Is it a pity to paint over the original paint on the bumper?
3 Answers
Painting the bumper is for aesthetic purposes, and although it covers the original paint, it is not a pity. Here are some related introductions about bumper painting: 1. Painting: Nowadays, car bumpers are made of plastic. In case of bumper damage, whether to repair or repaint is entirely up to personal choice, as it will not cause rust or corrosion issues to the vehicle itself. 2. Bumper: The car bumper is a safety device designed to absorb and mitigate external impacts, protecting the front and rear parts of the vehicle body. Many years ago, front and rear bumpers were made of steel plates pressed into channel steel, riveted or welded to the frame longitudinal beams, leaving a significant gap with the body, which looked very unattractive. Therefore, most car owners choose to paint the bumper for beautification.
The other day I scraped my rear bumper against a pillar, and the repair shop mechanic's words really opened my eyes: plastic bumpers and metal body panels are completely different! The original factory paint is applied through a whole-body electrocoating process and baked at 160°C on an assembly line, while repainting can only be done in an 80°C paint booth – there's definitely a difference. But the bumper is a special case – it's sprayed separately during production since it's a plastic component. This part takes all the hits from road debris and scratches; my neighbor has had his bumper repainted twice in three years. The key point is that when dealers evaluate trade-ins, as long as the four doors and two hoods have original paint intact, a repainted bumper doesn't count as accident damage – it might just knock off 300-500 yuan from the price. If you get a scratch the size of a fingernail on a new car, don't rush to repaint the whole thing – nowadays spot touch-up repairs are quite reliable.
Once when I took my car in for scratch repair, the 4S shop manager pried open the bumper clip to show me: There's no electrophoretic coating behind this plastic panel! The factory paint consists of three layers - primer, base coat, and clear coat - which can't be fully replicated in everyday repairs. But think differently: bumpers are essentially consumables. They get scratched more easily than the car body. Among cars exposed to sun and wind for over five years, eight out of ten will show noticeable color differences on their bumpers. I've observed the used car market - repainted front bumpers barely affect pricing since rear-end collisions and scratches are too common. For minor scratches in a new car's first year, using a touch-up pen at a professional shop to preserve 90% of the original paint is the most cost-effective approach.
