...the "My G's Been B****-Slapped Club"

For those of us that have been rear-ended, parking-lot mauled, vandalized, etc.

I got rear-ended at a red light this morning. I was taking my son to school, and stopped for the red light before turning right, then *WHACK*. We're both okay, though. I've started the claims process with his insurance company. The bumper is dinged and scratched and cracked in several places; even the license plate is buckled up. Some of the bumper damage looks like parts of my car poking out from the inside, so I don't know what's been beaten up underneath the cover. The car's perfectly driveable, and it'll probably be a day or two before the insurance stuff gets sorted out so I can take it to a body shop. I'll see if I can take a couple of pictures of it tonight, as I know ya'll like to stare at damage just as much as you like 20" rims. [img]/w3timages/icons/smile.gif[/img]

I guess I'm taking it well because it wasn't the first scratch.. I think the dealer did that last week when they changed the oil, I got the car back and the front bumper is scratched like they scrapped a pole. I'm not 100% sure it wasn't damaged before hand, but I park in lots where there's generally a building in front of my car, not in open parking areas, so I don't see how else it could have happened. I think it'll buff out, though.

2003.5 G35 Sedan Desert Platinum/Graphite Premium/Sport/Aero/Nav/Winter

Sorry dude. Only takes one fool not paying attention to ruin your day, or however long it takes to return your baby to normal.

03.5 Sedan AT (Black-Willow-Premium-Sport-Aero)

Where I live someone got a brand new silver G35 sedan and the next day I saw the car it had already gotten it's first big dent in the corner of the rear bumper. Sucks for him[img]/w3timages/icons/frown.gif[/img]

Sorry, man but at least you and your son are ok. Thats really the important fact. Getting your G hit hurts too but it did its job and you and your son are alright.

03.5 Sedan/B. Silver/Prem/Winter/Aero/Tint/Rims
69 Chevelle Hard Top BB/4.11's/Posi

sorry to hear that ryo...im glad that nothing happened to you and your son though...


can I join the club too???

..pestilence..

Pesti, you'll need to fill out a petition to join the club.. we'll then hold a meeting to decide whether or not to allow self-inflicted wounds to join. [img]/w3timages/icons/smile.gif[/img]

2003.5 G35 Sedan Desert Platinum/Graphite Premium/Sport/Aero/Nav/Winter

Sign me in for the BI*TCH SLAPPED Club too. Mine got hit while parked at my wife's work. Filed a claim, got my check, but the body shops in this area are still busy taking care of hail damage. Looks like another 2 weeks or so.

Okay, here's the pretty pictures.

Here's the overall view. What's hard to see (even in the high-res version I didn't post) is that the bumper is scrached up from the far left arrow, all the way to the far right arrow. Then, there's the obvious big dent on the right side. The middle black arrow (pointing at the corner of the license plate area) points at where the bumper is cracked (detail view in another photo). The white arrow is pointing at a spot on the black part of the bumper that looks like it's dented from being pushed into some part of the bumper's internal guts. You'll also notice that the right half of the trunk lid has less of a gap than the left half -- the bumper seems to be bulging up a bit there.

Looking under the car is pointless, as there's no way to see anything w/o removing the bumper cover, and I'll leave that to the pros.

2003.5 G35 Sedan Desert Platinum/Graphite Premium/Sport/Aero/Nav/Winter

45880-g35bender_0.jpg

Here's the next photo. Another overall shot at a different angle. That big dent is the most obvious point of damage.

2003.5 G35 Sedan Desert Platinum/Graphite Premium/Sport/Aero/Nav/Winter

45881-g35bender_1.jpg

Here's the detail view of where the bumper cracked, with a blow-up in the bottom left.

The upper-left corner (opposite the cracked corner) has cracked paint, but the plastic held).


I've contacted the other guy's insurance company and started the claim process. They contacted him, and he accepted the liability. So, no hassles there, and I'm on to the next part.. selecting a body shop.

A couple of choices here. The local Infiniti dealership doesn't have a body shop, they use the Mercedes-Benz body shop about a block away, but they're not on the pre-approved list. All-American Paint & Body is on the list, and I've used them before (wife's Jeep, strangely similar accident) and they did good work. Another choice is West Coast Specialists, also on the pre-approved list, and they supposedly specialize in high-end cars such as Jaguar's, Mercedes, BMW, etc.

If I go with the non-approved body shop, the insurance company has to send out and adjuster, and it's extra hassle, so I think I'll go with one of the pre-approved ones. I'm familiar with All-American, but not West Coast -- if anybody has used them and can comment, I'd appreciate it. Part of me feels like I might be better served by someone specializing in luxury & high-end cars, and another part of me feels like dealing with a known quantity.

2003.5 G35 Sedan Desert Platinum/Graphite Premium/Sport/Aero/Nav/Winter

45883-g35bender_2.jpg

Sorry to hear about your ride. I am in a similar situation. My bumper doesn't have the dent, but it has a cut in it about 2 inches long. It also has signs of distress along the license plate area (similar to yours). Mine will not be covered under insurance, but I too have to pick a body shop in San Diego. I have 3 estimates to replace and paint the bumper. Caliber Collisions ($700), Bradley Allen Autobody ($800), and Amatos ($1000)! Quite a wide range. Bradley Allen was recommended by Discover in Carlsbad (Now Hoehn).

To answer your question, I would go with someone I've used before and can trust. Since I have not needed a body shop before, I will have to use my best judgement. Anyone use any of the shops above?? Good luck

ETicketRide
2003 G35 Sedan/Ivory Pearl/Willow Premium/Sport/Tint

I've actually decided to stick with All-American Paint & Body. They're on the paying insurance company's pre-approved list, they're on my insurance company's list, they're on AAA's Top 50 list, and I've used them before and was happy.

Discover Infiniti in San Diego uses the Mercedes shop, as I mentioned. The service advisor also handing me two business cars, for Amato's and for Custom Auto Body. Although, if you're paying out of pocket, it's hard to pick the most expensive estimate.

2003.5 G35 Sedan Desert Platinum/Graphite Premium/Sport/Aero/Nav/Winter

Woohoo.. I'm stylin' now.. cruisin' the streets in a turbocharged Volvo wagon. The G's in the shop for about a week.

2003.5 G35 Sedan Desert Platinum/Graphite Premium/Sport/Aero/Nav/Winter

I think an S60 would have been more fun to drive around in than a V70. It's not bad. It's a 2.4T, not the faster T5, but it's still quicker than you'd expect Mom's station wagon to be. It definately beats running around in a Grand Am or a Galant for a week, which is what I was expecting. There's a rear-facing 2-person seat that unfolds from the rear cargo area to stuff 2 extra kids in the back in a pinch. It seems to be missing a bunch of bells and whistles, but then, it is a rental -- they usually go for near-base model vehicles. Luckily, it also does the turn-the-key-twice-to-unlock-all-doors thing, because they didn't give me the key fob.

Yeah, it sux, but everyone has bad days I suppose. Back in my college pizza-delivery-guy days, I slammed into a fairly new Dodge Colt, and pushed him into the 1-week old Pontiac Bonneville in front of him. The Colt was probably declared totaled, as it looked rather like an accordian. My FWD non-ABS Accord of the day just plowed straight ahead in a panic stop with the wheel turned to the right. Why did I hit him? Well, the traffic signal light had a line of cars backed up about 2 blocks -- 3 times longer than I'd ever seen it, so I wasn't expecting stopped cars, it was dusk with a light drizzle (say bye to depth perception and hello to slick, oily roads), and the Colt was a stick shift sitting still with his foot off the brake, so no brake light. Speed limit was 45, so I was probably going about 50. I wasn't even supposed to be working that night, I was filling in for someone else. Sometimes it just happens.

The guy that hit me was apologetic and fairly nice, we traded insurance info, and he admitted fault to his insurance company. Not much more you can ask from someone, except not to hit you in the first place.

2003.5 G35 Sedan Desert Platinum/Graphite Premium/Sport/Aero/Nav/Winter