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That's bs from a "Lexus Certified Center." Goes to show that going to a "Lexus Certified Collision Center" doesn't mean squat. They obviously don't know how to handle a unique color. If you haven't already, don't accept your car back. Have them re-do your paint job again--at their expense. And, see if Lexus Corporate can help you out. And, always get opinions from at least 2-3 different shops. Good luck.
the problem is you keep doing it the wrong way. you need to blend the panels. don't blame the shop. are they even getting paid to have it blended?
The collision center ordered a new bumper and did everything themselves. It's not using the older one.
Originally Posted by Plxs15350
That's bs from a "Lexus Certified Center." Goes to show that going to a "Lexus Certified Collision Center" doesn't mean squat. They obviously don't know how to handle a unique color. If you haven't already, don't accept your car back. Have them re-do your paint job again--at their expense. And, see if Lexus Corporate can help you out. And, always get opinions from at least 2-3 different shops. Good luck.
Already took the car back, since I had to return my rental car on that day and no one is left at the collision center at the time of picking up the car. I had to go through their rental department to get the car back.
I have argued with the representative about the color and told them that its a 4 stage paint before they even tried to fix it, yet they argued that it's just a 3 stage paint and they can do it just fine.
Sorry to hear this has happened again....
In my opinion this is a relevant comment and it may be worth your effort to report this issue directly with Lexus Corporate Customer Service for assistance in resolving this. Technically 3 stage paint, would use a blue base with a blue top coat which of course is going to result in a darker blue..
And while you're talking with Lexus Corporate Customer Service, put the responsibility on them to direct you to the repair center with the experience and qualification to do Ultrasonic Blue 2.0 correctly if the current repair center is no longer an option.
The collision center ordered a new bumper and did everything themselves. It's not using the older one.
Already took the car back, since I had to return my rental car on that day and no one is left at the collision center at the time of picking up the car. I had to go through their rental department to get the car back.
its not about buying a new bumper. you need to blend the panels into each other. I've been into auto body for a long time. I've had 5-8k paint jobs before. you can't just paint the bumper and slap it on and blame every shop that the paint doesn't match. if the insurance company is not even paying or telling you to blend into the panels, i would drop them as my insurance. being a claim adjuster, this is mandatory for them to know this. i can't believe how many misinformed people are in this thread and thinking paint should match as simple as that. these are the same people who find the cheapest option when getting something painted.
its not about buying a new bumper. you need to blend the panels into each other. I've been into auto body for a long time. I've had 5-8k paint jobs before. you can't just paint the bumper and slap it on and blame every shop that the paint doesn't match. if the insurance company is not even paying or telling you to blend into the panels, i would drop them as my insurance. being a claim adjuster, this is mandatory for them to know this. i can't believe how many misinformed people are in this thread and thinking paint should match as simple as that. these are the same people who find the cheapest option when getting something painted.
From what I have seen, the new bumper is just a white plastic.
This is my first time dealing this bumper issue. All I did was brought my car to a "Lexus certified collision center" and they claim that they are able to fix it like it was before, but the end results are not what they are claiming to be.
I sent my car to them, they should know what they are doing, and I shouldn't be the one who is telling them what to do.
They aren't cheap either, with total almost 2000 for just get a simple bumper fix. They are certified by Lexus for a reason.
Just like ISFPOWER said you have to blend the paint into the rear quarter. it will never match if you don't do it that way. I have the same car and color and had a lady back up into my front left side and damaged my bumper. the shop got me a new bumper and did a blend job on both side and I swear you cant even tell the bumper is new. looks just like the original. Even the body shop said the bumper had to be blended or else it wouldn't match.
Took the car to the Santa Rosa's Freeman collision center, which is a Lexus Certified one. The end result turn out to be darker than the rest of the color.
I have argued with the representative about the color and told them that its a 4 stage paint before they even tried to fix it, yet they argued that it's just a 3 stage paint and they can do it just fine.
It turns out that the color is much darker than the original color, and the edge of the bumper was either scratched or not painted.
When I told them about the paint and the unpainted edge ( I can even touch the plastic out of that white part, not wax or any other compound ), this is the response I get.
This is just ridiculous from a Lexus Certified center. Even their people came out who saw me checking out the car noticed the color difference without me telling them anything about it, and that was during sunset, so no sunlight involvement on that.
I understand that the plastic and metal has different color tone, but the front bumper wasn't even this much off. Now I am clueless on what to do next, except paying out of pocket on a new shop.....sigh
Sorry OP and feel your pain. Should not be this difficult or this inconveniencing to the customer.
Just like ISFPOWER said you have to blend the paint into the rear quarter. it will never match if you don't do it that way. I have the same car and color and had a lady back up into my front left side and damaged my bumper. the shop got me a new bumper and did a blend job on both side and I swear you cant even tell the bumper is new. looks just like the original. Even the body shop said the bumper had to be blended or else it wouldn't match.
After talking to the Collision center about both of your suggestions about blended bumper. They said they didn't do it because it would cost several thousand dollar more and normally insurance company wouldn't pay for it. They have already did the bumper twice to get the color as close as it can. I will bring the car in again to the collision center to let them inspect it once more, since there are also some edges of bumper that are scratched for some reason.
After talking to the Collision center about both of your suggestions about blended bumper. They said they didn't do it because it would cost several thousand dollar more and normally insurance company wouldn't pay for it. They have already did the bumper twice to get the color as close as it can. I will bring the car in again to the collision center to let them inspect it once more, since there are also some edges of bumper that are scratched for some reason.
PS: I currently have AAA insurance.
a good insurance company will always pay for it. they will actually recommend it. its apart of the normal process that has to be done to get it back to the way it looked before. its not that much more expensive. if the body shop doesn't recommend first before even doing it, it means thats a crappy body shop. good shops won't put their reputation on half *** work like that.
as a matter of fact, the insurance HAS TO PAY IT. if you are insured . i didn't read your whole story but it someone else hit you and their insurance is paying, just let your insurance company know and it will be fixed. if you are going through your own insurance, you pay the deductible and they HAVE to blend it.
I would definitely get a higher quality body shop who will blend everything. $2000 for a bumper repaint is high but not crazy. A few years ago I had a similar situation and the repair was $4500 for a full blended quality paint job that was flawless.
Normally if you find a body show who is certified to work on ultra high end cars like Ferrari, Lamborgini, etc they can do a perfect job for you so no one would ever know anything happened.
unacceptable imo . Sucks you just got the car and this happened already. This is why I am so **** and angry towards others on the road. Noone cares about anyone but themselves when driving. God forbid it was a lambo or bugatti (2mill car etc). Still you pay 60-70k for a new car and have to go through this is frustrating even for me lol. Take it somewhere else
Just went back to the body shop and talked to them about it.
Looks like there is a misinformation about the paint somewhere.
They have tried all kind of method trying to reproduce the color, but they couldn't reproduce the original color properly, and on their database system (8X1 paint code) its showing it's a 3 stage paint, instead of 4 stage.
The color sometime looks alright, sometime it's a obvious difference. I got a feeling this is exactly due to 3 stage paint problem, and even at Lexus Certified collision center can't get it right.
Anyone know more information about this specific paint? (Ultrasonic Blue Mica 2.0)
There has been 2 body shop both indicate that this is a 3 stage instead of 4 stage, and both turn out to have the same problem.
Sorry to read about the issues with your car's repairs.
I would agree with those who are saying that blending into the quarter panels is what will give you the best chance of a satisfactory end result. When you are working with 3-stage, 4-stage, or even 5-stage colors, successfully getting a satisfactory panel-to-panel match is not likely. Not only does the formula for each stage need to be right, but even if pressure from the sprayer is slightly different, the paint match won't be very good.
If the paint is blended into quarter panels, the color match still won't be any better, but any color differences will be gradual enough so that you shouldn't notice it.
While I know that some of the new paint colors are strikingly beautiful, as someone who is especially particular about fits and finishes, I will never (again) buy a car with a color that I know is difficult, even for a skilled paint technician, to match because I know that, with some colors, if I have even minor paint work that is necessary, I won't be likely to consider the end result to be up to my level of satisfaction. Among the colors that I stay away from, regardless of how beautiful they are, are light silvers, light golds, and 3-state white pearls. Among current Lexus colors, I've seen horror stories with trying to get a good paint match with the silver linings metallic and atomic silver. I guess I need to add the Ultrasonic Blue Mica to that list.
01-31-17, 08:31 PM
