silver_alty

I need some advice. This is my first car accident and I don’t really know what to do. Long story short, a 16YO (just got her license last week) plowed into my car. I have attached a link to the photo album. My question for you experts is how does the car look? Does the front axle look bent? In this type of crash, is the frame usually bent? I got a call from her insurance company and they said it is $9,000 to repair the car. The $9,000 is just for the body work, new wheel and window glass. He said the frame is not bent and neither is the axel.

Linky to my baby: http://www.facebook.com/album.php?ai...21&id=53801257
I was thinking about waiting for the body shop to complete the work then take it to Acura and make sure everything is ok. What do you guys think? Like I said, I have no clue what I am doing here.

Trew

iTrader: (1)

You could have suffered damage to the front hub and bearings, but probably not the axle. Doesn't look like there will be any chassis damage. $9000 sounds about right to take care of that damage. I agree with your decision, however, to take it to Acura once the repair is complete to make sure there is no lingering damage.

Good luck and sorry to hear about your accident.

TeknoKing

Sorry.... This is just pisses me off...I'm so looking forward to nationwide driver age increase amendment.

The frame shouldn't be bent here, the impact was mostly absorbed by the side passenger's door, fender...and front looks messy but it is designed to crumble like that. The main thing is that the mechanical structures were not damaged, the cosmetic is quite easy to fix, and you should look forward to a brand new beautiful paint on the whole car.

Keep us updated, and we will provide you with the best guidance.

TL1999

good luck...call a lawyer

silver_alty

Thanks guys. Any other inputs? Since I went with the recommended Progressive bodyshop, they are giving me a lifetime warranty on all the work they perform. To be honest, I just want my car back to just the way I had it......

carlos9827

iTrader: (2)

Sorry to hear about the accident. Glad you were ok though. GL and hope they fix your car back to its original condition.

Eoanou

If the wheel needs to be replaced, then I would be sure to check if damage wasn't taken to the control arms, bushings and subframe. The only way you can see if the subframe needs to be changed is by doing a frame alignment at a designated body shop.

If I were you I would let the insurance company know you would like to get a wheel alignment, since you're replacing the wheel, and a test drive to see if the car still tracks straight. People have hit the curb with their TL and cosmetically there doesn't look to be damage, but they have bent control arms, subframe, and other components.

stillhere153

iTrader: (1)

EOANOU ... the car will require to be alligned to find any other problems, I wouldn't be surprised if the toe wasn't very off, from the frontal pic it looks like the wheel is still straight, overall it will just require alot of hours at the body shop, new doors both bumpers, headlight, side markers, sideskirts, full half car repaint, $9k is a bargain honestly, they must be using used parts... I had less damage and mine was just under 13k

carlos9827

iTrader: (2)

I just thought about something and you may be correct.
To the OP: TAKE YOUR CAR TO ACURA an get an estimate to repair from them, they can tell you how much it woud cost to repair and they will obviously quote you with prices on NEW Acura parts GL

nfnsquared

Recommended by who? Her insurance co? Have you contacted your insurance company? If not, you should. They work for you. Her insurance co works for her and will go the cheapest route available. Whoever winds up doing the work, you need to read the fine print and be sure that they are not using used/remanufactured parts.

silver_alty

Her insurance company said all new parts are being placed in the car. Does this seem right?

silver_alty

Sorry, all new parts except for the rim. The rim is remanufactured OEM.

Turbonut

iTrader: (1)

Depends on the manufacturer. Acura fender is $289 and an aftermarket is $150, same as doors, Acura or aftermarket parts? The color will be trouble to match, so look closely when it's completed. At least the bumper will match the body, or at least the passenger side. Normally an alignment will be a given in an accident such as this, and should be on the estimate.

Biggest problem is that the car will always have the accident recorded on Carfax, etc.

imj0257

iTrader: (1)

wow that's some pretty good damage. Her insurance will without a doubt take care of it.. or they better :ibh816yrolddrivers:

1075

Insist on genuine Acura replacement parts OR get a written guarantee from her insurance company that the parts used will perform the same as OEM parts in a crash.

paul revere

I agree with 1075, make sure they are Acura body panels and not some aftermarket manufacturer. Make sure the paint is a match because there is a lot of painting to do. By the way, where in Ohio do you live?

silver_alty

About the xenon headlights.....I have a feeling they will only replace the passenger side light, but isnt there going to be a color difference when compared to the driver side? The car has about 77,000 miles on it.

csmeance

They will be different colors, you will need both to be replaced to match. Honestly that looks like about 13-14K in damage. You will need:

Rear Quarter Panel Work - 1.2K - (it is part of unibody, so it may be higher than this)
New Side Skirts + Paint - 500
Rear Door Skin
Front Door Skin
Passenger Mirror
Front Sidemarker
Front passenger Fender
New Bumper
New Front Headlight
Bulbs may be recycled
Maybe some suspension - in photo 9 it looks like the top of the tire is bending inwards

You will probably be spending about 2-3K just in painting since the Rear Fender, side skirts, 2 doors, front bumper, front fender, hood and the door pillars have to be painted to get the paint to look right, any it may take 2-3 tries since the antracite color is hard to match.

powerflow

^^^ Yeah I agree, seems like a little more than 9K to me, but maybe there is no/little susp damage. Def needs an alignment and inspection to check.

The hood will be blended, they just have to look at the rear bumper and more importantly the left front fender to get a good match. A good shop will do it right the first time.

The front door, maybe rear too needs replacing, not going to get away with just a panel skin. The quarter panel is the only iffy thing, they need to get to the inside with an epoxy wand to protect the inner, hard to reach parts of the panel to protect the metal. Some shops are lazy and either half ass this or don't even know what a flexible spray wand is. Suck some shitty driver just ruined your ride.

dudechewy

damn that sux.......hope u get the car back in shape asap

Teknolad

the axel is fine. different parts may be used depending on year/mileage. an estimate from acura will be a lot different than the insurance estimate because of a different labor rate.. acura will probably sublet the work to another facility anyway. you're better off going to one of their preferred shops where you will get a lifetime guarantee through the company itself. good luck.

stillhere153

iTrader: (1)

, new parts + a liftime guarantee on the work = best way

TLType-s12

iTrader: (2)

dawm dat suckss.......dawm underage drivers. Im a Auto Insurance Appraiser and I may be able to give you some good advice. Get a lawer. Get a seperate estimate from a trusted body shop and not the progressive body shop. Its fine if you want to take it to the body shop to be fixed but insurance companies lowball(cost productive) clients in order to save money. Im not sure where your from because ever state has their own rules/guidlines as far as repair is concerned. In cali if the vehicle is current year or under 12K miles we use OEM parts, if not we use used or AM parts. This is a general rule for industry standards. In the event they dont use OEM parts, INSIST on used. AM body panels just dont fit right, if it must be AM make sure its CAPA certified. Depending on what type of parts they use the estimate should go over 9k. Other than the obvious body components that need to be changed ( Fender, Front door shell, rear door skin(possibly shell), quarter panel, front bumper and front headlight. There will be hidden damage on this vehicle. Id say on the front suspension the knuckle and lwr control arm are damaged for a minimum. Fender reinforcment is damaged. Again im just going by these pictures, I have not seen the car to tell you exactly whats what. But again if you have a good shop in mind, I would take it to them. They will not make it so easy for the appraiser to put AM parts on the estimate, thats if theyre a good body shop. Anyway good luck with the car and if you have any questions let me know.

bone420TL

be sure to get your own estimates too, if they tell you that something other than the body is damaged and they dont want to fix it... get a lawyer asap

silver_alty

I just moved to NY (Albany) last month. I am new in this area and have no idea where a good body shop is. I called Acura in Lathum and they recommend me a few body shops but they sounded like local mom and pops shops. Then I called Progressive and they said they have a certified Progressive body shop that offers a life time warranty.

Progressive gave me an estimate (its in the mail) of the work to be done. I should get it by today and will post the work to be done.

How should I handle the Xenon difference? Do body shops usually change both bulbs?

silver_alty

that is what i was thinking.

csmeance

also just a caution to future posters, DO NOT post about stupid teen drivers/female drivers/etc, we don't need that in this thread. If you want create a seperate thread in car talk, but this is thread is devoted to the OP's accident, not teenage drivers.

SpecialFX

Take it to a reputable shop and you should be fine. I took a hit similar to that a couple of years ago. They replaced the fender, headlight, bumper, wheel, comntol arm, etc. Make sure they go over the suspension. You definitely need a new control arm and/or strut assembly. And have them look at or replace the front axle. A CV joint could be damaged but that may not show up right away.

Good luck with the repair.

TLAdvanced

iTrader: (4)

It's all because of those damn stupid teen drivers/female drivers/etc!!
Sorry CSmeance, I couldn't resist!

Seriously, that sucks buddy. I hope it works out well for you

silver_alty

I got an estimate from the Progressive body...$9,000. They are re-using a lot of the body parts. As far as body work, they are only doing an alignment. I have a feeling there is something wrong with the suspension just by looking at the pictures but the adjuster will not listen.

Oh, and they are only going to replace the right side headlight assembly. I told him to atleast replace the left side HID bulb but they are only going to replace what is damaged. He admitted there will be a difference in color, but will not replace the bulb. According to the work contract, the car has to be returned in pre-collision condition. And both headlights were matching so I will have to fight for that.

I guess a lot of people are right, in a car accident no body wins. This sucks because I know my car will not drive the same after this

csmeance

there is almost no way a body shop can get away with reusing those same panels after that accident. the door skins have to be replaced, trying to straighten them then paint them will only result in a sub-standard job that takes more time to do. the only place that it is acceptable to fix via this is if it is a small dent or so on the rear quarter panel. That panel is part of the
UNIBODY of the car, and replacement of it can really affect saftey.

As far as the HID bulbs, if the light survived the crash, tell them to move it to the new light. If not, argue for it because the car is susposed to be in pre-collision condition.

How exactly is insurance handling this? When some woman hit my TL, I called her insurance, they told me a list of body shops to go to that are a 1 stop shop for everything. I researched them and went to one about 100 miles away that was certified by MB, BMW and Jaguar for work. I had them take the estimate (with a little talking, some extra stuff done) and then it was a done deal, no adjuster, no this no that....

silver_alty

I finally got my car back last week. It has been a long and depressing story but I am just glad to have it back. However, I have a question for you guys.

Is there an easy access point to the AEM CAI filter? After getting my car back from the (horrible) body shop, there is a thick layer of dust, or something that feels like dust, all over my engine. I wanted to clean the filter because I am noticing I am getting horrible gas mileage (around 12 avg). I am thinking about just turning the left wheel and accessing the filter from the wheel-well. Any other advice?

Teknolad

i took off the bumper to clean out the filter.. then i polished the intake itself.. it shouldn't take too long to do that. you can just do a D&R, take off some of the clips on the driver side only of the bumper and pull out the bumper a little just to give you some more room.

TLTrance

You know, I think the damage is MUCH more than just 9k -- FAR more. The reason I say this is because insurance companies tend to lowball, even the best ones. Put it this way: I recently got into an accident where the other driver ran into my rear right wheel-well (fender) and crunched it in a bit. The other insurance company (21st century, which is now AIG, but sh!t, that's not exactly a better situation given their bailout) estimated the repairs at $1700. Long story short, after three adjusters (two of which essentially committed fraud) and also a threat on my part to report them to the California Bureau of Insurance, they finally did the right thing and paid for all of the repairs to be done the RIGHT way (the original estimate didn't even have a SINGLE part being replaced -- just "repaired").

The final cost of the repairs? $5800.

TLTrance

Just to add: The work required to repair my car was far more extensive... They basically had to repaint almost half the car just because of replacing the rear right wheel-well. Hell, even my trunk lid emblems and right tailight assembly had to be replaced.

csmeance

take off the wheel and get to it though the fender liner.