Horrible story from last week and looking for some input.

My boss, being the nice guy that he is, offered to get my car detailed as a gesture of appreciation for the work I've been doing lately (a lot). I took him up on this offer as my 04 C4S hadn't been cleaned in a few months.

I met him at his athletic club (very high end place that has a full auto salon) and he signed it up for a signature detail (pretty much a full service inside and out... think it runs about $400). The car was done later that day and it looked great.

But low-and-behold, I get home and do a walk-around and there is a gouge and some light scuffing on the front bumper - it looks like it came from license plate screws or something. To add insult to injury, the car just got out of the body shop a month ago after someone had backed into my front bumper, bad enough to warrant a full replace. Fortunately this individual left a note and I was able to get the work done at an excellent shop with the final bill to his insurance company topping $3300.

So my new, clean bumper is now obviously blemished. I know this happened while it was in the detailer's possession because ever since I got the car back I've been half-paranoid and do a walk around every morning.

I talked with the auto salon manager and he offered to have their bumper/dent repair guy handle it (they have someone come in twice a month who repairs dents, scratches, etc). I agreed and the repair is supposed to happen on the 13th.

However, I'm genuinely concerned about the quality of the repair and how the car might turn out due to the following:
- The manager said it would be done in the same day.
- They don't take the bumper off or have paint booths or anything.
- How good of a job can it be if they spray paint and clear and it's ready to go the same day?
- I doubt they use Standox, Spies-Hecker, or Glasurit paint - the Porsche-approved brands.
- I doubt they use a flex additive (but I can ask).
- Based on my knowledge of PDR (paintless dent removal) and bumper repair shops, they only spray a certain area and I'm scared of overspray, that the paint won't blend, or just a plain bad job in the first place.

My other alternative is to sack up and file a claim with my insurance company, pay the $1000 deductible, and take my car back to the body shop. My boss did offer to cover repair costs, but I feel a bit bad about taking this offer plus the claim (I assume) would affect my rates.

That all said, does anyone have experience with PDR/bumper repair-type shops (Same Day, Dent Wizard, etc). What can/should I expect? And given the above, what would you do?

Cheers,
Adam

 

We need pictures in order to make a fair evaluation/recommendation.

 

I am sure that the shop has insurance if they are at a high end location like this. They are trying to do the repair "on the cheap" so they do not have to file their own claim. The best part of this is by making an agreement to do the repair they are admitting liability. If this doesn't work make them file a claim or go to small claims court based on a repair estimate from your own shop. The LAST move would be to go to your own insurance....

 

Ultimately it comes down to my word vs. their though. I don't have any proof that they did it; I just know it wasn't there when I dropped the car off and it was when I got it back. The manager at the auto salon said he talked to the guy who worked on my car, and worker said it was there already. Without any solid proof, I'm not sure what leverage I have.

Insurance exists for stuff like this, hence the reason I'm considering.

 

pics as requested

 

What did they hit? So, your boos gifted you a detailing, and this was included? I find it hard to believe they didn't tell you they screwed up. That really sucks.

 

I would not want any "bumper guy" fixing that, it should be done at the body shop of your choice.

 

Tough decision.

Mobile bumper guy will hit it with a heat gun and push the dent out from behind the bumper (may need to remove the black grill next to it to gain access). Then he will put puddy/primer, sand, paint, clear coat. All localized repair. If your car is solid black, they should be able to match the panit pretty well. This way, you retain 99% of your original paint on the bumper.

If you repaint the whole bumper, there's always a chance of overspray and other imperfection in another area.

 

Don't let the things you own end up owning you.

 

A decent body shop can fix that with no problem. However, I would request removing the bumper cover and respraying the whole thing. Shouldn't cost the detail shop more than the $400 they earned on your job. Im surprised this shop didnt bring this to your attention the moment you walked in. I owned a detail shop for a few years, from time to time an employee will make a mistake on a car. How that employee/owner handles that mistake shows their integrity or lack therof.

+1 on above statement. we get obsessed over these cars quite easily dont we?

 

Say no to a localized repair. Repair and full bumper respray is in order.