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Be promiscuous!!!May 26 '00 Write an essay on this topic.When dealing with an Auto Body Shop, remember one thing....They are all out making a living and making money and you are just the next person in line to make money off of. In dealing with Auto Body Shops, get quotes from several shops, both dealership body repair places and regular ones found in your town. Also ask your insurance agent to recommend on to you. Typically, they have a good relationship with some of the better Auto Body Shops and can get you a more honest and fair estimate on damage done to your vehicle. Shop around and get at least three quotes to give you a good idea of what to expect. If all three quotes are varied in price, then you know someone is pulling your chain. I have had to deal with this one time and fortunately I had two good things about it. I had a great relationship with my dealership where I bought my car. I always took my car there for all of it's maintenance and tune-ups and they knew who I was and we had a good working relationship together. They wanted me to continue purchasing cars there and from past experiences with them, they knew I didn't deal well with much BS. They actually gave me more advice than damage repair since the damage I suffered (hail damage) was easy for me to fix instead of having someone else do it. I went to Toyota (the dealership I love) and they gave me the advice to use a plunger and pop them out and on a hot day to place a piece of ice on the ding and it would pop out. My auto insurance gave me basically the same advice and reminded me that I had a $500.00 deductible if I wanted to take it somewhere to have it fixed. I then took the car to Dr Dent (a place to specialized in hail damage) and they quoted me $650 to fix the dings caused by the hail (which weren't that bad). I thought I was going to choke. After that, I took the car to another no-name repair shop and they quoted me $425 to fix the dings. Another choke, but a little easier to swallow. Both auto shops told me that the plunger and ice would not work and that it was old wives tales that people were telling me. After getting the two quotes and the information and advice, I decided to attempt to fix the dings myself. I couldn't make them worse so why not. Well low and behold, I fixed all 18 of the dings myself. The plunger was a great idea. It got out 15 of the dings without much effort...The remaining 3 dings were small enough that the plunger wouldn't work but the ice did. When your car is nice and hot from being in the sun, drop a piece of ice on the ding and the immediate cold will pop the ding out. Believe it or not, it works. The next time you need repairs, get several quotes and ask the dealership their recommendations. Ask friends and family. There are a ton of people with connections and information that you can use before shelling out a ton of money. I saved $425 on this project myself. One word of advice, if you are going to use the plunger, put your car in the garage and shut the door. My neighbors got a great laugh out of watching me climb all over my car using a plunger on it....heheheh  |
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