Judging A Book By Its Cover
May 30 '00
Ever wonder why people drive cars with dents? Do you laugh at the guy whose car is three different colors? The guy who has door pecks all over his car must be a real loser right?
Whether you are involved in an accident, restoring a classic or just trying to recover from the hit and run door dings, fixing your automobile is not going to be a painless experience. Yes, even if you have insurance, I guarantee at least one or two headaches. How can I proclaim this? Being on both sides of the preverbal fence, my eyes have been opened to the truths about body shops.
You Get What You Pay For
You have found the perfect body shop, collision center. The outside is clean and inviting. The owner greets you with enthusiasm and coffee. He promises you that he will take care of everything, just leave it in his hands. You look at the estimate and find he is cheaper than your other quotes. Life is good.
A couple weeks later, you pickup your vehicle, hand over the check and the owner tells you if you have any problems to just bring the car back to him. You are overjoyed and zip onto the freeway. What's that noise you hear? There is an air leak coming from the rear door. A little while later and you notice a rattle in the dash. Well those are just little things and the car looks great. You get home and decide to wash the car up and show her off. As you climb out of the car you notice that the edge of the door was not painted. You start to hose off the car and little fish eyes seem to pop up from all direction. Getting a little miffed? You paid good money for your baby to be fixed. Off to make a phone call where the body shop tells you he can’t' fit you in right now, how does next month sound.
Not exactly what you had in mind? While you want to get the most for your money, remember that if it sounds to good to be true, it usually is. A good paint job or restoration takes time and money.
WARNING SIGNS
Materials
One of the biggest expenses of having your car fixed, is the paint itself. Here the body shop has great leeway in quality and pricing. Pearls, metallics and "candy" colors will cost more. When looking at the estimates and glancing at the materials, check for big price differences. If one shop is much cheaper than all the others on paint are, question it. Maybe this guy just wants to pass his savings on to you, but chances are the shop is using an inferior product.
Make sure the paint job is what you expect. You may assume the price includes blending, color sanding and buffing. You don't want the new paint on your door to stand out from the oxidized front fender, check to see that the shop will color match. If you don't like pox marks in your hood, make sure buffing is included in your price.
Used & After-Market Parts
If you own an older car, chance are you have dealt with used or after-market(not the original maker) parts. This is a great way to save money and if you have an older car, it may be your only option. But if your 1996 Saturn was side swiped and you need your door replace, be inquisitive and check your options. Obviously a new door from the manufacturer should cost more than a used door, door skin or after-market replacement. Also make sure you are getting what you paid for. If you paid for a new door, ask to see the old door. You would be amazed at what a good bodyman and a little bondo can do.
Deductibles
Your insurance company pays for all but $500.00 of your bill. "That's OK", says the body shop, "we will take care of that for you if you use our shop". This could be another one of those too good to be true deals. The body shop probably isn't going to eat $500.00. The money will be padded somewhere else in the estimate. Still it didn't come straight out of your pocket right? Not until you get your next insurance bill and wonder why your rates are so high. This also makes it harder for body shops to get authorization for fixing what really needs to be fixed. The insurance adjusters are suspicious and question everything (no offense to anyone)taking up more time and money. When you have a body shop that suggests this, doesn't it also make you wonder what other corners he might cut?
Quick Tips
When deciding on a body shop, check at least three different shops. Don't rely on the outside appearance of the shop, but do check out past work and references. Do they have any contract jobs who could give you a recommendation? Where do your friends go and how do their cars look?
Ask for a detailed estimation. $1300.00 for parts doesn't cut it. Find out exactly how much that new bumper is going to cost you. Call your local dealership. A bodyshop should get a slight discount on parts. If your quote is extremely higher than the estimate, take note. If your quote is lower, then definitely check other body shops. Be nosy, having too much information is not a bad thing.
Trust your instincts. You know when something just doesn't seem right. When something sounds too good to be true, it usually is. You get what you pay for. These are old clichés but true.
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