Had a minor fender bender in my nearly new CX5. Nothing major. Front right bumper is a little scratched up, and right front black wheelwell scratched up a bit. Scheduled an appointment at a body shop close to my office that is recommended by my insurance company, but now wondering if I'd be better off going with my Mazda dealer's body shop. Car is the Chrystal White Pearl Mica. Just want it to look as close to new as possible, and get it back fast. Anybody have any pros and cons of local shop vs. dealer body shop?
Fender Bender
- Thread starter hallcx5
- Start date
Didn't know dealers had body shops. Those located within dealer's premises are usually independent and and repair all makes/models. In other words another local body shop conveniently (for dealers) located in car malls.
Always utilize this site as a tool. https://www.autobody-review.com/
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- RDX Aspec Adv.
Most dealers contract out. I would go to the body shop that your dealer recommends AFTER checking around to see if others also feel that the shop has a good reputation. See if the shop is certified by Mazda. I know my 370Z was wrecked, and I got it fixed at a shop certified by NISSAN North America to do work on their vehicles, and it turned out EXCELLENT, as in, could not tell $13k in damage had been done. The paint was flawless, as was everything else.
Been to both, dealer body shops and independent. I have had many bad experiences with dealer shops but the one where I bought my car at (Mazda) did excellent work when I had my roof repainted. I usually go to a shop that specializes in Lexus/Mercedes/BMW and their work has been consistently fabulous over the years and who repaired my CX5 when I had a rear end collision. Look for some one that will give you lifetime warranty on the work performed.
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- RDX Aspec Adv.
Exactly. This means when you trade it in, or sell it, it will not lose as much value. Also, if the repairs are 1-2 years old and still look great, chances are you won't take much hit at all. However, I would also file a diminution of value claim if legal/possible in your area. I got $4K for dim on my 370Z, of which the lawyer took about $1k.
Shop around, look at reviews and choose one. I had almost the same exact thing happen to my 2016 last May. It's an easy fix, they can match the paint perfectly an the wheelwell trim is just replaced. Get couple estimates and decide. This time of year they're not busy. I checked out three, dealer, large independent and small local shop.
Went with the small local, they were about $400 less than the other two. In fact the large indep. was more expensive than the dealer.
Car was done in two days and was perfect. Looked as good as the day I purchased it. Paint matched perfectly.
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