does paint get darker as it cures?

**lazybum** · 10-29-2009, 04:17 PM

I have a white car and I just got some paint repair done on my front bumper at a detail shop. They called it a "partial blend". About half of the front bumper was repainted including the blending but the new paint is whiter than the rest of the car. I can see where painting/blending stopped on the bumper because the original color is a few shades darker. Keep in mind that this was just done maybe 30 minutes ago and it was just dry enough to drive it 2 miles back home. Will it get any darker as it cures?

**David Fermani** · 10-29-2009, 04:39 PM

Nope - Sounds like they did a poor job of spotting in the color. If it doesn`t match now, it won`t get better down the road. Did you have a lot lizard do this repair or did a reputable Body Shop do it? Did the bumper get taken off your car????

**ta240** · 10-29-2009, 04:50 PM

I had a shop try to tell me it would darken. It won`t.

at least it is just half the bumper so they can`t use the "bumpers never match" line. They even have a brochure about it. Granted they don`t tend to match exactly in every light source as even new cars have that problem but the bad shops use that as an excuse to get away with doing a poor match job that isn`t even close.

**vtec92civic** · 10-29-2009, 06:03 PM

take it back and explain to them what you just did to us. As previously stated the color doesn`t darken or lighten as it cures. If it doesn`t match now or when you got it painted it won`t match later.

**lazybum** · 10-29-2009, 07:46 PM

Can you see it?

Only the bumper was painted

**David Fermani** · 10-29-2009, 07:59 PM

Can`t tell any color variance within the cover. I do see a color difference from hood to bumper, but that`s normal. Where was the color sprayed and was the bumper removed/de-trimed for the repair?

**lazybum** · 10-29-2009, 08:06 PM

Originally Posted by David Fermani

Can`t tell any color variance within the cover. I do see a color difference from hood to bumper, but that`s normal. Where was the color sprayed and was the bumper removed/de-trimed for the repair?

about 60% of the bumper on the right side (left if facing it) was painted and the bumper was not taken off (he painted right over my reflector cover)

**David Fermani** · 10-29-2009, 08:13 PM

That side (passenger)looks less reflective/glossy. How much did he charge you?

**lazybum** · 10-29-2009, 08:24 PM

Originally Posted by David Fermani

That side (passenger)looks less reflective/glossy. How much did he charge you?

that might be it! I`ll do a good polish and wax and see how it turns out. I was charged $300 for it. There are some bumps in the clear coat, would those have to be wet sanded out?

**David Fermani** · 10-29-2009, 10:07 PM

Depends if the bumps are on, in and/or under the clear. A basic repaint on that bumper from a professional body shop would be between $400-$550. That would include removing the bumper, detriming everything off the cover, sanding the entire cover, spraying color and clear over the entire cover, allowing to dry several hours and reinstalling. Instead, when the repair is "spotted" in without doing the above processes, it will lead to failure and inferior workmanship. Did this person offer any kind of gaurantee?

**MichaelSpoots** · 10-29-2009, 10:19 PM

Originally Posted by David Fermani

... Instead, when the repair is "spotted" in without doing the above processes, it will lead to failure and inferior workmanship. Did this person offer any kind of gaurantee?

Sorry to butt in here, but I am in a similar situation as the OP. David, could you explain what you mean by "failure"? One guy offered to spot-in my door for $250. The 2 body shops I spoke to, however, offered to do it for about $600, which includes dismantling and respraying the entire panel to the edges etc.

They said the $250 guy`s work would lead to clearcoat peeling down the road, on the edges of his spot-in. They said that redoing the entire panel to the edges would help prevent this clearcoat failure. Is this what you mean, David?

~~~~~~

By the way, OP; In the pictures, I can`t really tell a difference in color. I could probably see it in person, but no luck here, on the CPU screen

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**David Fermani** · 10-29-2009, 10:29 PM

That`s absolutely right. After complete dismantling of the panel has been done, every exposed inch of the surface needs to be prepped (sanded) for refinish. Any time exposed trim is taped off or painted around, it will ultimately lead to failure (lifting/cracking/delaminating). As far as your door, if the damage is central to the panel (and depending on the color) there`s a chance it can be panel painted. I`ve seen many instances where the panel the the front and rear of the door needed to be blended for a more precise color match.

Problem with many(most) of the mobile painters is that they use inferior materials and their workmanship is sub-par. Instead of reclearing the entire panel, many times they "burn in" or "melt" the color and clear into the damaged section of the panel. It can look decent for a little while, but 99.99 times out of a 100 it fails.