Paint touch-up & chip repair
Chips are missing paint, and nothing polishes a chip. We fill each one with OEM color-matched paint by your factory code, level it flush, and blend it in. Before rust gets a foothold.
- Professional results
- Reliable service
- Dealer & retail solutions
- Mobile service, we come to you
At a glance
$55 per panel, paint matching and application
- One panel can hold many chips; a peppered hood is one panel.
- Bundled with a wet sand and buff for $280, or with SiO2 protection for $320.
- Paint mixed to your vehicle's factory paint code.
- Usually one to two hours on site. Multi-layer builds may need a return visit to level.
Chips and nicks we repair
- Door jamb chips and nicks
- Hood rock chips
- Door-edge chips
- Small bumper chips
- Mirror-cap chips
- Small paint imperfections
- Scratch sections through to primer
- Trunk and tailgate edge chips
Large areas of missing paint, dents with paint loss, and rusted-through spots are body shop work. We'll tell you if yours is one of those.
Paint touch-up
- OEM color-matched paint by factory paint code
- Clean, decontaminate, and prep each chip
- Rust and loose paint removed from the chip edges
- Layered fill with color, then clear coat
- Leveling and polishing so the repair sits flush
- Blend into surrounding paint
- Final inspection under multiple light sources
- Care and maintenance instructions
Touch-up pricing
| Service | Price |
|---|---|
| Touch-Up Add-On (paint matching & application) | $55 / panel |
| Wet Sand & Buff + Touch-Up | $280 |
| Wet Sand & Buff + Touch-Up + SiO2 Ceramic Spray Protection | $320 |
Touch-up is priced per panel, not per chip. A hood with forty rock chips is one panel.
Why chips matter more than they look
A chip exposes primer, or on older damage, bare metal. Water and road salt get in, and in a Capital Region winter that's a rust bubble by spring. A rust bubble is a body shop job. A chip is a $55 panel.
Dealer-lot touch-up pens dab a blob on top that sits proud of the surface and catches light. We build thin layers, let them flash, then level the repair flush and polish it so it reflects like the paint around it.
| Touch-up pen at home | Recondition Works | |
|---|---|---|
| Color | Close, often off a shade | Mixed to factory code |
| Finish | Raised blob | Leveled flush, polished |
| Prep | Usually none | Cleaned, rust removed, primed where needed |
| Durability | Peels or yellows | Color plus clear coat, sealed |
The touch-up process
Match
We pull your paint code from the door jamb or VIN plate and mix OEM-matched color. Tri-coat pearls and metallics included.
Prep
Each chip is cleaned and decontaminated. Loose paint and surface rust come out of the edges. Primer goes on bare metal.
Build
Thin layers of color, then clear, flashed between coats so the fill is solid rather than a shell over a void.
Level and blend
The cured fill is leveled flush with the panel, polished, and blended. Then sealed.
Questions about touch-up
Will the chips be invisible?
From a few feet away, yes. Up close, a very good touch-up is hard to find; it is still a touch-up, not a repaint. We'll show you a finished chip before doing the rest of the panel.
Can you match metallic or pearl paint?
Yes. We mix to your factory code, including metallics and tri-coat pearls. On very small chips the flake direction isn't visible, which is why touch-up works so well on them.
Do you fix chips on plastic bumpers?
Yes, small chips and scuffs. Large scrapes with deformed plastic need a bumper repair shop.
Should I wait until I have more chips?
No. Each chip is a rust risk, and the price is per panel either way. Do the panel now; we can add new chips at a later visit.