Fixing small holes in the bumper??

[jksgoh]

a couple of weeks ago i noticed that my front numberplate was off centre, which was drilled in by the dealer.
anyway, i tried to ignore it, but it became quite annoying and a couple of other ppl noticed it aswell. finally measured it and its about 1.5-2cm over to the cars left.
went into the dealer today (sat) and they said that i would have to talk to the detailing guy who only comes in on weekdays, but that if they did go ahead and fix it they would fill the holes up with fibreglass and repaint either the whole bumper or just the little holes. however, to be fair they werent able to confirm anything as the detailing guy wasnt there.
was just wondering if anyone knows about this sort of fix and how good the results are?

[DTNJNQ]

Are you talking about the front plates or the bumper?

[jksgoh]

ye, sorry i meant number plate. fixed it in the above post

[cozza]

I also found that mine was off centre, luckily it's a sticker!

[amk2912]

You'd think these bozos would be able to see straight. It's not too hard to get a number plate straight. I once had the WRONG number pates put on....wasn't a BMW though.

[MikeVictor]

Maybe they should breathalyze the detailer before the next one is done. I'd almost be tempted to ask for a new bumper myself.

[jksgoh]

ye it is a bit annoying. but whats done is done i guess.
but to they're credit they have been very prompt in getting it fixed... will hopefully be dropping my car off thurs night to get it fixed up friday.

[cozza]

I'm keen to see what sort of job they do, mate. Post some closeup pics if you can.

[jksgoh]

im also really curious as to how good a job they can do, but im assuming there should be no evidence that there ever was a hole. will deff post some pics up.

[AussieRacer]

I would think that unless the incorrectly drilled holes end up behind the plate once correctly aligned, it would be hard to cover up with sanding. The reason I say that is when I pulled off my front plates recently the holes the screws go into a well and truly flared out.

[jksgoh]

at least one of the holes will not be behind the plate as they drilled at the two top most corners.
i am yet to talk to the guy who actually does the work, but what i gather is that they fill up the holes with fiberglass and repaint it. I am unsure as to how they will repaint it though..... whether it be a touch up or a full respray.

[jksgoh]

On second inspection, they done quite a terrible job. first of all the paint is a diff colour. you can see they have only painted a rectangle around the plate with the top line coinciding with the edge just above the plate. its a straight line and quite easy to see ( i guess they were thinking cause it was on the edge you wouldnt notice....) and on the sides you can see an unsmooth textured sort of pattern as they were probably trying to "blend" or taper it off...
quite disappointing, especially since i had to come down from ballarat to drop my car off. will have to see what the dealer says about this.

[jksgoh]

heres a pic of the line at the edge taken with my camera phone.
was a bit difficult to get the patchy tapered part with my camera phone, but its deff obvious with the naked eye.

[AussieRacer]

Paint changes colour as it hardens. That can take up to a month. Possibly it will match better than, but I doubt it will ever look perfect unless they do a full re-spray.

[jksgoh]

oh well...
prob should have left it, but they told me they do it all the time with their demos which have euros originally.
i will have to wait till thurs/friday to bring it in. i wonder what they will do.
i dont think i would be happy with another respray... that would be 2 sprays on an undamaged car....

[jksgoh]

i was just wondering, what do you guys think is an adequate fix in such a situation?

[SimonB]

jksgoh (what on earth does that mean, btw?), if it were me and I weren't happy with the repair job they'd done, I would want either a new replacement or a full repair and total respray of the panel concerned.

I must say, it's a bit hard for me to appreciate what the problem is from the photos you gave, perhaps an overall view and then some detailed ones may make it easier for others? I feel for you though, things like that bug the hell out of me too.

[jksgoh]

simon,
jks is my initials, goh is my surname.
i tried giving my car a good clean up and taking more photos but it was near impossible to get a photo that would do it justice.
Unfortunately, they have also painted the boot w/o my knowledge and they have done a similar poor job there too. however with the boot, it seems that the under side of the accent line has been partially filled with paint.
The dealer seems willing to fix the problem (some of the ppl there anyway, others just seem to lie straight to my face saying they cant see it, or giving me different stories as to what exactly was painted). I am yet to get back to them with what i would think would be a satisfactory fix.
So far i have been quite disappointed in the whole process... i am going to go to a reputable panel shop and ask for their opinion.

[molar]

[I'd almost be tempted to ask for a new bumper myself.[/QUOTE]

+1

I would certainly be looking for a new bumper especially if the dealer drilled holes in the wrong spots and couldn't repair it properly.

You bought a new car sans extra holes!!

[SimonB]

jksgoh, I think your chain's being yanked. Ask to speak to the Dealer Principle. If you don't get any joy there, contact BMW Australia.