C5 Newb

The lady in question was driving a Newer Toyota Maxis and she said she tried to stop but it just locked up and slid.

There were skid marks to back up her story and while I know nothing about the Toyota's I just assume everything now days has anti-lock brakes. I think hers were not working.

So a question to people who know more about it......

Once they fix or replace the rear end and paint it where do I go from there? I assume I have to be happy with the paint matching the rest of the car? The original paint is 18 years old and obviously faded somewhat from original and when they paint the rear end it isn't going to match so....?
Should I settle for them trying to blend it to the old paint or should they paint the whole car or what? I would hate to have the rear section be basically a different color or shade from the rest of it.

How does that work? Because tomorrow I have to go see them at the body shop. What questions should I be asking because if I don't like their answers I will take it to Phoenix and find a shop that maybe does more work with Corvettes.
This shop is the closest one to me and the insurance kinda picked it because of that, but THEY SAID I can take it where I want to, it's my choice.
So.....

What are some questions to ask them tomorrow?
What should I expect from them?
And if needed anyone have recommendations for a good shop in the Phoenix area.

I don't want to drop it off and get it back 6 months later....

Rob 02

Personally I would take it to a Corvette dealer for an estimate as long as they are a reputable one. There are too many things that can go wrong with shady body shops.

If that is your car in the avatar then it looks like one of the harder ones to color match.
That red is a candy color which is a three part process, a base, a trans red and clear.
The paint has to be soft enough to flex with the body of the Vette because if it is hard paint then you will get spider cracks. The rear bumper is super soft as you probably know.

You haven't posted pictures of the damage.
How severe is it? Is it just outer body panels or is there deeper damage?
There are frame rails running all the way to the back bumper. If the frame is bent then it is pretty much totaled. It is a rigid frame and little chance of getting it perfect again.
There is also a fiberglass tub that makes up the inside of the car. If that is cracked then it is a good idea to have another one epoxied in if you plan on keeping it.

Rob 02

It takes time for the shop to order parts and paint to cure. The shop may be backed up so it may take three weeks or more.

runner140*

Very well said.

C5 Newb

Very, Very slight damage. She was almost stopped when she hit me, airbags didnt deploy on either vehicle. Basically just some deep gouges in the bumper where you can see black plastic now.
Since the back is SO soft I was worried that something inside may have been cracked or bent.
My data cord got damaged so I cant link my phone to computer to get the pics right now.

Rob 02

Oh just a rear bumper fascia? Just have the dealer give you a quote since they are probably the highest priced. Then take time to decide.

lonerider2002

I walk my dogs on a main 2 lane road in my neighborhood and am amazed just how many drivers are looking down at their phones, not at the road as they pass me. This is in a school zone as well. Talking on the phone is bad but texting is outrageous. Most old timers as myself will remember the static on the radios/8-track players that the ignition caused. Maybe something like that in the newer cars would curtail some of the usage-but I doubt it.
My answer would be to hit them in the wallet when an accident is caused using a cell phone. First offense would be $1000.00 in addition to any other charges and $5000.00 on the second offense plus loss of their license for a year.
These fines would go towards lowering the increasing health insurance that is caused by the injuries sustained in the accidents caused these morons.

C5 Newb

Why is that? I don't understand,

leadfoot4

C5 Newb

Had the estimate done yesterday.

The parts that need replaced:

Rear fascia

Styro-Foam impact piece behind bumper

Back-up lights / license holder

New mufflers

New chrome CORVETTE letters on the rear

And they are going to just paint the rear end and blend it into the quarter panels......

$2,976.74 for the repair...

(If it does not match well I am going to insist they paint the whole thing)

Shakeydeal

That sounds like a reasonable price for so much work. But you should probably save 10 bucks or so and tell them to forget the chrome letters..............


Shakey




Oh, and good luck with that "paint the whole thing" deal. I seriously doubt you are going to get an insurance company to buy in on that.

knewblewkorvette

But disagree on the letters, the $40-$50 letters look good on that color.
https://www.ebay.com/sch/i.html?_odk...rs+c5&_sacat=0

grampi50

The insurance company would likely total the car before they'd pay for a complete paint job...

sirdano

Get you one of these

http://www.signaldynamics.com/backoffxp

I have seen my share of people slam their brakes on at the last moment but now with this seems to have gone down to nil

Rob 02

The only other option I can think of is to buy one from salvage for under a grand. I doubt the color would match though.