-booth, but its a workmans call.

Overall, the small polishing tool they are referring to isn't that hard to come by, especially in a HUGE city like Philly. They should of had that car done in 6 hours or less total time! They charged over $800 to R/R the bumper, repair, prime, paint and refinish the piece, and it took 2 days. - they had the wrong guy on the job. Period!

As far as repainting the whole thing, that is a confusion of terms. They only painted the area concerned where they used primer. (I just hope they used Euro-prime for flex in the bumper.) The clear-coat will provide plenty of protection for the paint regardless of depth/number of coats. As far as orange-peal and texture go, that is decided by the painter - if he knew what he was doing he could have shot that whole bumper in clear and matched it perfectly the first time. I only have 6 years experience and know that GM uses HVLP, fast-cure-sprays. (Increase your activator in your clear and bump up your gun about 10psi and u get pretty damn close to a factory job.) Geesh!

For your knowledge when you return, your answer is yes, they can sand the new clear-coats on the bumper with some 1500-2000 grit paper and reshoot with 2 more coats. "IF" they have to re-sand again to finish the job, they need to invest in a new painter or some new guns.

They would have to sand for a very very long time, to sand thru the clear coat and hit paint. If they hit paint while sanding it will be very dull, like a matte-coat appearance. You will notice it immediately!! When you spray on "Paint" it dries dull, not shiny. The "Clear-Coat" is what makes it shiny, not the "paint."

Good Luck man!

[GLBL WMR]

Rookie13, thank you for the help. That was an awesome post, and it goes to show how valuable this forum can be. I will let you know how it turns out.

[Bell040]

need pics...

[orange10s.c.]

Rookie13 Great post that summed it up I have 20 yrs experience in the autobody world and you hit the nail on the head. GLBL WMR i hope you get it fixed right.

[GLBL WMR]

Here are a few pics. Unfortunately, this is something that is pretty hard to translate in pictures, but this gives you an idea. And yes, the car is dirty - washed it the day before and it poured the next morning.

The first pic shows the texture of the repainted bumper, the second shows you the texture of the factory paint on the door (which is actually great, but the dirt hides it), and the last shows you the sand/swirl marks on the top of the bumper where they "buffed" it.

[orange10s.c.]

That bumper looks terrible!!!!! Swirl marks will come out as long as the person buffing has the proper experience, especially with a black car.

[GLBL WMR]

Originally Posted by orange10s.c.

That bumper looks terrible!!!!! Swirl marks will come out as long as the person buffing has the proper experience, especially with a black car.

You're telling me, man. And the finish is the least of the problems. There is a buffer rub mark above the mail slot (and on the mail slot insert itself), there are dull spots from where they taped it before it was cured, paint has accumulated on the bottom edges from it being over sprayed, primer is showing through on the edges, particles are under the paint - the list goes on and on.

I have a total list, as well as pictures. I will be providing the list to the shop when I return the car, and I am going to make it very clear that they are to chemically remove the paint, and try again - without an ape doing it this time. I am also speaking the insurance company to keep them aware of the matter. I'll fight this until the bitter end, because I refuse to accept anything less than factory specs.

[Nexus6]

Oh HELLZ NO!

[Moose]

Where are you located?! I see "Phila" in your sig.

We may need to meet up and attack that paint after they're done with it.

[Rookie13]

Originally Posted by GLBL WMR

Rookie13, thank you for the help. That was an awesome post, and it goes to show how valuable this forum can be. I will let you know how it turns out.

No problem GLBL WMR - Glad I could help, and yes you're right - this forum has a serious wealth of information and knowledge. I'm just glad I was available to help a little...

Originally Posted by orange10s.c.

Rookie13 Great post that summed it up I have 20 yrs experience in the autobody world and you hit the nail on the head. GLBL WMR i hope you get it fixed right.

Auto-Body Rox - Thanks for the props!