Parking lot dent today

[bran100]

Some idiot backed into the Fiat today, creating a dent in the drivers door and front quarter panel. I've got his insurance and will be filing a claim for repairs.

Assuming they won't be able to match the 30 year old paint, will they look to repaint the entire car? The body is straight, with no rust. Any tips?

[maytag]

that sucks! Were you with the others at the Utah Fiat get-together? IS that where it happened?

there are a number of really good body/paint shops in the area that will have no problem matching that. I don't think anyone would recommend (OR PAY FOR) an entire repaint.

I highly recommend Alpine Body Shop, over off of 33rd so. They do FANTASTIC work, and you'll notice that most of the cars he works on are either high-end luxury / exotics or collectible classics. He does all the work on my Jag & Benz, and when it;s time to look at paint for my Fiat, he'll be doing that one too. Just a word of caution: most insurance companies in the area will not pay for everything he will include in the estimate, because he tends to be overly thorough. I find it best to get a 2nd estimate as well (Garff bodyshop does a good job at this, and they re now A Fiat dealer too!), and then submit both to the adjuster. And then take it back to Alpine to negotiate what work you want done for whatever the insurance agrees to pay.

[bran100]

It actually happened today at the Neighborhood Market parking lot in Draper. I was pretty pissed. I kind of laugh now at my anemic horn and how it failed to warn the guy as he was backing up. My yelling was much louder. I just wish I was quick enough to put it in reverse and get out of the way. When I honked the horn, it let out such a meek "eeee", "eeeee" that I don't think a soul in the parking lot could hear it. That's going to have to be on my to-do list.

His adjuster from Esurance is supposed to call me tomorrow to get the claim started. If they just repaint the quarter and the door it seems that I'll have a dramatic change in finish from the old vs. new paint? I assume the insurance company is going to try to call that good?

Sucks that I'm not quite $$ ready to cover painting the rest of the car. Any other options here? Can't I get them to cover spraying the entire car? They won't need to do any body work other than standard prep.

[maytag]

I kind of laugh now at my anemic horn and how it failed to warn the guy as he was backing up. My yelling was much louder. I just wish I was quick enough to put it in reverse and get out of the way. When I honked the horn, it let out such a meek "eeee", "eeeee" that I don't think a soul in the parking lot could hear it. That's going to have to be on my to-do list.

that's why I did this (note the dual horns)

Any other options here? Can't I get them to cover spraying the entire car? They won't need to do any body work other than standard prep.

doubt it.... but always worth a try.

[vandor]

Sorry about your mishap...

> When I honked the horn, it let out such a meek "eeee", "eeeee" that I don't think a soul in the parking lot could hear it. >That's going to have to be on my to-do list.

Go to a salvage yard and get a pair of horns from a Ford Taurus or Ranger (likely most Fords have the same horns). They are pretty loud and mean sounding.

>If they just repaint the quarter and the door it seems that I'll have a dramatic change in finish from the old vs. new paint?

A good body shop can match and blend the paint where you won't be able to tell. You might be able to ask the shop how much extra would it be to paint the entire car.

[bberry]

Brandon,
Looks like about 700+ damages to your antique car. You can get 3 estimates and then have the insurance company send you a check. Just say you are going to take care of the damages at your personal body shop. You do not have to take your car to "their" shop. After that just shop around for the best deal. A couple of hundred more here will get you a nice paint job.

[maytag]

Brandon,
Looks like about 700+ damages to your antique car. You can get 3 estimates and then have the insurance company send you a check. Just say you are going to take care of the damages at your personal body shop. You do not have to take your car to "their" shop. After that just shop around for the best deal. A couple of hundred more here will get you a nice paint job.

you are never required to use their shop. sometimes you are required to let their adjuster inspect it.

I would be careful about having them send you a check. I've done it, when it makes sense, but it usually comes as a compromise towards the lowest of all estimates, and any hidden damage is hard to collect for later. Also: a "cheap" shop is more likely to make sure the work is done well and properly if the insurance co is the customer. They do not want to risk losing that business. So if you take the settlement direct and then shop around, you may find you don;t have enough $$ to get the job done to your satisfaction.

[bran100]

I was only asked to submit one claim to Esurance. I got three, and submitted the claim from the shop I trusted the most (Alpine Restoration in Salt Lake City) to work on my 100% original Fiat. The claim was into the thousands.

It's currently going through review and I should hear back very shortly. I'd like to drop it in the shop this week as I'll be in Europe for the first couple weeks of June and it would be nice to return with a good looking car again.

Thanks all for the advice. I'll post updates as they come in.

[124cso]

I note that you mentioned your week horns not being effective as a warning. At least you were there to get other driver's details. Most just do a runner !

As for warning devices - you cannot beat a revolver ! Pop a bit of lead into his trunk ! .44 is quite "loud"

[bran100]

Got the Fiat back from Alpine Auto Restoration today (thanks Maytag). They did an incredible job, and I had them clean up the original paint on the entire car as well. I'm proud of my 30 year old car. Now to look at that horn.

[seabeelt]

Great looking job!. If you don't mid folks asking, what did that type of repair end up costing?
Did they replace body panels or, pull dents and bondo finish? I'm guessing there was some damage to the door post as well.
r/

[124cso]

I was going to ask if you also have something horrible like a nissan parking on your driveway ? I noticed the drips peeking out from under the spider and I doubted that if you keep it that nice you'd allow it to have drips!

[Kent124]

What a really exceptional looking car!

[narfire]

Great looking car. From here it looks like they did a great job. Most important that you are happy.
Now to get a red and green one and you have the Italian flag covered
Chris

[Hobo]

Sweet! Looks really sharp...