My (and my GS's) first accident ever :(
05-25-16, 09:58 AM
#31
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Do you mean fog up or the black parts fading?
EVERYONE should ALWAYS have a coat of wax or some protectant on your headlight housings.
The issue you may still see is delamination. That is what is happening to mine. I get a lot of stone chips. I think that is the culprit. (or rock salt, being in the midwest.)
EVERYONE should ALWAYS have a coat of wax or some protectant on your headlight housings.
The issue you may still see is delamination. That is what is happening to mine. I get a lot of stone chips. I think that is the culprit. (or rock salt, being in the midwest.)
05-25-16, 03:16 PM
#32
Leon,
My hood was totally new. I just looked underneath it and I does not have any OEM sticker on it. Perhaps this is a California thing because that state is out of control with your emission regulations. The whole nation has 1 set of guidelines and Cali has another set. I would think if it's the law, then they have to supply it. If it's not, then don't worry about something like that. Just think positive thoughts and your car is in the right hands. GL!
My hood was totally new. I just looked underneath it and I does not have any OEM sticker on it. Perhaps this is a California thing because that state is out of control with your emission regulations. The whole nation has 1 set of guidelines and Cali has another set. I would think if it's the law, then they have to supply it. If it's not, then don't worry about something like that. Just think positive thoughts and your car is in the right hands. GL!
05-26-16, 09:29 AM
#33
Leon,
My hood was totally new. I just looked underneath it and I does not have any OEM sticker on it. Perhaps this is a California thing because that state is out of control with your emission regulations. The whole nation has 1 set of guidelines and Cali has another set. I would think if it's the law, then they have to supply it. If it's not, then don't worry about something like that. Just think positive thoughts and your car is in the right hands. GL!
My hood was totally new. I just looked underneath it and I does not have any OEM sticker on it. Perhaps this is a California thing because that state is out of control with your emission regulations. The whole nation has 1 set of guidelines and Cali has another set. I would think if it's the law, then they have to supply it. If it's not, then don't worry about something like that. Just think positive thoughts and your car is in the right hands. GL!
so if your hood was replaced, they didnt replace your stickers
05-26-16, 06:30 PM
#34
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Right, a new hood would not come with stickers - problem is I don't know what stickers go on the underside of a 2001 GS430. Hopefully the body shop saved my old hood, then I'll be able to have a look and order replacements.
06-09-16, 02:52 PM
#36
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Well, not a good start. Despite all my attempts to make it clear to the body shop that I am picky, they did a far less than impressive job. To be fair, when I pointed out the defects, they agreed that they would not be happy with it either, so they are reworking it. But they said they may not be able to match the smoothness of the original paint, and said that I may have to get used to the orange peel. So I am thinking that they simply don't have the expertise to do it right. But we'll see how it comes back the second time.
Here are some "highlights" from their first attempt:
Big blob of clear on the hood edge. Also lots of sharp edges along the hood and trunk, where they probably had tape during painting:
Wrinkle in the rear bumper that they supposedly reworked:
Color mismatch between the bumper and the original quarter panel paint:
Now we're getting to the bigger issues. The entire area they sprayed is covered in fisheyes and similar craters. Don't know if they had a dirty spray booth, water in the gun, or whatever - not really for me to know, just for them to fix:
And leaving the best for last, here is the orange peel on the paint they sprayed. The smooth reflections are from the OEM panels; the orange-peely ones are from what they painted, the hood and the trunk.
So far they tried to tell me that with today's paints, they can't sand and buff to match OEM, but obviously I am not going to buy that argument in the end. I stopped by the Lexus dealer just for fun, here is a reflection from a car they had outside the showroom. Looks pretty nice to me.
Anyway, maybe they'll get their A-team on this and I'll be happy in the end, stranger things have happened.
Here are some "highlights" from their first attempt:
Big blob of clear on the hood edge. Also lots of sharp edges along the hood and trunk, where they probably had tape during painting:
Wrinkle in the rear bumper that they supposedly reworked:
Color mismatch between the bumper and the original quarter panel paint:
Now we're getting to the bigger issues. The entire area they sprayed is covered in fisheyes and similar craters. Don't know if they had a dirty spray booth, water in the gun, or whatever - not really for me to know, just for them to fix:
And leaving the best for last, here is the orange peel on the paint they sprayed. The smooth reflections are from the OEM panels; the orange-peely ones are from what they painted, the hood and the trunk.
So far they tried to tell me that with today's paints, they can't sand and buff to match OEM, but obviously I am not going to buy that argument in the end. I stopped by the Lexus dealer just for fun, here is a reflection from a car they had outside the showroom. Looks pretty nice to me.
Anyway, maybe they'll get their A-team on this and I'll be happy in the end, stranger things have happened.
06-13-16, 08:58 AM
#39
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The only ray of hope is that Allstate has told me that since this was one of their "good hands" shops, that if I am not happy with the results they would pay for me to take it somewhere else to get done right. Fingers crossed.
06-13-16, 09:33 AM
#40
Thanks Brian. From my pessimist (realist?) point of view, I also don't expect them to be able to fix it to my satisfaction.
The only ray of hope is that Allstate has told me that since this was one of their "good hands" shops, that if I am not happy with the results they would pay for me to take it somewhere else to get done right. Fingers crossed.
The only ray of hope is that Allstate has told me that since this was one of their "good hands" shops, that if I am not happy with the results they would pay for me to take it somewhere else to get done right. Fingers crossed.
06-14-16, 02:22 PM
#41
Can we just make this an official thread for everyone who has gone through this crap lately? 
17 years of driving, first ever real accident. On the way to lunch today, my SBM GS400 got t-boned in the passenger-side center-rear by an inattentive driver at an intersection where I had the right of way. Neither I nor my coworker were hurt. The officer didn't tell me explicitly, but I saw him hand the other driver a summons and it's pretty cut and dry as to who was at fault.
It's going to take at least a day for the police report to become available, but I am not looking forward to the out-of-pocket cost that I'm going to be seeing. I think the damage is easily worth more than the car. Right rear quarter damage, rear bumper bracket/fastener got bent, right rear door is completely toast, and the right front door has some creases in it that could possibly also require replacement. There's also some rear hub/axle and wheel damage as well.
Faced with the prospect of getting another car, I've realized one thing in about 15 minutes of AutoTrader searching: Nothing I want is available at a suitable price point for me. There are no other SBM GS400s for sale anywhere in the US and a used IS F or Cadillac CTS-V cost way more than I'm willing to pay for any car.
Once I can get my car from the impound lot, I have two collision shops in mind for looking at it, because I want my unicorn repaired. It's financially unsound, but still cheaper than looking for a another car that I like or even going through the hassle of respraying a non-SBM GS400 and transferring over my parts. I'm thankful to not be hurt and not have money be a limiting factor in my decision. I just don't want to spend $30-40K on a different car.
I'll eventually post pics when I have the time after I get the first round of documentation with the police report and insurance, but I'm also going out of town for the rest of the week, so this was an especially bad time for this to happen.
17 years of driving, first ever real accident. On the way to lunch today, my SBM GS400 got t-boned in the passenger-side center-rear by an inattentive driver at an intersection where I had the right of way. Neither I nor my coworker were hurt. The officer didn't tell me explicitly, but I saw him hand the other driver a summons and it's pretty cut and dry as to who was at fault.
It's going to take at least a day for the police report to become available, but I am not looking forward to the out-of-pocket cost that I'm going to be seeing. I think the damage is easily worth more than the car. Right rear quarter damage, rear bumper bracket/fastener got bent, right rear door is completely toast, and the right front door has some creases in it that could possibly also require replacement. There's also some rear hub/axle and wheel damage as well.
Faced with the prospect of getting another car, I've realized one thing in about 15 minutes of AutoTrader searching: Nothing I want is available at a suitable price point for me. There are no other SBM GS400s for sale anywhere in the US and a used IS F or Cadillac CTS-V cost way more than I'm willing to pay for any car.
Once I can get my car from the impound lot, I have two collision shops in mind for looking at it, because I want my unicorn repaired. It's financially unsound, but still cheaper than looking for a another car that I like or even going through the hassle of respraying a non-SBM GS400 and transferring over my parts. I'm thankful to not be hurt and not have money be a limiting factor in my decision. I just don't want to spend $30-40K on a different car.
I'll eventually post pics when I have the time after I get the first round of documentation with the police report and insurance, but I'm also going out of town for the rest of the week, so this was an especially bad time for this to happen.
06-14-16, 05:38 PM
#43
Lexus Test Driver
Unfortunately it seems like the repairs will exceed the value of the car; even so, not sure it will drive correctly after hub/axle wheel damage. Have you checked Cars.com? They seem to have a better GS selection than Autotrader. But you're right, no way I'm spending $30-40k on a car when I can pick up a GS for $5-10k!
06-14-16, 06:07 PM
#44
Unfortunately it seems like the repairs will exceed the value of the car; even so, not sure it will drive correctly after hub/axle wheel damage. Have you checked Cars.com? They seem to have a better GS selection than Autotrader. But you're right, no way I'm spending $30-40k on a car when I can pick up a GS for $5-10k!
Last edited by 8M6; 06-14-16 at 09:57 PM.
06-15-16, 10:25 AM
#45
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.