MCF

So I am in the eye doctor office and my wife and 10 week old are in the back of the E350. Someone backs into our passenger side rear bumper. My wife gets out and waves at them...they stop, pause, and take off. Too bad for them my wife got their license plate number and it has been confirmed by insurance and police that the make and model match the plate number we gave them. Now they have a hit and run against them.

Question - there are minor fine hair like scratches on the rear bumper - no creases and nothing deep. Can this be 'buffed/polished' out or is a rear bumper stripping/painting, etc. etc. going to be required if the scratches bother me enough?? I can't even catch a nail on the scratches but a wet rag doesn't make them go away either. Thanks!!!

ghstudio

Before you panic, drop by a good body shop and ask them. In fact you could probably drop by a good detailer and get their recommendation.

It's highly likely that they can be buffed out.

MCF

I'm pretty sure it can be buffed out, but I am still filing a hit and run. That b*tch is going to learn you can't hit someone's car (especially with an infant in it) and just take off. One day she is going to get pulled over for something simple and find out she has a warrant for a hit and run. That should make her day!!!

joshb63

Good job! i have no sympathy for people who commit hit and runs. I am a teenager so i am often surrounded by people who are not exactly the best drivers. One night i was parked with friends in our local walgreens parking lot and long story short, someone who ended up being under the influence of alcohol/drugs backed into my suburban and split super fast. i jumped in my car to chase this guy because im not the kind of person who wants to just leave it to the police when they might not even find him. I chase him for a total of a little over 30 minutes from town to town as he breaks speed limits, red lights and stop sign and call the [police on the way to read them his plate numbers. in the end i cornered him into a driveway when he tried to turn around till the cops showed up, i didnt press charges because my suburban was hardly scratched and his corolla was pretty messed up but i think he may have gotten drug possession charges/dui.

sorry for the long story, but its nice to see someone in the same position, especially when you got the plates

Josh

PHML

try some rubbing compound...3M brand....or just take it to a detailer and ask if it can be taken out.

thekurgan

If you can feel the scratches with your fingernail, they cannot be buffed out, best bet is to have the bumper repainted and to make sure they use the proper paint with the ceramic particles.

MCF

Like I said I can't feel the scratches with my nail.

CL600CK60

I have had good results with Meguiars Scratch x2.0. For minor scratches, this stuff works like magic. Often I could not believe it how good it was. Definitely try it. Take a drop of this stuff, rub it in (in circles) with microfiber cloth and then buff with another clean microfiber cloth. After few minutes of work, it will look like new.

mnje350

I am glad you are pushing the hit and run. These people do suck and they should be reminded of it.

ghstudio

It's hard to press a hit and run if there was no substanative damage. If your car can just be buffed out or covered with a wax and you don' t have a bill from a body shop or equivalent, do you really think that any prosecutor will even glance at the case. Even your insurance company will yawn!

I know you're angry, but accusing someone of hit and run with no damage might just open you up to some legal action against you. These things have a way of backfiring so be careful. Being angry is one thing....bringing charges against someone has its risks.

MCF

Are you serious!? The person HIT my vehicle, caused damage, acknowledged my wife and sped away. I looked up the statute in Texas and it is AGAINST the law to leave the scene of any accident even if a car is parked. Below $200 damage is Class C mis..above $200 is Class B. I will MAKE SURE repair bill is for over $200. My insurance company has already started an investigation and confirmed the license plate my wife got matched the car (good job wifey). Tomorrow I turn all information over to HPD and let them do what they want with it.

K-A

Get 'em good. Letting them get away with it would be the worst thing you can do. Even if the case goes nowhere, you at the very least want to cost them some discomfort and time/energy, so hopefully they'll learn their lesson.

mnje350

Amen

MCF

U bet. Once I get my teeth into something I won't let go. It would have been one thing if they would have driven away but to stop and then speed away. F that!

mnje350

I am only glad I have not witnessed one of these events on one of my cars. Even an ignorant SOB door dinging me. It would not turn out well for either myself or the other person. I am sure the police would have to be involved one way or the other.

MCF

Well, I actually got a little irritated with my wife. We weren't in the best part of town and you never know what some POS is going to do. I can't wait till their insurance company calls me to settle. I won't.

togaclk55

LOL, they might not have an insurance company.

MCF

They do. My insurance confirmed they are with State Farm.

mnje350

Makes me want to buy a beater, drag it across the side of the other guys POS and just say oops. . . well it's just a car.

I feel for you. Nothing stays new looking for ever but it still sux.

MCF

This no longer has nothing to do with the damage. The damage is minimal and can be fixed easily if I eve choose to. This is about teaching a POS a lesson. I will take it as far as the legal system will let me and cost them as much time and money as I can even if it costs me equally as much. I am pretty sure I can afford more than the low life that hit me.

hyperion667

damn!!! lame!!!!
saw a bmw get hit and then the driver ran.....my wife got the plate and I told the driver 'we got him man!!' never heard how it turned out, but people do SUCK!!!!!!!!
another thing is people that don't drive Mercedes Benz are JEALOUS........jealous of the nice car they see, that they don't have...and that makes people bitter.....
especially in todays economy you know??

I say : stick it to the ****'s!!!

RNBRAD

Really? Any scratch not through the clear can be buffed out as well as many almost to the primer.

newyorktoLA

I feel like the E class is a bumper magnet, so I'm really sorry for what happened That jerk better get caught! Anyways, for the scratches, I would say leave them alone. Whenever I tried to use Scratch-X, it wouldn't do anything; it would just cause micro marring in the surrounding areas. Scratch X causes micro marring, but I covered it up with some Zaino and wax and it looks fine.You could also try doing it professionally. Could you post pics so we could see how bad it is?

thekurgan

Not to the primer, but you'll have to remove more than a significant amount of the clear coat and risk getting to the paint layer. There are probably only 120-130 microns of paint layer on these cars, that's not much. Scratch X will work ........ until you wash it again, it's just a filler, not a compound or polish. I would try Meguiar's 205, if that doesn't work, move to 105 but finish with Menzerna's PO 106FA nano.

newyorktoLA

I JUST PICKED UP MY CAR FROM THE DEALER...THEY SCRAPED MY REAR BUMPER AGAINST ANOTHER CAR BUT JUST LIKE YOUR SCRATCHES, I CAN'T FEEL THEM WITH MY FINGERNAIL! The paint is dull and I AM PISSED!!!!!