My New Prius Came Today! Help! I'm Pissed! RESOLUTION!!!

What is your source for this information? Do you have any documentation that aftermarket paint is somehow softer and less durable?

I agree that a factory paint job on the entire vehicle would be a lessor quality because the factory paint is done before the car is totally assembled.

However if a bumper is detached for painting, and if factory paint is applied using professional practices in a environmentally controlled paint booth I fail to see how it would be inferior "down the road".

What do you base your statement on?

 

Modern auto factory car painting procedures, including electrostatic paint application, and high temperature curing of paint--which contribute to the superior durability vs. auto body paint jobs--is too cost prohibitive to be replicated in an auto body shop.

A few years ago, one of my Porsches had damage done to the front bumper (scratched during transport) and I had the front bumper painted at the premier Porsche restoration shop in the bay area. The owner told me that, even though they use the same paint as the Porsche factory (Glasurit), remove the bumper cover and paint it and cure it in a high temperature booth, that the finish would not be as durable as the factory finish. And this was a very expensive paint job--for example, the high temp booth is not something you'll find in most auto body shops.

This confirmed what I already knew from prior experience, and what anybody knowledgeable in auto painting would tell you.

 

It's not *really* a new car anymore. If you go with the patch job tell the dealer to take $1500 off the price.

 

Well insurance companies will want to do whatever is the cheapest, but reputable body shops will only replace the cover.

If you took a new bumper cover and used precisely the correct amount of paint flex additive then you might have a paint finish that was close to the quality of the original paint. Maybe.

If you repaint an already painted bumper however, you're never going to have the same quality finish or the same resistance to cracking and peeling.

If this dealer is painting a brand new bumper cover for this guy I would be less concerned, but they are not. Instead they are filling holes with bondo and slapping more layers of paint on an already painted bumper. He WILL have cracking and peeling down the line.

 

Agreed.

 

So reputable body shops will only replace the cover even if the insurance claim is for repairing scratches on the bumper, as it's already painted? I can understand holes in the bumper, but replacing the cover even for scratches/road rash too deep to polish sounds a bit extreme.

 

Why doesnt the OP just get front license plate mount installed instead, and avoid all the headache? If s/he moves to another province/state, it could be mandatory there to install license plates in the front. So all this fuss would be for nothing.
Never mind moving, just install some picture plate in the front and be done with it. Don't mess with a brand new car!

Pardon in advance for the unsolicited, probably unpopular advice

 

Yes, it is extreme. Repairs are done to plastic bumpers everyday for scratches, chips and scuffs (notice I didn't say cracks, tears and holes)that hold up at least as well as the soft factory paint. This is a valid repair that will last as well as the factory paint.

 

Well when the paint is just scratched and there is no damage to the plasti cover itself thats a different situation, but when there are holes, cracks, or tears to the cover they will replace it.

You are correct, when the damage is just to the paint and not the cover then they will repaint the bumper as accepted practice.

That paint may or may not last as well as the factory paint because of the primary paint beneath it and depending on how well that paint was prepped and sanded. The bumper is not easy to paint properly because it flexes so much.

Thats why you need to make sure whatever shop you use will stand behind the job forever. Great shops have a lifetime warranty on the paint and if it ever cracks or peels they will repaint it.

My shop that I use for instance will only paint a bumper one time, then they replace it or refuse the job even for paint damage again, because putting 3 sets of paint on the bumper is too much and will likely lead to cracking and peeling.

Anyways your statement is meaningless to the OP because he is dealing with holes in his bumper cover, and you say yourself that you aren't advocating repairing the cover when there are holes...

 

I should have been more clear, when the paint on the cover is simply damaged then a bodyshop will reuse the cover. However, they generally will only do that once, and then if it is damaged again after the repair they will want to replace it because of the weight and thickness of the paint on the bumper.

If the cover is damaged, meaning there are holes, cracks or tears the cover should not be repaired and should be replaced.

However, repainting bumpers is a little tricky because they are flexible plastic. Thats why its important to choose a shop that will stand behind their work forever. Reputable shops have lifetime warranties on their paintwork. So if it ever does crack or peel down the road (it really might) they will address it.

 

Yes, I would agree on the patching the holes of the OP's 1st question. I was responding to 32's remark that it was extreme to replace the entire cover due to a scratch. I probably should of made that clear when responding to a multi page thread. Topics grow into further thoughts and it does get confusing. Thanks!

 

Yeah I think we all got a little turned around and we're basically all saying the same thing...

 

Makes sense. I was rear-ended twice in my new Prius. They replaced the cover the first time because it had a couple of holes and re-painted it the second time as the only damage was the imprint from the other party's front license plate into the paint. Only $80 difference between the two repairs (as extra labor added to the cost of re-using the cover).

 

Having just done this, I think it's up to the buyer to understand that they're purchasing a car in a two-plate state for use in a one-plate state and what the implications are. Just bought some plugs from bumperplugs.com myself .

 

Here's a thought -- if you get the front bumper fixed, and then have the clear bra applied - including on the front bumper - won't that make it both invisible AND protected from "falling apart"? :huh:

I'm all for having the car one wants - the way one wants it - and being reasonable about minor details.

 

Yeah little things like that are no big deal. They take the paint right down to the plastic and heat it up and use a plastic-bonding putty to just skim coat the bumper there just enough to fill in the indentations, then they prime and paint.

You would think so, but you would have to wait 90 days or so to apply the clearbra so the paint can cure and offgas. The paint that is applied at the factory is hard baked so its cured, but the paint they use on the bumper will have to cure. The clear bra won't keep it from cracking and failing...

 

Well...hopefully it'll last

 

Good to hear. I made absolutely sure they didn't put a front license plate frame on the Lexus RX350 when I purchased it. So far I've been lucky not to get a fix-it ticket in the 4 years I've had it.

My black Prius, on the other hand, already came with it installed on the dealer's lot. I've grown fond of the way the blue CA whale tail license plate with black pearl frame looks on black with blue Toyota emblem. I'd definitely skip it for blizzard pearl though.