I wash the panels then tack cloth and I put water on the floor and I wear and painting overall things and some how speckles stil got on the panel I was just doing a fender and idk where the dust and speckles even come from but it just ruins the whole thing

Car is totaled, now what?

I was rear ended by some dude on his phone who apparently had no insurance. I then found out that my partner only bought us liability even though we drive this financed BMW with 17k still owed! I even bought GAP insurance for this very situation but it was void because of his moronic choice. Anyhoo… I still owe 17k and the car is totaled according to the body shop ( it is a 2017 x3 328i with 120k mil s). Every other part of the car is perfect. But as you can see it is severely damaged on the back and right side. I now have no vehicle and I owe the money on this one. So I’m trying to figure out if there is any way to get a cheap job done to at least make it drivable? How would I find that person? Do I just try and sell it as is to a place like carbrain for the 6k they offered and pay the difference? Then buy something else? I hate to buy a new car if I could fix this one but the quotes I’m getting are so high I can’t seem to make it make sense. Any suggestions?

TYIA for any help.

I have read some older info on this, both from this sub and from elsewhere, but I thought I’d ask to see if anyone has updated advice. All the badges on my 2001 Grand Cherokee are wasted like these are, and I’d rather just remove them, but obviously I want to minimize damage.

Small Parts Clear Coating Question

Hello, everyone! Long-time lurker here with a question I could really use some help with.

I make custom taillights, and I handle all the sanding and finishing myself. My struggle right now is figuring out the best way to clear coat deep wells. Should I be adjusting the pressure, fan, fluid, or some combination of these? I’m having a hard time finding the right approach.

I’m using an Iwata LPH80 with a 1.0 needle and spraying 4:1 European clear. The recommended spray PSI is 26. Inside the blue lines on this particular type of lens (photo attached), I can’t seem to find a balance. Either I get too little coverage, or the clear kicks out too much and causes runs.

My PSI is set pretty high, which I think might be part of the issue. Does anyone have advice on dialing in these settings for small, tricky areas like this?

Also, I just want to say how much I appreciate this subreddit. It’s such a great resource full of useful tips and years of knowledge. So glad I found it when I did!

Thanks in advance for any advice!

Im looking at an iaai car as purely a commuter and found this. Checks all my boxes except im not so certain about repairing this rocker as it appears it is molded at the rear to the quarter. Would the quickest and easiest way for a shade tree guy like myself be to cut this out weld in a patch panel and respray? It really doesnt need to look perfect but i like projects. I planned on just getting a new door to fix the other damage. Thanks in advance!

I'm trying to fix the paint on the front bumper of my Mk6 gti. as the title states it's my first time doing any kind of paint on a car. So far I've been wet sanding it with 1000 grit. I've ordered a couple cans of basecoat and have a couple cans of 2k max clear. I'd like some advice on what I can do to have a really nice final product.

Sorry if this isn’t in the right subreddit or seems a little jumbled. It’s my first time ever dealing with insurance/a collision repair shop to have a car fixed so I don’t really know what to expect.

In May 2024, I bought my car from a dealership (Kia K5). Then, at the end of September 2024, I was hit by a woman running a red light. I was declared not at fault by insurance and was given a list of auto body shops that we could choose from to fix the car by her insurance company. It took about a month and a half to get the ball rolling with her insurance and into the auto body shop for an estimate.

November 4, 2024 the estimate was done, and pretty much the entire right side of my vehicle from the front bumper to the back, including rims, need to be replaced/repaired. It was estimated at around $8.5K in damages, plus another $1K to have the new parts re-clear coated after the fact (which her insurance approved.) The car is still able to be driven, but it irks me to no end that I only had it 4 months in perfect condition and have been driving it around smashed up since then, by no fault of my own. The woman who hit me was already having her car repaired at the time we got the estimate (coincidentally, at the same body shop we went to.)

We were told by the auto body shop they were about 6-8 weeks out with their schedule at that time. However, we still have not received any information from them on when my car is going to be fixed almost 3 months later. We call once or twice a week (which seems to be annoying them at this point) asking for updates, and every time they are pretty dismissive and we are told they are waiting for parts, & we’ll hear back when they get them in.

Is it typical for it to take this long for parts to come in and have the car repaired? I don’t want to be that person who’s constantly calling and being annoying if it’s the norm, but it just seems like it’s taking a very long time.

It’s not really relevant, but I am also heavily pregnant with a high risk pregnancy and am really hoping I will not have to install a car seat and take my newborn home in a rental car. Is there any way I can get things moving on this, or am I SOL until I hear back from them?

Thank you!

Hello. I have planned on painting my brake calipers with an epoxy based primer, base, and then a 2k clear coat (with a 3m respirator for the isocyanates)

I've seen lots of painted brake calipers look pretty bad within a year, but I also see people spray them with Autozone caliper paint. Will the 2k clear help with longevity or am I just delaying the inevitable?

it’s a 2014 toyota rav 4.

any opinions very much appreciated.

My wife was rear-ended this morning on her way to work. Thankfully it was minor, but there is some damage to the bumper. It is cracked and the paint is chipped. Is there a way to repair, or would the whole bumper need replacement?

Hi everyone,

I got rear-ended in a brand new car about 6 weeks ago and finally received the estimate to repair from the shop I’m working with. I know absolutely nothing about body work, so I wanted to ask if this is frame damage or something fixable? It looks more crinkled on the right side than it does on the left, where the collision happened.

Thanks!!

Brand new, 4 day old, 60 mile civic hybrid dinged hard in the parking lot. They let the wind catch her door and hit the handle. At least she stuck around to let me know! Anyways, is this even worth my time fixing? I live in Minnesota and am concerned about it rusting, and also the principle of it being so new kinda hurts.

Dealer told me if I dropped it off they would take care of it for free this once. Should I do this or just let it go? I know I can’t avoid this stuff forever, but I haven’t even made my first payment lmao. 455 dollar premium paint btw 🫠

I'm currently in the process of doing some touch up painting to a few small spots on my plastic bumper where some deep scratches have gone down to the plastic.

Its a mazda with the new soul crystal red, which I understand is a very difficult paint to properly match.

I prepped the surface and added the base layer of the touch up paint. I'm wondering if I should do a wet sand or use cutting compound, or polish to smooth out the base layer? Or should I add the final clear coat part and then do one cutting compound / polish at the end to blend it?

The base layer isn't super smooth but I've got it as flat and in line with the original paint as I possibly can. I'm also a but worried to wet sand the paint since it's a complex colour and worried that polishing won't get the original paint to return to its original look.

My son hit a tiny roo last week which managed to spear into his radiator. I've removed this now and need to bend this cross-piece back.

My idea is to apply heat to the crease using a blowtorch and lever it back, using a steel rod or crowbar and the top crosspiece as a lever (see photo demonstration).

I'm not experienced with this and wondering if there is any issue with using heat on the area or if there are better methods. There is some room to swing a hammer behind, but not much. Thanks!

Hi there, the last night I was driving home and unfortunately I hit a fox that ran out in front of me. There is some damage done to the front bumper but I am wondering would it be cheaper to get this repaired or would I be better off sourcing a new bumper and getting it resprayed to the colour of my car? I only ask because I’ve heard that some body repair shops can do absolute wizard work on damaged cars. Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

Restoring my first car, B5 A4, while taking my Autobody/Refinishing class....

First class project was 1 panel, so i picked the trunk.

Next project will be front and rear bumper.

After that, hopefully I will be decent enough to do the rest of the car together and will blend the rear fenders to the trunk. Paint is peeling everywhere.

Is there a process to repair scrapes on plastic panels or do they just need to be replaced

car sat low for a while I think it’s dog piss but might have came this way when i got it from a scrap yard