Fresh Paint Concern

3

3SERB

New member
Hey Guys,



I have been following various detailing forums for a while now but just recently registered on here and have a question that some of you might be able to help with.



My car recently went through some body work, had a dinged fender from the previous owner and on top of that a buddy of mine backed in me by accident! We decided that it was necessary to paint the whole side so it looks even, I picked up the car today and I was amazed at the body work, the fender looks amazing and the paint job is flawless, no swirls, no peeling, no marks. That's the good part.



Now for the problem, the freshly painted side is obviously much sleeker then the rest of the car, over all the cars paint is 9.5 out of 10, aside from the front bumper and hood which is a 7/10 maybe. The colour is a dark graphite, but the painted side seems more grey then the rest of the car. The guy at the shop told me that the clear will look really strong for the next week or two and then it should look more blended to the car. But I really have no prior experience to this kind of body work, is it possible they didn't blend the paint properly and thats why it looks a bit off? Or will it blend in as the clear catches some oxidation?



My plan was to clay the rest of the car tomorrow and see how it looks, maybe do light polish (Not touching the fresh side of course) and then wax the entire thing in a month.



Any advice????



Thanks.
 
It sounds to me like they used a high quality clearcoat, better than factory. It's very difficult to match the clearcoat to the factory. I would wait their recommended time, and see from there. Make sure you don't close the claim with insurance company.



John
 
I think it's a good idea or clay and polish the rest of the paint and try to restore it back to it's original shine.



After you do that, if it still doesn't match I'd take it back and make them get it right.



How old is the car?



Josh
 
The car is 2003, but the paint is in really good condition. Aside from some surface oxidization, no scratches or swirls. I have read that metallic paints are very hard to match 100%, any input on that??
 
3SERB said:
The car is 2003, but the paint is in really good condition. Aside from some surface oxidization, no scratches or swirls. I have read that metallic paints are very hard to match 100%, any input on that??
Click to expand...



Welcome to Autopia!



I've had literally dozens of metallic-paint cars painted on over the years, and yeah, it *is* very hard to get a good (let alone perfect) match. It *can* be done, but besides the ability of the painter, luck always factors in and even the best painter might have to redo things a few times to get it just right.



But if the painter isn't all that great, then you're relying on *only* luck, and that seldom works out very well.



That "the paint will blend better after some time" part sound off to me :think: That's never been my experience and the color should match right from the git-go (otherwise, how would they ever know if they got it just right?). The "sleeker" part might be the basic diff between new/old paint, but part of the "matching" is to make sure the newly painted areas don't stand out as "different" from the rest of the car.



I think you need to go back to the shop and have a talk with the painter. If he's gonna blow you off until that "waiting period" (scare-quotes intentional, as a cynic might say he hopes you just get over it after that period of time) the OK, wait. But if he didn't do the job right, and you think he *can* do it right, then you have some more hassles ahead of you.
 
Thanks for the welcome and all the feedback.



I did a detailed wash and claying today just to get a better idea of what the paint looks like. And the more I think about it the less I am impressed. Its a shame since the quality of the paint job seems outstanding, but the colour clearly doesn't match 100%.



Here are some pics, let me know what you guys think. But I am for sure going back to the shop on Monday.



ImageShack Album - 9 images
 
Guys I did a full clay to see what the paint is going to look like, and I am not impressed with the results. For some reason it looks like there is more of paint match between the quarter panel and trunk lid then the front fender and hood, maybe they mixed the paint at different times or something??? Either way, I am heading back to the shop tomorrow maybe see if they will have to re-due it.



Here are some pics, comments are welcome.



ImageShack Album - 9 images
 
Guys I tried twice to post a reply with a url to the pics, but it keeps on saying it needs to be reviewed by a mod.
 
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