[mechanixhorseman]

So the state where my vehicle is registered in recently decided it was no longer mandatory to have a front license plate so I decided to take mine off.

This is what I found underneath the dealer installed license plate holder. I'm not the original owner so I can't go demand the dealer fix it either...

You can see that the holes aren't even aligned perfectly center so plugs are out of the picture. On top of that there is the massive scratch between the left upper and lower holes. Why there is four I have no idea. I guess this is one of the prices you pay buying used.

Anyways this is how I plan to try and fix it.

I was thinking of grinding down the holes until they are flush with a dremel tool and then filling them with some bondo spot putty. After that I'd sand everything down, to include the bondo and massive scratch, and use touch up paint over all of it, clear coat, polish, and seal.

I'm relatively new to the detailing/paint repair scene, and the thought of taking sand paper to my paint makes me cringe, but this is pretty bad and I don't think anything short of this is going to fix it.

Does this seem like a sound plan? Any other routes that might turn out better?

[Sooners335i]

I'd find a paint repair guy that can refinish the holes. I bought my wife a Volvo through their Overseas Delivery Program, which comes with a Swedish plate on the front. We don't have to have front license plates here, but we figured we would just leave that on. However, when the car arrived at the dealership, somebody removed the Swedish plates, and they put a dealer plate on the front. I was told they threw the Swedish plates away, which I think is BS. Anyway, I figured some bumper plugs would work, but had the same situation as you. There were actually four holes, and they weren't even. I told the dealership they could refinish the front bumper since they took my Swedish plates. The guy who did it did a great job. I don't know what all he did, but he said he just refinished the area where the holes were. Looks brand new and can't tell there were ever any holes.

[mechanixhorseman]

How much did that job cost?

[Sooners335i]

The dealership actually took care of it since they couldn't "find" my Swedish plates. I hate to try and even guess what something like that would cost, but I can't imagine it being too expensive. He was working on several cars, and he had mine done in a couple of hours. Apparently, people drop off their cars with him to fix rock chips, serious scratches, etc. Things that might require a repaint, but itt beats having to repaint the entire panel, bumper, etc.

I also had similar work done when I picked up my 335i. The bottom of the front bumper had a bad case of curb rash from the previous owner. The dealer agreed to have it refinished. Their paint guy had it refinished in a day, and it looks brand new. He only work on the area where the curb rash was.

I would check with your dealer. They should have somebody they use for situations like this. They're usually independent guys/shops and are not affiliated with the dealer, so you should be able to work directly with them and bypass the dealer.

[mechanixhorseman]

I may shop around for a quote, but I was hoping to take care of this myself. It looks bad but it can't be impossible.

[sleepyx637]

are you in california? since when did california law change so that it's no longer mandatory to have a front license plate?

[fisherbln]

It can be fixed, but if you don't have experience doing paint correction, it will be very noticeable. I'd take it to a professional rather than risk making it worse.

[fdriller9]

I wish I had a closer picture. My dealer was retarded and drilled down...that mark you see is a hole covered with touch up paint.

[IMG]http://i714.photobucket.com/albums/ww146/*********/IMG_0211.jpg[/IMG]

[Houman21]

Originally Posted by sleepyx637

are you in california? since when did california law change so that it's no longer mandatory to have a front license plate?

+1 - As Cali-folks search the interwebs for a reason to take off the front plate

[mechanixhorseman]

Originally Posted by sleepyx637

are you in california? since when did california law change so that it's no longer mandatory to have a front license plate?

I'm in the military so I can keep the vehicle registered in IL (where it is no longer mandatory) while I'm stationed in CA.

[mechanixhorseman]

Originally Posted by *********

I wish I had a closer picture. My dealer was retarded and drilled down...that mark you see is a hole covered with touch up paint.

[IMG]http://i714.photobucket.com/albums/ww146/*********/IMG_0211.jpg[IMG]

Did you bondo and use multiple coats?

[MusclezMarinara]

paint shop and lil air brush