Author Topic: I dented my clown car :(  (Read 3098 times)

jennifers

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I dented my clown car :(
« on: October 04, 2017, 09:34:48 PM »
My neighbor across the street and I backed into each other this morning when leaving our driveways. My little car is a little dented but her fancy Jeep SUV thing looked fine.
It looks like the damage is mostly cosmetic on the rear quarter panel and partially on the back seat door. It's the metal part of the car so I'm worried that it will rust faster if I don't get it fixed.
My car is 5 years old and I got it from my parents for 8,000$. According to Kelly Blue Book, it's worth about 10,000$.
I am planning to drive it for many more years, should I bother getting the dent fixed? I'm guessing it will be quite expensive to fix (over 1,000$).
I'll try to get a photo tomorrow when it's light out.


EarthSurfer

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Re: I dented my clown car :(
« Reply #1 on: October 04, 2017, 10:18:46 PM »
Jennifers: I am glad you are fine and that this is the biggest concern after the accident!

Take a deep breath or two or a hundred. It's only a car, and this is a problem money can fix!

First, you don't mention if you had collision coverage and the deductible for that coverage. If you have the coverage, then that will limit your financial hit to the deductible.

Personally, I usually repair cars if the repair bill is less than 50% of the value.

undercover

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Re: I dented my clown car :(
« Reply #2 on: October 04, 2017, 11:15:12 PM »
Paintless dent removal is really cheap and you won't even need to go through insurance for it. That's of course provided that there's no scratches/chips associated with the dent.

It's probably going to be make more economical sense to pay for it out of pocket if you do decide to get it fixed - and since it's a car you use everyday and don't plan on selling, theres no rush of course. But if it turns out to be a super expensive fix for whatever reason, as long as you haven't made a claim in a long time then I doubt it will affect your insurance rate much if at all.

I'm sure a pic will allow someone more familiar with PDR as to whether or not this is a super quick job.

Tuskalusa

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Re: I dented my clown car :(
« Reply #3 on: October 04, 2017, 11:29:59 PM »
Personally, I like to fix things like that, if they are fairly low cost. Since I drive my cars for a long time, I like to keep them as nice as I can. Of course, if I can’t pay for a minor repair for cash, it’s off the table.

gooki

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Re: I dented my clown car :(
« Reply #4 on: October 05, 2017, 12:05:55 AM »
Can you post a photo of the damage?
« Last Edit: October 05, 2017, 12:14:08 AM by gooki »

Linea_Norway

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Re: I dented my clown car :(
« Reply #5 on: October 05, 2017, 01:24:09 AM »
If it is only the rust you are concerned about it, you can fix it yourself by putting some antirust paint on the scratch. You'll probably find an instruction video on youtube. Some cars ago, when we had a plain white car without metallic, we always fixed scratches like that and then painted over with white paint.

It is a good habit for both you and your neighbour to drive backwards into your driveway so that it is easier to drive out of it.

jennifers

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Re: I dented my clown car :(
« Reply #6 on: October 06, 2017, 09:07:45 PM »
I got two estimates. One was for 4700$ and the other was  for 3400$. The lower priced one was assuming the metal piece could be fixed instead of replaced.
lollllllllllllllll
The guy at the car place was nice and told me there was no need to get it fixed if I don't want to. He told me to get metal primer from Home Depot and touch up paint from the car dealer.

I should really be taking the bus to work anyways.


horsepoor

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Re: I dented my clown car :(
« Reply #7 on: October 06, 2017, 10:40:11 PM »
That sounds insane.  Several years ago my then-brand new Mazda3 hatchback was rear-ended, denting in the hatch right where the latch was, and scratching up the bumper.  It was like $1,500 paid by the insurance of the person who hit me.

With that said, if you plan to keep the car for a long time and it's only cosmetic, I'd just leave it be, or spray paint it as the repair guy suggested.

stashgrower

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Re: I dented my clown car :(
« Reply #8 on: October 07, 2017, 12:01:19 AM »
+1 paint, unless you care about the dent.

MoonLiteNite

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Re: I dented my clown car :(
« Reply #9 on: October 07, 2017, 02:41:57 AM »
Having a car is so much better once you get over that "oh crap its ruined now" moment.

I have babied my car for 8 years, and a few months ago a truck lost a load of pottery and the shards peppered my hood. Didn't want to pay to fix this one, so FINALLY see some rust. The other day i saw a little bump from someone's door, no big deal, not even gunna fix it or hide their paint. So any new little issues won't matter at this point.

So much less stress once you don't care :D

TrMama

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Re: I dented my clown car :(
« Reply #10 on: October 07, 2017, 08:35:24 AM »
Since it was a collision with someone else, I'd file a claim simply to protect myself from a personal injury suit. This has nothing to do with the car and everything to do with protecting my stash. YMMV

 

Wow, a phone plan for fifteen bucks!