Bob D.

Ok guys, I could really use some input here.

At 47k miles my otherwise pristine Arctic Silver "S" is showing lots of rock hits and small chips on the original-paint front bumper cover. I did some careful touch-ups last year, but it didn't help that much, and thanks to our crummy midwestern roads the front bumper is now again looking like the skin of an acne-plagued teenager. It is past the point where further touch-ups will do the job.

If the car were red or black, I would not think twice about having the bumper resprayed. I am very worried, however, that given that the color is Arctic Silver, new paint may not match in shade, texture or sheen. I keep having flashbacks to that silver ebay car somebody posted last month, where the resprayed bumper could be spotted at 100 yards.

I know some say that "blending in" the paint to adjoining panels will help with matching, but I am VERY uncomfortable with that idea. I would only consider painting just the bumper cover.

Has anybody else repainted their silver bumper cover with great results? Should I go the repaint route? Or should I keep it original, and just avert my eyes whenever I pass in front of my very chipped up bumper?

Any experiences/opinions/input appreciated!

max911

i understand your anxiety Bob!

if I may hijack your thread (sorry) :

is anyone getting some arctic silver paint work done in the near future??
I have the Ruf rain gutter filler/ aero aid thingies that i need to have painted arctic silver.
I am almost embarrassed to ask a paint shop to set up for that small amount of surface area!!
I am also afraid of what the price would be per square inch if they DID set up for that much surface area

Bob, I would suggest talking to a reputable paint shop. If they assure you they can match it..tell them to go ahead.
Tell them if it doesn't match, they will have to take it off and do it again.
If you want a safety net, buy a used bumper and paint it. Then you will always have your original to fall back on. ....a bit of an expensive option because you have the turbo style bumper, that sells for a premium over the regular front bumper.

good luck.

max

GrantG

Having the whole bumper resprayed will work fine. When it really looks lousy is when you respray just a section of a body panel. Since there is a natural break in the lines of the car at the bumper cover, it should work fine. When I modified my front bumper cover to remove the bumperettes and add euro turn signals, I had the Polar Silver bumper cover resprayed and looks great! I highly recommend doing the Euro conversion since you're painting it anyways!

Jeff 993TT

artic silver should be fine. YOu should be glad you don't have to respray polar silver!

Agro1

Bob - I am probably going to buy this car:

http://www.truspeedmotorcars.com/inv...e_stock_no=309

Both the front and rear bumpers have been resprayed. I have an extremely critical eye for any paint work and I cannot tell the difference. It can be done, it's just a matter of who does it...

Since I am in the position of being a buyer right now, and I consider myself VERY picky, I can tell you this. I would actually prefer to have a car that someone has taken care of and gone to the trouble of making the front bumper look good. It's almost impossible to NOT get rock chips up front. Any car, with paint that close to the ground is gonna get beat up. The only way to prevent it is with a bra or clear shield.

I say paint it and immediatly install Invincishield.

nman413

Now you tell me Jeff

KeithR3

Bob,

I highly recommend O'Hare Autobody in Bensenville. Ask for Jeff 630-766-6668. Also are you or anyone in Illinois planning a get together now that the weather is getting better?

Kolbjorn S

I got the front bumper cover of my C2S resprayed, due to stone chips. No matter how hard I look there is not even a shade of color difference. But surely don't opt for anything else but the most high-end shop you can find.

mike cap

Bob,

If you have a good body shop do the prep and paint with the right product, they'll get the actual color correct. The match problem comes because the glass smooth OEM surfaces of the surrounding panels won't match the inevitable orange peel of the body shop's work. So, as you say in your post, the "texture" of the surface will look different and make you think the color is off. It's not that the body shop's don't do a good job, it's all the work that is needed AFTER the paint cures that they may not have the patience for. And, on 99% of the cars they work on no one really cares.

I had my new TT Arena Red front bumper cover (OEM part from Gert) painted a few months ago (loose) by a very good body shop. They used the factory product and did an excellent job. However, on the car it just didn't look right. The new TT bumper cover looked a shade lighter then the surrounding virgin hood and fenders.

I waited two months (160" of snow, so the car wasn't going anywhere) for the paint to cure and my show car friend, poet and aircraft mechanic spent a day wet sanding with 2000 grit, buffing with 3M Finesse It, etc. Results were a bumper cover that is a PERFECT match to the other panels in color and texture. It is impossible to tell that the bumper cover isn't original. And this is in my hangar under flourscent lights at 100 foot candles.

You may have to have the body shop do the work, wait a month and then take it back for the final tweak, after the paint has cured. Talk to a shop you trust and ask them about this.

Good luck and email me with any questions.

Wsp964

Hi Bob,

As you might know from my previous post, I had a crash 1.5 months ago.

I have a new passengers door, new front wing and swapped from the ordinary front bumper to a Turbo bumper. The body shop "blended" the rear wing with the new parts.

The result is very good, no colordifference at all. I must say that I stressed that I wanted a perfect job and was willing to pay a little extra for it.

The bodyshop even said to me that (artic) silver is one of the best colors to respray opposed to what is written above.

I can take pics of my car before, after the crash and now and send them over to u. But I fear pics will not say a thing, let me know if u care I'll PM them to you or post them on the board.

My car since the accident has had a transformation. Turbo 18" twists, Turbo bumper, airducts ( gonna meet Gert tommorow ) and RSR mufflers next week (Gert again).

Let me know if u care for the pics,

Good luck with the painting job ....

WSP993

Mark in Baltimore

I had my bumper cover resprayed after a girl backed into the car. It's almost perfect, with a slight tonal difference, perhaps exacerbated by the Xpel clear bra I put on shortly after the work was done. The work was done by a very reputable body shop near Baltimore. The strange thing is that I thought the the paint matched up fine when I received the car and inspected it for a few days after, but it seemed to not match quite as well right before I had the Xpel applied. Maybe the paint "dried or cured down" and shifted the tone.

GTR 993

I had my Polar Silver car resprayed so the new spoilers would match. They blended the front spoiler and the rear spoiler and it was perfect. It looked better than it did when I bought the car with the original paint.

Ron

I know someone who restores cars and the way they make sure they get the right color, shade or whatever is they keep shooting test panels until they get it perfect. I'm told there is a formula for the color based on the code and then 10 or more variation on that color that will result in subtle differences. Each variation has it's own formula. When you want something done perfect or however you want to put it it's best to tell them to just keep time on the project and you'll pay them by the hour. Most places that really want to get things done as near as perfect as possibly charge by the hour anyway. They want to take the time to get it the way you want but need to be paid appropriately too.

LAURIER

Bob,

Paint the complete cover. I had the rear quarter on my wife's silver Passat repaired last year at Westmont Auto Body and you can't tell it's been repainted. Keith is right, O'Hare Auto Body also does excellent work.

bet

Well to continue to tag team with success stories. My previous Artic Silver Boxster had the rear bumper cover resprayed off the car just like you are talking about. The body shop didn't even have the car. It was impossible to tell it had been resprayed. A quality body shop should have no problems doing what you are asking. Just my $.02