checking on hood

I'm looking at a certified Honda, low mileage, great condition. The
only problem is that there are some small spots on the hood where it
looks like the paing has been chipped. I showed it to a body shop guy
I trust and he said it's called checking and in a few places it's
actually gone through the paint. His opinion is that it could cause a
problem down the line and it should be address. His suggestion is to
refinish the hood, but the dealer says no way are they doing that (even
though there's an item on the certified checklist for the condition of
the hood). They have offered to give me a free simoniz 5 coating,
which comes with a waranty. I have read that it's not worth it when
they want you to buy it, but what about when they throw it in for free?
I've tried to get them down in price for the amount that it would cost
to have the refinishing done, but I don't think that gonna happen. Any
thoughts?

They are a dime a dozen, I would walk away.

One other reason to walk is hood paint damage is sometimes caused by a
blow out of the radiator coolant. This is especially true if you see
any spots at the top of the windshield edge too or if there is obviously
a new radiator in it.

That means the engine has been overheated with no way of knowing how bad
or what internal damage was done at that time. I have turned down many
and recommended turning down many with obvious coolant blowouts.

Folks blow the rad, don't know what damage is done so they sell it to
some sucker.

Just my $0.02,

Mike
86/00 CJ7 Laredo, 33x9.5 BFG Muds, 'glass nose to tail in '00
88 Cherokee 235 BFG AT's
Canadian Off Road Trips Photos: Non members can still view!
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wrote:
> I'm looking at a certified Honda, low mileage, great condition. The
> only problem is that there are some small spots on the hood where it
> looks like the paing has been chipped. I showed it to a body shop guy
> I trust and he said it's called checking and in a few places it's
> actually gone through the paint. His opinion is that it could cause a
> problem down the line and it should be address. His suggestion is to
> refinish the hood, but the dealer says no way are they doing that (even
> though there's an item on the certified checklist for the condition of
> the hood). They have offered to give me a free simoniz 5 coating,
> which comes with a waranty. I have read that it's not worth it when
> they want you to buy it, but what about when they throw it in for free?
> I've tried to get them down in price for the amount that it would cost
> to have the refinishing done, but I don't think that gonna happen. Any
> thoughts?
>

wrote:
>
> I'm looking at a certified Honda, low mileage, great condition. The
> only problem is that there are some small spots on the hood where it
> looks like the paing has been chipped. I showed it to a body shop guy
> I trust and he said it's called checking and in a few places it's
> actually gone through the paint. His opinion is that it could cause a
> problem down the line and it should be address. His suggestion is to
> refinish the hood, but the dealer says no way are they doing that (even
> though there's an item on the certified checklist for the condition of
> the hood). They have offered to give me a free simoniz 5 coating,
> which comes with a waranty. I have read that it's not worth it when
> they want you to buy it, but what about when they throw it in for free?
> I've tried to get them down in price for the amount that it would cost
> to have the refinishing done, but I don't think that gonna happen. Any
> thoughts?

How much will the hood refinish cost?

> How much will the hood refinish cost?

$300-350.

On 20 Jan 2007 09:26:16 -0800, wrote:

>I'm looking at a certified Honda, low mileage, great condition. The
>only problem is that there are some small spots on the hood where it
>looks like the paing has been chipped. I showed it to a body shop guy
>I trust and he said it's called checking and in a few places it's
>actually gone through the paint. His opinion is that it could cause a
>problem down the line and it should be address. His suggestion is to
>refinish the hood, but the dealer says no way are they doing that (even
>though there's an item on the certified checklist for the condition of
>the hood). They have offered to give me a free simoniz 5 coating,
>which comes with a waranty. I have read that it's not worth it when
>they want you to buy it, but what about when they throw it in for free?
> I've tried to get them down in price for the amount that it would cost
>to have the refinishing done, but I don't think that gonna happen. Any
>thoughts?

These cars are entirely tooooo common to accept one that isn't in the
condition you want. If the hood is checking now it will surely only
get worse as time goes on.

I'm glad to see a dealer charging what the Simonize treatment is
actually worth (nothing) but don't expect it to keep the problem from
progressing for long.

Steve B.

wrote:
>
> I'm looking at a certified Honda, low mileage, great condition. The
> only problem is that there are some small spots on the hood where it
> looks like the paing has been chipped. I showed it to a body shop guy
> I trust and he said it's called checking and in a few places it's
> actually gone through the paint. His opinion is that it could cause a
> problem down the line and it should be address. His suggestion is to
> refinish the hood, but the dealer says no way are they doing that (even
> though there's an item on the certified checklist for the condition of
> the hood). They have offered to give me a free simoniz 5 coating,
> which comes with a waranty. I have read that it's not worth it when
> they want you to buy it, but what about when they throw it in for free?
> I've tried to get them down in price for the amount that it would cost
> to have the refinishing done, but I don't think that gonna happen. Any
> thoughts?

Exactly where on the hood are the spot?
What kind of spots?

There are two or three areas in the middle of the hood where the both
the clear coat and paint have been chipped away. Each chip is 1/8" or
less across. You don't notice them with a quick glance, but once
you're looking for them, they're pretty obvious.

Everything else about the car is really good (and two mechanics have
given it a look over). Would some touch-up paint (directly from the
dealer, so it should be an exact match) do a good job covering it up,
or would it just make it more noticeable?

Dev Null wrote:
>
> There are two or three areas in the middle of the hood where the both
> the clear coat and paint have been chipped away. Each chip is 1/8" or
> less across. You don't notice them with a quick glance, but once
> you're looking for them, they're pretty obvious.
>
> Everything else about the car is really good (and two mechanics have
> given it a look over). Would some touch-up paint (directly from the
> dealer, so it should be an exact match) do a good job covering it up,
> or would it just make it more noticeable?

If they are discrete chips like from rocks or kids playing with rocks,
then you may be able to dab a little paint on them but it will never
exactly match.
$300-350 is not a lot to have the hood redone. It will then match
itself but may not match the rest of the car.
If the chips are larger than just rock chips, then I would suspect prior
damage to either the hood or the engine (or both).
Remember, there is clear coat on top of the paint.

On 20 Jan 2007 09:26:16 -0800, wrote:

>I'm looking at a certified Honda, low mileage, great condition. The
>only problem is that there are some small spots on the hood where it
>looks like the paing has been chipped. I showed it to a body shop guy
>I trust and he said it's called checking and in a few places it's
>actually gone through the paint. His opinion is that it could cause a
>problem down the line and it should be address. His suggestion is to
>refinish the hood, but the dealer says no way are they doing that (even
>though there's an item on the certified checklist for the condition of
>the hood). They have offered to give me a free simoniz 5 coating,
>which comes with a waranty. I have read that it's not worth it when
>they want you to buy it, but what about when they throw it in for free?
> I've tried to get them down in price for the amount that it would cost
>to have the refinishing done, but I don't think that gonna happen. Any
>thoughts?

I don't think any modern car is likely to have checked paint that is a
factory finish. My guess is that the car was in an accident and it's
been repainted and not properly prepped and now the paint is checked.
I'd walk away unless the price reflected the reduced value of the car.

wrote:
> I'm looking at a certified Honda, low mileage, great condition. The
> only problem is that there are some small spots on the hood where it
> looks like the paing has been chipped. I showed it to a body shop guy
> I trust and he said it's called checking and in a few places it's
> actually gone through the paint. His opinion is that it could cause a
> problem down the line and it should be address. His suggestion is to
> refinish the hood, but the dealer says no way are they doing that (even
> though there's an item on the certified checklist for the condition of
> the hood). They have offered to give me a free simoniz 5 coating,
> which comes with a waranty. I have read that it's not worth it when
> they want you to buy it, but what about when they throw it in for free?
> I've tried to get them down in price for the amount that it would cost
> to have the refinishing done, but I don't think that gonna happen. Any
> thoughts?
>

Sounds like normal rock chips from small stones tossed up from another
vehicle. Look at the front edge of the hood on most vehicles with some
highway miles and you will find the same thing.
Personally I would say that refinishing the entire hood is WAY out of
line for that small amount of damage. A good body shop can use a sanding
point and clean up the chipped ares, then use primer,color matched paint
and clear and touch them up so they would be fine. Being small spots the
repair would not be very noticeable unless they really screwed up the
color match.
The problem is that many shops don't want to take the time to do it
because it requires MUCH more skill than sanding, filling and shooting
the entire hood. The problem with shooting JUST the hood is that the
paint and metallic in it will not match the rest of the vehicle. It will
be VERY noticeable under certain types of light.

--
Steve W.