b0n3

Got hit this AM during traffic. Some kid braking and slid into my rear, a good thud, but it looks like only the bumper cover got scratched and gouged.
I got one estimate for $725 to repair this .. My car is CSM and they said the paint is very expense. They also said they need to blend it with the rear quarter panels.
I got another for $450, to basically patch, prime and paint.

The kid was driving a company pickup truck and he wants to pay me out of pocket. I guess he just got the job and he doesn't want to tell his boss what happened. His truck has no damage. He said he'd pay $500-600 .. but if it's going to be $700+ I may have to go the insurance route.

I donno, the whole thing sucks .. what do you think a fair price would be for this? .. it's a pretty drastic price increase from $450 to $725.

jfarabaugh

725 is not a bad price. Make sure they pull the bumper to make sure no clips or anything were broken off. Keep in mind that this guys hit you so you really dont need to do him a favor by going with the cheapest fix. I would do what ever gets the car back to the state it was before you got hit.
I was in a similar incident last summer with my mazda. A pickup truck hit me while sitting in stopped traffic. Ended up being 2k once they pulled the bumper off and found more damage.

psheu

there are plenty of ways to fix that up..... bumper cover is just plastic and the new OEM one comes primed and unpainted ($350)..... you can get these cheaper on ebay for (~$150)..... whoever said that CSM is more expansive is bullshitting you..... there is no such thing..... all of the paint come from mixing some other paint..... they are no different from other color..... a good body shop have and know how to get the detail mixture/shade that you need.... and it's the clear coat that makes it a nice and shinny..... a good bumper paint job should cost around (no more than $100 - $200).... otherwise, that body shop is just trying to rip you off..... than again this is for S. FL..... hope these figures are not that far fetch for ya

p.s. and all of the parts mentioned are OEM not after market... make sure when u get it fix up they don't cheat you on that... OEM all the way

neuronbob

Too bad for the kid. I'd go through insurance despite what he said. He's at fault, that's what insurance is for. Empathy is OK but the kid should've been paying attention while driving and should accept the consequences.

TampaRLX-SH

Sorry to hear. But glad no one was hurt.

I, personally do not favor the patch and paint route. Paint alone on plastic bumpers is a bit tricky and I have seen so many repainted bumpers peel not so long down the road. I have also seen more than enough plastic patches warp and become exposed by weather extremes etc. But I am not sure how minor the damage is. Also, do you know if anything beneath the fascia is damaged? the crumple components may need replacing once the fascia is removed. What if more is discovered by the repair facility in progress of the repair. At least an insurance claim will mitigate it. Will this guy deal with you coming back for more $$$ if more damage is determined?

The rear bumper fascia is $425 alone. Some discounted vendors as low as $320. If the chrome trim pieces are involved, they are around $85 a piece. And painting an labor is easily near $200 for a quality job.

I can feel for the guy, but bottom line is he has to take responsibility for the accident. That either means by his pocket or by his insurance. I would not compromise my vehicle for the misdeed of another.

Although it sounds like this was a true accident, I find too many people dismissive of responsibility when operating their vehicles. Too many drivers have vehicle operation too low on the priority with a plethora of in vehicle distractions (cell phones, texting, eating, etc, etc). If people saw lives and dollar signs in front of them as they drive instead of that 'critical' text message, I bet there would be a lot less 'accidents' on the road.

Chas2

^^^I agree with Tampa. You do not know if any components behind the bumper cover are damaged...replacing a bumper beam or the brackets, absorbers or other components can be expensive, but hidden behind the bumper cover.

b0n3

After checking this out, the impact doesn't look like anything major. Everything still feels solid.

Rob144

I think you could buff out the scratches pretty easily -- try Quixx.

As for the black spot -- touch it up, let it dry and polish it with Quixx again. I backed into a small tree stump and gouged more paint off my CSM bumper. I did the best I could with the touch-up tube and the Quixx -- not perfect, but tolerable. Any touch up would be better than the black spot.

Assuming there's no structural damage under the bumper, take the cash. $600 will buy a lot of touch-up paint! Yeah, it won't be perfect, but a touch up blob is less obvious than mismatched, peeling, flaking paint.

I consider the RL to have one of the nicest production paint jobs around, so I'd be hard pressed to see how anything but the highest end paint shop could do it justice. Unlike the 3G TL, and my current Odyssey minivan, the RL bumpers match the body.

OLD_HATCH

agreed.


Thats what insurance is for. A friend of mine hit my wifes car once and said oh get an estimate. I told hime go through your insurance or I bet we will no longer be friends. 3 years later and still friends.


Insurance is there for a reason. Most of us pay our policies for years and the insurance never have to pay out. Let them spend the money weve been giving them all these years.



The actual damage doesnt look bad, except for the little gouge. The paint itself of being repainted will probably fill the scratches on its own without having to primer the crap out of the bumper.

I say 300-350 is a reasonable prive for a GOOD job out of pocket. I dont know how it is up in Mass cause maybe things like that are a little expensive.

Rhlieu

Which ever route you take, GET IT FIXED!! That is too nice of a RL to have a dang like that. I had a dent on my hood a few weeks ago, and every time i wash my car or looked at it, all i saw was the dent (I think i'm semi OCD maybe) but after the PDR..all is better.

psheu

A-Spec rear underbody spoiler might be able to cover that up..... time to upgrade

b0n3

you're killin me .. but interesting idea

How difficult is it to take the rear bumper cover off?

4 clips and 2 screws doesn't sound too bad .. I'd like to inspect the damage underneath before making a decision.

470hpGS400

iTrader: (1)

Insurance will not replace the bumper cover over that.
Painting and blending into the quarters is the way to go, BUT..... if not done properly your chances of having issue down the line are greatly increased. They would paint and then reduce the paint (blending) into the side panels. Then clear over the ENTIRE things. Some shops will only clear over the painted portion and not take the clear to a body cut off point. Issue with this is you may/will have a clear coat cut off lines on both sides even if polished very well. Make sure they clear to a body joint. Insurance will generally never cover this though and will only R&R the bumper cover only.
Problem is silver is not a easy color match perfectly on a urethane bumper which will change tone down the line if poor paint is used/prep is used.
Good luck.

Oh, and to hell with the kid, don't cut him any slack. Heard that story before myself. No more nice guy.

b0n3

jeez .. the more I read, the more I'm thinking about DIY (touching up the black spot and use quixx on the scratches). Most of the paint is mint, and I don't want to chance ANY other paint job going bad down the line.
I'd freak if the paint turned a different color than the rear quarters!

470hpGS400

iTrader: (1)

Silver is not the easiest color to match up. Ever notice the amount of light colored cars out there with mismatched bumper colors. Anyone can spray paint, it takes experience to match it up and blend properly.

Rob144

I was saving that idea for my lower-rear bumper scrape & touchup. But then I'd want the whole kit and 18" wheels. So my $8 touchup becomes $4000 of body kits and wheels & tires.

The problem with insurance is that they may want to pay the bill to the body shop directly -- and then its out of your hands.

Rob144

psheu

i'm telling ya..... get the money from the kid $600.... throw in few hundred bucks..... get the Full A-Spec kit (get the rims later)..... and you'll have orignal paint and bumper and your car will look sooo much better..... that ding is not that high up and visible (the body kit will cover it).... plus if you wrap the rear underbody spoiler, you won't even know it's there..... p.s. some people even cut up the nice bumper on TL and wrap the TL-S rear underbody spoiler on..... trust me, with A-Spec on.... who cares about the tiny ding and scratches.... it's very easy to install the A-Spec kit cuz they are all wrap on and bolt ons.... and they come fully painted to match your color (just time consuming on the installation)......

so in a sense, you should thank that kid for contributing $$$ and motive to your nicer looking car upgrade..... I think I just like to look at matters from the brighter side of things

lland

I've done a bunch of touchup and I've had pretty good luck with OEM touchup paint. Nothing to lose trying as you can always go to a body shop if you're not satisfied with the results. As for the other guy paying, I'd get a written estimate from the shop you're most likely to use and tell him that's what you want. If you end up using them, you don't want to be caught short. If you don't, you have a few dollars for your trouble. As for the scratches, I'd bet Quixx would make them pretty much disappear.

A couple of weeks ago, I attacked an 18" scratch (and a few chips on the hood) on my friend's S550 driver door (keyed in a parking lot down to primer) using OEM Mercedes touchup paint:

• Cleaned scratch completely
• Very light wet sand with 3000 grit just to give the paint a better hold
• Painted to a level a bit above the door paint
• Let dry
• Wet sanded - 1200, 1500, 2000, 3000
• Polished and waxed (Mercedes uses a ceramic clearcoat that is a real bear to polish)

Unless you know where to look, you're looking at the right angle, and in the right light, you'd never know the scratch was there. Not perfect but pretty good and a lot less expensive than the $1,800 the body shop wanted. I'd imagine you could get the little spot pretty good with a little work and patience.

Before:


After:


Sorry for the not so great pictures and lighting difference...didn't realize I moved the halogens between shots.

LL

woodek

B I N G O.


Sad but true.

Silver is Prol. the HARDEST color to match.