Hella-Buggin'

We drove my wife's A3 to the kids school Halloween extravaganza today and came out to this. I'm so livid, yet glad we took her car instead of the 911.

I don't even know where to go to fix this. It's down to the metal so it isn't going to buff out. Suggestions?

PHX 911

that blows
Hard to tell from the pic the extent of the damage.
Maybe a good buff and some Dr. Color chip and you'll be alright.

ChristianR

repaint the door, sucks

drummin4fun

People can be such D**KS!!

Hella-Buggin'

I'm thinking the whole door but luckily haven't had this happen before.

daddyscar

That really sucks. I had a bad door ding in that same location. On the high end expect about $1500 because it's close to another body panel. I went to three different places in marin and they all said that in order to properly "blend the paint" they have to sand down the body panel next to it a little and paint across the two body panels. Otherwise you don't get a seamless finish. If the damage is on the center of a door or body panel, then they can blend the paint within the panel for under $1000.

I've touched up short deep scratches before with touch up paint from the dealer and buffing a little with my Griot orbital buffer. You can still see it at certain angles but with all the city parking I do, I know another will show up soon enough. With the type of scratch you have though, I don't think any simple buff or touch up is going to work unfortunately. I'd at least put a Giants sticker over it for now.

Edgy01

Don't fret! Despite there being so many losers out there just know that there are plenty of competent shops who can fix that right up. With all paints today the art is blending. They should best remove the door from the car (so as to prevent any chance of overspray) and tackle the door by itself. They will then sand the scratched area and spray in a primer to get the depth back to where it needs to be, and then ultimately put on the color coat, blending it into the rest of the door. A final shot of clear coat and you're done. Simply ask around for the better shops.

Mike in CA

That really stinks. Sorry. If it's down to the metal I don't see how you can get away with not having the door repainted. The good news is that a high quality shop will return it to as new condition. Up here in the North Bay Freeman Collision Center in Santa Rosa has done some excellent work for me, but depending on where you are I'm sure there are plenty of options. Good luck.

TommyV44

Man.....that's a tough break. I've lived my whole life in NJ on the East Coast and spent time in NY, Staten island (I know NY too!) and some really questionable areas and it's never happened to me.

You wonder how the jackass that does something like that to someone else's car can get finished with that piece of work and go home, unlock the door, sit down ......and feel anything but disgust for themselves and their small, miserable, petty act of jealousy.

Good Luck with the repair. Like Dan says, it'll be fixed good as new. There are artists out there of the first order.......and believe me I know what a good shop can do.

Tom

Eric - Plug Guy

Any chance the place has cameras?

That sucks, but a top shop will bring it back to life.

Good luck.

Hella-Buggin'

I've lived in questionable areas most of my life and have been spared the key until now. The funny thing is, we live in a nice neighborhood where our year old A3 is like the "town hooptie". So, the elementary school is tucked back into this quiet neighborhood that get's besieged whenever there is a function, as well as every morning and afternoon. If I had to put money on it, I say it was the people who live in the house we parked in front of.

Life isn't fair and I've mostly ended up on the winning side of the coin toss so I'll just fix it and move on knowing that someone has a karma debt to pay.

TT Surgeon

Body guys have a way of fixing this wo painting the whole door.
About 590$ on my panamera last yr.
There is a lot of keying going on these days, an act of rebellion against the 1%.

scotsskier

Yup, only way to get it right. Also needs to be Audi approved body shop to keep your paint warranty

fskof

Wow that sucks! Sadly I'm beginning to see more and more of this type of vandelizm. When People dont respect themselves why would they respect other peoples property?

Lucky for you you have insurance and there are many great shops that can take car of it. I cant tell by the pics but could it get buffed out?

fskof

Now that is a great attitude to have. Keep a positive attitude and you will be succesful in life!

And you never know when a storm might come by and knock a tree on the scumbags house