I have a 2005 Boxster S with 91k miles and got my front bumper backed into through a drive through resulting in needing to re-paint it. So, I opted to pay more out of my pocket and have the front fenders and hood resprayed due to road rash from the previous owner. I thought I chose a decent body shop but I am not happy with the results.

First, there was a ton of orange peel in the clear coat. They cut and buffed what they said they could - just the hood and upper portions of the fenders. While is somewhat better, it's not the best. Especially since lower on the fenders it still has plenty of orange peel. It's hard for me to look at compared to the smooth finish from the factory.

Second, the color is not matched well. The color is Carmon Red Metallic and the respray metallic is heavier than factory. It sticks out in the sun (more glitter and somewhat darker than factory). It reminds me of a glittery repainted Honda motorcycle gas tank from the '70s.

So, I brought these concerns to the body shop manager. He defended the cut and buff and said if he cut in anymore it would likely cut too much in the clear coat. He also said my car is faded so that's why the metallic doesn't match.

I'm at my wits end and even suggested they redo it. He certainly wasn't entertaining that idea. I'm just not sure if I should be so concerned or how far I can take it with the body shop. Any suggestions are helpful!

And sorry for no pictures. It has been difficult for me to capture one that accurately reflects the issues.

 

It's hard to gauge how bad the match is without pictures. Have you tried taking pics in direct sun vs. shade, or sunny vs. overcast (or at night) , indoors under artificial lighting, etc.?

 

A good body shop should be able to exactly match the new paint with any old paint, faded or not. That is why you allow them to paint more of the body and allow them blend the new paint into the old. Orange peel should be totally unacceptable. Sounds like the body shop needs to repaint. I had several incidents with my old 2002S and in every case the body shop did an excellent job matching and blending the seal gray metallic paint.

Over the years, my humble opinion is that the first thing that is taught in body shop school is how to lie to customers. I have seen way too much bull**** from body shop people and it sounds like you are getting your share now.

The body shop should stand by its work and fix it if necessary. How did you pay? Check - stop payment. Credit card - dispute the charge.

 

Can you post some photos?

 

Thanks all for the responses. Included are some photos - taken in the garage (ignore the water spots ). It is a cloudy day so no full sun photos. I can try again tomorrow if the weather improves.

I also called the shop manager today requesting a redo. He is thinking it over and will get back to me.

 

 

The metal flecks in the metallic paint are obviously different (size/density). The flakes in the original paint are definitely finer (smoother "texture'). It's hard to judge color match without seeing all of the adjoining body panels together for comparison.

 

Front fender (new) and door (not new).

 

The flakes are definitely off, but your flash is on which will emphasize differences. Can you post pics of your car front 3/4 view and rear 3/4 view?

 

Yeah... in full sun hitting the front of the car you can see a difference in the appearance in the front vs the back so I thought the flash would show a true reflection of the differences. Here is another shot with the sun from behind this AM. I can try to get more later.

Thanks for the responses!

 

Good news. The shop manager called and we are meeting early next week with his team and the GM to redo this and make it right.

Thanks for the advice and ear!

 

Good luck! Hope they get it right the 2nd time.

 

How much was the partial respray?

This is a typical result from a typical shop. A high end shop that does exotics would know better. But then again, a Boxster isn't an exotic.

The flakes will fade in 1-2 years and some of the clear will level off. At a minimum, they should be buffing it to smoothness unless they didn't put enough clear on.

 

$2500 for the partial respray that includes front bumper, front fenders, and hood. Another shop (from the car lot I purchased it from) quoted $900 for the front fenders and hood. I would expect the mismatch and orange peel for that price.


For what it's worth, the car was in a collision right after the first person bought it. The back bumper appears to have been resprayed and looks nearly identical to the new respray. So if the metal fleck will fade in 1 to 2 years then I can only imagine how metallic it was 11 years ago when the rear bumper was initially resprayed.


It's just so apparent in my eyes. I know this isn't an exotic but I wouldn't expect this for my Subaru Outback either.

 

Lol, ur more particular. I wouldn't give a crap if it is on my daily. But you DID pay a premium and should get top results. Did the shop offer to redo the job?