Dent/Scratch - advice please

[TheCaseAce]

Hi

I've got a smallish dent/scratch above one of the rear wheels of my E92 3 series, and I'm hoping you lot can give me a little advice about getting it fixed. Obviously I could take it to BMW and have the panel replaced, but they quote for that is more than £500 including painting and fitting. Seems a huge outlay for a small wound.

It was caused by a cyclist trying to undertake me while I turned left rather suddenly without indicating... well, it is a BMW! To be fair, the car had just lost power and gone into 'Check Engine!' mode while going down a major London road... so looking for undertaking cyclists wasn't the top of my agenda.

Anyway - The handlebars of the bike have left an indentation which has a slight scratch as well.

Here are a couple of pictures so you can see what I mean.








Odd that the scratch and the dimple are sort of separate, isn't it?

So, I've heard of "chips away" but also heard they are crap... or at least wildly variable. They're as likely to wreck your car as fix it.

Any ideas, advice, suggestions on dealing with it?

I'm based in Altrincham, Cheshire.

TYVM.

Oh, and sorry for posting such a dirty car on a detailing forum!!!

[Vette]

I think you will find that in general, ChipsAway are not crap! Obviously, there are the odd ones who may be crap or just having a bad day, but it's not the rule.

The damage you have is well within the capabilities of any competant SMART repairer - including ChipsAway! I am not in your area, but a look at www.smartmapuk.co.uk or google 'SMART repair Altrincham' and I'm sure you will find someone. You will definitely not be paying £500!! More like £100-150.

Cheers
David
www.cardoc-cornwall.co.uk

[TheCaseAce]

Thanks.

I've nothing against Chips Away - just read a few stories on here about their variable quality. The idea of spending £100 and making it worse is not a happy one.

I'll have a look for SMART repairers.