[iaminvis]

Hello guys, today I scratched my front bumper in the parking lot
What would be my best option for this type of damage?

[E44]

Replace the entire car.

Honestly if it is not too deep try buffing it out or take it to a reputable body shop to have it taken care of.

[lfdal54]

If that's the bumper primer showing and not a transfer from what you hit (or what hit you) unless you've done a lot of spray work you're better off heading to a body shop. A really good body shop should be able to blend that IMO after smoothing it out. My guess is they'll want to re-shoot the entire bumper.

[alex2364]

Go to a body shop and get it repainted. Highly recommend D&V Masters since you’re in the DMV. http://www.dandvautobody.com/masters/

[spangle1980]

I had almost exactly the same. I thought some cutting agent would work but it was rough to the touch. Had the whole area re-sprayed by a top bloke in UK / Skipton - £175. He was brilliant (mobile).

[Admiral]

Try Maguires Scratch removal first before going to a bodyshop (pricey), I had a nasty scratch on my wing mirror, recommended Maguires,tried it, job done, you would not know I had a bad scratch

[Gritty]

Originally Posted by spangle1980

I had almost exactly the same. I thought some cutting agent would work but it was rough to the touch. Had the whole area re-sprayed by a top bloke in UK / Skipton - £175. He was brilliant (mobile).

There are typically mobile scratch and dent folks the service the dealerships. The cost at an auto body will be about $1,500 and look great. They'll remove the bumper and respray it - That repair may also show up on carfax?

I've seen these mobile scratch and dent folks do good work blending a scratch like that for about $200-$300. Maybe worth asking the dealer who they use and when they come around?

[lfdal54]

Originally Posted by Gritty

There are typically mobile scratch and dent folks the service the dealerships. The cost at an auto body will be about $1,500 and look great. They'll remove the bumper and respray it - That repair may also show up on carfax?

I've seen these mobile scratch and dent folks do good work blending a scratch like that for about $200-$300. Maybe worth asking the dealer who they use and when they come around?

If you pay out of pocket with no claim, it's not likely to show on CarFax or any of the other services. If you claim it, it still may not show if the cost is low enough. Not sure of the threshold on that.

[iaminvis]

Originally Posted by Admiral

Try Maguires Scratch removal first before going to a bodyshop (pricey), I had a nasty scratch on my wing mirror, recommended Maguires,tried it, job done, you would not know I had a bad scratch

I will try this first… thank you!

[Opie55]

Originally Posted by iaminvis

I will try this first… thank you!

Don't waste your money. Those photos show you are at least through the clearcoat, or at the very least the clearcoat is very roughed up. A hand applied polish like that mentioned will do nearly nothing. It might look a bit better simply because the oils in the polish will sit in the abrasions for a while, but if you want it to look good you almost certainly need to get it painted. But at a minimum you should go to a detailer that does paint correction and ask if machine polishing will help at all. There is only so much we can tell from those photos. I do all my own paint correction including wet sanding, and that looks to be a non-starter.

[iaminvis]

Originally Posted by Opie55

Don't waste your money. Those photos show you are at least through the clearcoat, or at the very least the clearcoat is very roughed up. A hand applied polish like that mentioned will do nearly nothing. It might look a bit better simply because the oils in the polish will sit in the abrasions for a while, but if you want it to look good you almost certainly need to get it painted. But at a minimum you should go to a detailer that does paint correction and ask if machine polishing will help at all. There is only so much we can tell from those photos. I do all my own paint correction including wet sanding, and that looks to be a non-starter.

It looks like the upper portion needs legit work and lower portion is very minor scratch.
This is after cleaning the damaged surface.

[lfdal54]

Probably worth taking it to a PDR place first to see if the can get what appears to be the small dent at the top out. Then see if you can find a place that can do blend work, often PDR places offer that as an adjunct service.

If you want the easiest way out, although not the cheapest, basically a one-and-done, just go to the body shop.

[rob175]

FIRST.....I would try a good "cleaner" wax and a soft terry cloth towel and "elbow grease". At the very least that will remove any paint that was transferred to your bumper from the other vehicle or obstacle.

You might get lucky and it could look good after doing that.....but if not, then I'd do it the proper way (after all its a new car so make it perfect spend the $$ and consider it lesson learned) and have a good body shop work on it. If that's the route you take, most shops just pull off your bumper cover abd "exchange it" for a clean one that they paint to match the car.

There's a whole industry out there that refinishes damaged bumper covers. And remember in most light cases its only the COVER they take off not the whole bumper system.

[titomi]

The top acratch definitely painting. Had similar, took it to a detailer, did a good job but you can still see it, if you look closely He said, that only way to have it properly fixed, is to paint it.