Do I fix it? Or do I embrace the battle scars

To fix or not to fix?

  • Fix it

    Votes: 16 100.0%
  • Save the Money

    Votes: 0 0.0%

  • Total voters
    16

Callum

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I bought my GT2 on a Saturday. The following week it was hit in a parking lot. Hit and run, I didn't notice it until a day or so after and couldn't really do anything about it. I cleaned it up, dabbed some touch up paint and can barely see it (picture is much worse than in real life)

Last night driving home, what I believe to be aluminum siding got kicked up on the highway, caught it right in the front bumper. The damage is not heavy, but enough to make me want to fix it.

If I had one, and not both I would not care that much. However, TWO scrapes makes me feel like I'm driving a jalopy.

So I need some help...blow a grand (insurance) and get the front and rear bumpers fixed, or just keep the grand and enjoy life? I can afford to pay out of pocket, but I'm not really looking to spend money. Let's face it, it's a DD and bound to get a little banged up in ATL
 

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I could live with the bumper scrape but that hit and run damage would personally drive me bananas so I say fix it.
 
I could live with the bumper scrape but that hit and run damage would personally drive me bananas so I say fix it.

I should have attached a current pic of the hit and run.

here is the current form.
 

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I could live with the bumper scrape but that hit and run damage would personally drive me bananas so I say fix it.
Agreed, the front bumper is going to get messed up on a daily but that rear bumper is an eye sore. If it was me that would be fixed asap.
After seeing your new pic, you did a solid job cleaning it up but i still vote to fix the rear bumper.
 
I'd have to fix the rear
 
From interior to exterior to high performance - everything you need for your Stinger awaits you...
I'd fix the rear and leave the front. The front doesn't stand out nearly as much, and you can wait until more rock chips/scrapes have accumulated to possibly repaint in the future.
 
I should have attached a current pic of the hit and run.

here is the current form.
I don't want to tell you how to spend your money because only you can make that decision, but I would still have to have that fixed. However, if it doesn't bother you and you'd rather put your money towards something else in life that matters more to you, I can totally see that making sense.
 
no way I'd be able to leave it like that. The car is too nice to have that on the back. The front will get chips over time. But even those, I try my best to fix. If it were mine, I'd fix it all
 
Umm, fix it. You just bought a $50k car and aren't sure whether you want to spend a grand to fix some noticeable cosmetic damage? Do you have any friends that do body work/paint? Even if you don't, you might want to look on Craigslist or something to find someone that is willing to do the work after hours (meaning off the clock). I have a friend in SA that does body work and he has a buddy that does paint. They both work at a dealership and do a lot of stuff after hours. Basically same quality of a professional shop at a fraction of the cost. I had far worse damage on an old Acura TL and my friend did the body work for $200 and his friend did the paint for $200. I got my car back same day as I dropped it off without a hint of repair. My insurance gave me $1900 after $500/deductible. Just giving you an idea on non-retail costs.
 
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I couldn't handle even a few scratches from the rear badge removal and had to get it covered up, so it's pretty obvious where I stand lol.
 
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From interior to exterior to high performance - everything you need for your Stinger awaits you...
Agree, fix rear, leave front. If you plan to do ppf and ceramic coating in the future , however...
 
Forget battle scars and get it fixed.
 
Middle road: buy a paint pen from the dealership and just take your time filling in the scratches. $15 for a paint pen and several hours of your time versus $1000 deductible and insurance premium possibly bumping up.

Then again, like others, if it was me, this would drive me nuts and I'd have it fixed up...
 
So the consensus is to fix it lol.

I agree. It's a nice car, and should be fixed. Thanks everyone for nudging me over the edge here. I will look at some quotes next week, if it ever stops raining here.
 
From interior to exterior to high performance - everything you need for your Stinger awaits you...
Rock chips are enough to piss me off when I'm waxing. No way I could live with this!
 
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Rock chips are enough to piss me off when I'm waxing. No way I could live with this!

This is the double edged sword of detailing. It sure looks great when you're done, but getting that up close and personal tells you how much damage is happening.
 
The "five to six feet rule": if it doesn't show at that distance, leave it in the "nothing in life has any business being perfect" category. But otherwise, it has to be fixed up. I don't see a touchup, no matter how conscientiously applied, fixing those. They're too big on the rear bumper cover. It looks like the front damage is on the underside? I've touched up some scrapes that were completely on the bottom and lived with that, because the "five to six feet rule" doesn't even apply at any distance!:laugh: You have to get down with your head practically touching the ground to even look.
DSC07734.webp
 
Kia Stinger
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