Bottom fender vs. Sidewalk
 

I managed to scrape the side of my bottom fender I guess it's called on Sunday while rushing to a movie. Went to macco and they estimated it would be $244. They said they needed to replace the part then paint it even though the part I sent damaged. Is this something I can do myself?


Two more questions..

1. I went to jiffy lube and they said my serpentine belt is getting worn. I visually checked it but what are signs I need to be looking for? I didn't hear any squeeking. I just don't trust them but I do have 123k mileage, been running great but that got me worried. What's the cost of a shop replacing the belt?

2. My headlight is really foggy and looks kinda disgusting. I tried to use some over the counter stuff that worked for a few days and went back to being foggy. Any suggestions?


http://i58.tinypic.com/14loo61.jpg

Picture of fender.

a cheap bumper fix. send paper can of primer and a can of color match will give a half decent repair until you can get a proper fix.

I would ask Honda to have a look at your serpentine belt. this could be pricey.

I see a lot of stone chips. So yes, paint it yourself for an OK job. To be done right, any paint you use needs a flex additive. A slightly darker or lighter shade (or an Anthracite Grey) would be a good "look". It's a style thing...

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Jiffy Lube ALWAYS tries to get you to purchase extra services. :mad:

Modern serpentine belts do not crack or split, they just wear out (the ribs get thin). Gates Rubber used to provide a FREE measuring tool, but at 120+ miles I'd just replace yours. I'd think a shop would charge an hour's labor + the price of the belt.

Thanks for the advice! Is this a hard process painting the fender? Looking to make it look pretty good, he'll I have a few rock dings on the bumper I wouldn't mind also touching up.

Jiffy always tried to get something extra out of me, just wasn't sure how much of a issue this belt can be. I'm going to get a quote on a replacement or check if it's needed this weekend.

Depends on how anal you are.

You could have a body shop paint the bumper and spoiler lip (both need flex-paint) but any chips would have the potential of showing as 'craters'.

You could probably save some money with a few hours' work at sanding the surface smooth. Then, have a body shop paint the bumper and spoiler. If you leave a crease or crater or two, it wouldn't be THAT noticeable as it's down low.

So I can't really just match the Honda paint with rattle can high quality paint? I would need to sand it before I spray it? I have a touch up pen, with the identical color but the scratch is to big.

That damaged area on the spoiler is GOUGED. You would see the scratches forever unless you sand or fill them.



There are several great companies that sell custom mixed aerosols to specific paint colors.

Here are two that I have used:

Paintscratch.com

AutomotiveTouchup.Com

Both companies sell custom mixed rattle cans. You might have to ask about the flex additive.




Another way to repair the chips (not the spoiler) is with a process made for that.

drcolorchip.com

and

Langka.com

are two I have used.

Cool, thanks for the info. The macco prices doesn't seem that bad considering all the stuff involved in fixing this situation. I do want to DIY for future knowledge but geez.