jjaaam

I hit a deer about a month ago and tore up the driver's side of my '03 pretty good. I ultimately decided to take it to the dealer for the work, thinking that was the best choice.

They called today to say it was ready, and that I would be happy with how it turned out.

I got there and was pretty disappointed. The hood was flush at the driver's side headlamp, low at the cowl, and was high a good 3mm from the center of the fender/wheelwell. The driver's side headlamp cover was flush with the hood but the passenger side headlamp cover was about - again 3mm too high (or the hood was that much too low).

I know that body fits have tolerances (I know...I worked in a car assembly plant on the final line at one point - where they did closure fits) so I have a clue, but does anyone know what the actual GM specs are for the C5?

That just seemed ridiculous to me. Please tell me that I'm not crazy to expect that, for a +$7k repair, that they just do it right!

Maybe the hood they bought was bad? Can these things be adjusted out?

Plus, I counted at least 10 - at the minimum - dirt specs in the paint on the hood, plus some on the driver's fender.

I told the service tech I wouldn't accept it (without being rude, of course). I'm just hoping that they don't come back with some BS about not being able to get the panels to fit right.

I'm more ticked that they think I would be stupid enough to not notice. I mean - it's a Corvette! People are going to over repairs like that with a magnifying glass.

Rant over. Hopefully they'll make it right. I'm not handing over the insurance check until they do.

Evil-Twin

I hope you have not paid them for this... Was it an insurance claim? and if so... Make sure that you dont let them pay for a job that is sub par. you pay for first rate insurance and that what you accept.. the car should be perfect... you dont pay for half assed insurance and should not expect to get half assed repair. Problem is usually the insurance company will tell you that you can take the car anywhere.. it them becomes your choice. and the insurance company is out of it. they wont pay twice however if the dealer body shop has not been paid, you do have leverage. you want a job where the repair is nothing short of perfection. it should look as if it was not repaired.. No dirt in the paint, no miss matched panels etc.. your only other option is to threaten to contact the State insurance commissioner and file a complaint of unprofessional repair.

Vetteman Jack

I'd say you have every right to expect a top notch repair job and if it is not to your satisfaction, certainly bring it to their attention and not pay until it is right. There is no reason that a competent body shop can't get the panels to fit right unless there are still issues somewhere else.

Evil-Twin

You just cant go and take your car out of their shop... In some cases it takes a judges order and a sheriff to accompany you to retrieve your car. At this point, they are legally in possession of your car, at your request. You cant take it from their shop. The matter could have to be litigated, but before that happens the best case would be to point out what need to be fixed to your satisfaction before you turn over the check... if they agree ( dont give them the check ) buit allow then to " fix " things, otherwise the only alternative is to take them to court., have a judge render in you favor and have a court order to reclaim your car without payment. you can then take it somewhere else. but short of that, they wont release your car unless they are paid., and are legally entitled to keep your car..

RSbeast

Ghostwheel

jjaaam

road pilot

You are the King and what you say goes. What makes you the King? You are paying for the repair. Demand perfection not 2ND BEST.
I guess you have learned, to do a little research before you start a project.
Good luck.

Evil-Twin

Some shops are incapable of perfection. Selecting a shop, and giving them your car to repair authorizes them to repair it and charge you for the time they spend in doing so. Can they give you a half assed repair? sure they can and claim that's their best effort. If it doesn't meet you standard then its up to you to litigate the difference between their best effort and what you expect. Some shops have State of the air Down draft spray booths, and other shops do not even have a spray booth. Some shops charge 60 dollars an hour and other shops charge 150 an hour. There are reasons for the difference. I see body shops everywhere, many without spray booths. Many are obviously hacks, High end shops give high end repairs. You really need to do some research before turning your car over to anyone. Of course this is all after the fact. You could go to the shop and take photos of the repair and tell the shop mgr. that you are sending these photos to the State insurance commissioner and to the insurance company. as leverage to negotiate them to repair the poor work, but its also possible that they are incapable of a perfect job since you say they got dirt in the paint work?
Just trying to give you some options to the next step here.
Good luck
Bill

jjaaam

Evil-Twin

I would also like to make a suggestion to bring someone with you as a witness to the conversation. A recorded conversation would also be helpful. Tell the guy Up front, what you expect . IN the process of taking photos ( videos ), I would leave the camera rolling ( video ) throughout the conversation to capture any promises or compromises. Just a thought because you are playing in their sand box..But its you that will get burnt if you do not do this right. Talk is very cheap unless its recorded.
Good Luck
Bill

knewblewkorvette

And if like here in Iowa, he does not need to know you are recording. It's a one-party state. It would be best he doesn't know and he might be more forthcoming.

Velocity_Vette

Yeah I'm going to echo was was posted a ways above. If they replaced the inner fender liner - and it's been stated with incredibly frequency over the years - it's positioning is PARAMOUNT to how everything lines up. The proper procedure prior to installing the new one is to trace all around where it meets against the chassis (a good wax pen works well here) and the markings can then be used for positioning. If the inner fender liner is too far off when installed the hood, that side's headlight door, and potentially the fascia cannot properly align to one another. Additionally there is a very high chance of the fender jam to the hood being WAY off which can cause issues down the road, and there's no slide adjustment for the fenders. Still then the adhesive that is currently recommended to be used is different than was GM used, and it's virtually impossible to make it look factory correct (it goops and runs, seeps out, etc).

Everything can be adjusted though, but some things are just never going to sit right if the liner wasn't properly installed. When my inner liner, door, and fender were replaced everything was the slliiiiigggghhhhttteesssst big mis-aligned (It obviously won't be 101% right away) but I've gradually over time got most of it all back in order. Of course I've had to deal with some visible adhesive in the jam points, but I'll just have to live with it.

If you took it to a dealer they're supposed to have access to a Corvette trained specialist in their network. When I took my car the individual that was working for the particular dealer network was originally trained on C5s, so he immediately knew what to look for (was happy - more so than myself - to see a C5 come through).

Still I would not have accepted, especially more so with paint issues. I was some thousands less than your work with both door, fender, and liner replacement (I'm sure hood and fascia jacked up your quoted price some) and yet paint work is utterly flawless. And that's on Nassau Blue metallic.

C5 Kirkland

OT: Putting on my inner fenders is the next step in the project, so thanks for the advice.

C5MSG2004Vert

My son had his Corvette in for repair after he hit a deer and had just about the same amount and type of damage. His estimate was $7,000. His body shop did the job and none of the panels lined up and the paint color was off. Some of the panels even had casting flash on it like you get on model airplanes. He brought it back three times they never really got it fully 100% and they would not replace the defective panels. Fortunately for him he paid with a credit card. He called his credit card company and disputed the charge, so far he's has the credit on his card and the body shop has not contacted him yet. It's been a week and if they don't contact him he will just have the credit permanently on his card. At least it gives him negotiating leverage for them to try and fix it again. So I recommend you pay for yours with a credit card and if the workmanship is not up to standard dispute it like he did.

Evil-Twin

jjaaam

OK...so I just got off the phone with the Body Shop manager.

First off, I had to call HIM. I would have thought I would have gotten a courtesy call but I guess not.

To clarify - I never raised my voice or talked rude once. I asked if he was aware of what I saw and he said they were working on the issues, but that the hood fit issues may have "been from a 15 year old SMC mold and that they would do the best they could". I called BS and said - again, with respect - that maybe they would have to get another hood. He told me in no uncertain terms that that hood that was on the car was going to be the one that stayed on it as he had no intention of buying another one. He also said my estimate of 3-4mm high was excessive. I didn't want to go into the fact that I was at one time a body fit supervisor on the final line at an assembly plant - I'm pretty sure I know what 3mm high or low looks like!!

I told him I didn't want to reach an impasse and that I appreciated the work he had done so far, and to consider if it was HIS car - he wouldn't have accepted it either. After a few more cursory comments I repeated that again - consider if if was YOUR car - and he went "mmm hmm" and hung up.

To Pdbrains post, I have not paid for jack squat. The insurance check is still nestled safely in the envelope they mailed it in. And I will go over the guy's head to the General Manager of the dealership if he "can't get it fixed".

To be reasonable, I fully understand that it may not be 1000000% perfect. Heck, it wasn't before I hit the deer! It just needs to be a LOT better before I pay a single dime!

So this brings up a question I asked in the OP - does anyone really know what the C5 body fit specs were? I know that GM really tightened things up in the 2003/4 time from a quality standpoint so maybe inboard/outboard a few mm's was acceptable at the time? I don't want to be a jackelope to the guy if it really IS the best he can get it after working on it a little more. What would be acceptable? 1mm? 2mm?

The Rabbi

May have used after market parts, they don't fit very well.

Evil-Twin

If I read your last post , the guy Hung up on you? OK he is now in adversarial mode. More than likely the dealership will be on his side. . Just be aware that in all States there is a legal provision to sell a car in their possession for non payment of work rendered. The terms of this varies from State to State..
Good Luck
Bill aka ET

jjaaam

He claimed he paid top dollar for a genuine GM part...:-(