Body shop/paint question

[Frodo]

As many of you probably know (from another thread of mine), I recently developed the need for some body shop work. (My bad ). Anybody have suggestions how to find/evaluate them? Took her in to one shop that was recommended by the local Porsche dealership. They seem good, and I’ve heard people recommend them, but I’m so finicky about my pcar’s finish, I just don’t know...

Is there something special or unusual about the paint that Porsche uses on their vehicles? I do a lot of detailing on the car, and the finish is just so nice to work with, so easy to clean up and make truly beautiful to look at. I really want that to continue to be the case. To have repairs match/blend, is it important to use a certain kind of paint, and/or any special application technique? The guy at the shop described their repair techniques, and said they use PPG paint. Good stuff or not?? I know so very little about this---I haven’t had an accident since I was my kid’s age, and he’s been driving for like 4 years now! Any advice would be most appreciated.

[renzop]

Sorry to hear about the damage, Frodo. Unfortunately, your car will never be the same might as well give it to me :-)

Seriously, though, I would ask to see the paint booth and general shop conditions of any body shop. Even if you don't know what to look for you can get a general idea of the relative cleanliness of different shops and "invading their space" will give you some idea of how they treat customers. Porsche paint is just like any other modern base/clear coat - nothing special regardless of what they say.

[Boxtaboy]

If I recall correctly, Porsche used paint from a supplier called Spies-Hecker: http://www.spieshecker.com/portal/

You can check if the shop can get that for your repair, but if your car is black, I doubt matching will be difficult. Good luck.

[Frodo]

Thanks.

BTW, the pic in my signature may be misleading...it was taken in the early evening one balmy summer day a couple years ago. My kid photoshopped it a bit---turned it into a B&W (except, obviously, the tail lights); don't know if he played with contrast, etc, or not. The finish is actually seal grey, not black. Does anybody know if that's appreciably more difficult to match?

[Burg Boxster]

Any good shop will be able to color match to factory level for you. I say factory level b/c the same color will always look different depending on the substrate (i.e metal fender vs. plastic bumper). Check yours now closely and you'll see it... same as on any new car too.

That being said, I had the front bumper on my '99 Arena Red Metallic resprayed 2 yrs ago and the shop (who does body work for the local Porsche dealer) matched it perfectly.

Sorry to hear about your need for a body shop but Good luck

[pk2]

IN general (at least it used to be), a factory paint job is far superior to anything a shop can put on...even if they use factory colors or event the factory brand. The reasons, the application, process and environment.

At the factory a car is painted "electrostatically". Basically the car has one electrical charge on it and the paint has the opposite charge, positive and negative. they naturally want to cling to each other. All the little charged mist drops be-line for the car and collect everywhere, absolutely every nook and cranny. More importantly thow, the paint is applied perfectly evenly on the outer surfaces.

In addition, most factories bake the paint on (not sure if for durability or speed, probably both).

As for some magic in Porsche paint, I suspect they might do it with a little more care but the paint itself comes from any one of a handful off German vendors. I suspect your affection is just like a mother for her baby. Kid could be the ugliest rash covered beast and she would still just gloat about hoew bbbbbeautiful it is.

Regards, PK

[spine911]

Originally Posted by Burg Boxster

Any good shop will be able to color match to factory level for you. I say factory level b/c the same color will always look different depending on the substrate (i.e metal fender vs. plastic bumper). Check yours now closely and you'll see it... same as on any new car too.

I totally agree with this point 100%...The biggest factor is the paint shop's ability to color match the paint, ANY paint reacts differently on various materials thus results in variation of color shades...Choose the shop, or a painter with excellent skills, not simply because it is a "Porsche recommended outfit".

[Frodo]

By way of follow-up: I’ve gotten one estimate done, at a local place that has a good reputation, was recommended by the local Porsche dealership and has a working relationship with USAA, my insurance provider. As usual, it’s a lot more than I expected. For any of this to make sense, I guess I should provide a few pics:








I had hoped (though I wasn’t sure it was a realistic hope) they could just reshape the quarter panel and not have to paint, but he said it wouldn’t work. I know it’s hard to tell from the photos, but it’s mostly just a gently curved area that’s now flattened, though there is one small area (apparently where the mailbox first made contact) that’s dimpled a little. The paint is all intact in the area---nothing that couldn’t be buffed out. The scratches next to the mirror are small, but I guess (and he agreed) that any attempt at ‘touch up’ is going to look second rate. So, he’s telling me both the quarter panel and door will both have to be painted. He also wants to replace both wheels and both tires. (If I were paying for it, I doubt I’d replace either wheel---I’ve read techniques for repair on line that seem pretty good.) The one tire is clearly shot. The other (the one with the dime) is holding air; it seems OK, but I guess I wouldn’t want it to blow at 80 mph, especially being a front tire, so I’d probably agree it should be replaced. They’ll, of course, check the alignment. It drives straight, and there’s no easily visualized damage to the suspension components.

Another consideration: Found out that Stoddard’s, the dealership I bought the car from (in 2006), has a body shop utilizing ‘state-of-the-art ‘ equipment and materials. Check out: http://www.****************************************************/body_shop.shtml

Anyboody familiar with or have any experience with body shops using the technique and type of paint they’re promoting?? Beyond that, the only other problem is, they’re almost 50 miles away. I am debating whether I want to drive that far on a spare (with no other spare to take along) and a potentially compromised front tire.

Anyway, I’m just mulling all this over. If anyone has any additional comments or suggestions (especially about the Stoddard’s website information), they would be most welcome.

[JTP]

I've seen paintless dent repair guys do amazing work. Some dents that seemed impossible to fix without old fashioned bodywork came out looking like new. You should talk to them before committing to doing alot of bodywork. And they come to you for the repair. Here's one of many paintless repair companies:
http://www.1800dentdoc.com/paintless-dent-repair.htm

Also, there are many outfits doing wheel repairs. Here is one:
http://www.rimandwheelworks.com/index.html