ouch!

[SpeedR]

I believe the front plastic fender/bumper on the E70 is not painted by the BMW factory, but comes from the 3rd party manufacturer already painted the final color. This is also true of the small plastic parts above the rear bumper on the sides.

I know for a fact, these plastic parts are not painted on the X5 assembly line in Greer, SC at the same time the metal body is painted. During the factory tour, our host said BMW works closely with the fender mfg and paint mfg to insure a match, but he did not go into further depth on the subject.

Just a thought, but maybe the plastic parts can be ordered in final color. Motorcycles (including BMW) have been like this for years - metal parts come primed, plastic parts are available in final color.

I know it's probably too good to be true, but worth looking into.

[ceozmo]

Unfortunately, in my case anyway, the hood as well as the door will need to be blended in to match the fender. I took delivery of my jet black '08 4.8 a month ago and the black (plastic) fenders did not match the black on the doors or hood. BMW informed me that it was because of plastic vs. metal. From what I was told, this is something that is much more noticeable on the solid colors as opposed to the reflective metallic ones. Well, I didn't just spend $75K on a car where the paint does not match--so I had them repaint it and they painted both fenders and had to blend the hood and doors to match. I went to a BMW factory authorized body shop (onsite at the dealership). Car is back now and looking great!

[carlgo]

Originally Posted by ceozmo

Unfortunately, in my case anyway, the hood as well as the door will need to be blended in to match the fender. I took delivery of my jet black '08 4.8 a month ago and the black (plastic) fenders did not match the black on the doors or hood. BMW informed me that it was because of plastic vs. metal. From what I was told, this is something that is much more noticeable on the solid colors as opposed to the reflective metallic ones. Well, I didn't just spend $75K on a car where the paint does not match--so I had them repaint it and they painted both fenders and had to blend the hood and doors to match. I went to a BMW factory authorized body shop (onsite at the dealership). Car is back now and looking great!

Sounds like they blended and then clear-coated those additional panels. That sometimes is done with solid colors, but is fairly rare. Nothing wrong with that, though, and great that it looks good.

[carlgo]

Oh, I meant to add that there are indeed differences in the colors of plastic and metal parts. You see it where the bumper is bolted directly to the fenders and 1/4 panels and are painted the same color. Usually, there is a quite noticeable color difference right from the factory. We knew that if we did that, the owner would be outraged, yet they would buy a new car right off the showroom floor for $100K and not say a thing!

When we painted a bumper, our match was closer, but we would blend the fenders anyway to prevent arguments.

[reblux5]

If the area to the right of the fog light is plastic, then here is a tip that a repair shop told me to keep from replacing the bumper cover.

Take a hair dryer and a large wooden spoon. Heat the dented area lightly, not enough to blister the paint. While the dent is warm, use the large wooden spoon and gently press the dented area from the backside. It might take two people to make the job easier. Keep working around the dent and hopefully it will pop out.

The only time I used this technique was on the bumper of an Acura Integra and it worked perfectly.

Hope this helps...

Reblux5