bay

i don't understand how parking in a parking lot someone decides while backing up to turn their car into my car .... at the drivers side door? where do people learn to drive?.. i saw this guy pulling out of the spot, i heard my alarm go off, i remember parking next to him, and plenty of room between our cars. by the time i get to my car to see if it was mine he was gone. aquamarine piece of crap ford tempo thing.. plate started with NSZ or *SZ. not like i can really find this guy, nor would he just admit he did it so he could pay for it, so annoying.

anyways, theres a slight dent and a nice scratch. easy noticable on my black 8.

1) this is something that can get fixed at a detail shop right?..
2) how much would pulling out this dent and getting the paint/blend right?
3) if i dont take care of this right away whats the possibilty of complications like rust?
4) if i use touch up paint on the scratch will this make fixing it later worse off? (pricewise)

up until now all i had was some door dings and a rock that jumped up from a truck wheel up the bonnet.



good shops, right prices, middlesex county (or surrounding provided the place is a good vouch) area of nj. anybody?

thanks,
-b

ArvinC

Hello...sorry to hear about your 8. I, too, have had my 8 damaged by bad drivers...mine was damaged in a parking garage when some yellow pick-up truck grazed my left front fender when he was trying to pull out of the space next to mine. Idiot!! Anyway...

1.) Detail shop may not be able to fix your damage correctly. The reason I say this is that the damaged area is quite long. Which leads me to...

2.) I'm not sure about the cost, but I doubt that a detail shop would be able to blend the paint properly, especially black. If it were me, I'd be going to full-service body repair shop.

3.) Rust should not be problem as long as the gouge didn't get down to the bare metal. But it's not like I'd wait a month to get it repaired, either.

4.) Yes, using touch-up paint can affect the repair. Not only could it involve a bit more work in-so-far as it would need to be removed, but it could also affect how much of the panel would need to be sanded out before repair could begin.

I'm not a body-repair specialist, but I am experienced with auto-finish care...I'm a auto-detailing FREAK!! For comparisons sake, I posted some pics of my damage below. FWIW, it was repaired at a Mazda dealer's body shop for about $800 which included replacing the side-marker, pulling the dents from the panel and painting the panel over the area and blending it back into the front bumper.

Good luck with whatever you decide!

Arvin

TreknMazda

Sorry to hear a fellow black RX-8 has been blemished.

Guess you are not still in the parking lot. So a tip for the future. You should have called the police to file a report. Then you could file an uninsured motorists claim. (Assuming NJ requires UM coverage) With a partial plate and description, the police (or insrance company) might be able to locate the guy and make him pay. Oterwise you are only out the deductible ($200 in Virgina, some states may be slightly higher). Why is it worth all this trouble? 1) If they locate the guy he pays and you don't. 2) The repair bill may (unles you have a relative in the business)exceed the deductible. 3) An unisured motorist claim can not raise your rates and is not a chargable accident on your insurance record.

A pickup (parellel parking) backed up and over the bumber of my RX-7 a couple years ago. I dion't witness it and I didn't get a police report at the time and when I called my agent, I was informed if I had goten the police report before moving my car it would have been covered under UM. Since that occasion I have utilized UM for three hit'n'runs at my (former) townhome community parking space. And I still have maximum accident free discounts on my policy.The last one was right rear quarter panel of my RX-8. That's when I bought a house with garage and driveway.

bay

i'm definately going to learn more about UM coverage now. i guess you learn something everyday... this one is just going to cost me a bit.

i think im gonna swing by a couple shops and see what they say this week.

.02$

magixpuma

HAHAH I HATE NJ i live in toms river and a guy ran a stop sign and wrecked my whole front end after it gets fixed we have to go caravaning.