Stonechip

[ssk]

I have a bad stone chip on the bonnet of my IS that has started to rust. Has anybody used those stonechip touch-up companies, are they any good?

Has it gone too far for that kind of repair and should I get the bonnet resprayed?

If anyone has had their bonnet resprayed, how much did it cost?

Cheers

Si

[alexsmith]

I've used Chips Away a couple of times but only for a bumper and a door, and they did a pretty good job. Most companies of this type are franchises and the quality of work will be variable. The colour of the car is important, silver for example is a notoriously difficult colour to blend if only a small area of a panel is to be repaired.

As for price, a rule of thumb would be about £100 per panel. I've had my bonnet resprayed so if opting for a spray shop I would expect to pay about £100 - £120 this would include blending because you've got to consider that a newly resprayed bonnet will probably stand out from the rest of the car and the sprayer will more than likely need to blend the paint on to both front wings which may take the cost up a little.

My advice would be to get it sorted quickly because you don't want the rot penetrating through the skin of the bonnet.

Alex