Pntblnk

So headed to Vegas this past Thursday for the SHOT show and ran through a sand storm (kinda) going through one of the passes. FF to this morning to when I washed my car to find the entire front end, grill and windshield covered with pits and chips. Literally every square inch is hit. The windshield is like looking at a stary night when the sun hits it...micro prism's everywhere. So pissed as I just had the car detailed the weekend before and there wasn't so much as a single scratch anywhere on the car. No idea what my insurance company will say....if they cover it I will know its been repainted and if they don't I'm not sure I will keep it. OCD will kick in and all I'll see when I look at the car will be the pits / chips.

Venting.....thnx for listening.

DoubleA

Wow that sucks. Sorry, Hopefully you can get it repaired.

K-A

Ouch! Sorry to hear that man. As someone who has driven back and forth to and from Vegas thousands of times, you can make it dozens with nary an issue. But that one "windstorm" that blows crap at your car, or enough trucks flinging crap at your car, etc., and it can be enough to just totally pit up the front of your car. Not to mention, the death of bugs splattered all over.

Pntblnk

I've been lived all day. Either insurance will fix it to my satisfaction or I'm going to start looking for a CPO E63.

Arrie

What is so bad of having the car painted? If it is done correctly you cannot see the difference compared to the original one other than you just know it was painted...

If the "sand storm" was so bad that it "destroyed" your paint, grille and windshield I would think you could see and hear it. Why did you not stop and turn around or find a cover and wait it out?

Pntblnk

Repainting should be simple but don't really want to keep a car that has had extensive body work. Guessing the entire front end will need to be repainted back to the doors. Probably silly but I'm a bit OCD and know it will bother me.

Re: pulling over, I was cruising along with the radio up and felt the car getting blown around a bit and saw dust but certainly didn't think it was that bad...boy was I wrong!

K-A

Doooooooooooooooooooooood.

Oddly enough I just had to re-book a flight to Vegas for another month and now have to drive there when I go in a week or so (have to bring my Brother back with me).

Sooooo, I now have the pleasure of driving my shiny new car on that awesomely great vehicular bonding yet terrifyingly "if I'm not lucky my new car ages drastically in one trip" session.

On a 4 day trip.... I can either Rent some POS for $90 or drive my BLACK brand new car who's "newness sanctity" I'd like to prolong as much as possible- yet is Leased so don't want to pay for something I'm keeping in the garage for almost a weeks time.

Now you got me all paranoid.

PHML

sorry to hear. was the damage only up front? On the hood and front bumper?

i know some guys use painters tape all over the front end and hood when going on long road trips...maybe something to consider in the future.

BM2BZ

if that's the case, i hope your insurance won't work out .

BenzV12

Sorry to hear about that glitch , I believe a good detailing shop can revert your car back to its pristine condition

ImInPA

As sad as it is, these things happen. Living in the Northeast with the amount of sand and salt they drop on the roads, this is just a part of life. It is only a car. It can be repainted and repaired, and the same thing can happen the next day. Just keep in mind that cars were meant to be driven. And your MB is meant to be driven more than most.

hyperion667

wow that sounds annoying!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

good luck brother!!!!!!!

SoCalCLK

Sorry to hear about that freak sandstorm and the damage it caused to your car.

I would have a good detailer go through the car and see what they can do before you ditch it. You'd be surprised what they can remove from the car (in terms of puts and surface scratches). It's worth looking into before you pull the trigger. I'll email you details.

Pntblnk

The real kicker is that the detailer that went over the car last weekend also does the clear bra installs. I got pricing that day and was planning to have it done later this month.... If I had that protection this would have been a peel / replace option rather than paint. Windshield is the part that really surprises me. I certainly didn't think it would pit that badly and wonder if it can be polished or if there is some sort of coating on the outside that would be damaged / removed. Assume MB does a layered glass and not sure of how they are composed.

I have a call into our insurance guy this morning with my fingers crossed that they cover and I can get fixed. I checked the MBUSA locator and there are only 29 E63's in NA with very few P2 / Pano cars and none of those in white.

myzmak

Wow. That sucks.

Up here in 'snow country' we have this season called 'winter' where this stuff called 'snow' falls (har har) - meaning we have to live with roads getting sanded in the winter. That means they put a whole bunch of road salt and sand on the road to melt snow and provide traction before it melts. In Alberta, the sand is course - gravel, really. As you'd expect, it can fly around like crazy. Never had a car that hasn't had a bunch of rock chips in the windshield just from routine driving - especially on highways.

Anyway, most drivers of new cars here will get a product by 3M put on the front/hood (either 1/3 of the hood or full front) to protect it from those pits.

.....my guess is all of you living down the land of permament summer don't do that, huh?

If you are interested, this be what imma talkin' bout:

http://www.shadowtinting.com/service...ction_film.php

Pntblnk

I took the car in to the insurance appraiser this past week and he basically confirmed my fears. The entire front end is going to get some work. Windshield, both sets of headlamps and the grill are being replaced, bumper, hood, front uprights, mirrors and R/L front fenders are being repainted and the whole right side of the car needs to be polished. $5000 and a couple weeks and she should be good as new.

Best part is that our auto insurance was up for renewal in January and we had planned to raise our deductibles on everything to $2500. The agent suggested we go ahead and raise the collision but take the comprehensive to ZERO as it was such a small different in the annual rate ($50 total for the year) We have a great agent for sure...entire thing won't cost me a dime. Lucky on this one and absolutely going to get the clear bra put on the wifes new ML and pending keep / trade decision....my car whatever it may be.

EmE247

Good time to do the e63 front end conversion imo.

ImInPA

Great news for you!!! I would not hesitate to keep it. It is just some new glass and paint. It will look absolutely new!!! Got hit with a rock two weeks into my new E and had to have the windshield replaced. No issues whatsoever. I am considering the clear bra for my new-to-me S350. I have mixed feelings about them. Might not be too bad on my white color, but, the edges tend to get dirty and show a line.

Arrie

All that work ONLY $5000?

Who is doing the repairs?

BenzV12

Good news indeed , happy for you and kudos to your agent

Pntblnk

Presitge Auto Collision in Mission Viejo - they are the only MBUSA certified collision repair facility in the area other than Fletcher-Jones. They are also an AllState preferred vendor so anything they find additional to the quote get's "approved and handled" according to the estimator.

Going back to stock front end but the E63 clip would be killer for sure! I think I would lose the hockey sticks though and really like that feature.

Clear Bra definitely in my future no matter what I end up doing. Shinny CPO E63 at FJ with low miles has my interest. Might see what the numbers look like once I get the repair done.

blackbullit

I vote that you rent a POS instead of jeopardizing your beautiful black BMW!

Not worth the risk...

hyperion667

no kidding........I am in the process of rememvering what a pain in the neck black can be....get a rental.......
only thing is, you won't be in your new car......
ka, time to clear bra it eh?

K-A

Haha, good advice, sir! I totally forgot to update this!

So, I drove it to Vegas EVEn after I had a deal for Enterprise to give me a car for a whopping $9.99 a day, but I wanted to "experience" my new car to Vegas at least once. A few rock chips on the front bumper which are so small they're impossible to see unless shining a bright LED light on the bumper (I'll let that pass).

I had to park it outside, of which it got "specs" of hard tree sap ALL over it, like sprayed in it.... AND it got sprinkler water on it every night (which I couldn't get off on my own).

Needless to say, the car was a disaster, so much so that I'd usually lose my mind (and I kinda did, lol).

So why'd I do this? 'Cause I was taking it to an awesome Detailer when I got back who was gonna "Paint Correct" the car, undo the marring from the crappy Car Wash I took it to (never again), and just bring it to better-than-new. Job well done by him! Maybe I'll post pics in my Thread if people don't mind.

OH! And I got a speeding ticket. How cliche, right? I guess something had to calm me down from driving like a whacko.

theraven333

The power of sand storms was shown to me when I was in the Middle East once and a friend left his brand new Audi out in a Sand storm (by accident) and when we returned, one side of his car was virtually devoid of paint and the windows almost etched, it was a weird sight, so I certainly understand what damage can be done, I appreciate the extreme nature of this but the most aggravating to me is the small tiny stone chips that appear here and there on the bodywork, due to road salt and the roads falling apart!!!!!" Having to use touch up paint that never ever blends in!!!!!!