Non-fun adventures in paint repair and bad body shops
 

Hello all,

In early 2016 someone hit my car in our apartment garage. I went through insurance to get it repaired and worked with a full price, all over the table body shop to do it. They worked with my insurer and took money from GEICO as well as my deductible, coming to about a $1,000 total. This included ordering and painting a new bumper cover for my 2015 BRZ Series.Blue in white, as well as the black section above the bumper (name escapes me at the moment).

I recently noticed that there are about 7 spots on the bumper where the paint is peeling off.

https://imgur.com/a/zUjXy
https://imgur.com/O2DCfGO
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https://imgur.com/a/zUjXy
https://imgur.com/ar3z35D

I think the peeling means they did not prepare the bumper properly before painting?

I feel like I don't have any good options here. If I go to another shop who will do things the right way (from my understanding, the right way is to buy a new bumper cover and paint the whole thing, since the labor of removing all of the paint on the existing piece will be more than the cost of a new part) I will be out I am guessing ~$700.

If I go back to the original shop, assuming they do agree to correct their mistake, my guess is they would go for the cheapest fix of just sanding and painting the problem area.

The invoice from the shop says their work is only good for a year (at the end of this saga I will be posting a full review of the shop in the Mid-Atlantic section) which means I can't go to court to get a refund and then pay a different shop to fix the problem. I called GEICO as a long shot to see if there was anything they could do, but no luck.

:sigh:

$1000 is hella cheap and thats about the quality of work I would exspect for that money spent. In a perfect world the shop would stand behind their work but who knows till you try.

I never thought of DC as a inexpensive area but around here the $1,000 was the higher end of the range for this work.

They may stand behind it, question is if they do will they fix it right or the easy way...

Did you end up taking your car through a car wash or anything during the curing time? They specifically tell you not to because this can happen.

If not, that is completely unacceptable. Your insurance should be able to have you take it back to the shop for them to completely redo it.

No I did not. Are you saying GEICO would pay for me to go to another shop under the same claim?

What it looks like to me is this: When they removed the tape/plastic/whatever they used to mask off the grill to paint the bumper, it pulled/chipped the paint along with it.

So my question is: Was it like this when you first received the car back? or is this something that's happening recently?

Could be rock chips and the like, but to me it looks more like the paint came off when the masking came off.

The way it's peeling and bubbling actually looks like they didnt prep the bumper properly. Paint shouldnt be peeling like that if the proper sanding and primer were put on. Also the black underneath looks too clean.

I'm also not an expert in any of this but i've also never see paint peel like that from a car.

Yep shitty prep work. Was it a preferred shop of your insurance company? Most offer lifetime warranty. Take it to them and see if they will stand behind their work?

In a body shop quality situation now with mine. Lady backed into me and cracked front bumper. Took it to a reputable shop. In busness for 50+ years. They decided the left headlight was damaged and got the insurance to replace it also, $800 head light along with the bumper cover. Bill was just over $2K. Picked up the car and they had lost the hardware for my STI front lip, Used over sized random fasteners to install. Broke the alignment tab off the new head light assembly. When I showed them they apologized and have replaced the bumper cover again, new STI lip, and new headlight assembly. All on their dime. Can’t complain the stood behind their work and are doing whatever it takes to make it right.

I'd bring it back, and be nice, and ask them if they can fix it.
You have nothing to lose with this option.

False, it isn't recommended you go to a public car wash because fresh paint is still soft and can be easily scratched. Secondly because you do not want to apply any sealant or wax to the surface to fresh paint while is is still degassing.

It's either crappy prep, or they didn't use enough flexible primer in those areas, or a combination of both.

Most shops I've dealt with have a lifetime guarantee on their work. Start with the shop. If they balk, then go to insurance. If the shop was one of their "approved" shops, then insurance should also stand behind the shop's work.

If they both balk, then you're SOL unfortunately...

Crappy prep and they left the masking tape on too long after the paint cured. When they pulled the tape off they lifted the whole edge of the paint along with it allowing water to get in there. The whole length is going to do that since it is already visibly lifting. Hard to tell from the pic but it doesn't look like they primed it at all! The primer at least should still be on the plastic if they did. That looks like they just sprayed the finish coat straight onto the bumper.
I am a pretty easy to get along with guy when it comes to repairs but I would be back in that shop in a heartbeat no matter how long it was since the work had been done. That is just inexcusably shoddy workmanship.

the bumpers come in raw plastic when new, which is a pain to prep and get paint to stick properly. also when sections get taped off there are ways to go about it that help reduce the risk of peeling up paint from it bridging over the tape. it is a touchy job to do on these bumpers, but it never should have left like that. also like you said, Id be scared to repair that area and blend out color/ clear the bumper without stripping it all off because who knows the prep/application process they used.

I have used a local geico "express" and they provide "lifetime" warranty.

They have done decent work and have even repainted an entire quarter panel when I showed them they left tons of imperfections in the paint which is what lead me to use them again.

Prep and flex agent is really important for plastic bumpers.

I'd suggest looking into a local geico express shop. Read all reviews you can find about them.