Paint scratch - deep :( PICTURE INSIDE! Come mourn w/me! Warning: Graphic.

[kpt6]

I bought my Evo IX last week and shipped it via an enclosed carrier and... they scratched it deep. They have thus far denied responsibility. The color is Tarmac Black Pearl and it has a dark purple color to it in certain light. Is there anything I can do, without having to do a respray on that fender? Car is truly mint other than that scratch and it only has 21k miles on it. Original owner meticulously cared for it. I hate having to paint it at all but if it could be done un-intrusively (is that a word?) without blending panels and everything, and so I couldn`t tell it was done, I might be able to live through this.



What would a car dealer do in this situation if the car was traded in? I doubt they`d leave it. Although it is relatively small, it sticks out like the sorest thumb you can imagine when looking at the car, because the rest of the car is so flawless.



Also, I may be able to get my hands on a fender from a 9k mile car in same color, and same year. Would this match do you think, or would it look like a different shade of paint compared to the rest of the car? One thing that sucks about swapping the fenders is there are VIN stickers all over the car and the VIN sticker on that fender wouldn`t match anymore. I would still keep the damaged fender, but still...



Idk if this makes any difference either, but the fenders on these cars are made of aluminum.



Ok, now for a pic (scroll down- viewer discretion is advised)





































































http://i.imgur.com/ZQKkAEyl.jpg



Full size gore: http://i.imgur.com/ZQKkAEy.jpg

[togwt]

A surface scratch that will `catch` your fingernail is approximately 0.04 Mil (1.0 µ) is usually considered a deep scratch, which will usually require wet sanding and refinishing. Comprehensive Insurance should be able to meet a claim like this without raising your rates. An experienced detailer should be able to repair it or take it to a body-shop for re-painting



Use WD-40 (water displacement) until a repair can be carried out to protect the paint underneath the scratch if it’s down to bare metal



Correction- Put a drop or two of Woolite® liquid in a clean bucket and fill it with clean water. You will need 6-inch x 4-inch sheets of Nikkensâ„¢ 2000, 2500 and 3000 grit finishing paper Using a Unigrit Sanding Block and a small can of paint colour-matched to your vehicles colour code



This method requires that you clean the surface with Isopropyl alcohol (IPA) and then apply paint to ‘overfill’ the scratch. Apply the paint in multiple layers allowing each layer to dry and remember "patience is the key"



• Take your time go slow and check progress often. You don`t want to sand to deep or through the paint. No need to be aggressive, eventually it will all become smooth and levelled

• Layer the touch up paint until it’s higher than the surrounding paint

• Once the last layer of paint has dried (allow 12-24 hours dependent upon environmental conditions.

• Soak the finishing papers in a solution of water and a little dish washing liquid. Place the wet finishing papers on the sanding block and proceed very slowly, keeping the block perfectly flat.

• Wet-sand using Unigrit 2000, 2500 and 3000 grit finishing paper until the touch-up area is level with the surrounding paint

• The next step is to polish the paint surface to eliminate the ‘sanding haze’ by using a compound Menzerna PO 34 and an LC Orange foam pad or a Surbuf® R Series ® R Series pad)

• Then use a finishing polish to bring back the shine; Menzerna PO 203 polish and a LC White polishing foam pa

• Finish by using Menzerna PO 85 and an LC Black finishing foam pad

• Finally apply paint protection of choice



The smaller the scratch, the easier it is to correct it With practice this process becomes easier and avoids having a panel being repainted at a body-shop, along with the subsequent loss of using your automobile for a couple of days or more, plus the cost of which would run into hundreds of dollars

[pwaug]

Would Dr Colorchip work on this type of damage????

[togwt]

Would Dr Colorchip work on this type of damage????



It would be dependant upon depth of scratch

[kpt6]

Thank you for the replies guys and I appreciate the detailed response, TOGWT. That solution sounds out of my league so I think I`ll need to leave this up to the pros. Too bad you aren`t local to me!

[Richard Grasa]

Deep is right. Looking at the full size pic, it appears it`s right down to the primer, and possibly the metal. Dr. Colorchip or TOGWT`s method of building up touchup paint and wetsanding flush may be an option, but being pearl paint, it`s going to be very difficult to get a good match with a touchup. I`d say the best you could hope for with a touchup is making it look *better*, but probably not perfect. If you get a respray, it`s going to take a really good painter to get a perfect match as well, definitely do your research before picking someone to do it. IMO, your best option would be to get the replacement fender and see if it matches.

[Dan]

From the picture, it does look like a rather fresh scratch. I`d DR Colorchip it and see if it is good enough. You can always get it repainted later.

[Ron Ketcham]

Pull the fuel filler door. Take it to a quality automotive paint supplier so they can put it under the computer and create a true match.

Then, it is up to the painter.

NO blending of the panel and a quality and trained painter knows this.

The problem with the purchasing of another fender is "suspect" at least, as there may be as many as 4 or 5 factory variations to that base coat.

They buy the base in huge totes (50 to 1,000 gal) of a base color and what was done a week or a month before, may exhibit a slight difference in the base coat color.

I recommend that you remove a small part of at least 3 to 5 inches and take it to the quality aftermarket paint supplier in your area for a true match of the base coat.

[brownbob06]

Our local Carquest has the camera to take pictures to match. They bring it out to the vehicle and have to find a flat spot on the vehicle so that no light can get in when taking the picture. No need to pull parts off the car. Not sure if it`s as accurate as what Ron is talking about though.

[Ron Ketcham]

Our local Carquest has the camera to take pictures to match. They bring it out to the vehicle and have to find a flat spot on the vehicle so that no light can get in when taking the picture. No need to pull parts off the car. Not sure if it`s as accurate as what Ron is talking about though.

Those units are out there, however, in smaller stores, in smaller population areas, they don`t have those units.

Most have the stand alone units which require bringing a small panel in to the read computer.

They are both accurate, but as I said, if the painter gets the air pressure, the gun pattern off a bit, the mica won`t flip and then it`s either darker or lighter.