Makes no sense to me (Paint question)

In advance I'm sorry for it's length but this has been driving me crazy and I'm hoping somebody can offer some advice to me.

As I believe I've expressed in a couple threads before, I've been looking to get my fender flares and bumper color matched silver to my truck. I know I should've bought the more expensive truck to begin with, but I literally bought it the day I was leaving to deploy because the wife was going to need a truck while I was gone and the price was right.

I've been by 3 or 4 paint shops now and they have all told me that because the OEM black fender flares and bumper have a slight texture there's no way they would paint them because the paint would just flake off.

I decided I want these things color matched and I don't care what I'm going to have to do in order to get it the way I want it. I plan on driving the truck until it falls apart so if it costs me a little more now to have it the way I want it so be it. So I go to the Toyota dealership, and right out front are 5 silver Tacomas all color matched (2 TRD and 3 SR5 editions). I go to the parts department and explain to the guy behind the counter what I have and what I want. So he gets on his trusty computer and starts researching. It's an 09 Tacoma Prerunner double cab short bed in Silver streak. He looks for awhile and tells me he can order the already color matched ones but only in black, white and red, they don't come color matched in silver. So I inquire what he would do if I came in and one of mine was damaged and it was already painted silver. He tells me that Toyota must just not offer the truck in silver with color matched fender flares. I proceed to take him outside and show him the 5 parked side by side all with color matched fender flares. He doesn't know how they got they way or where to get them from so he goes to the back to talk to someone else I suppose.

While I'm waiting the owner (for anyone from Baton Rouge, it's 'Dahlin' guy from the commercials with the funny hat) comes by and asks if I'm being helped so I tell him I think so. He inquires as to what has brought me in today, so I explain my issue to him. Well that doesn't sound right to him. They obviously have them in silver so they have to be able to reproduce that for me. So he goes into the back office where the parts guy has been. They're back there for like 15 minutes and finally the parts guy comes back out. At this point he hasn't seen my truck so he doesn't know what my fender flares look like. (FYI Toyota does sell a bumper that is already primered so I know how they paint those) Anyway the parts guy has in his hand an OEM fender flare that they've ordered for someone involved in an accident and they're going to send it to the body shop to be put on and painted. He pulls it out its bubble wrap packaging and low and behold, it's the exact same fender flare I have. Now we're in full daylight outside next to my truck holding it up at every possible angle, touching both of them, asking others opinions. It's not a similar look or texture, it's the exact same thing. He tells me that the fender flare to be painted is $218 just for one of the rear ones, which at this point doesn't matter because it’s the same exact fender flare I already have on my truck so I wouldn't buy new ones regardless.

So we go back inside and he calls one of the paint shops I had been too and explains to him that the fender flares on my truck are identical to the ones Toyota would order if they had to replace one and paint it. The paint shop owner asks me to stop by so he can check it out again. While I'm on my way there, he does his own research and when I arrive he confirms that this is indeed the only fender flare that could even possibly be sold for my color truck. Yet he mentions that they come color matched, but only in black , white and red. A fact I already knew and does me absolutely no good at this point, being that my truck is silver.

He goes on to explain that he'll paint the truck but he can't warranty it, which makes no sense. They warranty all of their other work, and often deal directly with my dealership. He even tells me they've done this exact thing before… so wtf is going on? Why will it just not work on mine? He goes on to quote me $1200 to color match the four fender flares and front bumper.

So I'm just completely at a loss right now. While $1200 seems incredibly high to me, I'm almost willing to pay it. However I can't in good conscience pay that kind of money with the guy doing the work telling me its definitely going to flake off.

Are there any members out there that either have been in an accident and had to replace a fender flare? Own a paint shop and have ever had to do this work? Or work for Toyota and know how your dealership would handle this.

I've looked into the Bushwackers, but they look like they have just as much if not more texture than the factory ones, so why would paint stick to them?

Once again I apologize for the length of this rant, but it's really driving me crazy. I'd like to get started modding my truck, but I honestly refuse to do anything until I get this resolved.

 

X2.

 

Hello! Hahaha.

 

The white ones are still going to be more than $280/flare from my dealership and then I'll still have to pay to get them painted, so that doesn't save me any and I'm pretty sure it's still the same fender flare I have under the white paint.

I'm sure I could find them online somewhere cheaper, but I was quoted $1100 for 4 new black ones just like the ones I have now, and I'm assuming the color matched are only going to be more expensive.

Thanks for the advice. I had already considered going that route, but financially it doesn't make alot of sense to me.

 

Back when I hit a deer a few months ago the toyota dealer put a new fender flare on my truck. I have a silver truck just like yours. I will have to look at the invoice when I get home but I know they ordered a few parts from toyota that were already painted and they had to paint some.

Go to a different body shop if that guy says he can't paint the plastic. of course you can it just requires more prep work.

 

go with the bushwacker pocket style flares...

$550 Bushwacker Toyota Tacoma Pocket Style Fender Flare Set (Paintable) - 31920-02

http://www.4wheelparts.com/Exterior...&t_s=409&t_pt=3555&t_pl=822&t_pn=B/W31920-02#...

 

I assumed the same thing. It seems like each body shop has had a different story for why they can't be painted.

The first one wouldn't do it because of the flex in the fender, it would cause it to chip.

The next was because when they make fender in the mold it absorbs some kind of oil or other material that when painted will just release under the paint and cause it to flake off.

I honestly don't know what to believe, and don't have whatever gene it is that just allows you to be content with what you've got. I plan to visit another couple shops regardless as $1200 seems steep.

I've also got 3 other local dealerships I'm going to visit to see what they say. It's almost becoming comical for me.

In the meantime though if anyone is replacing a bumper or upgrading to bushwackers or glass fenders and you'll be getting rid of yours let me know. I'll make you a nice deal.

 

I recently purchased pocket style fender flares off ebay from a guy who had them painted silver. I took them to maaco and had them paint them to match my truck which is speedway blue, for 200 bucks. They seemed to have no problem doing it. I can try and find out where that other dude got them painted silver...

 

That would be awesome if you could.

I really feel like I'm losing my mind. Like I'm the only one around here that uses logic. If Toyota is ordering the same fender flares that I already have and having them painted for customers, whats the issue? The poor guy behind the parts counter, I almost felt bad for him. When he said I guess Toyota doesn't offer the silver color matched, I almost lost it.

 

Check out post #369, He has fenders, but you would need to paint them.

http://www.tacomaworld.com/forum/buy-sell-trade/30147-pay-forward-thread-free-stuff-19.html


GA

 

Thanks. At least with those I'd know they should hold the paint and would give me less grief from the paint shops in the area.

I'm really amazed though that nobody else seems to have attempted to paint theirs. I know alot of people like the look of the black fenders, and I honestly prefer them on the white tacos, but I just really like the look of the all silver.

 

with that price quote you can invest in a compressor, quality paint sprayer, and do the job yourself for half the price

 

I fell asleep reading your post.

 

I just had a new front bumper and partial passenger fender flare (the part that is attached to the bumper) put on my truck about a week ago.

The bumper and fender piece both came from Toyota and had to be painted silver to match my truck. I got estimates from 3 different shops and none of them told me the pieces couldn't be painted.

The bumper and fender piece, plus paint, labor and everything else came out to about $850.

 

The reason the black ones can't be painted is because of the texture, the color keyed ones have a slight texture but not as severe as the black ones. When they prep the flares they have to scuff them lightly, it destroys the heavy texture and thus the look of the flare.

 

I think the guy that gave me the quote just didn't want to do the work for whatever reason. He knew I'd never pay that amount. The labor to take the parts off was was $215, and paint labor was $580, almost 3 times as much. I'm going to go by a couple more shops this week and get some more quotes.

Now that I know what I have on the truck should be able to be painted with no problems, based on the fact that Toyota would order the same ones if I needed one repaired and mine were already color matched.

 

This goes completely against what I witnessed today. He brought out and opened up one of the flares that had been ordered to be painted for another customer. It even said something on the wrapping about be a paintable part, and it wasn't similar to the stock oems I have, it was the exact same texture.

I mentioned it in another post. I found a blue bumper for an 05+ taco the other day on the side of the interstate and from where it was sitting it looked like it was in good condition so I picked it up. It ended up having a big dent on the side I couldn't see, but on a couple spots the paint had been scuffed off enough to where you could see the raw bumper, and even it was identical to the texture on my truck.

 

The black flares are NOT the same as the color keyed ones the black textured have much more of a texture to them then the color keyed ones. It is no different then the base model black bumper compared to the color keyed bumper. There is slight texture to the color keyed and major texture on the black ones. The flares on my truck 2008 Rugged Trail are black textured and the front bumper is color keyed and the texture is not even close. You could order about any color keyed flare and have them painted, you just cant paint the black textured ones like on the Rugged Trail or base models they wont hold paint.

 

I'm not here to argue, and I'm going to run by another dealership tomorrow, but according to my dealer and what they are able to order or what they even had access to in the system. If they had to do a repair for a silver tacoma, they would have to order the EXACT fender flare that I have on my truck right this second and have it painted.

I don't know if the Rugged Trail comes with maybe a more rough texture, but if you got any less texture on the ones I have, they'd be smooth. From about 3 feet away you can't even tell mine are textured. I don't think mine are anything other than the base model flares, so I really don't know.

Now maybe the parts guy, owner and wholesale guy were all crazy, I don't doubt that.