Cosmetic Body Work Damage Repair - Will it affect my Relax Warranty?

[aygoman22134]

Hi everyone, a few months ago I acquired a new Toyota Aygo X on finance as my first car.

Unfortunately I scratched one side of the front bumper on a pillar recently and want to get it repaired, as well as some sensors fitted to ensure this doesn't happen again as it's knocked my confidence in my own parking ability quite a bit.

I got in contact with my dealership and was quoted a frankly extorniate amount for the repair (the scratch is mostly surface level and only on one piece of bodywork, it's not even that visible if you aren't stood next to it). Which is making me consider getting it repaired elsewhere, does anyone know if having the car repaired at a non-toyota approved repairer for only cosmetic damage could invalidate the Toyota Relax Warranty or significantly affect the value of the car/financing agreement in anyway?

I've scanned my documents and haven't been able to find anything in relation to this and want some thoughts on if I should fork out the price for a Toyota Authorised repair or a cheaper non-toyota repair.

 

Thanks.

[gampla]

Any body shop can repair it where are you located 

[152bobby]

I'm a ex paintsprayer and Panelbeater from the old days, where we were skilled in body repairs etc, not like today, where they just replace panels.

If it's not too bad, any reputable smart repair centre should be able to do a good job.  Even look at Chipsaway... But be aware, some of these guys at Chipsaway are Muppets, but the guy I used twice, years ago, was skilled in what he did.

This will have NOTHING to do with your Toyota Warranty..except possibly if you have any body works or paint issues on your car later on and Toyota find out that you have had work done elsewhere.  But even saying that, if it's not on the area that you have had repaired, you should not have a problem.

Just shop around (at least three quotes), they will probably differ considerably, if they do, check their reviews and then decide what to do.

It would help to see some close up photos of the damage.

[aygoman22134]

5 minutes ago, BobbyMcLeish said:

I'm a ex paintsprayer and Panelbeater from the old days, where we were skilled in body repairs etc, not like today, where they just replace panels.

If it's not too bad, any reputable smart repair centre should be able to do a good job.  Even look at Chipsaway... But be aware, some of these guys at Chipsaway are Muppets, but the guy I used twice, years ago, was skilled in what he did.

This will have NOTHING to do with your Toyota Warranty..except possibly if you have any body works or paint issues on your car later on and Toyota find out that you have had work done elsewhere.  But even saying that, if it's not on the area that you have had repaired, you should not have a problem.

Just shop around (at least three quotes), they will probably differ considerably, if they do, check their reviews and then decide what to do.

It would help to see some close up photos of the damage.

Thanks for the detailed response, I imagine the high quoted cost from the Toyota dealership is likely due to replacing a panel like you said.

Attached are some images of the damage to give you a better idea.

[152bobby]

6 minutes ago, aygoman22134 said:

Thanks for the detailed response, I imagine the high quoted cost from the Toyota dealership is likely due to replacing a panel like you said.

Attached are some images of the damage to give you a better idea.

So looking at that.  The only actual paintwork that needs doing is on that corner of the bumper.  That's a easy smart repair.

If you can live with the scuffs on the black front grill, it should be pretty cheap.  But even saying that, a smart repair shop, can sand out those scuffs on the grill, fill it if necessary and spray paint it.

Get your quotes from places that advertise smart repairs, not a full body shop.

Also, try some T Cut on that scuffed white paintwork, give it a bit of elbow grease and see how it looks (you can't do anymore damage to it). T Cut works wonders sometimes.

[152bobby]

1 minute ago, BobbyMcLeish said:

So looking at that.  The only actual paintwork that needs doing is on that corner of the bumper.  That's a easy smart repair.

If you can live with the scuffs on the black front grill, it should be pretty cheap.  But even saying that, a smart repair shop, can sand out those scuffs on the grill, fill it if necessary and spray paint it.

Get your quotes from places that advertise smart repairs, not a full body shop.

Also, try some T Cut on that scuffed white paintwork, give it a bit of elbow grease and see how it looks (you can't do anymore damage to it). T Cut works wonders sometimes.

I should have also said, if anyone says any panels need replacing, they are having a laugh...walk away.

[aygoman22134]

27 minutes ago, BobbyMcLeish said:

I should have also said, if anyone says any panels need replacing, they are having a laugh...walk away.

Noted. Thanks so much for the advice! 

[Wiz201]

I think a decent valeter might be able to buff it level if you put some T cut on it.

[flash22]

Most of that will buff out with a very mild cutting compound

[152bobby]

As I mentioned before, try T Cut first, then see how it looks, if needed, use some soap and fine wet sand paper (very fine, for this specific purpose) and then T Cut (more gently again).  The key thing is to not "break" through the paint.  However, if you do, no real harm, as at least you would have tried and it would have probably been done by a professional anyway.

[flash22]

T-cut isn't what it used to be, i prefer Farecla G10 or a 3M equivalent, you have to be very careful with these water based paints you can strike through the clear very quickly

 

[152bobby]

Yes, I'm sure it's not like it used to be 30 years ago 😂.  But like I said, if the work needs to be done and is going to be done, there's nothing to lose by trying it yourself !! Just don't go mad and take the tips and hints that have already been mentioned and if needed, I'm sure there's loads of tutorials on YouTube👍

[Roy124]

I had a narrow scratch on my Yaris Cross.  It was about 6 inches long and narrow. You could feel it with your finger nail. 

I used REVIVE on West Lincolnshire.  They took an hour and a half, matched the colour, blended it in and baked the repair.  You cannot see it.  Not cheap at £258, but done at home so no inconvenience. 

They tried to polish it out and reduced it to 2 inches but it was just too deep.  That would have been less expensive. 

Highly recommended 

[TonyHSD]

Just a machine polish will do it and eventually a touch up with brush. Smart repair definitely and more of a valeter work than panel replacement. Tjhe plastic trim can do with heat gun or just rub it with microfibre cloth and eventually a plastic trim refresher. 👍

[Cyker]

I must admit the toyota scratch insurance guy did an excellent job repainting the scratch on my left-side door too, but they wouldn't have done one that was 6 inches!  

 

[aygoman22134]

An update from me regarding my scratch as well:
I used some T-Cut as you all reccomended and was able to get most of the scratch out.

 

For the minor paint chips I decided to try it myself using some genuine Toyota paint and primer. Cleaned and sanded the chip area before applying primer, sanding that once dry, then applying paint and wet sanding till flush once the paint had dried. It isn't perfect, and there is one area I did not sand as much as the rest because the sharp edge made it difficult to sand without damaging the paint, but I think for £20 compared to the 4 figure quote the Toyota Garage gave me, it's a pretty good fix.

As for the plastic I've decided I can live with it, especially as the majority of the scratch seems to have washed off after I washed the car this weekend post-fix.

Next step is getting some parking sensors so I hopefully won't have to fix my bumpers again 😜

 

Thanks for the reassurance and help everyone.

[TonyHSD]

44 minutes ago, aygoman22134 said:

An update from me regarding my scratch as well:
I used some T-Cut as you all reccomended and was able to get most of the scratch out.

 

For the minor paint chips I decided to try it myself using some genuine Toyota paint and primer. Cleaned and sanded the chip area before applying primer, sanding that once dry, then applying paint and wet sanding till flush once the paint had dried. It isn't perfect, and there is one area I did not sand as much as the rest because the sharp edge made it difficult to sand without damaging the paint, but I think for £20 compared to the 4 figure quote the Toyota Garage gave me, it's a pretty good fix.

As for the plastic I've decided I can live with it, especially as the majority of the scratch seems to have washed off after I washed the car this weekend post-fix.

Next step is getting some parking sensors so I hopefully won't have to fix my bumpers again 😜

 

Thanks for the reassurance and help everyone.

Good job done 👍

[Hornet3D]

4 hours ago, TonyHSD said:

Good job done 👍

I will second that.