Keyed!!! Now What?

[K.K.]

Last night, some complete *&%^$&^?@# decided to key one side of my Tam from the back up to, and including, the driver's door! OK, I'm trying to be stoic and say, that's life but, well it's saaad and very annoying! Anyway, I want to get it sorted asap but I need advice. Hope someone out there can help:

1. Colour is GTS Blue. Can I take it to any body shop or must it be a TVR Specialist?
2. Will the whole side have to be re-sprayed or can they just touch up the scratch itself (and if so will it not show afterwards?)
3. I think my insurance carries a £400 excess but I have my No Claims Bonus protected is it worth putting it through the insurers or will next year's premium soar anyway?
4. How much do you think it will cost?

Cheers
KK

>> Edited by K.K. on Thursday 8th December 13:17

[kipper_]

Really sorry to hear about the car. I never have understood the type of mentality thay can do this.

Any good bodyshop can match the paint and should be able to blend in the keyed area, I could recomend one in Nottingham but that would be no use to you.

Someone will no doubt be along shortly to recommend a good bodyshop in your area

[dangros]

Sad news, it happened to me a few months ago all the way from front to back. I ended up getting a full respray for the rear wing, door, and all the front in the end to get a good finsish, but came in at £850 at a main dealer with Rolex Blue (pearl). I was on the border of claiming on insurance but didn't due to excess and the fact that it would have been my last claim with protected NCB.

You may be able to get away with a cheaper repair depending on the damage done. They were kind enough to gouge a nice ravine into my car so no short cuts were possible.

Ended up looking good as new, with stone chips fixed as well so some good came of it.

[Tyre Smoke]

Bad luck mate.

In answer to your questions, any competent body shop will be able to sort it. Probably not a respray job, but hard to tell without inspecting damage. further, can't say how much it will costs fo the same reason.


Worth trying one of those plastic surgeon type people - cheaper than a major bodyshop job and invisible repair.

Don't make a claim unless you really have no choice. Protected NCB is all very well, but the fact you made a claim makes you a higher risk. Ergo excuse for premium renewal to go through the roof.

[rev-erend]

It might be worth calling those 'chips away' style of repairers..
they are cheaper than normal places.

[steve11]

Sorry can't help with advise, but here's hopeing they burn in hell.

[RUSSELLM]

You could email some picture to Ewelme coachworks, they can give you an idea, they're near the wycombe junction on the M40.

[Wildfire]

A good body shop shoukd be able to sort it out, they sould be able to blend the panels in. Probaby around £500 or so depending on how large and deep the scratch it. I hate people who do this sort of thing. Other people say "it's only jealousy." But it's also the price and it's like being attacked personally. Some one keyed my little brothers 1989 Mini last week, right down to the metal. Bs!!

>> Edited by Wildfire on Thursday 8th December 17:03

[AlexB]

It may be a bit further than you want to travel, but it may be worth contacting

www.austecbodyworks.co.uk/

They are based in Crawley and they do work on a lot of TVRs - only used them for the mechanical side of my Chim, but they were very good!

Alex

[bobd]

What an absolute tosser! It gets my back up big time when this kind of thing happens Police cant do anything, you bear the cost and insurance could go up if you claim. If caught should be offered as an exchange prisoner for the poor guys in Iraq.

[madbadger]

Can't help, KK, but sorry to here that.

Hope you can sort it fairly easily.

[cerbagriff]

I was in a similar situation when a truck hit my Cerb and the driver did a runner. I decided to pay up myself as the cost of the paint and labour to make a good job blew the excess. I used a specialist in Guildford (down the A3) who blended and matched the paint (Iris Blue) very well, you cant see the repair at all. He wasn't cheap - but cheaper than the dealers. Call Richard on Riverside Motors 01483 532331. Hope this is of some help.

[griff2be]

I can recommend Ewelme Coachworks. They are GRP specialists and have done a lot of work on my race cars - they always turn out immaculate no matter what damage I've done to them They also do raod cars Can't recommend them highly enough

[K.K.]

Thanks for all the support. Can't help feeling gutted every time I see the scratch, but what can you do? Had her washed today so at least she looks cooool from the passenger side! I will probably have the work done after Christmas, but boy I need the expense like a hole in the head!!!

[Wacky Racer]

If it's any help Neil (Chim 450) had his pale blue Tuscan keyed from end to end a couple of years ago and "Chipsaway" sorted it FAIRLY cheaply....

Perfect job as well....

[TheLemming]

How deep is the keying?

Depending on how deep the scratch itself is, you might well be able to fix it yourself.

My Mum's BMW cabrio was keyed in a quite wide / relatively deep gash all the way along along one side, it took me most of a weekend but it polished out with utterly no sign of it ever having been attacked.

[K.K.]

Fortunately it's not very deep. Its only down to the white primer I think. Hopefully it can be sorted out more easily than I first feared.

It's funny really but only recently I had my wheels fully refurbished, I had my glove box lid fixed at last so it now closes perfectly, I was so happy that I had no more niggles to worry about and, like a slap in the face, some b**tard changed that over night!

It's Hamlet time...