repainting driver's side rear door in Vancouver, BC
 

Hello,

Sorry in advanced if this is posted in the wrong place...but I couldn't really decide where it fit under :confused: Anyhow, while my car was parked in a parking lot, somebody knicked my driver's side rear door...there is a noticeable penny size indent...and in the center of it...the paint has been chipped so you can see white...against my black car, it looks very obvious...

I went to a bodyshop called "Korva" in Vancouver, BC...which is highly recommended by a friend...first, has anybody heard of this bodyshop? They sure charge a lot for painting a simple door...their price seems to double even the Mercedes-Benz body shop...I was planning on taking the car to the Mercedes-Benz bodyshop in Richmond, BC, but I decided against it...I was told Korva's work is much better...and probably the best around town...any second opinion would be welcome...

The thing is, I am a little worried about how the painting process will go...I was told it would be a full disassembly of the door, repaint, and then reassembly...other than the paint finish, the other things I am worried about are:
1) the clips that hold the inside door trim - from reading the board, it seems they break easily...
2) the plastic weather cover - from reading the board, it seems it is held on by some adhesive...can it be reused after taken off?
3) electronics

Obviously, the paint finish outside, I can see easily when I go pick up the car...but the clips, the plastic weather cover, and the electornics I cannot visibly inspect so easily...I am worried that if a clip breaks...how they would handle it...and if they weather cover is ripped...how they would handle it...and how they would re-apply the weather cover...I mean, I would hate to know they used masking take to re-stick the plastic cover back on the door...anybody can provide any insight/notes into the whole painting/disassembly process? Thank you...

To answer your concerns, I am sure that if this is a highly rated shop where they have experience with mercedes they will know how to remove the door panel without breaking the clips,remove the plastic film and re-use it and re connect the electronics.

Since you have these concerns, I would ask them for people who have had work performed as references. I would do so especially since they are going to remove the door, which is good, but I would be concerned about mathing the adjacent body panels. Typically the adjacent panels are blended in to "lose" any differences in color shades, hues, etc.

been there done that!

Sorry but damage has been done. The finish will never be the same again, whoever does the job.

In my case, i ended up with a friend's friend, who had the
time and patience to please my probing eyes. Even after
3 tries, the finish is not the same. The only bodyshop at
that time was in the North Shore (do they have now in
Richmond?) but they are not too keen in just a small job.
They even recommended some body shop in east Van.
So, will the dealers have the same patience, I dont
think so! Good luck.

ah well...car goes in in 4 hours...pray for me...

In the future, try Eddy Lai at the AMG shop, Performance Motor Group. They do paint work, and I hear it's pretty good.

www.performances.com