Pre-painted bumper covers

JaredPointer

JaredPointer

COME AT ME BRO
Long story short - the wife was pulling into the garage (distracted by my son in the backseat) and hit the brick of the house with the front passenger side of her bumper. So we have some cosmetic damage on the plastic bumper cover of our Highlander.

Question - have any of you guys ever purchased pre-painted replacement panels? There is a company called D&H Automotive where I can get the OEM replacement part, painted (via the OEM code), and shipped for about $250. Have any of you guys ever heard of these folks? I have found some reviews online, all singing their praise with the exception of one review, where it seems like it could go either way (customer ordered wrong part, had hassle getting a refund).

I have instructions from Toyota on how to pull the bumper cover, and it doesn't look difficult at all. I was thinking I might could save a few bones if I went this route instead of taking it to the body shop.

Opinions, suggestions, etc - fell free to leave them. Thanks.
 
You might experience a slight color difference if it is metallic. However more than few manufacturers paint bumpers separately so there is a difference from the factory.
Fit can be an issue if it is not true OEM.
Some places take in OEM repairs and fix them for resale. On occasion it can create fit issues. A few questions to ask.
I'm sorry but I haven't heard of them.

I have done this on a few cars people were fixing for resale/lease turn ins, but have used a local company.
 
Got any pics of the damage?

All I can say for sure is that Toyota bumper covers are very easy to remove, I just had to do a Camry a couple weeks ago to replace a headlight and pound a couple dents out of the support structure behind it following an accident. From what I've seen the instructions for R&I on a highlander are very similar.

I would be weary of trusting the color match from a pre-painted part, there are usually 4-5 different "formulas" for the same OEM color code and if the company doing the painting doesn't choose the one that matches your vehicle, it could be way off. If the damage is repairable, you'd be better off just having a body shop refinish it for you or if you feel ambitious, even try refinishing it yourself.
 
I can try and get a pic up later. It's not all that bad, and we could definitely just live with it, but it bugs me...

The other option is to have the body shop do it - and I'd want the bumper cover removed and painted in the booth separately. Not sure how much that would cost, or if it would save me money by taking it off myself and taking it up there.
 
Here's the damage. No deep gouges - the biggest at the bottom being the worst, and I think it might could be sanded a bit and be unnoticeable when painted.
 

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Oh yeah... that looks like an easy fix. Looks almost like it could be airbrushed in place without much of a big deal, aside from the fact that it would be best to re-clear the entire bumper cover for a proper repair.
 
Shiny Lil Detlr said:
Oh yeah... that looks like an easy fix. Looks almost like it could be airbrushed in place without much of a big deal, aside from the fact that it would be best to re-clear the entire bumper cover for a proper repair.
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Just a thought, could you find a shop that will paint it if you remove everything and take it to them?
Have them paint it. You install, colorsand and buff it. Have them scan it plus use the paint code to get the correct color. Pick it up and away you go.
Just a suggestion.
 
From the picture the damage doesnt seem to justify a new bumber. I agree about having it sanded and repainted. See if they could do it for around half the cost of the bumber you want to order.
 
Concours.John said:
Just a thought, could you find a shop that will paint it if you remove everything and take it to them?
Have them paint it. You install, colorsand and buff it. Have them scan it plus use the paint code to get the correct color. Pick it up and away you go.
Just a suggestion.
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I like this idea, and do have an acquaintance who runs a pretty good body shop in the area. I might talk to him and see what he says about spraying it for me and letting me do all the leg-work.
 
JaredPointer said:
I like this idea, and do have an acquaintance who runs a pretty good body shop in the area. I might talk to him and see what he says about spraying it for me and letting me do all the leg-work.
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Of course and I'm sure you realize the real benefit of having it painted locally is them having access to the car. That way they can get a straight up match. The other side of the coin is that if you were to mail order, white is a little less noticeable if it's off a half shade in color.
 
Price is going to be the factor I suppose - I know what I can get the replacement for, so it depends on what the guy at the shop will do. He's done work for me before, so he knows I am peculiar... :)
 
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