40th AE Paint question?

Have the car shown here on hold, all has been sorted by House in Pasadena including PPI AND the required work done included in the price. New clutch, radiators, coolant tank, front pads / rotors, drive belt, pulleys, tires are pretty close to new. IMS would be the first thing I'd have done on the car (original checks out fine for now but more for my peace of mind). Sharp car overall and drives awesome. Fly in the ointment is the driver's door had a ding that was repainted. Carfax is v clean, full service records mainly at Hoehn. Am I seeing things but in some of the photos and in person the driver's door looks darker? Anyone know if that can be fixed or is it just the way it is? GT Silver is a bitch to match, I guess. I have no problem bailing on this one and waiting, my search is only 4 weeks in and I don't *have* to have a 40th. This car drives just awesome, but that door...am I nuts? Thanks! https://shift.com/car/c14117

I only see the one pic of the driver door and it isn't the best angle, but even accounting for lighting that doesn't look right. It looks like the wrong base color was used. If that pic is true to life then I don't think any amount of blending is gonna fix it. If that's the case then it needs a full repaint by a good shop that knows what they are doing. Hopefully it's a trick of the light/camera. Since you aren't attached to that particular car, I'd pass if that pic is true to life. It can be fixed, but it won't be peanuts. If it's not "the car" then I don't see any reason to start off like that unless you are getting a screaming deal.

In response to your query, a good paint shop can match the GT Silver perfectly if they have the experience. I recently had my fr bumper and hood reshot due to road rash and the color (and paint quality) matches OEM perfectly.

Yeah, it doesn't look quite this bad in real life and total sun, but I can still totally see it. I thought it was maybe that they didn't get the metallic right, but if it was spot on I feel like I wouldn't be able to tell. I do love the way this one drives and looks, but it's just going to bother me until I fix it and if it's going to be $2K+ I'd rather put that into keeping things running in top shape. There was another pic in Autotrader but the quality isn't the greatest. But once you see that first shot you can't unsee it... http://tinyurl.com/zplpggq I'm actually not getting any better a deal than what they have listed here, unfortunately. An OK price given the mileage, work and service history, but I think the paint kills it.

yes you can definately see it, it needs to be repainted. It is hard to match silvers but have a good hi end painter work on it till its right

Dude, I wouldn't dump the car based on paint, but rather use it as a negotiating tool to drive the price down more. Paint is a easy (but no always cheap) fix. I have a arctic silver C2 and someone damaged the rear corner panel. The paint group in my town that State Farm recommended blended it in perfectly. You can't tell a difference, but it wasn't a cheap to repair... cost almost $900. Photographs can be deceiving and that's why it's best to evaluate it in person before purchasing it, but don't let the paint issue scare you away. Personally, I think the price is a bit high even though it is a AE model.

40 AE were $40k just a few years ago. These are awesome cars.

Right b3 - the seller gives a 7 day / 250 mi return, so the plan is to take delivery and drive it straight over to the best paint & body shop i can get recommended, get an estimate and go from there. I'm ok with a >$1k fix I can do whenever, but if it's more than that I'll just give it back. Or may be more trouble than it's worth. Net net they won't move on price so that kind of makes it easier. I'm also finding that pricing is tough in LA for anything worthwhile. Lost out on a 2003 targa with 48k mi and impeccable service and ownership history...went for $32k in about 3 days. Did a PPI on a '04 C4S, 50k mi, guy wanted $35k and had over $12k in deferred maintenance. I considered that PPI money well spent for what amounted to a masters course in what to look for in a used 996. I know, my search is nothing so far. Learning a lot and just want to make the right decision for my first one.

Quotes source post: 13424936

I've been in the same boat all winter and spring. Luckily I had a trusted Porsche enthusiast cross-check my short-list of cars to buy. In the end, I eventually just had to dive in and buy one. I drove myself crazy trying to find the best deal, the unicorn that would let me sleep sound at night, trying to avoid looking like an idiot. Eventually I biught the one that felt right in the guts, paid a bit too much but couldn't be happier. Get the car, respray the door (it would drive me crazy too) and enjoy all the fantastic roads this state has to offer. There are so many just calling your name: "drive me like a hurricane"...

Elumere - FWIW, this is the first one I drove that felt like what I always thought a Porsche should feel like - go-kart handling, immediate throttle response, clutch engagement just so. I specifically got on the 110 N at the 10 in DTLA just to drive it in traffic during the test drive, since this is going to be my DD, and was absolutely perfect. Except. For. The. Door. Then again you don't actually see the door when you're driving My fellow trusted P-car enthusiast is looking forward to trips out to Newcomb Ranch this summer. I'm in the foothills and the 2 is about 5 minutes from here one way and Big Tujunga is about 5 minutes the other way. Hard to live at the front door to the playground and not have any toys to play with!!

Quotes source post: 13424936

Nice work, that guy is either stoned or oblivious to the internet. A well maintained similar mile C4S went on BaT for $30k a few weeks back. Good colors and X51 too. $47k to get a 50k mi C4S up to shape is crazy. Buy a 996 turbo and a trip to Bali instead. I would happily pay a premium for an AE, that paint is an easy fix assuming the causal (accident) doesn't kill the car's value.

Quotes source post: 13425111

Wow, you truly live at heavens gate, then. Drove the 2 just last Thursday, during the day, it was empty aside from 3 Pri'i (Priuses?) that moved out of the way immediately. Took Angeles Crest Highway (the new pavement is buttersmooth) back, finishing through Big Tujunga. What a fantastic drive that is. Hit me up once you found your car, or if you wanna cross-test a '99 for comparison.

Quotes source post: 13425075

Agree - this ^ Of all the things that could be wrong with a 12 year old car, the door issue seems like a straightforward fix and if done correctly, is "permanent". Nice price for this car IMO.

Something about that door is not right and the seller knows it. No pic of the driver side full on. Also, the front bumper cover doesn't look like it is mounted correctly. There's a difference between the fit under the passenger side headlight vs. the driver's side headlight. Metallic silver paint is hard to match. My paint shop buddy tells me the type, and shape and size of the flakes in the paint is controlled by the paint maker. If one gets the same paint as the factory uses then it boils down to the application of the paint. Temperature, humidity and some other factors all play a role in making sure the paint flakes in the freshly painted panel end up oriented the same way so the paint matches. Even then just painting one panel is not sufficient. Adjacent panels are blended in so there is less chance one's eye catches a difference from panel to panel. That this car has that difference suggests a sub-par paint job.

Although silver is tough to match its been done numerous times by many good auto painters. I have an excellent painter in the Chatsworth area . If you do purchase this car I'd be happy to give you his info.

I'm not convinced something is just not up with the lighting angle they're taking the picture at, this one seems to have color difference too no?

Quotes source post: 13425398

Yeah, they have really made an effort to take some highly detailed photos in an environment that would show all the highlights and flaws, which is good, but yeah it's weird that the 997 had the same shadowy thing going on. The photo of the 40AE on Autotrader looked like it had the same issue, but I saw that after the one on their site, so it could have been just me. For me, I can't UNsee something like that. Neurosis left over from an old silver Accord I backed into a courier truck 12 years ago and the body shop never got the respray right. Sold that one for an A4. Bad idea and a story for another day.

Quotes source post: 13425128

I offered him $25k but prefaced it that I meant no disrespect. He said he didn't believe the mechanic (Scientific Automotive!?!?!?) and thought they were full of it. To his credit it's in perfect cosmetic shape, but like other than oil changes he's done nothing to the car in the 9 years he's owned it. I offered to send him the PPI (I mean, why not?) and he refused. Wished him glws and Godspeed.

Quotes source post: 13425298

Appreciate a PM with the info, thanks!

Quotes source post: 13425194

Ohhhh...sounds like a hooky day is in order!!

Quotes source post: 13425242

Agree that it probably wasn't the best paint job ever, but if it can be fixed for a reasonable cost by a highly reputable paint shop then I'm game to take the ride. Wonder if the bumper cover just needs some adjustment, the mechanic did replace the radiators. Will ask.