[spanky2k]

I've got a black & white Mini Cooper and I've been looking at my wheel arches and they seem to have white kind of marks on them, not as in bright white but like greyish scuff marks. Pi**es me off actually. May have to speak to my dealer about it because they've been there since the beginning.
Do you reckon I should get them painted? I would be worried because the texture underneath the paint would be rough, so wouldn't it come off really easily? Also, how much does it cost to get them colour coded, as I may ask my dealer to get it done and to give me a reduction due to the marks that exist. Whaddaya think?

[kjs]

Quote:

Originally posted by spanky2k
I've got a black & white Mini Cooper and I've been looking at my wheel arches and they seem to have white kind of marks on them, not as in bright white but like greyish scuff marks. Pi**es me off actually. May have to speak to my dealer about it because they've been there since the beginning.

If the plastic is anything like the stuff used on the seat backs, it will scuff if you look at it the wrong way.... Could also be wax/polish.

I would think you dealer would just do that "auto-trade" drawing in of air through pursed lips, scratch his chin, express sympathay,and say "wear and tear, sir, nothing we can do" before advising you to go over it with some plastic dressing or offering to charge you a hefty some of money for them to do just that!

Post a photo, so we can see how serious a problem it is...

kjs

[MiNiGuY]

Sounds like stress marks on your spats caused by bending. In fact i'm 99.99% sure it is this from your description.

Have you tried to remove them??
Maybe someone has been pulling on them while you weren't there?? Kids most likely. (if the marks are on the back spats towards the rear of the spats, this is most likely the cause)


The stress marks are caused by the clip retainers moulded into the back of the spat. If you bend the spat by pulling on it, the clip retainers cause a small white stress mark to appear on the outside of the spat.
Once a spat is removed, its usually got stress marks all over the place and is pretty useless unless you intend to paint it.
I could give you a better idea if you posted a pic.
Tell your dealer that you've been told they are stress marks. Ask if they will replace them.
If they will only replace them at cost you could try the following:-
First i'd try using a dark grey(gray) coloured china(wax) pencil. Rub some of that into the stress mark. I reckon the chances of success are quite high.
you could try similar products to "back to black" although the spats are dark grey(gray) so it might not work unless you find a compatible product.

Lastly(for confident home mechanics, and only if a warranty repair has been refused)
A heatgun (or maybe powerful hairdryer at close range!?) should sort it out.
With the spat still on the car, if you heat the spot where the mark is, the molecular structure of the plastic will "reset" and the stress mark should disappear.
You must allow the plastic to get gradually very hot but not so much as to melt or bubble the surface pattern or distort the spat.
Protect the paint also.
I'd definately try the china pencil first though.
Hope this helps.

[monsta]

Someone said a while back that there is no way a dealer will paint your arches, under strict instruction from BMW/MINI

[MiNiGuY]

I doubt they would. They are not painted in the first place so it's not a fix "to procedure"

[pdubyab]

All my bumper, wheel-arch and sill trim went "washed out" (i.e. patchy grey like you describe) within 6 weeks of delivery last December. My dealer replaced the lot, without quibble.

The car had only ever been washed by the dealer during that 6 weeks (when it went in for the, apparently, "usual" other rectifications!). They reckoned it was caused by either their own, very high pressure, jet wash; or contaminated "dressing" applied by them, pre-delivery. It looked very much like silicone polish residue, but all-over (rather than the odd accidental smear). It started off by going streaky (vertical streaks, like a coating was being washed off), then patchy grey all over.

Obviously, it depends on the actual circumstances in your case but if you haven't knowingly done anything that could have caused it, then it's certainly worth taking it up with your dealer.

If the worst comes to the worst and it's down to you then you could replace the trim yourself - there's a thread somewhere else on this site detailing the cost (which is actually not that expensive), having tried one of the after-market dressings available - Auto Glym Bumper Care seems to get the thumbs-up from a few members.

Personally, I think painting them would be a mistake. Looks great on day one but tends to peel eventually - preparation and etching primer needs to be very thorough indeed (difficult, given the textured surface).

Hope this helps.

[spanky2k]

Thanks. I think I may have to give my dealers a call. There was also a long scratch down the back window, at the side when I collected. Not very serious, but on close inspection you do notice it. My dealer noticed it too, but I didn't say anything at the time, too excited about getting the thing on the road! I haven't washed it with a hose, high pressure or not or car wash or anything. All I've done is scrub it down with a j-cloth and a towel a few times.