Guest

I bought a 2001 TL blk on 2-13-01. I noticed little bumps all over the car. I took it to the dealer and they said they will paint the car. The body shop they use told me not to paint the car. Any advice. I don't want to paint a car thats six week old.

TL Daddy

May be no need to repaint your new TL. Refer to the topic below - that should work for you.
http://www.acura-tl.com/ubb/Forum1/HTML/006559.html

Guest

TL daddy, they tried but it would not come off. The body shop told me to leave it alone or work it out with the dealer.

drbeatty

One important fact to consider is that when you repaint the car, any place that you might sell it to or trade-in to will know it has been repainted, and assume it has been in an accident. While repainting it is sometimes a necessity for cosmetic reasons, dealers will ALWAYS assume the worst when they notice it is repainted. In fact, even if you get a signed letter from the dealer explaining it was repainted for reasons other than an accident, it still won't matter. There are tell tale signs that will tip off any experienced dealer that the car has been painted. In short, if you get it repainted, you will lose 2-3,000 on the car just by painting it. I wish I could give you a better suggestion than not to paint it, but I can't think of anything else. Sorry.

P.S. I have been through this with two previous cars. One was in a minor fender bender and the other was keyed. Both lost big money on trade or sell because of the paint!

1999TL

Get them to get you a new car.

MikeS

Yep...It's too new for that! Get a replacement!



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2000 TL - Laguna Green, Navi, Rear Spoiler. PIAA Hyperwhite HB's. 17" CL-S wheels with Bridgestone RE 730 - 225/45/17's. Soon to have Comptech Suspension, Sways & Axle back Exhaust.

Guest

Thanks for the info. I'm trying to get a replacement. I'll let you guys know what happens.

sutlTL

doddy, my '99 TL had many defects in the paint and body. My trunk lid had a dent protruding out (inside out ding). They used someone who did paintless dent repair but it was still noticeable. Finally, they agreed to exchange the trunk lid with another new car and only after the exchange was made did they realize all body pieces had serial numbers. All they did was remove the stickers from both cars. If at all possible you shouldn't repaint because the factory paint is a more durable paint. I met with the factory rep because of all the flaws and a check for $500 was sent to me as a settlement. I'm not sure how bad your paint is but maybe you should take it to an experienced detailer to see what can be done. Btw, if a body shop is good it's very, very, very difficult to tell that a body panel has been repainted. The problem with repaint is as I said before, durability and the fact that it may fade at a different rate as the factory paint. Hope this helps. Good luck.

hunter001

I beg to differ.... any experienced body-shop or dealer can recognize a re-painted surface in any car.... regardless of the expertise of the body shop who did the re-painting...

When you trade-in the car, they go all over the car with a microscope (figurative !!) and no way can you fool them... about a car being re-painted...

just my 2c



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2000 Naples Gold 3.2TL/Navi - Factory Stock but with up-graded tires

sutlTL

hunter001, I agree with you that a body shop can tell that a car has been repainted. But I'm talking about body panels and if a car is well taken care of and the repaint is done well, most people won't even bother to check every panel for repaint. Remember, I said a good body shop that is particular about attention to detail.

drbeatty

The quality of the repaint is inconsequential in a vehicle inspection. Sprayed paint will build up in seams and underpanels in areas that can be felt by the fingers, but not sanded or smoothed in a body shop. For example, the front quarter panels have a 1.5-2" lip before the line for the hood. Paint will build up here in the area directly in front of the windshield, on the underside of the panel. It can be easily felt by the fingers as being rougher than the rest of the car, and is a dead giveaway for quarter panel repainting. The only way to repaint a car without making it noticeable is to take EVERYTHING apart and spray from scratch, like when the car was built. It sounds hard to believe, but any dealer who appraises trade-ins will find a repainted part.

drbeatty

Doddy - One idea that just came to mind is to get the interior/exterior treatment from Acura. Given the condition of your car, you might be able to get it at cost (or have the dealer give it to you for your trouble). While this will not solve the problem, it will give you a warranty that might give you a paper trail should you choose to get it repainted. If you sell it back to an Acura dealership, they would be able to research the warranty record and see that it wasn't repainted for an accident. This idea, like everything else in life though, has its merits and risks. Food for thought...

Guest

THX everyone...