Paint?

I had the same thing with my Matrix. The texture on the bumper took a lot of work at the body shop. A VERY MINOR accident ended up costing $1400 to fix, most of it paint time.

Mark

XYZ ABC wrote:

"deposited" onto

manufacturing

XYZ ABC wrote: || My new 05 Camry XLE was rear-ended and the rear-bumper cover needs || to be replaced. I took it to the dealer and they told me they are || going to get a black OEM rear-bumper and paint it to my car's color || (silver) in their body shop. I thought the outside body color of a || car was somehow "deposited" onto the body parts in the factory || through some type of special manufacturing process. Does that sound || right? Is the dealer trying to short-change me on this? || || Thanks for your help! || || -- || ZR

My WHITE Camry has black undercoat, black (underneath) bumper cover. So, everytime there is so much as a TINY nick in the paint, the BLACK underneath stands out real uglylike. WHY can't they use a LIGHTER undercoast for lighter coloured vehicles!!!!!???????????????

I think you'll find that all plastic bumpers are black or charcoal clear thru. On a light car they are usually primed in light grey primer. If the clear and color coat are scratched surely the primer would be too --- hence the black showing thru. Factory paint jobs are typically more durable than refinishes -- they use heat lamps to decrease drying time and make the paint harder. Some people think they can buy a factory painted bumper bur you can't --- you can however buy factory painted rear view mirrors.

"Liberal|sarl|airs| !|"

OEM bumper covers for a particular model are all the same color, usually black but grey in some cases, like the Previa. When a body shop paints a bumper cover, they add a flex agent to the paint so that it won't crack so easily so what your dealer's body shop is telling you is correct. By the way, you should always demand OEM parts for body repairs as their quality is usually better than aftermarket.

Hi there,

sorry to hear that your new car was damaged. We went through a similar case with our Sienna. As long as the work is done by a Toyota dealer or by a body shop that is recommended by a Toyota dealer, you don't need to worry. You might see a very slight variation in the cost estimates, but it's really neglectable. The estimates are made using a software program that simulates the required work and puts a cost on each task. (This is the case in all three Toyota body shops I have visited)

Good luck

On a plastic bumper cover, use of a flex additive is more important that hardness.

A good body shop can do as well as the factory can.

Barry

Thanks for all the replies. I got an estimate of $700 from a Toyota dealer. It sounds not bad for me. Besides, they say the cover will have a life time warranty, which is better than the rest of the car.

The guy who bumped my car says he is going to pay me for the repair and he does not want me to call his insurance company (for fear of rates hike). I suspect he does not have inssuance. The cop did not ask him for insurance card and he just told the cop it's 1-800-safeauto. But he told me (before the cop came) he doesn't have one for the car he was driving. The cop didn't even give him a ticket.

I haven't got the payment yet. But the guy looks honest and I hope I can get the payment. My insurance does cover it. But I'm carrying $1000 deductible. So I don't want to risk a rate hike for nothing. I may end up paying this myself.

Take the estimate to him and ask for payment.

You do not have to fix the car before requesting the money. Even if you choose to not fix the damage, your car has been reduced in value by the amount of damage.

Barry

Damned right!...get right on it and be firm with him...the longer you wait the less chance you have of collecting...be hardnosed, don't listen to the sob story that you're almost certain to get. Good luck.

deductible.

i don't know where you live, but make sure you get payment first and then cash the check. i would also tell him before he writes the check that if his check bounces, you're going to the police and reporting him. make sure you get his DL# and address and phone # as well as his plate # on the car and VIN#. cover your ass and make sure you have no outta pocket expenses, especially if you need to rent a car for the time it will be int he shop.

mike..............

Exactly what I was thinking. Gotta use a Felx agent, or the paint will crack and peel from normal driving over the course of a year...

Barry and JerseyMike are right -- getting reimbursed is the first thing you do. I'd make sure it's some secure form of payment...cash, cashier's check, something. And make sure every out-of-pocket expense is reimbursed, including rental.

Whether you get your bumper repaired is up to you. You don't have to -- and you certainly don't have to repair it before the guy pays for the damage.

Hello, I've got 35 yrs in the BodyShop business, I'm the Manager of a busy luxury import Dealership Bodyshop here in Ohio.

I've seen the ole' "I'll pay for it myself" maybe 100 times, only worked out as it should once that I can remember. So I'd get the $ before starting the Repairs, or you will probably be paying for it yourself. Please Keep us informed and let us know how it turns out.

FYI we don't use 'flex agent' additive too much anymore, the Catalyzed Base-coat & Urethane Clear-coat finishes are Very tough, provide great flexibility, adhesion & amazing resistance to cracking. In my opinion, equal to the Factory finish.

It should be mentioned that the quality of the primer that comes on the part is important too. Thats not a concern if you are using genuine factory parts, and something to be carefull of on aftermarket parts. Aftermarket parts are not always bad. but sometimes they can be downright junk! The important thing is to have a repair man / shop that knows the difference.

When Chosing a shop, one good idea is to look for a shop that uses Name brand paints. Those include PPG - Dupont - Nexa Auto Color - Speis heckler- Glassutt (sp?) among others.

TEC

Well, it turns out my instinct was right. This guy is honest, he paid me the cost of the repair on time, in cache. We also signed a mutual release agreement. He even promise to buy me a lunch at the place he works (Steak n' Shake). It turns out we work in the same town.

The repair turns out better than I expected. The color matches so good that I can't tell any difference. The installation looks solid, even better than the original bumper cover.

So it worked out nicely for both of us. He avoided couple of tickets and possible license suspension and I got my new car back to new. The only things I lost are few trips to the shop and few hours.

I do agree we need to be careful if you don't trust the person from instinct.

Thanks everyone for the advises.

Good for you!

Enjoy the lunch, and as it sounds, a possible new friend.

FWIW, a buddy of mine "got some" after backing into a woman's car, so not accidents turn out bad.

Barry

Great! Glad to hear your experience went well.

Happy motoring.

B a r r y wrote: || XYZ ABC wrote: ||| Well, it turns out my instinct was right. This guy is honest, he ||| paid me the cost of the repair on time, in cache. We also signed a ||| mutual release agreement. He even promise to buy me a lunch at the ||| place he works (Steak n' Shake). It turns out we work in the same ||| town. ||| ||| The repair turns out better than I expected. The color matches so ||| good that I can't tell any difference. The installation looks ||| solid, even better than the original bumper cover. ||| || || Good for you! || || Enjoy the lunch, and as it sounds, a possible new friend. || || FWIW, a buddy of mine "got some" after backing into a woman's car, so || not accidents turn out bad. || || Barry

Hmmm. Your buddy "got some" after backing into HER car??? Doesn't it usually work the OTHER way around? Or, did he have to go down on her to avoid charges?

He hit her, they swapped info, and ended up dating.

Barry

Lucky bugger...I tried that and got charged with abus...OH!, with his CAR you mean?!?