derfA8L

Yeah, the Xpel might have prevented the paint damage, but probably not the ding. It does have me thinking about wrapping the hood , since there is a lot of front real estate on these A8s.

Ravill

I just got a quote for $1450 for a full hood, fender and mirror wrap. I doubt the wrap on the mirrors for the S8 will work, but I'll see.

BigBoy11

Not work on the mirrors in what respect?

Ravill

The mirrors on the S8 are a "satin" like silver finish. It seems that wrapping them would make them glossy.

Brenda_03

Can someone tell me how to make a new post ? Sorry I'm new here 😒 lol

BigBoy11

The Xpel wrap does not seem to alter the original color or add a gloss to the regular metallic paint but I am not familiar with the finish on the S8 mirrors. They certainly look different in photos.

BigBoy11

So what was the final verdict on the repair job?

derfA8L

The small dent is completely gone and the color match looked very good in direct sunlight. With crystal--and probably pearl--effect paint finishes, the (very expensive) tint application is crucial and it appears it was done properly on the repair. I can see a very slight difference in depth of color between the hood and narrow upper front fender edges under my garage's fluorescent lighting, but I expected that since there is currently no protective coating applied to the hood beyond the clear coat---I was told to allow the new paint finish to cure and not to use any wax, quartz or ceramic nano-glass coating on the hood for at least 30 days. Once I detail the hood with the same Pinnacle Black Lable products (polish, ceramic coating and Synergy wax) as were previously used on all the car's surfaces just a few days prior to the rock incident, I'm confident that the hood's color depth and wet glossy look will undoubtedly match the other body panels. I can't wait!!!

BigBoy11

Fluorescent light can be deceiving so if it looks good in direct sunlight, you are likely correct that getting the same products applied will make it look even better! My experiences with paint matching has been mixed; rarely exact so glad to hear the result is promising.

derfA8L

The interesting thing about Panther Black is that it has multiple personalities---depending on what is being reflected off the paint. So far I've seen it range between amythist, green, gray green, black, gray and cayenne---often with varying hues within the same color range...and generally all at the same time on different body panels. The look is rarely consistent from one section to the next, depending on the reflected light; often with color and hue variations on the same body panel. When this occurs, color matching is a non-issue. As the pic below shows, even in the body shop garage with fluorescent lights the variations in color and hue are apparent.