What to look for when collecting a car from a bodyshop

[Sargara]

Im after alittle advice here please. Im about to go and collect my car from the bodyshop following an accident repair pretty much down the entire side of the car (new door, new rear quater, both bumpers sprayed and wing etc) and id like some pointers on any tell tale signs i should be looking for before accepting the job as complete.

Never really been in this situation before and dont want to end up getting home only to notice things arent quiet right and then not have a leg to stand on really legally.

So any pics or tips of what to look for before "ok'ing" the paintwork?

Cheers

 

[James105]

I'm no expert but the obvious things to me would be:
-Look from a distance for colour match
-Look down the panels for any ripples to make sure they smooth
-Check for any overspray on mouldings and rubbers.
-Check for runs/ orange peel

(Was it you who had the run in with the lorry?)

 

[bennno2005]

I'd tap all down the sides with your knuckle to see if there is any filler in there and as above look for colour match / orange peel.

 

[mx1_champ]

a before picture may be better so we can asses whether it had any new panels such as a new quarter etc.

*check all gaps
boot-quarter, quarter-door, door-wing then wing-bonnet

*check colour match ( imperfections show up best under un-natural lighting.. i.e under a streetlamp as best as it will bring out alsorts )

*quality of the paint finish. rough'ish dry spots, runs, poor blow-ins. Also check up close the full finish should be high gloss, check for flatting marks were it hasnt been polished enough. You also need to look through the paint to see if there is any scratchy marks underneath were the panel may of been sanded and not primed or insufficiently primed.

*over spray.. run your hand gently over the car to feel for any rough spots... also check for paint on trims etc.

* check nothing is missing.. valeters can be an arse for lifting a few quid out of your coin tray, taking a few fags or eating sweets.

*Check the general condition of the car.. generally many cars are parked up on a night so bumps can and do happen when parking up.. Also its quite easy to catch a bumper corner on a 2/4 post ramp.. so check low on all 4 corners.

*fuel.. no reputable bodyshop should take your car out for a spin.. but it has and can happen.. check for significant loss of fuel.

*Check any trims that may of been removed for damage.. especially the long window trims. Dont forget to check inside as interior panels are often removed are clips/etc are just as easy to break.

Think thats about it of the top of my head.

 

[mx1_champ]

I'd tap all down the sides with your knuckle to see if there is any filler in there and as above look for colour match / orange peel.

whats wrong with there being filler in a panel ? its a perfectly acceptable repair method.. ( think guideline is 3-4mm depth max.. iirc)

 

[Sargara]

a before picture may be better so we can asses whether it had any new panels such as a new quarter etc.

Pics are here in my other topic from last month: *link*

Cheers for the advice so far!

 

[Gally]

I'd tap all down the sides with your knuckle to see if there is any filler in there.

I don't understand why he would need to do that. Won't give him any idea of quality.

If you can mate look at the damaged pictures whilst looking at the car repaired so you can see exactly the parts that should have been replaced/repaired.

Did they know when you left the car with them that you would be fussy? Always a good idea to tell them how fussy you are, all garages put in more effort if they know you'll go oevr it with a fine toothcomb.

 

[Sargara]

Did they know when you left the car with them that you would be fussy? Always a good idea to tell them how fussy you are, all garages put in more effort if they know you'll go oevr it with a fine toothcomb.

Haha no unfortunately not, in hindsight however i can see where you are coming from. Drop some subtle: "yeah its only been a couple of months since i had it machine polished" etc would have probably been a good idea.

Ah well time to go and stroke my car to feel for rough spots and see if my USB memory stick is still in the car which i forgot *facepalm*. Wish me luck.

 

[Gally]

Good luck I hope you won't need it.

Don't forget guys like me and and mx1 will probably notice a lot more than the average Joe so don't worry too much we're just fussy feckers!

Helps and doesn't help that you car is white!

 

[bennno2005]

whats wrong with there being filler in a panel ? its a perfectly acceptable repair method.. ( think guideline is 3-4mm depth max.. iirc)

I didn't say it wasn't an acceptable repair method. However in the first post he said they are supposed to be using NEW panels.

If I'd paid or my insurance had paid for new panels I would want them to use new panels even if filler would suffice.

I'd be pissed off if I paid to have new panels and didn't end up getting them, even if it looked OK and I'm sure there are places out there that would repair a damaged panel and still charge for a new one.

 

[bennno2005]

I don't understand why he would need to do that. Won't give him any idea of quality.

Will give him an idea of whether or not he's been done over though.

 

[mx1_champ]

I didn't say it wasn't an acceptable repair method. However in the first post he said they are supposed to be using NEW panels.

If I'd paid or my insurance had paid for new panels I would want them to use new panels even if filler would suffice.

I'd be pissed off if I paid to have new panels and didn't end up getting them, even if it looked OK and I'm sure there are places out there that would repair a damaged panel and still charge for a new one.

many new panels come with small dents in them from transportation/storage.. its not always convenient to send it back and await a new part, especially when you have a customer that needs his car back and you have a deadline to meet.
Also when fitting new quarters and other such fixed panels bodyfiller or fiberglass is often used to hide the seem left from the two joining panels.

But on the other hand yes you are right, many bodyshops charge for a new panel and repair the old panel instead . known a few places flat scratches out then buff the full panel and claim its been sprayed.

 

[bennno2005]

Yeah I can appreciate that, but repairing a pin sized dent from transportation (which you probably wouldn't notice tapping it with your knuckle anyway) and filling a door in after the cars been hit by a lorry are a bit different. This is why I advised tapping down the sides in the first place.

You would obviously expect a bit of filler on the joins of a rear quarter as I'm guessing they have to be cut out and welded in but there shouldn't be loads of it in the middle of a brand new panel.