[MiniShuttle]

Finally, the rest of the story. The drivers door of my car was damaged in transit. They replaced the door. It should be at the dealer sometime next week (after 3 weeks at VPC). I can take it or pass and reorder. I'm not sure if they're offering a January deliver or January build. Either way won't matter since I am short a car having sold the Miata two weeks ago. I don't think I can wait.

Now, what to do. We've had the discussion here about it still being new and warranted. I need to know how good the repair job was. What do I look for? fit and spacing. I'd hope that it was painted without any trim and not just taped. How can I tell if they painted it the same way? It's Indi Blue, so that's metallic paint under clearcoat, right? If they had to spray the whole side should I pass? I can't imagine it ever being as good as new. If they just painted the door, did a good job, lined everything up well. What else?

I'm looking for opinions and guidance here. Please help?

[smiffy]

At least the dealer admitted it was damaged, check the car over & if your happy with it, take it You yanks worry too much

[Willy]

I am being told a January delivery at Flow Mini. In fact, as of 3:00 today they have an Indi blue one on the lot (unless it is your damaged one). They were holding it for me, but I decided to patiently wait on my red one.

[RickB]

My car was damaged during delivery (at the dealer), and I decided that I would take the car (rather than the offered demo car, or a four-month wait) if the repaired damage was undetectable. My car has a black roof, so I was confident I could detect any defects. It looked better than the factory-painted cars on the lot, the repairs came with a life-time warranty, so I took delivery. 3000 miles later, I don't even think about it. Since the entire roof was repainted, I didn't have to worry about blending, which you will have to, since you are talking about a panel that was painted separately from the panels on either side. If you can't tell it was repaired, neither can anyone else; it'll be your little secret!

[JaridP]

I wouldn't worry too much. They do a great job down at the VPC. They have the right equipment down there to do just about anything. I have seen the ports work before and you cant even tell where the problem was in the first place!!

[Jim Ray]

When we toured the BMW plant in South Carolina last week, they pointed out that they are the VPC for the South East area. I talked to several of the techs who work the new MINI checkout area.

Don't see how you could get any better repair than factory BMW.

[PghArch]

My car was help up for three weeks at the VPC due to what turned out (apparently) to be scratches on the rear hatch. In any case, if they were there before they are undetectable now. I'm sure my ownership of the car is much more hazardous to it than any potential future problems with the repair job.

Look the car over, if the repair was done well then take it.

[suprchrgdmini]

If you told me that they used bondo to fix it then i would wait, but since they replaced the door i wouldnt worry. From what ive seen at my local mini dealer they seem to do a very good job painting the cars.

[MiniShuttle]

Thanks everone. Encouraging words and some things to look for. The car should be in this week. I told the dealer I'd come take a look. I still have some reservations about how the new paint will age with the original, but as you've said, VPC is a BMW plant. If anyone has the formulas and application right it should be them. I'll let you know how it turns out.

[CurtP]

Personally, I wouldn't accept it. It would always linger in the back of mind, and it would never be right, no matter how good of a job they did. Plus, I doubt that the new paint will weather the same as the rest of the paint because what they use at the VPC won't be the exact same type of paint (there's a good chance that it's not even from the same manufacturer). Probably the only way they could talk me into it is if they had a door painted at the factory, shipped over and installed.

[JaridP]

Quote:

Originally posted by CurtP
Personally, I wouldn't accept it. It would always linger in the back of mind, and it would never be right, no matter how good of a job they did. Plus, I doubt that the new paint will weather the same as the rest of the paint because what they use at the VPC won't be the exact same type of paint (there's a good chance that it's not even from the same manufacturer). Probably the only way they could talk me into it is if they had a door painted at the factory, shipped over and installed.

The paint IS the same! It's the BMW processing center. Its not like they go to Maco and get the door painted. The repairs MUST meet factory standars. Also if the damage was too severe they are obligated to crush the car and start over. I dont think that this car was damaged too bad and I bet when it gets here you will not even be able to notice what door was fixed

[CurtP]

Quote:

Originally posted by JaridP
The paint IS the same! It's the BMW processing center. Its not like they go to Maco and get the door painted. The repairs MUST meet factory standars. Also if the damage was too severe they are obligated to crush the car and start over. I dont think that this car was damaged too bad and I bet when it gets here you will not even be able to notice what door was fixed

The paint won't be the same -- the composition of the paint that they use at the VPC will be different and it can't be applied in the same way as the factory paint. Here's the factory procedure:

Quote:

The eight-stage process starts with pre-treatment. This washes the bodyshell to remove all debris and then coats it with zinc phosphate to improve corrosion resistance.

This is followed by the electropaint stage where the body is immersed in a large tank of paint with an electric charge applied, typically 300 volts and 800 amps. This causes the paint to be attracted to the whole structure, inside and out and is critical in the corrosion proofing of the vehicle. This form of painting is very efficient and more than 90 percent of all paint is used directly on the car. The residual paint is returned to the main tank and washing liquids are cleaned and reused. The car is then baked in an oven to cure the paint.

The third stage is seamsealing, underbody coating and sound deadening. The paint shop is responsible for ensuring water does not penetrate into the car and for taking steps to minimise sound transmission to the passenger compartment. Seam sealer is applied both manually and by robots along all critical seams. Underbody protection is also applied robotically to protect the underside from stone and other road damage and also provide some sound deadening. However the main deadening process is the application of heavy pads to specific areas of the interior which alter the acoustic properties of the car and are highly effective in dampening sound.

During the surfacer process specific colours are applied to the bodies to enhance the final colour coat and for further protection. The surfacer is applied to all visible surfaces, inside and out with electrostatic equipment to improve transfer efficiency of the paint. The type of paint used has a high solids content and also improves resistance to stone chips. Following this process the car body is baked in an oven.

The final colour coat application is applied by both manual application and automatic spray machines. To prepare the car for painting any imperfections are first removed by light sanding. Any dust is removed firstly by compressed air and then by wiping the body with a sticky cloth. As a final cleaning process the body passes through a "feather duster machine". This is similar to a car wash, but with sets of feathers mounted on rollers which rub gently against the car, removing all traces of dust. The colour coat paint is water-based, using an emulsion of micro gels, dispersed in an aqueous solution. Infrared is used to drive the water off within the paint film.

The clear coat gives the body a uniform gloss through a special grade of paint called 2K, which uses a catalyst to cure the paint and to minimise overall solvent emissions. A further heat treatment follows the clear coat.

The contrast roof facility uses a simple robotic system to apply a white or black roof, as specified by the customer to MINI COOPER bodyshells after the main colour has been painted.

Cavity wax is applied as the final stage in the corrosion resistance process to all hollow sections where water could collect. The bodyshell is heated to make the wax fluid and then rocked back and forth to ensure the wax penetrates all critical areas.

Throughout the paint process stringent quality standards are imposed and inspection takes place under special, intense lighting conditions. The location of each bodyshell is known through a camera tracking system which reads the car's individual barcode.

This also allows orders to be changed and production sequences to be altered to give maximum manufacturing flexibility. The total time taken to protect and paint the bodyshell is 10 hours.

I guarantee that they don't go through all the same procedures at the VPC (because they can't, different type of environment), and the paint won't be baked at as high a temprature. I know for a fact that they're not going to use an electrostatic painting procedure. I'm not even convinced that they even do any painting at the VPC itself, it may very well be contracted out to a local body shop. AFAIK, the VPC is only an inspection facility who make arrangements for repairs if required.

I'd pass on the car, no matter how good it looked.

[JaridP]

Well I guarantee they dont go thru the same procedures. They do not paint ENTIRE cars. The VPC does indeed have a paint booth on site. They paint spoilers, bumpers, side skirts, and so on. You can get many things "port installed" at the VPC. I have had 3 series body kits installed for customers at the port and the paint matches exactly. Can any other MINI Advisors back me up on this one?? Also, all the damage repairs and things of that nature are not farmed out or contracted out. They are all done at the VPC.

[MINIjewel]

Quote:

Originally posted by JaridP
Well I guarantee they dont go thru the same procedures. They do not paint ENTIRE cars. The VPC does indeed have a paint booth on site. They paint spoilers, bumpers, side skirts, and so on. You can get many things "port installed" at the VPC. I have had 3 series body kits installed for customers at the port and the paint matches exactly. Can any other MINI Advisors back me up on this one?? Also, all the damage repairs and things of that nature are not farmed out or contracted out. They are all done at the VPC.

There are plenty of things painted at the VPC that nobody even knows about. It WILL match exactly, and wear the same.

Nice to see you back Jarid.

[MiniShuttle]

This is the raging debate. How will it age.

I expect my inspection to find nothing. One door should be just like the other. Metalic should consistently reflect the light. But how will it age? I know that many new cars are repainted to some degree. Many say it absolutely won't age the same. Some say it will. Guess I'll make a few more calls before my visit.

[NEMINI]

Quote:

Originally posted by CurtP


I'd pass on the car, no matter how good it looked.

You must be a sadist who enjoys waiting ... what if you second car got damaged too? since no one is capable of doing a 'factory type repair' guess you just junk any car that gets a spot of damage eh?

Perfection is a laudable goal, but realise it is also an unacheiveable one

[CurtP]

Quote:

Originally posted by GMINI03


You must be a sadist who enjoys waiting ... what if you second car got damaged too? since no one is capable of doing a 'factory type repair' guess you just junk any car that gets a spot of damage eh?

Perfection is a laudable goal, but realise it is also an unacheiveable one

If I pay for a new car, I expect a new car, not a new car that has been damaged then repaired, and I don't think that's too much to ask. It's not like a small scratch or a missing bit of trim -- it's an entire door.

[MiniShuttle]

Yes, it's the entire door. Not a fixed door or after market door, but a factory original just like the original door. If they've done their jobs right, fit and function should be identical. I'd be much less inclined to consider a car which has a replaced body panel. Seams broken open and such. the door hangs on two hinges and a latch. The paint is the big question. How well can they match metalic and how similarly does it age. I know a couple of high end body shop people. I'll be talking to them before I see the car.

My next problem is the weather. It's planning to be overcast here for the next few days. What's the best lighting to use. If the sun isn't shining, what is a good alternate?

[CurtP]

I'm just stating that I wouldn't accept it -- it would never be right by me and it would always linger in the back of my mind.

As for lighting that brings out defects, fluorescent always seems to work well at bringing out the worst. I know that my project car actually looks better in direct sunlight than it does under the fluorescent lights in my garage.

[MiniShuttle]

Quote:

Originally posted by CurtP
As for lighting that brings out defects, fluorescent always seems to work well at bringing out the worst

Good info, I'll check it out inside too.