Partial panel refinish can be a cost-effective repair but is not without challenges. One problem arises when insurers try to justify a lower payment because full color won't be applied to the entire panel. Another problem can arise when coding a refinish override.

Partial panel refinish is a technique that is possible when damage is confined to a small portion of a panel that leaves sufficient room to blend the paint within that panel. It requires full color application over the repaired area, along with a blend into existing paint on the non-repaired area and clear coat over the entire panel. This avoids the time and expense of blending into yet another body panel.

The panel surface must be prepared and masked to accept both color and clear coats for either full or partial panel refinish. The difference arises in the amount of color coating. Partial refinish requires full color coverage over the repaired area but less full color coverage overall and, thus, less time. It also requires the additional time and skill involved in blending, especially over a smaller area. Blending may even require additional paint mixes or additives. There is some logic for reducing refinish time but also a valid argument for increasing time.

Some insurers insist on reducing refinish time. Coding a refinish override may produce unintended consequences. For example, when refinishing both a fender and front door on a Pontiac G6, the Audatex system calculates 4.9 labor hours including two-stage application. Overriding fender refinish to reduce full surface refinish by 0.5 reduces the total for both panels to 4.4. Overriding door refinish to reduce full surface refinish by 0.5 reduces the total for both panels to 4.8. The difference is a result of the direction of overlap calculations. No overlap is removed from the overridden labor amount, though the panel remains in overlap calculations for subsequent panels.

When refinishing both a fender and front door on a Honda Accord, CCC's Pathways system calculates 4.7 labor hours including clearcoat application. Overriding fender refinish to reduce full surface refinish by 0.5 reduces the total for both panels to 4.0. Overriding door refinish to reduce full surface refinish by 0.5 reduces the total for both panels to 4.1. The difference includes reduced clear coat calculated with reduced surface refinish time. Overlap is still removed from the second panel and any subsequent panels.

When refinishing both a fender and front door on a Volkswagen Jetta, Mitchell's UltraMate system calculates 4.7 labor hours including clearcoat application. Overriding fender refinish to reduce full surface refinish by 0.5 reduces the total for both panels to 4.6. Overriding door refinish to reduce full surface refinish by 0.5 reduces the total for both panels to 4.6. The difference is the elimination of overlap to or from the panel with a refinish override. While 0.5 is manually removed, 0.4 overlap is automatically added back in. The overridden panel is ignored in overlap calculations for any subsequent panels. A percentage reduction for panel refinish is also available and results in a line note, "Modified refinish with full clear coat." The user-entered percentage applies to the full panel refinish with no overlap to or from the panel.

When both insurer and shop agree on a partial refinish operation and a time reduction for color application, the additional tasks and skills involved in blending operations need to be considered. A repaired panel requires full color coverage over the repaired portion and blending operations across a smaller area. Remember the common blending formula of 50 percent assumes a full-undamaged panel blended at the same time as adjacent full panel refinishing for the sole purpose of color match.

Keep in mind the real savings from partial panel refinishing; consider the extra skills and tasks needed for the blending portion of the repair and know how your system handles it.