Nasty paint chip...long story

JGreenwood07

Got a paint chip last weekend on front bumper. Between 1/8 and 1/4 inches long and went into primer.

Long story in another thread, but basically tech at dealer took my car out on a 20 mile alignment "test drive". I assume he basically ran it up and down the freeway right by dealer. The only time I have ever gotten chips like that on a car is after prolonged drives at high speed on the freeway. Also, clutch was making weird noise after I got the car back. Went away shortly after. On top of this, on the way home from dealer I got hit from behind at a red light. Person behind idled right into the Z.

Anyway, what is the best method to tackle this. I told dealer about issue and he offered to have his paint guy who comes out to touch up used cars/cars on the lot repaint the damaged area and blend it in with the rest of the bumper. I am VERY hesitant to do this for a number of reasons, mainly the fact that it won't look good and other panels on the car may get overspray. I assume this will be done outdoors as I don't believe there is a body shop on site.

I thought about having the same body shop work on it when getting the rear bumper repaired, but they said it would run $400-450 and they'd have to remove/repaint the entire piece.

My only other option is to touch it up myself. I have a Dr. Colorchip kit and tried the other night, but it didn't look so great. Accidentally broke the bottle, so I ordered another kit to give it a second shot. Silver is a pain for removing rock chips. Only other solution I have read about is wetsanding the touch up paint down and buffing out the affected area.

Any other tips/solutions would be great. Thanks.

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tommyguns

PM Junkman before you do anything else. The man is money! I have read that sanding and buffing is a BIG no no! Just trying to help.

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Xan

I would let the pro at the dealer handle it if you're not sure what you are doing.
Just take off the bumper and give it to the repair guy, or have them take it off.

But for the best results on dr colorchip, here is what I do.

You should really have a paint meter to know how much clear you have to work with!

Tape around the chip and start filling in the chip.
Layer a couple of layers to make sure it's filled all the way above the regular paint.
Let it harden for a day or so (depending on weather).
Start wet sanding it down with 2000/3000 on a good block, within the taped area only.
Wipe downs with some IPA to check whether you've leveled it.
Be careful to not put too much pressure on it while sanding, you don't want to sand through your clear.
Once it's all smooth, make sure to finish with 3000 and switch to some good polish and a DA or rotary. (I usually use a Flex with yellow or orange UberPad and M105 for this)
Then follow up with a finishing polish and a finishing pad. (Here my go to is M205 on a green/blue pad)

That should do it..

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JGreenwood07

Thanks for the help and walk through on filling the chip. Have a detailer I've used before who is familiar with wet sanding, so maybe he can give it a shot.

I doubt the dealer is going to have their guy take off the bumper. They said if I dropped off the car in the morning it would be ready that afternoon. And I'm pretty sure my car wouldn't be the only one he'd be working on. For all I know, he may just spray it down in the parking lot. I'm trying to get clarification on this before I even consider it. If it's going to be a "quick fix" I'd rather not even bother. Don't want to risk damaging bumper further or overspraying other parts of the car.