[SkykingUSA]

Well, I got my first rock chip in the hood this past week. I pulled onto the freeway and had to pull in behind a truck that was driving through a bunch of small gravel and rocks. I moved out from behind it as soon as possible, but upon later inspection I found a tiny chip in the hood which appears to be right down to the metal (bright silver in color). It has also caused the surface to be rough because I can feel the raised metal when I run my finger across it. Can't say how bummed I am about this. Maybe I should have went with the PPF on the front but was too cheap to spend $2,000 on a front end-only PPF wrap. Sigh.

So, now I'm looking for some touch-up paint for Vegas Red (C68) and found this link.



You folks have any recommendations about how I get this taken care of, or if you have a recommended touch up paint I should use? Not sure what the best approach is to get this fixed. Maybe I should just take it to the detailing shop that tinted my windows and applied the ceramic coating to see if they can take care of it for me. Maybe I should go to the dealer? I'm open to suggestions.

I'm leaning towards taking it to my detailer so they can sand down the roughness first and then apply the primer, paint, clearcoat and finally touch up the ceramic coating again. I don't think it will be smart to apply the paint without smoothing it out first - it's quite a "burr" around the chip.

Then of course, they will ask me if I still don't want PPF on the hood - I'm thinking maybe I should get it done.

[Mo2002]

Check out Dr Color Chip.
You should be able to still ppf it after you touch it up if you want.

[LostInSpace]

Just buy the bmw touch up paint, steady your hand on the hood and hit it with a little paint. You'll forget about it soon, particularly when the next one happens.

It's unfortunate, but shit is flying all over the highway these days.

[deutsch100]

First one is the worst. My i5 and i7 each got one the first couple of days

I always order BMW factory touch up paint when I get a new car. It is always a when needed, never an if :/

[SkykingUSA]

Originally Posted by Mo2002

Check out Dr Color Chip.
You should be able to still ppf it after you touch it up if you want.

I was thinking about whether it's ok to PPF on top of the ceramic coating or not.

I looked for the official BMW touch up paint but didn't see my color online. Maybe I'll try calling the parts department at the dealership to see if they have it (or can order it).

[SkykingUSA]

Originally Posted by deutsch100

First one is the worst. My i5 and i7 each got one the first couple of days

I always order BMW factory touch up paint when I get a new car. It is always a when needed, never an if :/

I guess in a way I'm lucky to have lasted almost 2 full months without a chip.

[RJH52]

Originally Posted by SkykingUSA

I was thinking about whether it's ok to PPF on top of the ceramic coating or not.

I looked for the official BMW touch up paint but didn't see my color online. Maybe I'll try calling the parts department at the dealership to see if they have it (or can order it).

Take it to a professional and get their opinion on the PPF on top of ceramic. They may have to remove the ceramic to apply PPF. If the ceramic was done properly I don’t think the PPF would adhere properly.

[dubb13]

Thets the first thing I did when I got my car is get the front end wrapped it was 1000$ bucks but well spent for sure

[MikeElmendorf]

Very similar thing on the hood of my Tanzanite Blue M60. Trying to forget about it. I have not tried touching it up myself yet as I always feel like I make it worse!

[deutsch100]

Originally Posted by MikeElmendorf

Very similar thing on the hood of my Tanzanite Blue M60. Trying to forget about it. I have not tried touching it up myself yet as I always feel like I make it worse!

Many times touching up a rock chip does make it worse.

I have found though that a tiny bit of factory touch up paint on the tip of a sharp toothpick is the way to go. I never, never use the brush...too much paint, and looks awful.

[Kief]

Give a Loew Cornell Fine Line Painting Pen (size #1) a try

Currently, unavailable on Amazon, but do a search:
https://www.amazon.com/Loew-Cornell-...language=en_US

[dubb13]

For those that don't have it wrapped yet go get it done it's going to just get worse my front bumper and the hood is wrapped I have zero chips they also wrapped the side view mirrors as well

[dsgs]

I just went through something similar after gently brushing a curb. Body shop wanted $1500 (Canadian) to sand, spray, and re-clear-coat the bumper. Damage is to the bumper, under the front driver side, just an inch or so above the bottom edge of the bumper. The scratch is pretty long at about 6 inches, but it's low to the ground and hard to spot. So, respray the bumper and hope it matches and lasts, or slap some touch up paint on there and call it a day?

I went to the BMW dealer to ask for touch up paint and they said they didn't have any in the Vegas Red (C68) colour. I ended up ordering some paint from a company called Scratches Happen (they have a Canadian online store). The paint is very thin, making it easy to deal with, with the drawback that you need to do many coats to make it work.

Result is pretty good. Would've been better if I had sanded down the rough surface, but I was more interested in hiding the mark than making it perfect and didn't want to cause more damage. Hope it lasts.

Before and after pics attached.

[Mo2002]

Installing ppf on top of ceramic won't bond properly. You need to remove the ceramic coating to install the PPF.

[dubb13]

That looks good

[SkykingUSA]

Originally Posted by deutsch100

Many times touching up a rock chip does make it worse.

I have found though that a tiny bit of factory touch up paint on the tip of a sharp toothpick is the way to go. I never, never use the brush...too much paint, and looks awful.

This is probably what I will try first. On my old blue pickup truck, I bought the manufacturer's touch up paint and applied it with the brush that it came with and it put way too much paint on and it didn't look very good. I thought of the same things as you - use something small and with a sharp tip to dip into the paint and just dab it into the chipped area. It really doesn't need a lot of paint - it's pretty small, just so shiny!

I didn't see any C68 paint online, so I'll call the dealer this week to see if they have it. If they don't then maybe I'll try the Scratches Happen paint too.

[deutsch100]

Originally Posted by SkykingUSA

This is probably what I will try first. On my old blue pickup truck, I bought the manufacturer's touch up paint and applied it with the brush that it came with and it put way too much paint on and it didn't look very good. I thought of the same things as you - use something small and with a sharp tip to dip into the paint and just dab it into the chipped area. It really doesn't need a lot of paint - it's pretty small, just so shiny!

I didn't see any C68 paint online, so I'll call the dealer this week to see if they have it. If they don't then maybe I'll try the Scratches Happen paint too.

Unless you have a "common" colour like say Alpine White, Black Sapphire, or maybe Brooklyn grey....most dealers just order your exact colour.

When I needed Black Sapphire Metallic, it was in stock. My Dravit Grey Metallic...the Parts Dept. ordered it and it arrived for pickup in about a day.

If you are able to buy or have them order the paint from the dealer you got your car from...they will usually even offer a 10-20% discount at the parts dept (this is what our long term dealer does for us). Good luck and keep us posted.

[drexplode]

Dr. Color chip all day. Best way to protect is PPF. Big fan of XPEL.

[SkykingUSA]

FYI, when I called my dealer's parts department to ask for official touch-up paint (and provided my VIN) I was told that BMW does not make that color (C68, Vegas Red) because it's an individual color and must be mixed. He said I need to go to a body shop and they can mix paint to get that color, but BMW does not provide it pre-made in the typical small tubes like other colors. Sounds weird to me, but ok.

I ended up ordering the paint from ScratchesHappen and will touch it up myself when that comes. When I'm done, I'll try to remember to post final pics and let you know how it went.

DSGS: did you use the bottle or the spray paint for your scratch? That color matches very well and looks so much better in the after shot.

[dsgs]

I used the bottle -- the spray is for much larger areas. With a tiny chip like you have, the bottle and a toothpick is probably best. Pick the kit with the primer since your chip seems to be right through to the metal.

Several people have suggested Dr. Colorchip -- I've heard good things about it and it seems simpler to apply. It's just hard to get here in Canada so I went with an alternative.

[SkykingUSA]

I will definitely go with the bottle, I was just wondering what you used since your scratch is larger than mine. Thanks!

[SkykingUSA]

Just a quick update:

I'm very happy with the ScratchesHappen product. It came with everything I needed and the color match was spot on as far as I can tell. I followed the instructions and put on primer first, then paint, then clearcoat. It says to wait at least three days before hand washing, and 30 days before machine car-washing (I only hand wash anyway), 30 days before waxing/polishing and finally 60 days before wrapping or applying ceramic coating.

I found it tough to use a small enough amount of clearcoat, so the spot feels rough to the touch, but I like that the color is good. The chip was really so small that it was tough to apply well but it definitely looks a lot better. I will probably wash it this weekend, then wait until after my vacation ends in July to polish it down a little so the clearcoat doesn't feel so rough. Finally after 60 days I'll apply a ceramic coating topper that I plan to use on the car anyway. I'll just focus it on that spot for a few washes to coat it up again. :-)

I don't have any pictures right now, but will try to get some in the daylight soon. Thanks to everyone for their suggestions and experiences. I try to stay off that part of the freeway now until the construction is finished.