stone chip's, would you buy?
Discussion
hi i am thinking of selling my 330 sport coupe, the paintwork generally is in very good condition, in fact it has had no paintwork at all, there are some stone chip's on the front bumper, bonett, and front of wings. if this was freshly painted do you think it would put a potential buyer off ? some people prefer original, or would it be better to see no chips at all. i dont want the car to look tarted for sale or worse people thinking it has had a front end smack. i must add it will only cost me materials and my time as i am a painter by trade. your thoughts would be appreciated regards jeff.
Depends on the age and milage of your car. I think a few stone chips on a second hand car are OK - especially if it is a light colour. A leading edge covered in them suggests a car driven hard on the motorway too close to other people - and that would put me off. Some neat touch up work should be fine. What price will you car be selling for? And what colour is it?
belleair302 said:
get the bonnet, bumper, and wings repainted. A couple of hundred quid and the car will sell quickly if the work is done well.
A quality, full front-end respray for two(ish) hundred notes? There aren't many places offering that (particularly if quality is emphasised).Plus, the OP's profile lists him as a self-employed panel beater/sprayer. If it needs doing, why not simply DIY?
Tol
Edited for spealingg
Edited by Anatol on Thursday 26th June 07:05
Having been through the motions of recent car shopping I'm more than happy to take on a car with stone chips on its original paint provided it's not too severe as this suggests that it's been driven constantly at warp speed. Not necessarily a bad thing but it indicates a lack of mechanical sympathy. Prepare to be haggled down if this is the case.
On the other hand fresh paint can be alluring provided it's been done to a high standard. As long as I can be sure that the car hasn't had an undeclared front end smash at some point it shows to me that the owner cared enough to get it sorted and the rest of the car should be equally as fastidious as a result.
On the other hand fresh paint can be alluring provided it's been done to a high standard. As long as I can be sure that the car hasn't had an undeclared front end smash at some point it shows to me that the owner cared enough to get it sorted and the rest of the car should be equally as fastidious as a result.
Any new BMW, 1 series, E90, E60 etc. etc. are absolutely covered with stone chips, even at 12 months old. I think it is part and parcel of buying a used car.
I wouldn't mind if they had a few, but would prefer it if they had been sorted, if you say it has been done because of chips I can't see the problem myself, anyone who expects a perfect car and doesn't want to even look at it because of such things I would rather didn't anyway, those types are generally more hassle than it is worth.
If you want perfect buy brand new and loose £20k over 3 years.
I wouldn't mind if they had a few, but would prefer it if they had been sorted, if you say it has been done because of chips I can't see the problem myself, anyone who expects a perfect car and doesn't want to even look at it because of such things I would rather didn't anyway, those types are generally more hassle than it is worth.
If you want perfect buy brand new and loose £20k over 3 years.
thanks for the replies guys it gives me something to think about, the car is titan silver and has done 78,000 mls , silver doesnt look too bad touched up, the problem i have is with originality plus when you paint cars for a living its sometimes hard to get enthusiastic about your own car. ps. im probaly going to ask around the 9-10k mark.
gizlaroc said:
Any new BMW, 1 series, E90, E60 etc. etc. are absolutely covered with stone chips, even at 12 months old. I think it is part and parcel of buying a used car.
Seconded - BMW's current paints have the durability of chocolate. I bought an AUC E61 8 months ago that the dealer had resprayed to clean up the stone chips. In 12K miles it has more stone chips than my previous E46 328i has in 10 times the miles!Edited by phelix on Friday 27th June 19:24
MitchT said:
Stone chips would only put me off if they were so deep that there was a risk of rust. Paintwork would be more likely to put me off as, like you say, it might imply a collision unless it was so perfectly executed that there was no evidence whatsoever that the paint had been repaired.
do you know anyone who can do a paint job that well? BMW themselves cant.dxb335d said:
MitchT said:
Stone chips would only put me off if they were so deep that there was a risk of rust. Paintwork would be more likely to put me off as, like you say, it might imply a collision unless it was so perfectly executed that there was no evidence whatsoever that the paint had been repaired.
do you know anyone who can do a paint job that well? BMW themselves cant.dr matt uk said:
dxb335d said:
MitchT said:
Stone chips would only put me off if they were so deep that there was a risk of rust. Paintwork would be more likely to put me off as, like you say, it might imply a collision unless it was so perfectly executed that there was no evidence whatsoever that the paint had been repaired.
do you know anyone who can do a paint job that well? BMW themselves cant.my sisters bmw was sideswiped by a lorry comming off a slip road, it was repaired by an approved bmw bodyshop who also do the local porsche dealership cars, the quality of both the panel work and paintwork was awfull, it went back twice to be rectified but was still no good, in the end it went to another bodyshop out of the area and the approved bodyshop footed the bill.
jonny finance said:
Originality is key. To be able to advertise your car as having had NO paintwork is a major attribute and will always interest a keen buyer.
I'd rather buy a car with immaculate, fresh paintwork than one with tired, 6 year old stonechipped paintwork any day of the week.I was most pleased when the previous owner of mine informed me that unfortunately a year previously his wife had backed into the front of the car on their driveway and it had to have a full front end respray. Meant the car was immaculate.
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