Touch Up Paint or Paint Shop Recommendations

[todda_88]

Hello,

Another vehicle bumped me from behind leaving a three inch scratch. See pictures.

Any thoughts on whether this scratch can be repaired by a Paint Repair Kit? Or should I go to Tesla Service Center or a Paint Shop instead? If Paint Repair Kit, should I get Tesla's Paint Repair Kit or an after market Paint Repair Kit?

Any recommendations would be appreciated.

 

[pipp]

I was waiting for some of the many people who know more about this than I do, but as they appear to be busy I will give you my uninformed opinion based on touching up my own M3: I think you really have to decide your own personal style. Does the fix have to be pristine, as in a car enthusiast would not notice anything was touched up, or does the car simply need to look good enough so a regular joe wouldn’t notice it was touched up. I went the “regular joe” route and bought the red touchup paint kit from Tesla. A couple of small scratches on the driver’s door were covered with a couple of light brushstrokes. Another ding on the fender above the passenger side front wheel was totally chipped off by the service center when they re-aligned my frunk and fender panels. I kind of had to brush over it and let it dry 10 or 20 times before it looked “regular joe” level to me…

 

[BierNut]

I’ve had good results with the Tesla touch-up kit repairing small stone chips. They are still noticeable if you know where to look, but the main function of touch-up paint is protecting the underlying metal from corrosion, not restoring a factory finish.

If you’re looking for a “perfect” repair, as the poster above noted, you’re best off having a body shop make the repair.

 

[natypes]

Depends on your level of OCD really. A good touch up wouldn't stick out too bad, but it will definitely be slightly noticable. A bad touch up would be very noticeable.