My Swift bumpers - any solutions?

[kkdelhi]

This is what my Swift's rear and front bumper look like right now. The rear bumper was hit by a careless speeding vehicle and there were two gnashes in it. I got the cuts welded and he did the welding underneath as well as over the bumper. Now these are really small areas but to me they look bad. I checked with the local mechanics (the ones with Denting, painting, all works types) and they said the entire bumper has to be painted and the cost will be Rs. 1000/-.

1. Is this amount genuine?
2. Do I really have to get the entire bumper painted just to cover these two spots?
3. Is there an alternative to painting - like, putting stickers? How will stickers look? (of course, I will have them coordinated so they don't look out of place)

My front bumper has those awful scratches on the left. What's the best way to remove them at minimal cost?

[n_aditya]

Originally Posted by kkdelhi

... and they said the entire bumper has to be painted and the cost will be Rs. 1000/-.

1. Is this amount genuine? If its a quality job then 1k is worth it. You might want to haggle a wee bit though but dont compromise on the finish.

2. Do I really have to get the entire bumper painted just to cover these two spots? Entire bumper needs to be painted to maintain uniform finish and color.

3. Is there an alternative to painting - like, putting stickers? How will stickers look? The welding doesnt seem to be done very well... especially near the boot lid. Stickers are only a temporary fix. Not worth it IMO. Suggest you to get the painting done.

My front bumper has those awful scratches on the left. What's the best way to remove them at minimal cost? Best way is to paint the whole bumper. Touchup's will be noticable.

See my replies in bold & italics.

[kkdelhi]

Originally Posted by n_aditya

Entire bumper needs to be painted to maintain uniform finish and color.

What about the uniformity in finish and color of the bumper vis-a-vis the rest of the body?

Will it show during resale? I mean, will the person buying it think the car was involved in some major accident (whereas it was not)?

[shuvd]

Totally agree with N_aditya. If you want uniformity in paint finish, you have to get the entire bumpers re sprayed.
And, for a decent job, 1k is er.. decent.
IMHO, stay away from stickers.

[autopsyche]

1k is very cheap in comparison to dealership standards.... make sure you get the right quality finish though otherwise the bumpers might stand apart like a sore patch.

[n_aditya]

Originally Posted by kkdelhi

What about the uniformity in finish and color of the bumper vis-a-vis the rest of the body?

Will it show during resale? I mean, will the person buying it think the car was involved in some major accident (whereas it was not)?

Well, there might be a slight difference in the shade. The bumpers will look relatively newer compared to the rest of the car. Dont worry about this as with the traffic conditions today, there are hardly any cars without a scratch and a repaint (at least on the bumpers).

Butttttttt since you have got it welded, the uneven surface will be a dead giveaway... again not to worry since i dont think you plan to dispose the car very soon.

And 1k is a very reasonable sum. Dealers quote as much as 4k per bumper for scratch removal and painting.

[jesal]

u are worrying about this. damn u should not then. all my cars are like this. best thing to do is keep a budget for the car and every year do all this touchup works, its the best...

[karanraheja]

Originally Posted by jesal

u are worrying about this. damn u should not then. all my cars are like this. best thing to do is keep a budget for the car and every year do all this touchup works, its the best...

May i know how much budget you keep per car per year?? kidding!

[kkdelhi]

Originally Posted by n_aditya

...the uneven surface will be a dead giveaway...

They said they will smoothen out the uneven surface before applying paint.

So, I guess 1k per bumper is a decent amount quoted. Now, I have to find a day off in the near future as the time duration stated was at least half-a-day (my guess is it will take the entire day!)

[bIte tHe bulLet]

Originally Posted by kkdelhi

They said they will smoothen out the uneven surface before applying paint.

So, I guess 1k per bumper is a decent amount quoted. Now, I have to find a day off in the near future as the time duration stated was at least half-a-day (my guess is it will take the entire day!)

hey kk,

sorry to see the damage(s) on the car dude..

my 13 paise -

when having the bumpers painted, please be aware that there should be atleast 3 coats of paint on it.

after having scraped the original and filling in uneven surfaces, a base coat of paint should be applied. this is followed by a colour coat. and then it is all finished off with a clear coat, which is what gives it the shine etc.

most decent painters should be doing this anyway, but some of them either skip the base coat or the clear coat to save some money. both are equally bad when it comes to the final finish of the job.

fyi - there is a joint in the khan market car accesssories area, which is actually a dupont paint stockist who does a pretty good job of matching and painting. i've had my palio bumpers done from him twice and i've never been disappointed.

cheers dude.

[kkdelhi]

Originally Posted by bIte tHe bulLet

...

when having the bumpers painted, please be aware that there should be atleast 3 coats of paint on it.

after having scraped the original and filling in uneven surfaces, a base coat of paint should be applied. this is followed by a colour coat. and then it is all finished off with a clear coat, which is what gives it the shine etc.

Thanks for this info. I wasn't aware of it and will take care of this when I get the job done.

Originally Posted by bIte tHe bulLet

fyi - there is a joint in the khan market car accesssories area, which is actually a dupont paint stockist who does a pretty good job of matching and painting. i've had my palio bumpers done from him twice and i've never been disappointed.

I will try him out. Is that the only shop of its kind in that area? If not, what's it called? Does he quote a 'decent' amount or on the higher side, sitting as he is in one of the posh markets of Delhi?

[phamilyman]

yaar delhi waale ho. sab moh maya hai. yeh toh vidhi ka vidaan hai. kyun vichlit hote ho bhai?

[kkdelhi]

Originally Posted by phamilyman

yaar delhi waale ho. sab moh maya hai. yeh toh vidhi ka vidaan hai. kyun vichlit hote ho bhai?

Haan, par careful rehne mein koi harz nahin, kyun?

[phamilyman]

toh careful raho, triple coat repaint karate kyun ho? upar se bhagadaudi mein 100-200 aur kharch ho jayenge. sab maya hai.

[blorebuddy]

I have done 2 paint job so far on my swift.
One the front bumper had a scratch happened during delivery. The dealer has done a paint job on that area (front left fender). It was a good job. (628Rs was the bill but absorbed by Dealer)

Second was in my rear left door where I had a lengthy scratch and small dent. Costed Rs. 2k+247(Service tax ) at the Maruti dealership