Hit n Run Damage

Hello everyone,

I am an unfortunate victim of a hit n run incident. (See my media photos)
I received a quote from a family friend who owns a body shop of $500.
I have not yet received a quote from a PDR guy/shop, but I'm not sure if they would be able to help anyway due to the slight amount of scraping that is present.

I don't think I want to risk claiming it through my insurance either in the event that they actually follow up to make sure I get it done at a professional body shop (preventing me from keeping me the difference in costs).

Do you guys think the initial 'friendly' quote is a decent price to move forward with?
I still might forward the pictures to a few PDR shops to see what they recommend as well.

And no, leaving it damaged is not an option.

Thanks for the feedback!

 

It depends on if there are scratches or not. If there are scratches in the paint that won't buff out then it needs to go to a body shop. PDR only removes the dents, and then you would have to pay for the painting separately. The body shop is going to use PDR anyways, and then paint over the scratches. If painting is required, $500 seems like a pretty fair price for a body shop.

ETA: The dent itself looks like a suitable candidate for PDR, but your thoughts about the scraping are spot on. Might as well try the PDR people to see what they think. Most of them do free estimates. And don't go through insurance for that amount of damage. Not worth having a claim on your record, or an "accident" on the carfax.

 

Thanks for your reply. Yea, the scratches are more apparent in the 3rd and 4th picture. The guy told me he would end up painting the whole piece over again which is why I imagine the price is somewhat steep due to the labor intensive work I suppose.

 

If it were me (and I've been hit twice in a parking lot this year that has left damage) I would do PDR and then attempt to buff it out myself, but I own a DA polisher. Maybe you can find someone who owns one and borrow it, or heck buy one and do it yourself. My Porter Cable only cost me $120 (

$139 7424XP PORTER-CABLE Car Polisher and Buffer, 6", Orbital, Variable Speed (7424XP)

7424XP). I love that thing. Owned it two months and have already used it multiple times lol.

That scratch doesn't look like it's through the clear coat. Should come right out with a decent compound and pad.

Trust me, this is going to happen again and having the tools to do it yourself will save you money in the long run.

 

I went through something similar, got it repaired by a friend at a Body Shop, and it ended up being about the same price ($500). Though PDR was not an option for me because of the amount of, and depth of, the scratches.

 

Had mine hit in the wally world parking lot. $900. Repaired not replaced.

 

Wow, sorry to hear that man! How bad were your scratches?

 

One was in my rear bumper and the scratches went all the way through the paint. I ordered a paint pen from Toyota and I painted it in. I tried to buff it down and smooth it out with a buffing compound but it didn't work. Sometime here in the near future I plan on getting a wet sanding kit for the DA Polisher and smooth it down.
Second hit was in the plastic front bumper I have no idea what hit me. Just a dent and no paint damage. But it was the day after I did an 8 hour polish/detail. I was able to help it pop out a bit with some heat but a true fix requires replacement. It's gotten to the point where you can't hardly see it anymore so I'm happy.

Luckily I have a white truck so I think paint correction is a bit easier. If someone bumped into me like @bigfoote13 I would lose my shit. I'd probably just start an epic man cry in the parking lot.

 

lol yea i would have lost it too.. I damn near did. Although you can't see it in the pictures above, they also left a crack a little over the size of a quarter on my tail light so I have to get that replaced as well.. Well I don't have to but I choose to. It's a perfect opportunity to buy some smoked out tail lights.

 

Yes, you do have to get it fixed, condensation is no bueno.

I also agree 100% great excuse to get yourself a new mod.

That scratch doesn't look that bad though. How does it look in person? Is it deep into the paint? From the picture it looks like a repaint would be an over reaction. As a cheap test, hit it with a clay bar to remove all the contaminants/paint/dirt etc. from the scratch. Usually then it either looks almost fixed or will let you know how deep the scratch it. Mother's sells a cheap clay bar kit with a clay bar and lubricant.

 

Shit happens. She was very nice, apologetic, and admitted fault to her insurance company. I guess I got lucky.

 

Nice, you really are one of the lucky ones.

 

Oh she stuck around. I thought it was another hit and run.

Glad you got it fixed under insurance.

 

Didn't mean to rub salt in your wound if I did.

Guess I should have said no hit and run. Sorry gents.

 

No worries! Like you said, shit happens. And it's finally forcing me to spend money on my truck.
Since i got my one of my tail lights cracked with the incident, I plan to buy some smoked out tail lights.
Also, trying to get a quote on a color-match or powder coat job for the chrome on my bumper and grill.. Might as well do everything at once.

 

Color match!

 

lol the same dude who quoted me the $500 for the repair says he would charge $250 ea. for color matching the bumper and grille.. so now we're talking a total of $1000!
He says he knows the owners of some shops near him who do pretty good work when it comes to powder coating and would provide me with their quotes as well..
I don't mind the powder coat, matte-type finish look either. It's similar to the plastidip look but obviously higher quality. So we'll see what happens..

 

Have you looked at how much it is to buy a bumper and grille primed and get the paint in an aerosol can?
I probably would be confident to do the grille myself, but the bumper I'd probably pay $250 for. That sounds like a good deal to me. Especially because you have a metallic color that requires a clear coat.

 

Sorry to hear about your truck, but when handed lemons make lemonade. Looks like a high clearance bumper and sliders are needed to protect you from this happening again!!

 

No I haven't looked into that.. But I mean, now that you mention it's pretty straight forward I can always try to haggle with the guy if and when I choose to go back. But idk man, seems like I'd still have to invest in the aerosol can. And even then, I have my doubts of how close the final color would end up matching the color of the truck and eventually the bumper.