Cost to paint BMW front bumper

**EXTJosh** · 02-03-2014, 11:25 AM

Hey guys,
Bought an M Tech front bumper for my E92. Was seeing what you guys thought would be a reasonable price to have a reputable body shop do the paint job on it? (currently in Augusta, GA) The company I bought it from online had already put primer coat on it, but I don't know if the body shop will want to start at square one. Thanks for any input!

- Josh

**CRyan** · 02-03-2014, 11:38 AM

A reputable body shop will likely want to start over. The final quality of the job is largely dependent on the work done prior to/during primer (especially on a bumper where flexing parts are concerned). Also, they may want to make sure the primer is compatible with the paint system they will use.

A good job from a good shop should run you anywhere from $600-$800. Things like using OEM paint versus Dupont will factor in to the final price.

**EXTJosh** · 02-03-2014, 11:46 AM

Originally Posted by CRyan

A reputable body shop will likely want to start over. The final quality of the job is largely dependent on the work done prior to/during primer (especially on a bumper where flexing parts are concerned). Also, they may want to make sure the primer is compatible with the paint system they will use.

A good job from a good shop should run you anywhere from $600-$800. Things like using OEM paint versus Dupont will factor in to the final price.

Thanks for the reply Ryan. Yeah definately OEM paint because I want to keep it looking stock and everything matching. $600 was about what I had figured as a baseline as well. The car is three years old (wow I can't believe its already been 3 years), do you recomend them getting "eyes-on" the car as well or can I just bring them the bumper in the back of my truck. I figure not too much has changed in paint color as the car is garage-kept and paint is protected regularly but then again I don't know what the right answer is when it comes to body shop procedures and what they SHOULD do properly.

**CRyan** · 02-03-2014, 11:54 AM

I would really leave that up to the shop. I would not want to assume the risk of causing hairline fractures in a new paint job by replacing the bumper myself. And if for some reason the paint comes out a different shade, you want the shop to be able to fix that on the fly. In theory, it should be fine to do this - In practice, things can go wrong and taking them just the bumper puts all of that risk on you.

Just as an FYI, German OEM paint will cost about $150 for a pint of the color. And naturally that does not count any felx additives or catalysts or even the clear. Supplies have gotten outrageous.

**Pureshine** · 02-03-2014, 11:56 AM

To have it done right you we will at least $300-$400 or you can go top Maaco for $100.

**ken tuep** · 02-03-2014, 12:13 PM

What color is the bumper? Can it be blended within the panel? Meaning you don't need basecoat at the edges where it meets the fenders.

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**doogeem3** · 02-03-2014, 01:07 PM

Originally Posted by Pureshine

To have it done right you we will at least $300-$400 or you can go top Maaco for $100.

+1 I'd never pay more than $400 for a bumper spray.

"OEM paint" is totally unnecessary!

**EXTJosh** · 02-03-2014, 01:16 PM

Originally Posted by CRyan

Just as an FYI, German OEM paint will cost about $150 for a pint of the color. And naturally that does not count any felx additives or catalysts or even the clear. Supplies have gotten outrageous.

Awesome. Reason #187 of why I should have waited to just buy an M3.

Originally Posted by Pureshine

To have it done right you we will at least $300-$400 or you can go top Maaco for $100.

Yeah, not going to go the Maaco route on this go around, thank you for the painting estimate.

Originally Posted by ken tuep

What color is the bumper? Can it be blended within the panel? Meaning you don't need basecoat at the edges where it meets the fenders.

The bumper has primer-coat on it from the company I bought it from. Basically it's flat black, car is graphite metallic (same car as in my avatar pic). It's an OEM bumper that was pulled off another E92 (presumably a wrecked one), primered and then re-sold on eBay.

**EXTJosh** · 02-03-2014, 01:23 PM

Originally Posted by doogeem3

+1 I'd never pay more than $400 for a bumper spray.

"OEM paint" is totally unnecessary!

I guess this is now more of a lesson on body shop procedures and auto paint than anything...CRyan mentioned DuPont paint instead of actual BMW paint. Do body shops basically match the paint using "aftermarket" (for lack of a better word) paint instead of "OEM" paint in accident claims, etc? I've had the bumper of my Escalade replaced when I was rear ended at a stop light and I guess I assumed the shop used "factory" paint to match the rest of the truck. It matched extremely well and still looks uniform with the rest of the truck a few years later...

**Harry Da Hamster** · 02-03-2014, 02:30 PM

I repainted my Cayenne from bumper due to a small scrape and i received quotes ranging $500-$1000. I choose the most expensive because of recommendations from a couple new car dealers.

Fortunately for you, its a new uninstalled front bumper so you do not need to worry about them painting the bumper while still attached to the vehicle and over spray.