Keyed Scratch - Fixed!
Thread Starter
Intermediate
Joined: Mar 2007
Posts: 265
Likes: 3
From: TX
Keyed Scratch - Fixed!
Earlier, I posted when my car got keyed.
A local body shop/detailer worked on this scratch....here are the results:
Scratch
Scratch - fixed
Close up of the scratch
Close up - after fix
I am thoroughly impressed by his work. Now, he is working on the whole car....to remove the swirls and fine scratches.
Thanks for all the advice I received here. This is a great forum.
A local body shop/detailer worked on this scratch....here are the results:
Scratch
Scratch - fixed
Close up of the scratch
Close up - after fix
I am thoroughly impressed by his work. Now, he is working on the whole car....to remove the swirls and fine scratches.
Thanks for all the advice I received here. This is a great forum.
Thread Starter
Intermediate
Joined: Mar 2007
Posts: 265
Likes: 3
From: TX
Antigeek: The shop is about 60 miles south of Houston, near the coast.
Jimmer: I left the car in the morning and got it back in the afternoon. He told me that the whole process took about 3 hours. I don't know how much he would charge just for the scratch. My deal is the scratch plus remove the swirls/micro scratches from the whole car for $200.
Deadeyed and Scorpio74: I don't know the process exactly so can't tell you much. All I know is that he may have used clearcoat to "fill" the scratch, then sand it down with a fine paper and finally buffed the whole fender using some compound. The "sanding down" part is scary to me. However, he did tell me that he fixes clearcoat scratches on a lot of high end cars. By his account, the clearcoat on Toyotas is pretty thick. If the scratch made it to the metal then painting the part is unavoidable.
Peter: Yes, you are right. The PS rear fender feels smoooooooth now. I can't wait to see the car when he is done with the rest of it......tomorrow.
I am glad I stayed with "fixing the scratch" rather than jumping to the painting option. You guys provided tremendous support.
Jimmer: I left the car in the morning and got it back in the afternoon. He told me that the whole process took about 3 hours. I don't know how much he would charge just for the scratch. My deal is the scratch plus remove the swirls/micro scratches from the whole car for $200.
Deadeyed and Scorpio74: I don't know the process exactly so can't tell you much. All I know is that he may have used clearcoat to "fill" the scratch, then sand it down with a fine paper and finally buffed the whole fender using some compound. The "sanding down" part is scary to me. However, he did tell me that he fixes clearcoat scratches on a lot of high end cars. By his account, the clearcoat on Toyotas is pretty thick. If the scratch made it to the metal then painting the part is unavoidable.
Peter: Yes, you are right. The PS rear fender feels smoooooooth now. I can't wait to see the car when he is done with the rest of it......tomorrow.
I am glad I stayed with "fixing the scratch" rather than jumping to the painting option. You guys provided tremendous support.
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Joined: Jan 2007
Posts: 920
Likes: 11
From: TX
$200 for the entire car is too cheap unless it's from someone trying to make a name for themselve. Make sure you pull the car out in full sunlight to make sure they did a good job.
Also try washing the car (not run it through the carwash) and then pull it out in full sunlight to make sure they actually fixed instead of just hid it.
But then again $200/3 hours = just under $70/hour and that's a pretty good rate.
Also try washing the car (not run it through the carwash) and then pull it out in full sunlight to make sure they actually fixed instead of just hid it.
But then again $200/3 hours = just under $70/hour and that's a pretty good rate.
Thread Starter
Intermediate
Joined: Mar 2007
Posts: 265
Likes: 3
From: TX
More Pictures
I got my car back today. Looks much better....shinnnnny. At close look...I could still see some very fine scratches but nowhere close to what I left it with. Also, the surface was a lot more smooth. Here are a couple of quick pictures that I took after the ride home.
Another one:
I understand it is hard to compare as I don't have recent pictures of the car but I can say that the car looks much better. More importantly, I am a happy camper.....the scratch is (almost) invisible and I didn't have to go through insurance to get the fender/door painted.
Now to the questions: Yes, I paid him $200. My main deal was to remove the scratch from the fender and the PS door. However, he (himself) included the removal of other visible fine scratches as I have known him for more than 10 years......and, he just did a semi-major job on my LX. So, I am sure this figured into what all he did on my SC for the money.
One more thing, he told me that he can fix clearcoat scratches on dark/solid colors....not the metallic colors (?).
I will send pm to the people who have expressed interest in the shop. I don't know if it's OK to post it here!
FYI...the shop has been in business for 30+ years.
Cheers.
Another one:
I understand it is hard to compare as I don't have recent pictures of the car but I can say that the car looks much better. More importantly, I am a happy camper.....the scratch is (almost) invisible and I didn't have to go through insurance to get the fender/door painted.
Now to the questions: Yes, I paid him $200. My main deal was to remove the scratch from the fender and the PS door. However, he (himself) included the removal of other visible fine scratches as I have known him for more than 10 years......and, he just did a semi-major job on my LX. So, I am sure this figured into what all he did on my SC for the money.
One more thing, he told me that he can fix clearcoat scratches on dark/solid colors....not the metallic colors (?).
I will send pm to the people who have expressed interest in the shop. I don't know if it's OK to post it here!
FYI...the shop has been in business for 30+ years.
Cheers.
Thread Starter
Intermediate
Joined: Mar 2007
Posts: 265
Likes: 3
From: TX
"Tell him to take a road trip up 35/45 to Dallas and we'll put him to work!!!" I actually mentioned this to him today!
Cheers.
