Silverman1

I bought a black 2010 ES 350 with 17,000 miles from JM Lexus (biggest in the world I'm told) on June 30th. My prior car was an Audi and this was my first Lexus. I started to fall in love with it pretty quickly.

Five weeks later I got in an accident in a parking lot -- someone backed into the side of my car at the very rear of the side, denting in the body and the part of the bumper that wraps around the side.

JM Lexus has a body shop that I've been told is the best in Florida. They told me the damage requires that they remove the entire panel and replace it (but that they can probably repair the bumper).

I don't know what you call this panel ("quarter panel" perhaps?). It has a long strip that goes over the two driver-side doors.

This job involves cutting the welding to remove the old panel and then welding the new panel into place. (It’s “structural”.) They said they even have to remove the rear window and reinstall it (or replace it?) -- it's that involved.

I assume that their painting job won't be an issue. But I'm being told that the resale value of the car will be going down substantially since it’s structure damage, the replacement part won’t have the original VIN, the work will be on CarFAX (I did a police report), etc..

I’m also told that the life of the car will also be considerably reduced since it won't have the original factory rust-proofing, etc.

My primary concern is whether this kind of job is likely to affect the handling of the car in general.

My secondary concern is the diminishment in trade-in value.

The body shop introduced me to someone with a superb reputation for helping to go after the insurance company of the other party for what he calls “accelerated diminishment of value”. (I don’t yet know if the other party will be deemed to have had 60% or 70% "at fault" responsibility or what. The police report shows them as car 1 and shows them hitting me, but apparently there’s probably still shared responsibility that the insurance companies have to work out.)

I don't intend to trade the car in for another year or two, at which time the money won’t matter that much to me, really (though a check for diminished value now wouldn’t hurt – so I’m going to look into it further).

How concerned should I be about the handling of the car after this kind of repair? That's my main question.

And how much is this likely to reduce the resale value? And the life of the car?

Thanks!

Tact

iTrader: (1)

I wouldn't think there would be any change in the handling if the body shop is as good as you advised.

In regards to the value, I would guess a 10% difference being that it will show on CarFax as an accident. Keep in mind though, it is not like a salvage titled car from here out.

garsarno

I had a 2004 Lincoln LS that had similar body damage. Mine was the entire driver side of the car, from the front door right to the back bumper. Local Lincoln dealer did the repair and it looked great with no handling issues. It did however, have electrical issues / gremlins that after 2-3 times back to the shop, could not be fixed to eliminate. Traded the car in on a new 2007 Impala SS and the repair did not show up on Car Fax.

SW17LS

And whoever told you the car's life would be reduced also doesn't know what they are talking about. A good bodyshop should guarantee their work for the life of the car.

MDames2

iTrader: (1)

I had structural damage to my 2007 about 4 years ago. There was significant damage to the front end and left front side. It took 5 weeks to be fully repaired. I have had absolutely no problems since. The car looks, feels, and handles perfectly. I wouldn't worry about the repair if it's being performed by a reputable shop.