92 SC400

My g/f got into a minor accident the other day and contacted Magnuessen's Lexus about getting her car repaired there and she was told that the work is done by a Lexus body shop a couple miles away.

Does anyone know who this body shop is and how their work is?

The damage is limited to the bumper and the person she talked to said she would most likely receive a reconditioned OEM. The concern obviously is with the paint matching and getting a reconditioned vs new bumper. In the past I have noticed that over time you can spot where the bumper was previously damaged before.

Apparently the body shop there is AAA certified and in terms of working with insurance it'll be less of a hassle because and quicker, or so AAA tells her...

brociouz

iTrader: (65)

As I recall, Magnussen's is a chain - which one are you referring to? I took my car to Magnussen's Car West Auto Body in Dublin and they did great work. Only complain is a minor orange peel effect, which they will be cleaning up this week.

I had the option of repairing the bumper but opted for a completely brand new one - it was only $200 extra and I got the newer '09+ IS bumper, so it's more like a "mod."

92 SC400

Magnussen's Lexus in Fremont is who I am referring to. Changed the title as I see it was a little confusing.

josephdoc

**cough** Lexus in Fremont, or the "Magnussen Lexus" is a dealership selling Lexus vehicles, but not a bodyshop performing body works. Maybe the owner owns a bodyshop, but it has nothing to do with the manufacturer (Lexus).

Matching Paint? You don't need to worry about it. If you can eyeball any difference of the outcome, then they will owe you another re-do job untill you are satisfied with the quality. Most of the bodyshop honor the same policy these days and no one like to re-do a job.

I am sure the dealer uses trustful body shop(s) only. Hope your love ride come back to you soon.

92 SC400

^^^^ Yeah, I know that they are a dealer - we bought the car there. I also figured that the body work would be outsourced to someone else. That's why I was wondering if anyone knew who they sent the work to. While I do realize most body shops will re-do work if you're not happy, that sort of becomes time consuming in the event you do want something re-done (I've gone through it before...). I'm sure you're right that the dealer would use/recommend a good body shop though.

RTIS250

iTrader: (9)

Magnussen's Lexus of Fremont typically uses Magnussen's Car West Autobody... they have multiple locations. They also have an on-site painter who does bumpers, etc.

92 SC400

Ah, ok. Thanks! Have you heard anything good, bad, or otherwise about their work?

RXSF

i always thought lexus of fremont had their own bodyshop. guess not.

92 SC400

^^^ I'm guessing they own that (Magnussen's) Car West Elite body shop in Fremont. They have an on-site rep or something at the dealer who did the quote for the repair there, my g/f didn't have to go to the actual body shop for the quote.

Aegee14

The owner of Magnussen's Lexus in Fremont I believe also owns the chains of Magnussen's car west auto body shops around the bay area. So, they have someone from the Fremont location come and pick up cars for body work that goes through Magnussen Lexus in Fremont.

Is your wife's car a Lexus or any other luxury car? If so, I would take it to Brooks Motor Cars in Oakland (near the airport). I have taken my Lexus to both Magnussens Car West Auto and Brooks (as well as another place), and I have to say hands down Brooks IS the best. I don't want to sound like an advertisement, but they are the premier shop for luxury European cars (and they do Lexus as well). They also wax whatever body part that they replaced/repaired (although luckily for me they replaced it with an OEM). Try them out, I bet you will recommend them to others as well. Outstanding customer service as well. Their website is www.brooksmotorcars.com. Good luck with the fix.

Tommy350

iTrader: (8)

take a little trip to san bruno by sfo... 5 star auto body
say tommy sent you

92 SC400

Well, just an update... My g/f went to Magnussen's Car West Elite, Active Auto Body, Works Auto Body, and lastly, Bodystyle by Cecil Beach.

Two shops said the bumper would be replaced and two said it would be repaired. The bumper does was no punctured, however, there are some stress fractures in the plastic. IMO repaired bumpers never seem to turn out quite "right" for some reason. She feels that she should get a NEW bumper and not a repaired one since pre-collision her existing bumper was never repaired nor did it even have any scratches or damage.

Anyway, as for the shops themselves, she liked Bodystyle because they seemed friendly and were also one of the shops saying the bumper would be replaced. They also mentioned having a good working relationship with AAA which is good since this will be covered through insurance. Magnussen's was ok, but the other three are closer; the person doing the quote (Eduardo) at Active was friendly, however, bumper would be repaired; she didn't like the location of Works, although she did note there was a Maserati and some other nice cars there, they also seemed a little hesitant when she mentioned AAA.

There were some positive reviews on here for Bodystyle, however, nothing too recent. Has anything changed or is their work still good? From reading on here it sounded like their work is good - if you're not paying for it. If anyone has any recent experience with them, let me hear it!

IS-SV

Sorry I'm a little late but I'll give some feedback on Car West Autobody via Fremont Lexus. Good work was done on my repainted IS350 hood in early 2009 and color match was perfect to my eyes.

BCGS430

Here is a little info on Magnussen Lexus and their body shop. They use Car West Elite in Fremont. It is just over Hwy 880 about 2 miles away. I am the Body Shop Manager for Car West Elite. Magnussen is ownership partners with Car West Auto Body. We are the only Lexus dealer owned body shop that I am aware of in the Bay Area. I have Lexus factory trained techs and we repair more Lexus than anyone in the Bay Area. It is a new shop for Car West. 52,000 sq feet with the latest and best technology in the industry.

Please feel free to contact me at any time.

Brian Hobaugh - Manager
Car West Elite
4311 Solar Way
Fremont
510-657-2200

2002IS

sorry for the super late reply. DO NOT GO THERE!! They messed up my is250. I went there 2 years ago and they have the worse service ever. I brought my car back to them after two weeks to tell that my they forgot my door insulation (whatever that is inside the door panel). The door would make a very hollow sound whenever i closed it. They also did not fix a dent that was paid for. I went through so much trouble to make them fix my door and the dent. Other than that, they are still horrible.