What did your GTS hood look like when it was delivered?

[Darth One]

It's "fisheye". When the primer was sprayed on there were minor impurities that caused it to react a bit and not dry evenly. Now that the layer is fully cured, it can easily be resanded smooth and the paint sprayed on top of it

[///M///]

Originally Posted by GuyLedouche

Can anyone explain what happened to this thing? The vendor I purchased this from says this is completely normal and just needs some putty on it.

I would be embarrassed to sell a 5k dollar hood looking like this.

Attachment 2010897

100% agreed. If it comes primed the pitting makes no sense. Wtf are they charging 5k for? The only reason I was staying away from 2M GTS hood was because it requires a lot of prep for painting even though fitment is spot on. What's the point of OEM if it requires rework? I would be okay if it were sold at 3k requiring primer and paint.

[GuyLedouche]

Originally Posted by Darth One

It's "fisheye". When the primer was sprayed on there were minor impurities that caused it to react a bit and not dry evenly. Now that the layer is fully cured, it can easily be resanded smooth and the paint sprayed on top of it

Seems odd that they would spray it, see the fisheye resulting from their substandard prep work and sign off on it. What kind of quality control are they running for such an expensive part.

[GuyLedouche]

Originally Posted by ///M///

100% agreed. If it comes primed the pitting makes no sense. Wtf are they charging 5k for? The only reason I was staying away from 2M GTS hood was because it requires a lot of prep for painting even though fitment is spot on. What's the point of OEM if it requires rework? I would be okay if it were sold at 3k requiring primer and paint.

Right. If they are going to prime it do it correctly. Now I have a hood that looks like shit and requires most of the primer to be sanded off.

My real issue is that I am getting my car wrapped on Monday to a new color. Figured I would get this hood wrapped since I assumed it was primed and ready to go. Now I have to get this sprayed in my stock color and wait at least a month before getting it covered in vinyl wasting me time and money.

[Darth One]

So you were never planning to paint the hood in the first place? I dunno if that's the best move. Primer isn't intended as a finishing coat - it's there to seal the raw surface and create bonding for the next paint layers. It's the final clearcoat (third stage after primer and basecoat) that provides protection from the elements.

Now I get that the wrap would provide some of that protection, but will it hold up in the long run? I honestly don't know, maybe it will. But I can tell you that primer isn't made to just stand by itself.

[GuyLedouche]

Next question. Why do I now have 3 of these? Where do they go?

[///M///]

So what's the consensus then? Pitting is normal and to be expected? I find that hard to accept.

[GuyLedouche]

Originally Posted by ///M///

So what's the consensus then? Pitting is normal and to be expected? I find that hard to accept.

I think it’s BS. I’ll see what my paint guy says on Monday.

[///M///]

Originally Posted by GuyLedouche

I think it’s BS. I’ll see what my paint guy says on Monday.

Attachment 2011672

On another note, is the fitment spot on and did you install yourself?

Thanks.

[henrylee]

Fitment A, quality F

[GuyLedouche]

Originally Posted by ///M///

On another note, is the fitment spot on and did you install yourself?

Thanks.

Yes and yes.

[///M///]

Originally Posted by GuyLedouche

Yes and yes.

Is install and adjustment relatively easy? Do you need the $300 worth hardware or can reuse from existing hood? The body shop charges another $150 over painting to install so I figured I can do it myself plus I don't like leaving my car there.

Thanks.

[GuyLedouche]

Originally Posted by ///M///

Is install and adjustment relatively easy? Do you need the $300 worth hardware or can reuse from existing hood? The body shop charges another $150 over painting to install so I figured I can do it myself plus I don't like leaving my car there.

Thanks.

Very easy to do. Took me less than 30 minutes. Would be a different story with an aftermarket. You need the hardware since the hood does not come with the insert for the vent and you need different gas struts due to the weight change.

[Alan l.]

That’s normal. Body panels are not meant to just get paint sprayed on them without ANY prep work no matter how good the primer layer looks.

Smoothing that out is just part of what any body shop would have to do anyways.

Alan

[///M///]

Originally Posted by Alan l.

That’s normal. Body panels are not meant to just get paint sprayed on them without ANY prep work no matter how good the primer layer looks.

Smoothing that out is just part of what any body shop would have to do anyways.

Alan

I agree all panels need to be rough sanded before they can be painted but would you expect them to arrive with pittings that need to be filled? Comon

[GuyLedouche]

The bottom line is the primer was done incorrectly. The surface was not free of contaminants and the job shows that. Maybe I just have high expectations but when I receive a $5000 hood that is OEM on $100k plus cars I expect the work to be of high quality. If the part comes primed then do it right or not at all.

I also expect that the vendor would not say the part is defective when I send them pictures initially, then say it’s FedEx’s fault, then say just throw some putty on it, it’s good.

I assume all of you saying this is normal would accept your $100k new bmw from the dealership covered in bird shit and mud because well you have to wash it at some point.

[NYBulldog]

Originally Posted by GuyLedouche

The bottom line is the primer was done incorrectly. The surface was not free of contaminants and the job shows that. Maybe I just have high expectations but when I receive a $5000 hood that is OEM on $100k plus cars I expect the work to be of high quality. If the part comes primed then do it right or not at all.

I also expect that the vendor would not say the part is defective when I send them pictures initially, then say it’s FedEx’s fault, then say just throw some putty on it, it’s good.

I assume all of you saying this is normal would accept your $100k new bmw from the dealership covered in bird shit and mud because well you have to wash it at some point.

On the money. I don't get all the people saying this is fine. Is it a big deal to correct? No. Should it look like this for a brand new OEM BMW from-the-dealer
$5k part? Absolutely not. I would ask for a new one or a respectable discount.

[Darth One]

So return or exchange it, then. You’re the customer, not us, and as you say it’s your expectations that need to be met. But people are taking the time out of their day to answer your questions, and now you’re just arguing with them.

Just a couple more thoughts before i bow out:

First, have you considered whether a return is more time/hassle than just painting the part you have? Your body shop will have no trouble prepping and painting it. And no one will have to do any ‘filling’...primer sands down very easily and smoothly - that’s its whole function.

Second, if your standards are as high as you say they are, you shouldn’t install a primered (and not painted) body part on your car, whether it’s wrapped or not. That’s a hundred times more Mickey Mouse than accepting a hood with fisheye in the primer.

[GuyLedouche]

Originally Posted by Darth One

So return or exchange it, then. You're the customer, not us, and as you say it's your expectations that need to be met. But people are taking the time out of their day to answer your questions, and now you're just arguing with them.

Just a couple more thoughts before i bow out:

First, have you considered whether a return is more time/hassle than just painting the part you have? Your body shop will have no trouble prepping and painting it. And no one will have to do any 'filling'...primer sands down very easily and smoothly - that's its whole function.

Second, if your standards are as high as you say they are, you shouldn't install a primered (and not painted) body part on your car, whether it's wrapped or not. That's a hundred times more Mickey Mouse than accepting a hood with fisheye in the primer.

I can handle myself thanks. We are just having a conversation. Seems there is some difference of opinion among the group on this topic.

Why is that Mickey Mouse?

[///M///]

Originally Posted by Darth One

So return or exchange it, then. You’re the customer, not us, and as you say it’s your expectations that need to be met. But people are taking the time out of their day to answer your questions, and now you’re just arguing with them.

Just a couple more thoughts before i bow out:

First, have you considered whether a return is more time/hassle than just painting the part you have? Your body shop will have no trouble prepping and painting it. And no one will have to do any ‘filling’...primer sands down very easily and smoothly - that’s its whole function.

Second, if your standards are as high as you say they are, you shouldn’t install a primered (and not painted) body part on your car, whether it’s wrapped or not. That’s a hundred times more Mickey Mouse than accepting a hood with fisheye in the primer.

You are missing the point. I checked with 2 body shops locally and they quoted me $700 - $800 range to paint a primered hood with no defects. Anything outside of that they charge more because it is more labor intensive. I showed them the OP’s pictures and they quoted $300 more. The point is that when you pay full price for an OEM part it should come as advertised. This is more like a scratch and dent that should be discounted at the least to cover for the extra labor.

[Darth One]

Originally Posted by ///M///

You are missing the point. I checked with 2 body shops locally and they quoted me $700 - $800 range to paint a primered hood with no defects. Anything outside of that they charge more because it is more labor intensive. I showed them the OP's pictures and they quoted $300 more. The point is that when you pay full price for an OEM part it should come as advertised. This is more like a scratch and dent that should be discounted at the least to cover for the extra labor.

I used to manage a body shop. Sanding down fisheye with the proper tools takes maybe 10 minutes. Would never dream of charging extra for that. Heck, we wouldn't even charge extra to paint a fully unprimered part vs one already primered. Nor did any of the other shops. It's just part of the job.

So either things have changed that much in the years since, or those shops are trying to rip you off. But even if I give them a crazy amount of benefit of the doubt, there is no way in hell that the prep stage would represent 30% of a $1,000 job. Are they kidding??

But at the same time, it's the customer's right to feel disappointed in what they purchased. Like I said, if he finds it unacceptable, then return it if he can. All I'm trying to say is if he chooses not to return it and get it painted, it will come out ok.

[///M///]

Point noted and agreed. That said most of us don’t have backgrounds in body shops so have to go by whatever the professionals quote. Call it ///M tax but that’s exactly what they told me. Place it called Cavallo in West Chester, PA. Look them up. They are the best in my area.

Originally Posted by Darth One

I used to manage a body shop. Sanding down fisheye with the proper tools takes maybe 10 minutes. Would never dream of charging extra for that. Heck, we wouldn't even charge extra to paint a fully unprimered part vs one already primered. Nor did any of the other shops. It's just part of the job.

So either things have changed that much in the years since, or those shops are trying to rip you off. But even if I give them a crazy amount of benefit of the doubt, there is no way in hell that the prep stage would represent 30% of a $1,000 job. Are they kidding??

But at the same time, it's the customer's right to feel disappointed in what they purchased. Like I said, if he finds it unacceptable, then return it if he can. All I'm trying to say is if he chooses not to return it and get it painted, it will come out ok.