How and where should I get my GS repaired?
03-09-13, 12:19 AM
#1
Rookie
Thread Starter
How and where should I get my GS repaired?
OK guys so most of you know what happened to me ( guy hit my car in the service drive at the Lexus dealer) and want your advice as to how and where to get it fixed.
As far as where, I want to get the work done by a certified Lexus collision center. There are 2 that I'm considering here in SoCal. Cerritos and Santa Monica. Does anyone have any experiences with these two dealership's body shops?
And finally the how. Front bumper and drivers fender got hit and while the bumper could be resprayed the fender is border line whether to fix or replace. The shops said that it could be fixed but they will have to use bondo to fix it. If they repaired it there would be less respraing of body parts and I would retain my vin on that part of the car. If it were to be replaced the hood would also have to be resprayed.
What do you guys think???
As far as where, I want to get the work done by a certified Lexus collision center. There are 2 that I'm considering here in SoCal. Cerritos and Santa Monica. Does anyone have any experiences with these two dealership's body shops?
And finally the how. Front bumper and drivers fender got hit and while the bumper could be resprayed the fender is border line whether to fix or replace. The shops said that it could be fixed but they will have to use bondo to fix it. If they repaired it there would be less respraing of body parts and I would retain my vin on that part of the car. If it were to be replaced the hood would also have to be resprayed.
What do you guys think???
03-09-13, 05:41 AM
#2
all brand new OEM parts, no bondo. that's what i would do. as afar as blending, most times it's not necessary. sometimes it's there way of making extra money for extra work. we would like to see the damage, can you post a pic?
03-09-13, 06:28 AM
#3
Lexus Fanatic
I wouldn't automatically assume a "Lexus certified" shop will do a better job, in fact the opposite may be true. In general I prefer not to use shops attached to dealers because they have a steady stream of business from the dealer. Well regarded, high end independent shops rely on referrals and the quality of their work to get business.
I would actually say, depending on the damage, that repairing the fender will be preferable to replacing it, for a few reasons:
1. The paint blending issue is very real. If they are painting the forward part of the fender, and the adjoining bumper, they will only color coat what they have to, and then blend the paint leading up to the hood and door. What you want to avoid is differing paint shades along a body seam line, because thats going to be obvious.
They don't just fill in the issue with body filler, they will pull the fender out as much as they can, and then skim over with filler to make a smooth, sandable, paintable surface. If its done right you will never know.
If they replace the panel they're going to have to blend the paint into the hood and the door to make it look right, making 3 panels they have to paint instead of 1.
Modern paint matching is very good, but they have to blend the paint in still. Especially with certain colors, yours is LP right? REALLY hard to match.
2. The new fender won't be stamped with the VIN, so it will be obvious under any inspection that its new.
I agree with Syd, can you post some pictures? Hopefully Nexson will chime in too since he paints cars...
I would actually say, depending on the damage, that repairing the fender will be preferable to replacing it, for a few reasons:
1. The paint blending issue is very real. If they are painting the forward part of the fender, and the adjoining bumper, they will only color coat what they have to, and then blend the paint leading up to the hood and door. What you want to avoid is differing paint shades along a body seam line, because thats going to be obvious.
They don't just fill in the issue with body filler, they will pull the fender out as much as they can, and then skim over with filler to make a smooth, sandable, paintable surface. If its done right you will never know.
If they replace the panel they're going to have to blend the paint into the hood and the door to make it look right, making 3 panels they have to paint instead of 1.
Modern paint matching is very good, but they have to blend the paint in still. Especially with certain colors, yours is LP right? REALLY hard to match.
2. The new fender won't be stamped with the VIN, so it will be obvious under any inspection that its new.
I agree with Syd, can you post some pictures? Hopefully Nexson will chime in too since he paints cars...
03-09-13, 06:50 AM
#4
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My expierence with dealer body shops hasn't been great. My advice would be to look around for an independent shop, one that does a some business in custom painting and restoration of vintage cars. Shops who perform restorations as well usually have top notch body guys and painters. They should be able to provide you with references and photos of previous.
03-09-13, 08:38 AM
#5
Lexus Test Driver
just like Syd said, NO BONDO, hell no, its a new car , I need it to be brand new parts like I bought it, and if they dont do it right and the bondo starts craking, man u gonna hate it. just look for a good body shop in ur are, that they do high end cars, and see what they say.
03-09-13, 08:51 AM
#6
Lexus Fanatic
You really need to let the professionals do their jobs and make the right decisions for your car and your situation. We're not talking about bondo, and we're not talking about filling in the damage and caking it on. Body shops repair panels all the time, and they do use some body filler to smooth the surface out that is then ground and sanded down smooth.
03-09-13, 08:54 AM
#7
Lexus Fanatic
Here's a great example of what is inolved when replacing/repainting a whole fender. This damage is probably pretty similar to the OP's. Note how the hood and passenger door are also blended into and re-cleared so that they match:
If you replace the fender, they will have to paint the door and hood too. If you repair the panel, they may not.
If you replace the fender, they will have to paint the door and hood too. If you repair the panel, they may not.
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03-09-13, 09:17 AM
#8
I wouldn't automatically assume a "Lexus certified" shop will do a better job, in fact the opposite may be true. In general I prefer not to use shops attached to dealers because they have a steady stream of business from the dealer. Well regarded, high end independent shops rely on referrals and the quality of their work to get business.
I would actually say, depending on the damage, that repairing the fender will be preferable to replacing it, for a few reasons:
1. The paint blending issue is very real. If they are painting the forward part of the fender, and the adjoining bumper, they will only color coat what they have to, and then blend the paint leading up to the hood and door. What you want to avoid is differing paint shades along a body seam line, because thats going to be obvious.
They don't just fill in the issue with body filler, they will pull the fender out as much as they can, and then skim over with filler to make a smooth, sandable, paintable surface. If its done right you will never know.
If they replace the panel they're going to have to blend the paint into the hood and the door to make it look right, making 3 panels they have to paint instead of 1.
Modern paint matching is very good, but they have to blend the paint in still. Especially with certain colors, yours is LP right? REALLY hard to match.
2. The new fender won't be stamped with the VIN, so it will be obvious under any inspection that its new.
I agree with Syd, can you post some pictures? Hopefully Nexson will chime in too since he paints cars...
I would actually say, depending on the damage, that repairing the fender will be preferable to replacing it, for a few reasons:
1. The paint blending issue is very real. If they are painting the forward part of the fender, and the adjoining bumper, they will only color coat what they have to, and then blend the paint leading up to the hood and door. What you want to avoid is differing paint shades along a body seam line, because thats going to be obvious.
They don't just fill in the issue with body filler, they will pull the fender out as much as they can, and then skim over with filler to make a smooth, sandable, paintable surface. If its done right you will never know.
If they replace the panel they're going to have to blend the paint into the hood and the door to make it look right, making 3 panels they have to paint instead of 1.
Modern paint matching is very good, but they have to blend the paint in still. Especially with certain colors, yours is LP right? REALLY hard to match.
2. The new fender won't be stamped with the VIN, so it will be obvious under any inspection that its new.
I agree with Syd, can you post some pictures? Hopefully Nexson will chime in too since he paints cars...
It is really tough to say what you should do. Painting panels that aren't damaged always runs the risk of something going wrong however if it was me, I would opt for a new fender and just find a good shop to blend it all out.When in doubt, blend it out, no two colors are ever the same unless it is a solid black. Even at that, it is still good practice to blend every color.
03-09-13, 09:46 AM
#11
Lexus Fanatic
Thats a great video, really shows you what goes into it...
03-09-13, 11:13 AM
#12
The result when I used the dealer's body shop back in 2008 when they repair my 2 months old 2007 ES in silver with one side of the car had some moron keyed it: picked up the car at 11 am, trade it in at another dealer 3 hours later. The color just won't match, both in shade and under sunlight.
03-09-13, 11:40 AM
#13
Lexus Fanatic
If the work is done well, thats just not true. I've had cars repaired and repainted and its impossible to tell, and I am incredibly picky.
Not great shops heavily outnumber great shops though. Your work was just not done by a good shop.
Not great shops heavily outnumber great shops though. Your work was just not done by a good shop.
03-09-13, 12:15 PM
#15
You have the right to be happy, if you are not happy then bring it back. There is more then one painter at a big shop that can handle it. As SW10ES said, just let the professionals handle the job. There is nothing wrong with bondo, just as long as it is used correctly.