Decided- Stone chips
Discussion
Further to my post last week re the decision to buy or not to buy.
I am buying and should be picking up nex week.
The car is a 2000 W Chim with 24k mile on it. It has been checked over by Rob Ingleby and he has recommended it and has a very clean bill of health.
The dealer I bought it from is just doing a service and I have asked them to Waxoil the outriggers although they do look Fine.
The car has the normal stone chips etc and I was wondering if anyone has used Chips Away .
The colour of the car is Pathfinder Blue or so I am told . How can I find out the colour code as I cant find it listed anywhere. Is it on the car (hopeful).
As a new member what a great forum this is and the knowledge all you guys seem to have. I hope not to need the techy stuff too much as it would mean that I have problems. But time will tell
Thanks
Trev
I am buying and should be picking up nex week.
The car is a 2000 W Chim with 24k mile on it. It has been checked over by Rob Ingleby and he has recommended it and has a very clean bill of health.
The dealer I bought it from is just doing a service and I have asked them to Waxoil the outriggers although they do look Fine.
The car has the normal stone chips etc and I was wondering if anyone has used Chips Away .
The colour of the car is Pathfinder Blue or so I am told . How can I find out the colour code as I cant find it listed anywhere. Is it on the car (hopeful).
As a new member what a great forum this is and the knowledge all you guys seem to have. I hope not to need the techy stuff too much as it would mean that I have problems. But time will tell
Thanks
Trev
Welcome to the forum and to the Chimaera-owning fraternity!
I gave Chipsaway a call the other month & once TVR was mentioned, the bloke just didn't want to know. I think the problem is that we tend to want to keep our cars looking good & want the repair to last. Any 'spot' repair will tend to 'bloom' after a few years (& they know that). Not a problem for the limited life/value of a Eurobox, but it is for a TVR.
The other problem is that due to the curvy nature of our cars
there is a distinct lack of intermediate straight lines to spray up to without having to do the whole panel.
If you are near Stoke, Sportmotive are doing a winter offer on front end resprays (in Sprint magazine I think) for something like £750-00. IMHO that is good value.
Cheers,
Mick
I gave Chipsaway a call the other month & once TVR was mentioned, the bloke just didn't want to know. I think the problem is that we tend to want to keep our cars looking good & want the repair to last. Any 'spot' repair will tend to 'bloom' after a few years (& they know that). Not a problem for the limited life/value of a Eurobox, but it is for a TVR.
The other problem is that due to the curvy nature of our cars
there is a distinct lack of intermediate straight lines to spray up to without having to do the whole panel.If you are near Stoke, Sportmotive are doing a winter offer on front end resprays (in Sprint magazine I think) for something like £750-00. IMHO that is good value.
Cheers,
Mick
I used chips away about a year ago and I am highly critical and restored my own cars in the past. I once took a car back from a reapir with VW 5 times till I was happy it was a perfect invisible repair.
I got them to do a scuff on a car I had owned from brand new that was prior to the bumper scuff as new. The guy did it 4 times till he got it to my satisfaction. I cant see how he made any money but he himself was also a perfectionist.
My mate them used them as he was really impressed. His wife had scuffed her 3 month old car bumper. Chips away did the repair but it wasnt good. Several attempts and repeat visits and its still poor in my opinion.
It comes down to how fussy you are and how dedicated the bloke is doing the work. Personally I need some stone chips doing on my TVR bonnet. I have had a quote of £600 for just the bonnet. For that price it would have to be spot on and mirror perfect.
I got them to do a scuff on a car I had owned from brand new that was prior to the bumper scuff as new. The guy did it 4 times till he got it to my satisfaction. I cant see how he made any money but he himself was also a perfectionist.
My mate them used them as he was really impressed. His wife had scuffed her 3 month old car bumper. Chips away did the repair but it wasnt good. Several attempts and repeat visits and its still poor in my opinion.
It comes down to how fussy you are and how dedicated the bloke is doing the work. Personally I need some stone chips doing on my TVR bonnet. I have had a quote of £600 for just the bonnet. For that price it would have to be spot on and mirror perfect.
I used Chips Away on my Lexus but wasn't at all impressed with the results on the stone chips on the bonnet; the largest one looks bloody awful but to be fair to the guy who did it, he did say he wouldn't be able to do a very good job. The repair he did to the front spoiler on the bodykit wasn't too bad but I suppose that's because he did the whole thing. He also popped a small dent on the bonnet and that wasn't at all bad.
If I was to do it again I wouldn't pay the premium for the name and just get different quotes from other SMART repairers; there are plenty of them around.
If I was to do it again I wouldn't pay the premium for the name and just get different quotes from other SMART repairers; there are plenty of them around.
Hi Guys,
I am a current SMART repairer and now specialise in Alloy wheel refurbs I still carry out bumper scuffs etc. The reason for this is that due to the extent of new cars (and old for that matter) having been painted in pearlescent's, metalic's, xirallic's etc etc it is virtually impossible to match colours invisibly unless you paint a full panel however you then may have colour differences panel to panel. It is also worthy to note that your vehicle may be painted in Sikkens or ICI and then you are trying to match with Standox for instance. There is now the issue of solvent and water base paints. You would also need to find out if the (SMART) repair is finished with single or two part lacquer. The two part giving longevity and a better finish. Single part lacqer chips too easy so is not ideal for a front end repair.
If you have only a few stone chips on a dark coloured car it is always wise to order some touch-up and then visit a model shop to buy one the smallest brushes you can, then drop the paint in the chip. This would need to be repeated many times for the paint to build up to level of the factory finish (something a SMART repairer would not have time to do) By then dropping even just one layer of lacquer on to the chip will cause the paint to darken in the chip causing it to stand out (silvers CAN NOT be touched in successfully without going darker)
In short bumper scuffs, scratches and chips can be improved upon and reduced very successfully by competant SMART repairers. Most of the time the repair will be virtually invisible if done correctly but you must appreciate that when a bodyshop quotes £250.00 to repair and paint a bumper and SMART repairer's charging £120.00 there will be a difference. A bodyshop paints in an oven with heat and dust extraction facilities a SMART repairer is usually working outside so is open to the elements. Any SMART repairer who takes on a full panel paint outside is asking for trouble. I know some who do blend a corner of a bonnet and I have done myself but a bonnet is open to anything dropping from above halfway through the process which would then ruin what may have been a very good job.
If you want a front end like new have it done at an authorised VBRA bodyshop and you should not have any issues with finish etc. Make the bodyshop aware that your car is your pride and joy and you want the job right, yes you will pay slightly more but should get the best possible result.
There are some very good SMART repairers and bodyshops out there but alas there are also some very poor ones. The best I find is to use someone recommended. Most of my private customers come through recommendations from previous customers. Be wary of franchises as sometimes that person has only had maybe a month's course to learn the process. Ask how long they have been doing repairs. I have been doing this for 7 years and earn a reasonable living and in that time I have seen lads come and go because they cut corners just to earn quick money.
I hope that will help some way to making your decision on which repair to go for. If I can of any further help to anyone just ask
TTFN
I am a current SMART repairer and now specialise in Alloy wheel refurbs I still carry out bumper scuffs etc. The reason for this is that due to the extent of new cars (and old for that matter) having been painted in pearlescent's, metalic's, xirallic's etc etc it is virtually impossible to match colours invisibly unless you paint a full panel however you then may have colour differences panel to panel. It is also worthy to note that your vehicle may be painted in Sikkens or ICI and then you are trying to match with Standox for instance. There is now the issue of solvent and water base paints. You would also need to find out if the (SMART) repair is finished with single or two part lacquer. The two part giving longevity and a better finish. Single part lacqer chips too easy so is not ideal for a front end repair.
If you have only a few stone chips on a dark coloured car it is always wise to order some touch-up and then visit a model shop to buy one the smallest brushes you can, then drop the paint in the chip. This would need to be repeated many times for the paint to build up to level of the factory finish (something a SMART repairer would not have time to do) By then dropping even just one layer of lacquer on to the chip will cause the paint to darken in the chip causing it to stand out (silvers CAN NOT be touched in successfully without going darker)
In short bumper scuffs, scratches and chips can be improved upon and reduced very successfully by competant SMART repairers. Most of the time the repair will be virtually invisible if done correctly but you must appreciate that when a bodyshop quotes £250.00 to repair and paint a bumper and SMART repairer's charging £120.00 there will be a difference. A bodyshop paints in an oven with heat and dust extraction facilities a SMART repairer is usually working outside so is open to the elements. Any SMART repairer who takes on a full panel paint outside is asking for trouble. I know some who do blend a corner of a bonnet and I have done myself but a bonnet is open to anything dropping from above halfway through the process which would then ruin what may have been a very good job.
If you want a front end like new have it done at an authorised VBRA bodyshop and you should not have any issues with finish etc. Make the bodyshop aware that your car is your pride and joy and you want the job right, yes you will pay slightly more but should get the best possible result.
There are some very good SMART repairers and bodyshops out there but alas there are also some very poor ones. The best I find is to use someone recommended. Most of my private customers come through recommendations from previous customers. Be wary of franchises as sometimes that person has only had maybe a month's course to learn the process. Ask how long they have been doing repairs. I have been doing this for 7 years and earn a reasonable living and in that time I have seen lads come and go because they cut corners just to earn quick money.
I hope that will help some way to making your decision on which repair to go for. If I can of any further help to anyone just ask
TTFN
I know of a really good "smart repairer". He used to be Chip's Away but since his franchase cam up for renewal he is now independent. He is reasonably priced and I have been happy with his workmanship. If the damage is large he has the use of a spray booth. If anyone wants his contact details send me an email.
If the front of the car resembles a pepper pot and has many chips then the best solution is a front end respray but if there are just a few chips spoiling the party then if you can get a touch up paint then you can either paint this on the chip or as I prefer to get some cellulose or other putty also know as stopper - it's very fine and can be applied with a razor blade into just the hole.
Then you paint over the 'flat' putty - OK it might need a little flatting with very fine grade wet and dry with water & washing up liquid too..
But the finished job will not notice.
Then you paint over the 'flat' putty - OK it might need a little flatting with very fine grade wet and dry with water & washing up liquid too..
But the finished job will not notice.
WOO5IE said:
The colour of the car is Pathfinder Blue or so I am told . How can I find out the colour code as I cant find it listed anywhere. Is it on the car (hopeful).
Being massively biased, I'm not going to get into any of the debate on SMART repairs, of any particular brand. Any competent repairer will advise that chip repairs short of a full repaint are always less than invisible, and the higher the metallic content in the paint, the lower the cosmetic improvement in the repair - that's the effect of physics of reflection.As regards your colour code question - Pathfinder Blue has had TVR paint codes of both "150" AND "R3295". TVR's manufacturing format and characterful paint shop make the brand known for absence of coding, human errors in coding, special order colours not reflected in reproduction databases, and other issues. The only way to get reliable (and, truth be told, when we've asked, it always has been reliable) info on what paint is on a particular car has been to call the paint shop with a chassis number. I've not had occasion to call in a couple of years though, not sure if the facility is still available.
HTH
Tol
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