I have a line on a rearreplacement bumper,my question is if I just take it to a paint shop and ask them to match the color to the car is this proper or do I have to take it in and let them paint and install?

 

It is possible but far and few in between. Most body shops will not install parts purchased from them for several reasons, one being they don't make any money on the parts installed, and will not warranty the paint because they did not do the work themselves, the customer may not be satisfied with the matching which is difficult to do. In short not worth the hassle for the shop due to these issues.

 

So what do I do I have this bumper and don't want to pay to have the whole car done?

 

Have you installed the bumper already? There are some shops who may be willing do the work but they will advise you that it may prove difficult to match. I'm just mentioning the possibility of some shops may not accept the work. This is just my opinion, Others on this forum will offer good advice.

 

You shouldn't have trouble finding a shop willing to paint it for you, and there's nothing wrong with calling around to a couple shops to find one willing to shoot it for you. You'll want to mount it before painting it to make sure that no work is needed to match it up to your body (especially if it's an aftermarket, fiberglass bumper). If your looking to paint it yourself, most automotive paint supply shops have a computor that will match your paint for you. Take in your gas door and they can scan it to match your paint.

 

What if your gas door is chrome and gold like mine :p

^rhetorical^ :p

 

My shop will paint things off the car all the time, we will paint anything that will fit in the both for that matter. But oldgaurd 7 is right can't guarantee a color match. If you show the shop the original bumper or the car they can do a spray out to try to match the color but it can be hit and miss. We just had a hell of a time matching a blue on a 08 Caravan you just never know what colors will give you fits.

 

Thanks for the replys, so i will bring in a bumper if i get them to mount it and paint it is this a big money job ..... am I looking at $500 or should I plan on a $1000. I know it is wide open question but truly I have no idea what to expect.

 

WOW MAKING THIS much more difficult then it is. example i have a 79 with front and rear spoilers. survivor paint, good from 5 feet away. i had the spoilers painted here at my job's paintshop because they had some stone chips in em. i was given a book of about 1000 paint chips from dupont. had the car out in the sun matched the color. had them painted in two days walked out 60 bucks later. reinstalled. perfect! and thats 30 year old paint!

napa along with highend body shops have a computer color match which utilizes a scanner which then in turn programs the piant mix volume percentages ( color, hardner, thinner, whatever etc.) for the color it matches. they should have no problem matching something put right in front of them.

my advice is to heade the above advice from others. install the bumper first. there is usually a low or high spot here and there that needs to be fixed. If body work is needed then expect to pay more unless you do it yourself. Then learn something new... take off the old and install the new one yourself! thats how you learn! saves money too and you have a sense of accomplishment. then once done the shop should have no problem matching the paint to the cars color now. technology has come a long way! good luck and let us know how you make out!