Paint Chip or A Scratch? Don't Despair I'll Help You With The Repair

Your first paint chip ... It was bound to happen! A new car or a new paint job seems to be a magnet for paint chips. And it makes no difference if you park in the back 40 at the shopping mall, it's still a magnet. Been there, done that!

There's also road debris, small stones, and stuff that falls from trucks. Often it's too small to notice or it was thrown up by the vehicle in front of you. And the next time you clean your car, there it is...another chip in the paint! I'll bet you know every square inch of paint on your car and those chips stand out, glaring you right in the eye. So you gotta get it fixed right now.

You know the routine all too well. Go to your body shop and you're told, "We'll have to paint the whole door." But, it's just a little scratch in the paint! "We can't just paint a scratch. It'll cost just as much to paint the scratch as it will to paint the whole door. And besides, if we paint just the scratch it probably won't match." And then the moment you are waiting for ... "That'll cost you $400 to $500 bucks."

Suddenly you are about to lose control. It's only a paint chip! Why paint the whole door! Five hundred bucks to fix one lousy paint chip, this guy must think I am a real sucker!

First off, I'll be the first one to defend the body shop. Yes, it really does cost that much to fix a little chip in the paint. No, the guy does not think you are a sucker.

There are several reasons why the entire door must be repainted and why the paint may not be an absolute perfect match. And I'll tell you what will likely happen if you win with your persistence and get a couple of hundred dollars knocked off the bill. It’s like every thing else in life...you’ll get what you pay for.

Here's more about paint and body.