O.K, so Friday I was rear-ended while driving my 2004 a4 avant. My rear bumper is structurally fine but needs to be painted or replace. The problem is this- The top portion of the bumper is painted silver from the factory and the bottom(lower) is raw black plastic. I can not get this bumper from Audi, nor can my bodyshop. The bumper comes with primer already on it so the WHOLE thing will need to be painted.

Painting all the lowers(ie. side of car and front) is not an option financially. The bodyshop was going to paint the top of the bumper silver to match the factory paint and then paint the lower half black, or as close to the rest of the lowers as he can get. I was wondering how bad this would look against, or next to the nonpainted black plastic. I guess another option would be to paint the entire rear bumper silver and leave the rest of the lowers unpainted black. Which would look better? I find it so hard to believe that I can not get a bumper like the one I have. Any ideas, other options or opinions are appreciated.

 

I guess from the lack of responses this is a tough decision and more than likely both will look like crap.

 

Are you paying for the work or is the insurance company? Maybe you can get the bodyshop to say that because you can't find an exact match for your bumper, you need to paint all lowers for the car to look right....just a thought.

 

ya im actually getting all the lowers painted to match for only $250...im getting a sick hookup cuz i kind of kno the guy...but you should shop around for prices...its not that tough of a job, most of the painting would be on the rear bumper, there isnt alot to do on the side skirts and front

 

It's an insurance claim but I guess I could throw that idea out there. This really stinks because the damage is SO minimal. It is even tempting to leave it how it is but that may drive me crazy. But on the other hand, having it painted black or silver may also drive me crazy....maybe I need to be medicated.LOL

 

lol, just get the mechanic to say that the only way for him to have the car looking right, would be to paint all the lowers. If you can't find an exact match of the bumper, then it really isn't a lie. Because if he tries to paint part of the bumper to match unpainted black, it isn't gonna work.

 

Myst 420- I agree with you and will throw that out there and see what happens if he can't find one.

 

Ew, sorry to hear about the accident..really surprising Audi doesn't carry it since your car is not even that old. Where about are you at? I could give a ring at my dealership and see if they carry anything...because you're right, it would drive you mad if you had to match the paint...

 

Bloke- That would be awseome! I am in Pittsburgh,PA but I can't see why they couldn't ship it and have to for that matter as this is the only way it will be "right."

 

do you think I'll need any other info besides 2004 a4 avant and silver with black plastic on the bottom? Hmm in PA, I'm in New Hampshire...but I'm sure something can be arranged