minothor

Guys, my beautiful new 2013 RDX was hit by a driver making an illegal U-turn while I was waiting to make a right turn (felt like he came out of thin air!!).

Anyways, while my insurance company works with his to get them to pay up for the claim, I'm considering my options...

Damage is not bad. Scratched up front bumper and broken fog light housing. (The only damage his car has is a dented front license plate!!! )

Now this is a 2 month old car we are talking about, so I have half a mind to take it to the dealer for fixing (they do bodywork...) instead of a local body shop. What do you guys think?

jfarabaugh

Accident was not your fault so take it where ever you want. Taking it to the dealer doesn't always mean the best work. But then again it may be easier to address any additional concerns at the dealer.

Do not let the insurance company dictate where you can get it repaired.

weather

^^^ I am sorry to hear about your situation. Always a sad day to see any fella Acurazine members be involved in any accident (but happy to see it wasn't serious enough to get hurt).

In your shoes...I would take it to the dealer as well and demand the best of repairs possible.

Keep us posted.

minothor

Thanks guys, i am glad it was minor too and no one got hurt...

I just got off the phone with a service guy at the dealer. They don't do body work themselves (The first person I spoke to was misinformed) but they referred me to two shops closer to me that they use. I will get an estimate tomorrow. Will keep you posted...

dc5k20z1

you can pretty much take it anywhere you want to get it repaired but that does not always mean their work is the best.

The insurance adjuster will come out and estimate the damage to your car and cut you a check, whatever amount the insurance company gives you is what the repair shop will do in that amount limit.

Even if you get an estimate from a repair shop and show the adjuster, usually that means squat and does not do anything for you. Insurance is crooked


I got T-boned on private property at about 25mph, the other guy was at fault. Long story short, I got an estimate from 2 repair shops for about $2,300, the guys insurance adjuster came out to look at my car and estimate damage. He quoted $1,100. So I took the estimate and the check to a repair shop of my choice that dealt with his insurance company and got it fixed for $1,100

Im not saying I trust the craftsmanship of the work though. I was a bit uneasy about getting half of what the repair shops quoted me. I felt as though the repair was a low blow.

Dorsey

I have been through 3 of these in the past 2 years (thankfully none on the RDX) and agree that the insurance company will suggest shops but you can take it anywhere. I am really particular about body and paint work. The first time, I called a BMW dealer that did not have a bodyshop and asked where they sent their customer cars thinking their customers would be real particular. I was right - the work was fantastic.

I am sorry about your car. Stupid stuff happens. My daughter's CX-5 had to have a new fender put on after 3 months because a skateboarder fell off his board in downtown Austin and dented the fender with his elbow. Too bad it wasn't his head.

minothor

Haha, that is hilarious... (although hope the guy and the car are OK now...)

BTW the car that you called the BMW dealer for, was it an Acura?

Dorsey

The first one was a BMW740i in Alpine White which is an easy paint match. The second was an 04 GTO in impulse blue (a bright metallic similar to the old chevy daytona blue). Not an easy match. However, it is more than just the paint match. The panels were straight and none of the little things, like overspray and bad panel gaps that tip you off to bodywork.

AmberB

Sorry to hear about your troubles.

When my 2008 Mercedes was about 4 months old it was sideswiped by a drunk illegal alien. I chased him down (he ran) and caught him, but it didn't matter because there was no real ID, license, insurance, income...All I really got out of it was watching the guy get a beat down by 4 cops when he took a swing at the one trying to cuff him for the DUI.

I ended up taking the car to a "Mercedes certified" body shop, and paying about $1k more than my insurance was willing to pay, but since it was $12K in damage on a few months old car I wanted it fixed right. They did perfect work, well worth the little extra for a guy like me who keeps cars 10 years.
I don't know if Acura has recommended shops, but if they do I'd consider checking them out.

CoachRick

Nowadays, there's a lot less fixin' and a lot more replacin'. DW scrunched our C70 when changing lanes too quickly and we were without the vehicle for a MONTH waiting for the bumper cover(apparently, they had to swim to Sweden to get it). There was virtually no body 'work' done. Replaced the bumper cover and left front fender with color matched goodies.

BTW, Kemper Ins handled our claim without a hitch. I had the vehicle towed to the shop that is owned by the umbrella company handling over a half-dozen high-end marques, including Volvo. There was never a question of covering the cost...the adjuster and shop estimator worked together. Kemper covered the rental for a full month, even after I upgraded from a base vehicle(used a coupon ).

GRDX

Find a recognized Acura body shop:
http://owners.acura.com/Maintenance/...?link=bodyshop

Cannot get the direct link to post for the locator but it is after the fourth bullet at the above link.

minothor

Thanks GRDX. I found a body shop on the Acura website that also had good reviews on Yelp. Interesting that my dealer recommended a couple of shops that were not on the Acura site.
Car was dropped off this morning. One nitpick was that the shop's quote came in higher than what was quoted by the body shop the insurance company sent me to. They did bring the quote down to match it, however...