I took delivery of my Anthracite TL in late January. Because it was dark and drizzling, I didn't do as thorough an inspection as I could have. The first time I washed the car, I noticed a paint flaw on the upper left side of the bumper - a 1 mm bubble and 4 slightly smaller dark spots in about a 1 inch area. It's
not noticeable unless you look. I finally took it into a dealer for inspection.

The dealer recommends getting it repainted (as I picked up a few chips on the front bumper already) and is confident I'll be happy with the paint job. Otherwise they will give me a free accessory.

There's possible mismatching the color with the rest of the car, and I don't know if I'll have problems later on. Another (small) concern is that repainting removes the factory paint resulting in lower resale value (though I don't intend to sell it).

I intend to get clear bra installed whether I leave it alone or get it repainted.

Opinions? Experiences with repainting?

Thanks in advance.

 

Sorry to hear that, lymster! What do they charge you for exchanging a brand new one? Or may be the clearbra can cover it as well?

 

Are they repainting for free under warranty?

 

Properly done, the repaint of the bumper will be as good as new. Moreover, since the car is brand new and has not had a chance to weather, paint match should be no problem -- simply using the OEM paint will do the trick!

I hope this helps!

<TED>

 

See if you can elect to have it repainted at a place of your choice. Take the money and ta-da, you now own a free clear bra

 

No dealer or manufacturer is gonna give you cash for a paint job so you can go someplace else. You are deaming VTEC-happiness. That said, color match is not so big of a deal on a brand new vehicle, the big thing is getting the level of orange peal and clearcoat shine exactly right. This has alot to do with the level of expertise and skill of the painter. Ask them to give it a shot and offer to redo it if it is not exactly perfect.

 

Thanks for all the responses so far. They did offer to do it for free under warranty, and if I'm not happy, to work with me until I am. The quote from the body shop is $530 that Acura will have to eat.

I'm bummed about the paint flaw and hassle I have to go through, plus the outside temperature guage controller needs to be replaced (also under warranty). Wouldn't expect this at this level of car.

They do seem to be treating me right though!

Lyman

 

Got my car back after the bumper was repainted. Unfortunately, the paint didn't match I'm bringing it back on Monday for them to redo. Wish I had just left it the way it is.

 

If it's done right, it won't reduce the value of the car, because nobody will be able to tell it was done. Even if you tell the buyer (or dealer), nobody will be too worried about a bumper repaint. It can be redone, or replaced, as necessary for not too much money.

The problem with some repaints is that they are easily detectible, due to masking lines, mismatches, the old paint showing where paint chips have chipped the new paint, a completely different texture (orange peel) or shine, etc. Those are all signs of lower quality jobs, which is what most peope end up with, as they shop for low bid, or are "forced" to by an insurance company. Also, a lot of repaints are done after repairing serious accident damage, which isn't the case with your car. With a non-insurance bumper repaint, there won't be any record available to the public (like from CarFax) of the work having been done. The dealer or Acura will have a warranty record on it, though. If I knew it were done, and was looking at the car as a used TL, I'd look it over carefully for quality, but I wouldn't reject the car or try to get a much lower price because of it.

 

When I looked at the bumper in the shade at the dealer, it was noticeably darker than the rest of the car, even the rear bumper. In the sun it looks pretty good, though I have to say the metallic flakes are darker on the bumper than the rest of the car.

How anal should I be in getting this fixed? If the second repaint doesn't match the OEM paint, should I ask to have them pull a bumper off a new unsold car (highly unlikely), or get a painted one from the factory (probably unlikely, as replacement bumpers come unpainted).

 

I noticed a small bubble on my front bumper near where the upper part hits the quarter panel. It popped and now there is no paint. I decided to stop my the dealer and pick up some touch up paint (never hurts to have) and asked about this. The guy said he hadn't heard anything about it. When I showed him the problem he said that "that ain't right" he then walked around to the other side and there it was! I am going back monday morning to meet with the supervisor and get this resolved. I told him that if the car goes in, I want them to inspect it for all the know issues i.e. seat memory and tires...

 

lyster, which dealership did you get your car from?

 

I had same problem, had bumper repainted and it looks good. Problem now is I'm finding paint problems on the rear bumper and quarter panels........not good.

 

This paint flaw issue makes me feel nervous! Is this rare case or it is happenning on many cars?!

My TL build date is 4/22. I hope no paint flaw on my new car!

 

I don't think the problem is widespread otherwise there would be a million threads like it on here and people would be discussing daily. My build was in Nov. 2004 and I'm sure things have improved since then. I love the car but the earlier builds have some fit-n-finish issues. I would not be worried about buying one produced more recently - ENJOY!