gbm

Ok, to make a long story short, some idiot backed into my car and damaged the front bumper, grille, and hood. I took my two week old baby into a body shop today, and they said that OEM replacement is a must, and then went on to explain to me how they will paint those replacements. They said they will paint the hood and blend into the fenders. They are going to sand off the clear coat on my fenders and repaint to blend seemlessly. They said it's the proper way to do, otherwise the metallic pearl might stand in a different way that's going to make the paint job somewhat noticeable. I begged them to leave my fenders alone, but they said they don't want to repaint and blend the hood if it fails because it will have to come out of my own pocket instead from the insurance. Is blending into the fenders really necessary? Is this really the best way to do it? Do they sound like they know what they are talking about? Help! (btw, the color of my car is Glacier Blue Metallic)

steeveage

Sorry about your accident. I thought the OEM parts came painted already?! But maybe that's only limited to the body kits. Why can't they just blend the hood to match your existing fenders?

BTW good color choice

TSXtravis

That sucks about the accident!

GBM was my first color choice, but I bought mine (ASM) last month so I had limited choices since it was the last of the 06's. Once you get it fixed, post pics! I can still dream of the GBM!

gbm

i don't know...they said no matter how hard they try to match as close as possible, there are so many other factors such as temperture, humidity, and etc...that would determine the outcome of the paint.

gbm

Here is a pic of my disfigured TSX for now...
http://img503.imageshack.us/img503/421/img1180ke2.jpg

steeveage

Hey gbm, I did a search and you may want to PM the guy who started this thread:
https://acurazine.com/forums/showthr...ht=paint+blend

In the thread he talks about getting a dent in his door, replacing the door and:
"Rental was covered while the car was getting repaired (new door, paint + blend the areas in front and behind the rear door, etc...)."

Sounds like something similar to what you are facing.

Good luck...

curls

You don't blend on a line... you blend within a panel. This makes the eye unable to tell where the old and new painted areas start/stop, because they are literally blended mid-panel and kinda fade into each other.

If you were to paint (especially with metallic and even moreso with pearl paints) and not blend mid-panel, you would definately notice the difference in paint colour.

Proper painting is akin to creating a good optical illusion.

OP: You shouldn't need to be worried -- they're doing the right thing and it should look good as new in the end. If not, it'll be warrantied by the insurance company. If you go your way, it won't be warrantied.

TSXtravis

That pic made me sick to my stomach! Could have been worse I guess. Fight for what you want. Its your car!!!

gbm

I'm not quite sure if you understand what they are going to do. They won't be repainting the hood. They are going to replace the hood and paint it, and then take the clearcoat off and repaint the fenders, so the change won't be drastic if there's going to be any. What I don't understand is, if they repaint the fenders, then they will have to repaint the door panels, and then the whole damn car! Why can't they just match the hood to the fenders?

steeveage

Yeah it seems that they could achieve the same result by painting the hood, wait for it to dry, then blend at that point to the fenders. That way they only touch one body panel instead of three.

curls

I do understand what you mean, and yes what I said above IS what they should do.

They must spray the new hood, and the existing fenders, at the same time because slight differences in temperature, humidity, and even paint mixture, can cause noticeable differences in the resulting paint job.

They "blend" the fenders by shooting thinner and thinner coats until about 1/2 way onto the fender, at which point, the paint layer they're spraying is almost 100% transparent because its so thin. They then would clearcoat the entire hood and fender (up to or beyond where they stopped spraying) and trust me, it will look good.

My wifes' car was backed into on the rear qtr. panel just a few weeks ago. The owner of the bodyshop is a good friend of mine and I had a nice tutorial on how this is done. He does all kinds of custom paint jobs, all kinds of repairs, and even crazy custom body work. His work is impeccable and the result (after a blending process similar to above) was perfection.

xizor

yes, that is the proper procedure, trust me you want them to blend the paint, it'll look horrible otherwise. it sounds like they know what they're doing

itrhybrid

iTrader: (1)

That sounds pretty standard to me. All of the work I've had done before involved blending like that. I'd take their word for it and trust them. If you don't trust them then you should not be in their shop to begin with.

pizzaman555

Yup you hav to blend the fenders no matter what even if it was a simple black color you still have to blend.Even if you had the orinal paint from the car you still need to blend.

tony4311

The whole left side of my car was repainted and blended with the rest. It'll be fine.

gbm

Cool, I guess it's a go, then. I don't know what I could've done without this forum. What a wealth of sound advices! Thanks, guys!

gbm

Wait, did I mention that it's a brand new car? I thought it would be easier to match when the car isn't old...

curls

Doesn't matter, because paints mixed the same way using the same ratios and same brand paint, will never match 100% unless they were mixed in the EXACT same conditions. Blending is always required.

That being said, brand new paint vs. year or two old paint (especially with PWP - Premium White Pearl, like on my car), is easier to match with a stock recipe when NEW as opposed to a few years old. This is because the PWP and other colors tend to shift. Ie: PWP turns a slight yellowish. Reds tend to fade out to pink over time. etc...

spoonfedhatch

standard procedure is always to blend the panels. don't worry, they're doing what is best for your car, and judging by your knowledge of automotive refinishing, you will never be able to tell the difference. (don't take it the wrong way, but most of us cannot)

gbm

They are taking my car apart, today! I hope they don't find anything other than the exterior damages...

gbm

Oh, btw, I would like to express how thankful I am that I drive a TSX. My rental was '06 Nissan Altima, and today Dodge Neon...I want my car back!!!

gbm

Alright, people, my baby is back...and....IT'S AS GOOD AS NEW! Kudos to the Turnersville Collision Center. What a beautiful job they've done! And lots of thanks to you guys for your moral support and advices. I'm happy, once again!

LoveMyTL-S

gbm

Before and after pictures will be posted up, tomorrow. First thing in the morning, I have a meeting with my lawyer to get my money's worth. mhahahahaha.

gbm

Ok, I have another question. When I got my car back, they told me not to wash the car for the next 45 days. I went to get my seat creaking serviced at the dealer, today, and despite my plea for "no wash" they did it anyways. Will this ruin my paint or clearcoat? They also made two scratches that I didn't have before...urghhh

LuvMyTSX

When I got my new bumper, the shop said not to wax it for 90 days. They didn't say anything about not washing it, and I know I didn't go 90 days without washing it. How old was the paint when it was washed by the dealer?

gbm

The paint is only 2 days old...

curls

Wash = OK
Wax = wait a bit.
Scratches = yell and argue with the dealer! I HATE WHEN THEY DON'T LISTEN.