[AlcoholWipe]

Hi guys, this is my very first post. Does anyone know if our bumper is made of medal or it must need a repair if there's a scratch? I think mine got scratched deeply.

Just realized that I have got hit and run today. Asked ChatGPT and it said our bumper is made of metal and people online are saying it's very likely to rust if I don't repair. Is this all true?

I think it would cost more than $1000 to have it fixed perfectly? Anyone know a spot fix would work in my case?

Thanks in advance!



2016 340i xDrive

[Djphonics]

The bumper is made of plastic. No need to fix it for corrosion concerns.

[a5m]

What the hell lol

[Tommy D]

You probably could get most of the scratch out with a good course polish and a foam pad on an orbital polisher. If you don't have a polisher, just uses a good polish pad or microfiber towel. Get some touch up paint to match and fill in the chip. You can wet sand after it dries with 2000 grit sandpaper and re-polish.

[keithyo88]

I have used Dr. ColorChip for both light and deep scratches. Here is a good how to:

The trick is how to apply it and how long to wait before using the 2nd stage fixer. Your scratch looks like an easy fix, but practice on a similar test surface to get used to using it. Less is really more, because whatever you put on, you need to take off the excess, and if you wait too long, it is difficult.

[mmm-five]

Seems AI is not quite ready to go all Terminator on us yet then

[Billfitz]

Originally Posted by tjxufang

Asked ChatGPT and it said our bumper is made of metal

Seems like the wrong place to be asking.

[Wires]

Unless your car is from 1980, it will be plastic. Only vehicles that have metal bumpers are pickup trucks, and rear only.

TommyD has the best answer. You took it down to the bare plastic, so it's you cannot just buff it out, but you make it look not as bad -- but leaving it to the pros if you have never done this, and aren't willing to risk it looking worse would be a better option.

[freakystyly]

There's steel under the bumper cover as a structural component, with a styofoam-like absorber. Otherwise cars would be a lot more crumply. So the AI is technically correct, but wrong for this application.

If anyone is curious if something is steel or plastic, try tapping on it. Different materials will sound differently. This is toddler knowledge.

[AlcoholWipe]

Originally Posted by Djphonics

The bumper is made of plastic. No need to fix it for corrosion concerns.

Yeah that's what I thought, the AI scared me. Thanks!

[AlcoholWipe]

Thanks a lot guys, really needed your confirmation. I will go thru some videos and see if I can do it myself, otherwise I will try to make myself live with it.

BTW, some guy quoted $650 CAD for this (in case anyone in the future wants an estimate).

[Billfitz]

For that $650 you can buy a paint gun, compressor, sander/buffer and anything else you need to do paint repairs. I use one of these for most of my sanding/buffing. It's all you need for small areas.

https://www.amazon.com/Decker-BDCRO2...s&sr=1-11&th=1

This covers your buffing needs: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0...e?ie=UTF8&th=1

OTOH that spot is so small that I wouldn't use any power tools. I'd touch it up, wet sand and rub it out all by hand.

[toxik]

just go to a car detail shop and have them wet sand and polish it for you, you won't even see it much after. im sure they can also use touch up on left over scratches to hide it more.

it's very easy to mess up your bumper and make it worse when you don't know what you're doing. paint is fragile and thin.

[Opie55]

Originally Posted by freakystyly

There's steel under the bumper cover as a structural component, with a styofoam-like absorber. Otherwise cars would be a lot more crumply. So the AI is technically correct, but wrong for this application.

If anyone is curious if something is steel or plastic, try tapping on it. Different materials will sound differently. This is toddler knowledge.

The structural metal bar underneath is aluminum, not steel.

[Zheez]

I had this on my previous F30 a few years back - someone managed to scrape my car even though it was the only car in that part of the car park, right at the back and away from everything. This was after a bit of polishing - it looked a lot worse before:



That damage is worse and I realise it's hard to compare prices since I'm in the UK, but it cost me £180 ($225 USD/$300 CAD) to get fixed. Surely you can get a better price than $650 CAD, or have prices of paint jobs just gone crazy in the last couple of years?

As others have said though, with a bit of polishing and touch up paint you'll get it to a point where it bothers you a lot less for a lot less money.

[Elkch58]

Yeah you need to, if you have to ask .

[ashkanvafaee2]

Prompt: "Is the front bumper of a 2016 bmw 340i made of plastic or metal?"

GPT-4's Response: "The front bumper of the 2016 BMW 340i is made of plastic. This is a common material used in modern cars for bumpers because it is lightweight, durable, and easier to repair than metal. Additionally, plastic bumpers can be designed to match the style of the car's body more seamlessly."

How did you prompt GPT? lol

[Billfitz]

Or just google 'What is BMW front bumper made of?'

[AlcoholWipe]

Originally Posted by ashkanvafaee2

Prompt: "Is the front bumper of a 2016 bmw 340i made of plastic or metal?"

GPT-4's Response: "The front bumper of the 2016 BMW 340i is made of plastic. This is a common material used in modern cars for bumpers because it is lightweight, durable, and easier to repair than metal. Additionally, plastic bumpers can be designed to match the style of the car's body more seamlessly."

How did you prompt GPT? lol

4.0 is a lot more sophisticated than 3.5 I used. I remember I asked for f30 3 series, coz I didn’t think there would be a difference between 320 vs 340. And it said lower end models like 320 330 use plastic and 340 and m3 use metal and may rust which I really did not believe.

[AlcoholWipe]

Originally Posted by Zheez

I had this on my previous F30 a few years back - someone managed to scrape my car even though it was the only car in that part of the car park, right at the back and away from everything. This was after a bit of polishing - it looked a lot worse before:

[img]https://i.postimg.cc/2SwStsyX/IMG-4479.jpg[/img]

That damage is worse and I realise it's hard to compare prices since I'm in the UK, but it cost me £180 ($225 USD/$300 CAD) to get fixed. Surely you can get a better price than $650 CAD, or have prices of paint jobs just gone crazy in the last couple of years?

As others have said though, with a bit of polishing and touch up paint you'll get it to a point where it bothers you a lot less for a lot less money.

650 definitely is not the best price. Later some other guy quoted 450 for bumper repaint. But thanks for your input even it’s in another currency. Should give other people an understanding. And yes I think I can manage to get some friend I know to do a touch-up.