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Car repair age: How much am I looking at?

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Well, I basically dented in the driver side panel of my 2007 Civic. The damage is obvious although it doesn't affect my driving at all. Its purely cosmetic. If any of you a mechanic, work at a repair shop, or have had to replace your side panel, how much am damage am I looking at?
 
Used to do claims and it depends on the amount of damage. If they replace the panel with a used or aftermarket one, it shouldn't be that much. If they repair it, it could actually more depending on the damage and labor time. Plus if the dent is bad, there will be lots of bondo.

Most shops will give you a free estimate. Get quotes at the dealer and also a reputable independent shop or two to see the difference.

Again, if you are paying out of pocket look for a used panel. If you live in a city, Hnda Civics are popular and a junk yard somewhere will have them. As a claims adjuster I had to push A/M, but not all parts are created equal. A used panel is the same as a new one though by the time they get done with it.

Overall I would be surprised if it more than 750-1,000 unless it's a lot more damge than you think. The front panels are tough becaue they have to remove and reinstall a lot of components and blend it with the rest of the car as best they can.
 
I'd have to see the dent. If they can pull it out, maybe $300, if they need to patch it- maybe $500, if they need to replace the panel- $1000+.

LovingSteam said:
What is the actual name of the part I am talking about. I have done searches for side panels or side bumpers and it doesn't get a lot of matches.

Front quarter panel
 
weekend_warrior said:
I'd have to see the dent. If they can pull it out, maybe $300, if they need to patch it- maybe $500, if they need to replace the panel- $1000+.

I'll take a picture tomorrow and upload it so you can let me know what I should expect.

Thanks GAF!
 
LovingSteam said:
What is the actual name of the part I am talking about. I have done searches for side panels or side bumpers and it doesn't get a lot of matches.
Not sure, It could be front left panel, fender, front quarter panel...

Honda would probably call it fron left fender or left front panel
 
If you're taking it to a car repiar shop, expect to pay upwards of $6000.

Taking it to somebody you know, expect to overpay at about $70.
 
im pretty sure you don't have to replace the whole panel, there are workshops that can fix those dents.

i had a bike hit the front-right side of my car, there was like this huge sink-in, metals getting bent all the way inside, and the workshop fixed it in 1 day.
 
If you want a good price on fixing a car, the last place you would want to go to is the dealer. Look up on the internet as even Yelp has reviews of car mechanic places that don't overcharge you.

I would say $500 for a mechanic to do a good job on it.

I hope this wasn't you: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vTrmXrc_iBM
 
SpeedingUptoStop said:
If you're taking it to a car repiar shop, expect to pay upwards of $6000.

Taking it to somebody you know, expect to overpay at about $70.


Atleast you aren't a girl.....

Triple any quote they would give a man.

I can't take any of our vehicles to get a simple oil change without the mechanic coming out and saying they need to flush the whole system. And if I say no they respond with "It's really dangerous to drive around with the oil in the condition it's in". And then if I say no again they start bringing in the "children's safety".

The first time it happened I thought "OH NO!!!! The children!!!!". And then my husband took it in and they said that it looked great and for him to have a nice day.
 
kturtle0313 said:
Atleast you aren't a girl.....

Triple any quote they would give a man.

I can't take any of our vehicles to get a simple oil change without the mechanic coming out and saying they need to flush the whole system. And if I say no they respond with "It's really dangerous to drive around with the oil in the condition it's in". And then if I say no again they start bringing in the "children's safety".

The first time it happened I thought "OH NO!!!! The children!!!!". And then my husband took it in and they said that it looked great and for him to have a nice day.

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Depends ALOT on which exact part its damaged.

Front of car - front fender/door/door/rear quarter panel. Rear end of car

If its the rear quarter panel then it won't be cheap. That section is part of the body meaning it can't just be replaced and they would usually try to pull out the dent and bondo it. Lots of man hour on that.

If its fenders/door then best bet call up some junk yards and buy the door hopefully in the same color as your car from them and then take it to a body shop and tell them to replace it.
 
black_13 said:
Depends ALOT on which exact part its damaged.

Front of car - front fender/door/door/rear quarter panel. Rear end of car

If its the rear quarter panel then it won't be cheap. That section is part of the body meaning it can't just be replaced and they would usually try to pull out the dent and bondo it. Lots of man hour on that.

If its fenders/door then best bet call up some junk yards and buy the door hopefully in the same color as your car from them and then take it to a body shop and tell them to replace it.
I was checking to see if OP had the picture but the thing about rear qtr panel's is true. They're a lot of man hours involved no matter if it's repaired or replaced what because it almost always involves cutting and welding. this also means the shop itself may not be good at fixing them.
 
JGS said:
I was checking to see if OP had the picture but the thing about rear qtr panel's is true. They're a lot of man hours involved no matter if it's repaired or replaced what because it almost always involves cutting and welding. this also means the shop itself may not be good at fixing them.

Here are the photos

car_2.jpg

car_1.jpg
 
That looks like at least 3 different parts with 2 needing replacing and one repair. Plus the paint. It looks minor but is not.

I would peg it at 1-2k but would get a few quotes. You'll be amazed at the range. The repair is easy so I would go with the cheapest reputable one.

You could also just file the claim and pay deductible since it is more than minor
 
JGS said:
That looks like at least 3 different parts with 2 needing replacing and one repair. Plus the paint. It looks minor but is not.

I would peg it at 1-2k but would get a few quotes. You'll be amazed at the range. The repair is easy so I would go with the cheapest reputable one.

You could also just file the claim and pay deductible since it is more than minor

Yea, I may just do that although it will depend on how much it would raise my monthly payments.
 
LovingSteam said:
Yea, I may just do that although it will depend on how much it would raise my monthly payments.
Good point. If it's your first accident it won't be that much. Otherwise...

If it was your fault (even a hit and run) it should cost anything extra past your deductible
 
If you do want it to just look better and dont want to deal with insurance, just buy a new fender (they're usually pretty cheap) and pay a couple hundred to have it painted and replaced. The other damage is far less noticeable.
 
JGS said:
Good point. If it's your first accident it won't be that much. Otherwise...

If it was your fault (even a hit and run) it should cost anything extra past your deductible

First accident. I haven't had good luck with this car lol. My old apartment complex was right next to a driving range. I walked out to my car one day and my windshield had a HUUUUUUUGE crack spread throughout the entire right side. Found the golf ball a few feet away. The driving range wouldn't pay for it and neither would the apartment complex and apparently my insurance didn't cover windshield damage. Now this. =/
 
LovingSteam said:
First accident. I haven't had good luck with this car lol. My old apartment complex was right next to a driving range. I walked out to my car one day and my windshield had a HUUUUUUUGE crack spread throughout the entire right side. Found the golf ball a few feet away. The driving range wouldn't pay for it and neither would the apartment complex and apparently my insurance didn't cover windshield damage. Now this. =/

I've never heard of an insurance company that doesn't cover windshield damage. That's fucked up.
 
I've never really understood blowing a few grand to fix a merely cosmetic issue. So your car doesn't look quite as good, is that actually work a couple grand to you?
 
My guess is $500-$1000+. They'd probably look to replace your bumper, too, or at least fix it.

Basically the way it works, they order an unpainted quarter panel, and then repaint it to match your paint. I'd also get your alignment checked out due to the location of the damage. There's always a possibility there's more hidden damage, especially with a dent that size.
 
Can you provide a better picture? like a full profile view of the car? Look up on craigslist too. sometimes there are people parting out their cars. I had my both of inside door panels, front and rear bumpers replaced and added a rear spoiler for around $250. Just look around. it shouldn't be that much for a used one.
 
$225 for new rear drums and pads on a 2008, corolla. Sad part is this 50 bucks less than the dealer. Car has 43000 miles on it and its the first time being replaced. Ripped off or not?
 
Ripclawe said:
$225 for new rear drums and pads on a 2008, corolla. Sad part is this 50 bucks less than the dealer. Car has 43000 miles on it and its the first time being replaced. Ripped off or not?

The price seems fair for the work, but I don't think a car with 43k miles needs new drums.
 
Ripclawe said:
$225 for new rear drums and pads on a 2008, corolla. Sad part is this 50 bucks less than the dealer. Car has 43000 miles on it and its the first time being replaced. Ripped off or not?

2008 Corallas have rear drums?! Let me look this up.

edit. Yup they do come with rear drums. Thats crazy, I can't believe they still make cars with rear drums.

As for the price- totally fair. Off the top of my head I'd estimate $50 for new drums and pads on each side, so $100 total + $125 labor fee. Perfectly reasonable. And it's not totally unexpected that the brakes would need to be replaced after 40K- especially if you live in cold weather and don't use the car often.
 
Ripclawe said:
$225 for new rear drums and pads on a 2008, corolla. Sad part is this 50 bucks less than the dealer. Car has 43000 miles on it and its the first time being replaced. Ripped off or not?

Seems pretty good deal with the work actually. Drums are expensive shit. But why buy new ones with that mileage?
 
Thats why I am kinda pissed at myself because it never occurred to ask why they couldn't resurface it if they could. It was squeaking loudly and got worse as the week went on BTW.

Here are the pics.

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Ripclawe said:
Thats why I am kinda pissed at myself because it never occurred to ask why they couldn't resurface it if they could. It was squeaking loudly and got worse as the week went on BTW.

Here are the pics.

You typically only turn/resurface rotors, not drums.

sidenote, Toyota loves drums, my 2010 truck has drums in the back.
 
Ripclawe said:
Thats why I am kinda pissed at myself because it never occurred to ask why they couldn't resurface it if they could. It was squeaking loudly and got worse as the week went on BTW.
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Most shops today won't resurface discs, much less drums. It's just not necessary nowadays, The time it takes to do the machining would end up costing more then walking to the back to grab a new one.
 
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