Noooo, just been hit!

[macaroni]

I don't believe it, I've only had the car 4 days and already someone has rear ended it! His excuse? He was admiring the car.
There isn't much damage but the rear bumper is cracked. I suspect it will need replacing. If so, is Politecnic the best place to source one from?

[Anders Dinsen]

Oh no... I'm so sorry to hear that! That is really really bad luck!

But don't cry, there is no need to replace the entire bumper as the glass fiber can easily be repaired. It will need to be very severely smashed before it needs complete replacement.

I experienced the same after only two days - only the guy behind me didn't hit me. It was quite obvious however that he was distracted by the car and didn't notice that I was stopping. All I noticed was that he blocked his brakes!

At least your 'opponent' was honest.

You must be very sad!

Cheers (and cheer up! I'm sure it will work out!),
Anders

[Will Falconer]

I disagree with you there Anders.

Matra used a very thin autoclaved glassfibre win my experience which remains quite flexible and is even said to change shape on a hot day.. Repairs are generally of rigid  glassfibre which will break away from the broken area.

But maybe I'm wrong, is there a flexible repair system available which would work with the Matra plastic?

[Anders Dinsen]

Matra used a very thin autoclaved glassfibre win my experience hich remains quite flexible and is even said to change shape on a hot day.. Repairs are generally of rigid  glassfibre which will break away from the broken area.

I think of Hans' experienced as documented in this thread
http://www.matrasport.dk/forum/index.php?topic=167.0

A repair will inevitably add some material and therefore be a bit more rigid, but it should never break away if the damaged parts have been cut away and the remains sanded and cleaned well so the epoxy can bind correctly to the old part.

But of course - and probably the best since this is probably also an insurance case - it will always be better to replace with a new panel.

- Anders