Just a thought - I've had this happen, too. Talk to a large dealership's (any brand as long as its a big place) service department. They usually have a person who travels between dealerships and operates from his vehicle to "detail" small imperfections in new and used cars (dealers get cars keyed, too). Those kind of folks can usually do a very good job of fixing this without haovng to repaint the entire car. I have no idea of their costs, but it has to be better than a respray of the whole car.

 

Wow, this stinks. Sorry that happened but hope it's fixed soon.

 

1. Check your yellow pages or do a little google searching for auto scratch repair .... there are places out their in the 'burbs that do this without repainting the entire car or side of the car. There are many methods that can be used including airbrushing. I would NOT rely on the dealer for advice on this - I might ask, but don't take it as THE answer as most dealerships farm out their body work having no body shop of their own. Investigate your options. A total repaint can cost $500 or $5000 and you get what you pay for. Metalic paint alone can cost over $500 to do the two sides and then there is the clear on top of that, plus the labor . . . I've shot paint, it adds up fast!

2. A lil' late now but you might ask your insurance what the premium difference is 'tween what you have and a zero deductable on your comprehensive. While for collision this is usually significant I found the difference for 3 drivers - one a male teen - and 3 cars to be pennies a day, changing from $250 comp deductable to zero .. under $50 a year. Having replaced two windshields at $300+ the year I asked it was a no brainer. Your insurance may differ but it costs nothing to ask....

 

thanks everyone for the great advice! i definitely need to talk to my insurance company about lowering my deductible.

yesterday i took Snowflake to a neighborhood auto shop and then straight to the MINI dealer. both said that the key marks are too deep to buff out and my only option is to sand down the paint around the scratches & repaint both doors entirely as well as the rear quarter panel on the passenger's side. both quoted me $800 dollars.

the dealer said that the scratch marks are too thin to be key marks. i've pondered restlessly over the possibility that myself or a friend may have accidentally did this during my big move. but this also seems unlikely because 1. didn't move any sharp objects, 2. if the scratches are down to the sheet metal, i'm positive i would have heard it loud & clear. i'm relieved that there is a possibility Snowflake wasn't intentionally violated. will upload pictures as soon as i get Snowflake back from the shop so let me know what you guys think! this is definitely a big fat mystery.

my feelings right now is that i'm very reluctant to repaint the whole doors b/c she is still so new & lovely if you just put band-aids over the 3 foot long boo boo (3 months old yesterday) and i don't believe she'll ever look the same no matter what the dealer say. what concerns me is one of the marks goes down to the sheet metal, i've asked many auto-repairmen and got very mixed opinions about whether it will rust or not. if it wont rust, i might hold off on re-painting snowflake and explore other options that you guys have mentioned, like taking her to a detail shop...or airbrushing?? or self-painting on a clear coat to protect her from the winter??

 

I could not sleep until my car was repaired. They can sand and repaint the damage and you will never know it was ever scratched. Dealers and body shops repair worse damage then keying and if you did not see the damage before you would never know it was there in the first place. Scratches and dents happen a lot in the shipping of a brand new vehical. They repair the damage and it is just like new. If your going to let this slide you will probably let other things slide and you will end up with a piece of junk rat car. Spend the $$$ and get it fixed.

 

I'm not sure I understand your dilemma...

If you repaint both whole doors and panel, specially since she's such a new car and the original paint hasn't faded or changed color from years and years of use, it will probably match 100% with the rest of the car. Pay the deductible of $500 and have the insurance do the $800 job!

if you wait, apply some coat to try to avoid rusting or try a quick, easy solution with a detail or airbrush... That sounds like a band-aid and the chances of the color not matching are much much higher!!
If God forbid and rust starts in the car, you'll have to pay out of your pocket to fix because then the insurance company will definitely not cover.

Remember - Sometimes the cheap solution is the most expensive!!

 

I'm interested in seeing your photos, but for now I just can't imagine you will be satisfied with anything less than a full pro repaint.

 

if you like the car as much as you say you do take it to a reputable auto repair and let them fix it. There would not be any doubt in my mind what I would do. You will not be able to repair it yourself, it will look bad!!

 

Could not agree more!

 

hmmm i spoke with one of the car salesman at the MINI dealership who recommended the repainting and he said the difference in color will only be visible if you look at her from the side! that wasn't comforting to me at all !

im really torn, on one side seeing the scratches just kills me and i want to erase them immediately, but on the other side, the scratches are so thin & so low to the ground that I'm afraid the new paint job will look more unnatural in comparison you know?

maybe i am underestimating the skills of pro-car painters but i need to be absolutely certain she'll be back the way she was.

 

if you pay $100 to fix it, you will see the fix

if you pay $5000, you MIGHT not

 

I think you are underestimating the skills of pro-car painters. I've had touch ups in a car (not the whole panel) that after the job it was impossible for me to find the scratch.

You are over-thinking. No paint job (whole panel/sanding/ etc) done professionally will look more unnatural than the scratches you have now.

Maybe you just need to talk to a different person in the body shop... ask for pictures of previous jobs they have done... sounds like you just need so reassurance

have you open the claim yet?

 

Take a look at this thread -

https://www.northamericanmotoring.co...le-repair.html

It has a happy ending thanks to Mark.

Mark - orangecrush - Helped to fix the lady's car... He seems a really great guy... He's far from you, but if you get in touch with him with pictures of your issue, I'm sure he can reassure you how well the job can be done.

 

thanks alot CocoFab, i definitely need to consult orangecrush

i'm willing the pay whatever the price Capt Bj - im not sure how the insurance comp will feel about a $5k paint job but i'll fight it to the death..

 

I used to work in a custom paint/restoration shop. We sometimes did scratch and ding repair for old customers.

Your MINI salesman does not know what he's talking about, the scratches will be undetectable from any angle, when the repairs are completed.

Dave

 

You're welcome.
Please do. If you have time read the whole thread. Long story short - She was devastated with the job done by the dealer, after getting suggestions from orangecrush (Mark), she decided to drive the car all the way to him to get it fixed and she praised him A LOT.

The insurance company will not settle for a 5k job... You'll probably have to provide 3 or 4 estimates and they'll give you an OK to go to one of them. Just make sure you are comfortable/confident with the job that will be provided by any of those estimates

 

Check this thread as well -

https://www.northamericanmotoring.co...got-keyed.html

 

Insurance company telling you to "settle" for an inferior paint job? I'm sorry, what is the point of having insurance? NO, you need to demand that you want your car back to its original condition. Working in the body shop business, I can tell you that repainting the sides of Snowflake will cost much more than your deductible cost, especially if you go to a reputable shop that does warrantee work. Getting "keyed" causes alot of damage. Trust me, I repair 3-5 keyed cars a month. Get a police report, file a claim, and get your car fixed properly. And if you feel like it, find yourself another insurance company that doesn't recommend "inferior fixes".

 

AMEN!!!!

 

+1

You pay good money to the insurance company for their services. THEY should be working for YOU, not the other way around!

 

Back in 2004, my Solid Gold Cooper got hit with a rock while I was traveling down I-10. It put a nice scratch above the fog light all the way down to the black plastic. Took the car to the guy that I call my personal painter. I had 2 options. 1, I could have the whole bumper repainted for $350, or 2, he could blend in the area. I chose number 2. His only warning was that I'd be able to tell where the area was repaired. I dropped the car off, and when I came back the next evening I was stunned. He kept pointing to the area saying "There's the line where the new paint area is." I couldn't see anything. The car still took first place in a couple of shows. The job only cost me $60. I thought it'd be hard to do anyway being that the paint was Solid Gold. The point is, if you find the right painter, they can fix the scratches without repainting the entire doors and it's not that expensive. Sorry this happened to you.

 

I agree with Fatherdeth to a degree.

Having worked in a body shop for a few years, I will tell you that blending a bumper out (with all of the angles and lines) is much, much easier than blending a door out. A door or a fender or quarter is mainly flat, which makes it much easier to see any type of touch up. So, while it may work on a bumper, it would take one heckuva body guy/painter to make a line disappear without repainting the entire door.

I'm guessing that a reputable shop that will do a great job, will end up costing around $1200 to fix both sides.
Get ahold of orangecrush (Mark) and then get ahold of your insurance company.

 

As they say on another car forum I frequent, "It's just a car."

I sympathize with the OP. Within a week's ownership of my CPO 2006 MCS, it was keyed on three different panels. This MINI is the first car I've ever owned that someone bothered to key. I guess I'm mellowing out, because it didn't upset me as much as I thought it would. I went cheap and fixed it myself - got sandpaper, clearcoat, rubbing compound, scratch-fix kit, and a substitute color that was close to Pepper white, but not quite (Wimbledon White from Autozone, IIRC). You can still see the fix, but from three feet away, it's hard to find. It was a good experience, good quality time to spend with the car.

Good luck with the fix, and don't dwell on it.

 

Hey guys! i just spoke again with my insurance agent and she said the "Adjuster" will pay Snowflake a visit and determine how much $$ the damages are worth. this disturbs me. according to Farmers, lets say this Adjuster decides itll cost only 800 to fix her up "decently", if i want to spend $1600 to restore her to her original condition, the rest is out of pocket! arghhhh

on a side note, has anyone had work done or heard good things about Carnica's or Birkholz ??? both shops are located in Naperville (SW suburb of chicago close to Bill Jacobs MINI). Im awfully confused because i talked to a really nice MINI Salesmen and he highly reccomended Carnica's and made no mention of Birkholz. Then i spoke with the a service man at MINI dealer and he was 100% pushing Birkholz since my insurance is supposedly covering the rest after my 500$ deductible.

It's great to read everyone's advice & kind words. Thanks so much- this whole fiasco would be much more unpleasant without your help!

 

Jun, I don't know how Farmers work, but from my understanding an Insurance Company will not come to your car and just say "We can fix this damage for X amount of money, take it or leave it"...

The adjuster will look at your car, take pics, send to their contract body shop and have an estimate to make sure it's more than your deductible.

Based on that estimate, you can compare the job they would be doing to the one you would like to be done and you can start a negotiation...

If they come saying "we're going to touch up here and there", you can argue that you don't want ANY touch ups and want the WHOLE panel to be repainted to avoid lines and visual differences in the paint.

Of course you cannot say "I want to repaint the WHOLE car"

And you may not even have to argue at all if the job they estimate includes the whole panel to be repainted.

If push comes to shove, you can fight and argue you're going to cancel your Police and go to another insurance company... It will cost them much less to agree in having the panels repainted (no touch up) than to get a new client.

Hope this helps,