So my GF rear-ended someone IN MY BD! *All Fixed w/pictures*

[harrymaneuvers]

Ok so long story short... I did some maintanence to my GF's WRX wagon and because I only work about 4 minutes from home and she works 30 minutes from home, she thought it would be best for me to take the WRX to work the next day incase there were any leaks or battery issues still (replaced alternator and Oil Cooler O-ring the night before)


I get a call at 8:30am and she is nearly in tears... she just rear ended someone.

The story I got was that she was 4th back at the intersection when the light turned green. Everyone started to go and then the first person slammed on their brakes for some reason... causing everyone who was accelerating to have to hit the brakes...

She said that it punched a hole in my bumper but that was it... Seeing as how I have the JDM bumper in my garage to match my JDM fogs, I was pretty relieved. If anything, this just gave me the motivation I needed to paint the JDM bumper and power folding mirrors that I have just been sitting on.

Then I got home and saw for myself. I must admit that it could have been WAY worse... but this is what I was left with. You will notice that the lack of the USDM bumper beam (with foam absorber) almost certainly caused the majority of the damage. I knew this would be a possible downside to putting the JDM bumper beam on there.

It seems like her comprehensive portion of her full coverage policy that she has on her wrx stays with the vehicle and the liability portion of her insurance travels with her no matter what car it is... So I am nearly positive I am going to get dick squat from insurance on this one...

The issue now is that it appears my headlights are pushed back by about 1/2 inch under the hood.

https://sl-i.net/FORUM/images/imported/2011/06/IMAG0152-1.jpg
http://i773.photobucket.com/albums/yy18/harrymaneuvers/IMAG0157.jpg
http://i773.photobucket.com/albums/yy18/harrymaneuvers/IMAG0155.jpg
http://i773.photobucket.com/albums/yy18/harrymaneuvers/IMAG0156.jpg
Notice the bent blue JDM bumper beam... which is weird because the fogs still seem to be in the same position...
http://i773.photobucket.com/albums/yy18/harrymaneuvers/IMAG0154.jpg
http://i773.photobucket.com/albums/yy18/harrymaneuvers/IMAG0153.jpg

So now I am faced with getting this all back to normal. I dont know if replacing the radiator support is the route to go or if I should just drill new headlight holes and move the headlights up slightly to align with the hood (which is still aligned with the fenders and doesnt have any damage at all from the accident)

I have never really done anything body related so I am looking for any suggestions you guys might have.


Thanks in advance.

[BG5guy]

im not 100% sure but it looks as if the hangers for the headlights were bent, you might be able to remove the headlights and bend them out a tad. I dont see any damage to the lenses themselves which is good. It could be that when she hit the car infront, it not only pushed the bumper back but also up, which could cause the lights to push up and back as well. Worth a shot

[harrymaneuvers]

When you say the "Hanger" are you talking about the strip of metal that runs across the front that the top tabs of the headlight mounts into?

If so, that is what I was referring to as the radiator support bracket... either way... Rather than trying to bend that I could just as easily get one from rear ended second gen at the dismantler.

I am just trying to imagine how I would rig a "come-along" to that thin of a piece of metal and then start ratcheting it out until it moved up 1/2 inch. I feel like unless I could attach the "come-along" to about 3 different points, maybe 10 inches apart or so, that attaching it to only one point would just start to crease and bend it at the one point.

I appreciate the input! Keep the suggestions coming!

[mycargoesvroom]

I don't think he meant the radiator support, if you look at the DS headlights the plastic mounts seem to be twisted a bit. I bet they're just pushed up a bit from the bumper. Try taking the bumper off and see if they don't move back.

[harrymaneuvers]

I see what you mean. Which makes sense because with the JDM bumper beam on and the USDM bumper over that... the bumper did push the headlights upwards just slightly... to the point where the mounting hole on the side of the headlight needed to be pushed down (against the top of the bumper which now is slightly higher with the JDM bumper beam under it) by around 1/2 inch.

So maybe the impact just pushed them even higher, causing them to rotate up (cutoff pattern would be aimed higher) and therefore the tops of them would be sunken into the hood.

WOW!!! This seems promising! I will be taking the bumper off tomorrow after the quote to see what happens!


Thanks a ton man!

[BG5guy]

ya, thats what i was trying to get at, just didnt have the right words lol, thank vroom for clarifying what i was trying to say

[httrdd]

When you remove the light you will see where the damage is. I know that part or the fender that the turn signal side slides into has little post that slide into the fender. Check those too.

[harrymaneuvers]

Will do!

I will post pics with lights, grill and bumper removed after the repair quote tomorrow.


Thanks guys!

[Okin DaVanh]

**INSERT FACEPALM HERE**





Definitely reserving my comments for AFTER the cover is removed and the OP's findings as he starts removing parts just to get the cover off.....





I'll wait.

[harrymaneuvers]

I am just as eager as everyone else... as I already mentioned... this is a new realm for me so I am excited to start learning about body repair... or at least how to trace the damage back as far as it goes and start replacing things.

I really would like to get my car back to normal... I still feel like she has another 4 years left!

[harrymaneuvers]

Ok... so not too bad. $650 to fix including painting my JDM bumper! That is with me supplying my own JDM bumper beam which I now have to find.


he is not going to replace my radiator support/hanger but is going to pull it back into alignment.

I have never used this shop before but it came highly recommended from a friend and they seem to know what they are doing judging by the amount of nice cars on the lifts and in various stages of reconditioning/body repair. Just off the top I saw a NICE chevelle with the front quarter taken off, a newer (09?) massarati four dour nearly all panels taken off. and an audi rs3 (my favorite) with both bumpers removed. Not to mention about 20 other cars not worth mentioning.

All and all, I feel good about spending that kind of money to let someone who does this stuff everyday fix it.

From his thoughts, it looks like the radiator support might have just been bowed in similar to the JDM bumper beam but not as bad... causing the inner parts of my headlights to move in and the outer parts of the headlights to not be affected as much.

The one thing that I was curious about though was he said that the radiator support/hanger that we were talking about earlier in the post, was welded to the side radiator supports... the piece that comes from underneith the hanger on each side and the part that the inside of the headlights bolt too...

You can clearly see it hear... going up under the radiator support/hanger...

https://sl-i.net/FORUM/



Is this true? Because when I was looking at getting a new radiator support... it looked like it came in just the top piece with nothing else attached to it.
https://sl-i.net/FORUM/images/imported/2011/06/KGrHqJk4E3Gue9YsBN4CvHBqw0_1JPG-1.jpg

[02_Legacy]

I don't know if it is welded or not but it is possible. When my sister had her car repaired after hitting a dear the rad support needed to be replaced and the welds had to be grinded and the new one welded back on. In other words even if it is welded it is still possible to replace just that piece.

[harrymaneuvers]

Yea he said it is still possible but it would be about another $300 in labor.

[Okin DaVanh]

Ok... so not too bad. $650 to fix including painting my JDM bumper! That is with me supplying my own JDM bumper beam which I now have to find.


he is not going to replace my radiator support/hanger but is going to pull it back into alignment.



Yea he said it is still possible but it would be about another $300 in labor.



And this is just the beginning of costs. A supplement (2nd estimate) will probably drive that price up just a little.





I have never used this shop before but it came highly recommended from a friend and they seem to know what they are doing judging by the amount of nice cars on the lifts and in various stages of reconditioning/body repair. Just off the top I saw a NICE chevelle with the front quarter taken off, a newer (09?) massarati four dour nearly all panels taken off. and an audi rs3 (my favorite) with both bumpers removed. Not to mention about 20 other cars not worth mentioning.


:neutral: Nice cars, but doesn't really say much about the kind of work they do. I've worked on exotics and luxury cars. I will say that about %60 or so of the owners have admitted to taking their cars to shops they thought were as qualified, only to return to us and complain about the previous shop. :smt102



From his thoughts, it looks like the radiator support might have just been bowed in similar to the JDM bumper beam but not as bad... causing the inner parts of my headlights to move in and the outer parts of the headlights to not be affected as much.

The one thing that I was curious about though was he said that the radiator support/hanger that we were talking about earlier in the post, was welded to the side radiator supports... the piece that comes from underneith the hanger on each side and the part that the inside of the headlights bolt too...

Is this true? Because when I was looking at getting a new radiator support... it looked like it came in just the top piece with nothing else attached to it.

I too, think the "lower" radiator supports might be bowed in as well. They do depict how the inner parts of the headlights stay aligned with the grill etc..... And that IS an Upper Tie Bar for a BD/BG/BK in the pic. We sell them at my day job too. :grin: They can be straightened too.




I can't help but to ask......... Did all the tabs on the headlights survive? Or thay still haven't removed them yet? There is a couple of them tucked away from view.

[harrymaneuvers]

Yea suprisingly ALL of the tabs survived!!!


So do you think the lower rad support is welded to the upper tie bar?


How much would you expect to pay to get my front end lined up again?


I am getting a second quote tomorrow.

[Okin DaVanh]

Yea suprisingly ALL of the tabs survived!!!


So do you think the lower rad support is welded to the upper tie bar?


How much would you expect to pay to get my front end lined up again?


I am getting a second quote tomorrow.



The lower IS welded onto it. There are spot welds at every connecting point. They can be drilled out, then you'll need to pry off the old 1. Some people use screws ONLY to hold the support in place, so they can tack weld the support back on..... Some just drill holes on the car, and use screws to hold it in place permanently. ( <-- This, I wouldn't do)




How much $ depends on the shop rate. R&I time can usually be obtained from the dealer. Basically, they have a crash book that tells them how much time it should take to Remove & Install certain parts.






Let us know how you made out.

[harrymaneuvers]

So I just got a second opinion from a smaller family owned shop that has been at the same location (old town part of Rocklin, CA) for 32 years. It didnt have the same mass-produced, in and out mentality, infact I wouldnt be able to get the work done until the 18th of July! There is only 1 tech (son of the original owner) and his fully grown daughter who is the estimator/receptionist.

The price is now down to $435!!!!


That is straightening the front end so everything is like new, painting the JDM bumper AND the JDM side view mirrors!!!

I feel a lot better about this place... I am not sure if it was because I could easily relate to the guys daughter (who recanted her own feelings about her mustang that has been her dream car since she got it... even though it now has 260k miles and is on its second engine.) or if it was because the fact that it has been in the same location for a REALLY long time.


At this point, I feel like I am expecting the end results to be different from place to place and in reality, most of the shops are going to do a satisfactory job which to me is all I am looking for...


What do you guys look at when choosing a body shop?

[harrymaneuvers]

So the day is here!!!

I just dropped off the BD at the body shop.

JDM bumper is going to be painted to match car, JDM side blinkers are also going to be painted to match (just the black trim part), and my power folding heated mirrors are also going to be painted to match.

All of that along with having the front end aligned and headlights pulled flush for $450 out the door.

I should have the car back by Wednesday at the latest.


WAHOO!

[harrymaneuvers]

Ok so I got the car back from the auto body shop today.


Not bad at all... Especially for $435 out the door. Headlights are flush, bumper is painted and looks great.


Willie called me yesterday to let me know that the bumper was in worse shape than what they were expecting. Not surprising to me considering that I took the worse (marginally) of the two JDM bumpers that I had. But for him to sand it all down, prime, sand some more and then hit it with the sealer it was going to cost an extra $95... which even though most people might think he was trying to rip me off... I think that he was already giving me a bare bones price and the extra hour of work with material was worth it to have a mirror smooth and perfect bumper.

Considering the small dents, scratches and other misceleneous rub marks on the rest of my car, I said "No".

Especially when I was just fine with my bumper in the condition it was in prior to the accident... which was 7x worse than this newly painted bumper.

You can see some of the deep scratches that still show through because I didnt get the extra work done but I think it looks just fine.

http://i773.photobucket.com/albums/yy18/harrymaneuvers/257.jpg?t=1311310513

In this one... the lower horizontal "scratch" is really a reflection
http://i773.photobucket.com/albums/yy18/harrymaneuvers/256.jpg

http://i773.photobucket.com/albums/yy18/harrymaneuvers/254.jpg

https://sl-i.net/FORUM/images/imported/2011/07/250-1.jpg

https://sl-i.net/FORUM/images/imported/2011/07/248-1.jpg

https://sl-i.net/FORUM/images/imported/2011/07/247-1.jpg

https://sl-i.net/FORUM/images/imported/2011/07/246-1.jpg

https://sl-i.net/FORUM/images/imported/2011/07/245-1.jpg

https://sl-i.net/FORUM/images/imported/2011/07/261-1.jpg

[BG5guy]

looks awesome

[harrymaneuvers]

Thanks man!!!!!


I am pretty darn satisfied with the results. Especially for the $435 TOTAL.


I am even finding new little things that he did to my car and didnt charge me... like buffing my JDM side markers... they were pretty hazy and had a good amount of dirt/grime in the little groves on the design on the front of it. Now they are sparkly as hell!!!


He also put my hood to DEAD center... my hood used to have a slightly larger gap on one side of it than the other... although it really wasnt larger at the front than the rear (straight line still), it always was enough that it would catch my eye... Now it is PERFECT!!


Another thing he did was smooth out a slight bump that had been on my hood since I got it. It was right above the passenger side adjustable bumper/leveler. It was like the previous owner had that thing sitting WAY to high and slammed the hood down... it was an upward dimple.

Finally, he left me with about 1/2 pint of touch up paint in a sealed container. :)