Options2k

Earlier, I posted when my car got keyed.

A local body shop/detailer worked on this scratch....here are the results:

Scratch


Scratch - fixed


Close up of the scratch


Close up - after fix


I am thoroughly impressed by his work. Now, he is working on the whole car....to remove the swirls and fine scratches.

Thanks for all the advice I received here. This is a great forum.

antigeek

Are you in the Dallas area? If so, would you PM me their name (or post it here)?

jimmer!

what did it all cost you?
how long did it take?

deadeyed

Amazing! I've some scratches on side skirt would need some of that magic! Do you know their procedure? Thanks!

scorpio74

That's amazing! Yeah, do let us know what method was used.

Peter_Klim

Can't even tell the scratch was there! You can also tell the surrounding area's micro scrathces were also removed! Your entire ride will look soooooooooooooo sweet when it's done!

Options2k

Antigeek: The shop is about 60 miles south of Houston, near the coast.

Jimmer: I left the car in the morning and got it back in the afternoon. He told me that the whole process took about 3 hours. I don't know how much he would charge just for the scratch. My deal is the scratch plus remove the swirls/micro scratches from the whole car for $200.

Deadeyed and Scorpio74: I don't know the process exactly so can't tell you much. All I know is that he may have used clearcoat to "fill" the scratch, then sand it down with a fine paper and finally buffed the whole fender using some compound. The "sanding down" part is scary to me. However, he did tell me that he fixes clearcoat scratches on a lot of high end cars. By his account, the clearcoat on Toyotas is pretty thick. If the scratch made it to the metal then painting the part is unavoidable.

Peter: Yes, you are right. The PS rear fender feels smoooooooth now. I can't wait to see the car when he is done with the rest of it......tomorrow.

I am glad I stayed with "fixing the scratch" rather than jumping to the painting option. You guys provided tremendous support.

Peter_Klim

Only $200 for the ENTIRE car?? That's an incredible deal! Heck, detailing the car alone can sometimes cost that much! I should find out who does them in So Cal...

scdroptop

iTrader: (1)

Whoa! Tell him to take a road trip up 35/45 to Dallas and we'll put him to work!!!

Congrats! I am very happy for you.

huy33

$200 for the entire car is too cheap unless it's from someone trying to make a name for themselve. Make sure you pull the car out in full sunlight to make sure they did a good job.

Also try washing the car (not run it through the carwash) and then pull it out in full sunlight to make sure they actually fixed instead of just hid it.

But then again $200/3 hours = just under $70/hour and that's a pretty good rate.

dag8882

wow!! great job. whats the name of the place, ill be in Houston the week after next & Id luv to get my ride de-swirled. PM me his info if u get a chance. thanks in advance.

Options2k

I got my car back today. Looks much better....shinnnnny. At close look...I could still see some very fine scratches but nowhere close to what I left it with. Also, the surface was a lot more smooth. Here are a couple of quick pictures that I took after the ride home.



Another one:



I understand it is hard to compare as I don't have recent pictures of the car but I can say that the car looks much better. More importantly, I am a happy camper.....the scratch is (almost) invisible and I didn't have to go through insurance to get the fender/door painted.

Now to the questions: Yes, I paid him $200. My main deal was to remove the scratch from the fender and the PS door. However, he (himself) included the removal of other visible fine scratches as I have known him for more than 10 years......and, he just did a semi-major job on my LX. So, I am sure this figured into what all he did on my SC for the money.

One more thing, he told me that he can fix clearcoat scratches on dark/solid colors....not the metallic colors (?).

I will send pm to the people who have expressed interest in the shop. I don't know if it's OK to post it here!

FYI...the shop has been in business for 30+ years.

Cheers.

Options2k

Thanks. Your encouragement was a big factor in my decision. My insurance agent (who is also my friend) had all the paper work done to turn in the claim....But I told him to wait! He hasn't seen the car today as he is in Dallas for the whole week. I can't wait to see his face when he sees the car on Monday!

"Tell him to take a road trip up 35/45 to Dallas and we'll put him to work!!!" I actually mentioned this to him today!

Cheers.

VVTiBob

Love the bra on black!

deadeyed

Congratulation!!