Hey, looks like someone scratched my car and ran away. It looks like someone did this on purpose as it is on the whole length of the car.

 

I was quoted £450 to fix the paint work as it is on 4 panels. Am I being scammed or does it really cost this kind of price to fix paint work?

That's nasty. I woke up to find a large scratch across the drivers door on my wifes car last year - it happened overnight whilst it was parked on the driveway. 

 

I got a couple of quoyes, chips away was £150+vat, a local body shop was £400+vat

Hi, I don't think £450 is too bad. I would say keep shopping around though before you decide on who to take it to.

My wife car ( a Nissan Pulsar has similar damage on 2 panels) and Chips Away wanted £360....no chance Id pay that sort of money.

I’d say £450 is reasonable. Generally averages between £150 and £250 a panel for a good sprayer. 

What sort of horrible person does that to a car? What is the point? Sorry to hear of that.

 

£450 doesn't sound bad to me, I would be very choosy on who does the work though. A poor colour match is going to show, so I would only entrust that to a proper body shop.

Is that a scratch or another paint colour that has been transferred from a sideswipe? The front looks like it could be, the rear not.

 

If it is then it will probably polish out.

 

If it is a scratch is it all white in colour or does it go deeper through the paint to the primer or bare metal?

 

If the former then its just the clear coat that is scratched and may well flat & polish out by someone patient & experienced, the art is not going through to the paint coat.

 

At the very least you might get it looking 90% better without any outlay.

Hey guys, thanks for the replies. 

 

After J.R. post I went to look again, and it looks like it is possibly white or silverish paint transferred: I rubbed a corner and some of it came off.

 

I guess I should just try to remove the paint and apply some wax myself.

 

When i enlarged the images most looked like that but that of the rear panel looked jagged & zigzaggy like a vandalism scratch.

 

WD40 on a soft cloth will probably remove the transferred paint, I will be stoked if you save yourself £450 and that you can blame it on a poor driver rather than someone malicious.

A bit of car detailing 'clay' would be worth a try. It's great at removing anything that is stuck to paint work. 

I can't help regarding fixing the scratch other than to say a good body shop will have it back as new. However,  in terms of the scratch that is a very consistent line. It could well be quite innocent an accident, a woman's handbag scraping against it, a ruck sack etc. I had a gouge down the side of my car once and after a week of teeth gnashing I worked out it was my wife's fault,  a screw sticking out from the lawn mower and she didn't realise it stuck out as she took it from the front garden to the back past the driveway. 

 

My point being, not every scratch is an act of vandalism. An unknowing accident is just as expensive but somehow less annoying than a deliberate scratching. 

5 hours ago, LordTyrion said:

I can't help regarding fixing the scratch other than to say a good body shop will have it back as new. However,  in terms of the scratch that is a very consistent line. It could well be quite innocent an accident, a woman's handbag scraping against it, a ruck sack etc. I had a gouge down the side of my car once and after a week of teeth gnashing I worked out it was my wife's fault,  a screw sticking out from the lawn mower and she didn't realise it stuck out as she took it from the front garden to the back past the driveway. 

 

My point being, not every scratch is an act of vandalism. An unknowing accident is just as expensive but somehow less annoying than a deliberate scratching. 

 

Posties with shoulder bags & delivery people coming down our drive between two cars have been responsible for a few light scratches on our cars. We now leave as much space between them as possible. I've widened the driveway by one flagstone on either side for exactly this reason.   

So guys, it was entirely paint transfer, except for a tiny spot where I think the collision happened.

 

Must have been something like a scooter that fell on it because he made a line that went over the back door handle and continue but did not touch the mirror.

 

I tried removing most of it using WD40 and a microfiber towel, that didn't work very well, I manage to remove most of it by rubbing a bit of it with either a nail or rubbing a bit harder with the cloth.

 

After this, there were fine lines that were probably slightly deeper, I could remove them using a magic sponge eraser.

 

Now you can barely see anything except at the point of impact where it is slightly darker for some reason.

 

I have ordered some Turtle Wax scratch repair and will apply it over.

 

 

But the thing I am the most relieved about is that it was definitely not intentional, I had a really hard couple of weeks at work, working from home since March. I feel alot better that this was just an accident.

On 17/01/2021 at 08:32, LordTyrion said:

It could well be quite innocent an accident, a woman's handbag scraping against it, a ruck sack etc. I

I found some snatches across my bonnet once. I was parked near a bowling green and I reckon it was done by the bowlers lifting their bags when they squeezed between the parked cars.

I made sure I didn't park there again!

 

Edited 18 January, 20215 yr by facet edge

Very lucky, I once had a scratch on a hire car and no  products so thought I'd try toothpaste, plain old white toothpaste and I got a good result with no comments when I dropped it off.

 

Also brought his to mind:

Vincent:
What's more chicken**** than f***ing with a man's automobile? I mean, don't f*** with another man's vehicle.

Lance:
You don't do it.

Vincent:
It's just against the rules.