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Some of you maye have read in the picture thread, that a tree branch fell on the hood of my car while workers were trimming and told me to go. It is a large commercial landscape company. Owner showed up quickly, was very nice, took pictures and said no problem. Exchanged info and went on. Later, he text me saying he spoke to his insurance guy who said it’s probably less than the deductible.
Well, I got an estimate from one of the two authorized Lexus body shops in Central Florida and it’s $4600
It does say they will try to repair hood, if not possible, will replace and there is no price for that. If that happens, may just get a Seibon or other CF Hood.
Is that a dent and scratch or just a dent? Paintless dent repairers can do wonders these days to massage dents out. That crease may be harder though. Just saying....
Is it possible to access the back of the hood metal from the underside? PDR can probably work it out if that is the case, even if it's a nasty crease. Though, some PDR guys are not up to the task.
Minor paint scuffs can be polished out. Can't tell from the pic which it is.
Among the many unfortunate things about this is that after the hood is fixed, carfax and other automobile reports will probably have an entry for "front end damage repaired"
Is it possible to access the back of the hood metal from the underside? PDR can probably work it out if that is the case, even if it's a nasty crease. Though, some PDR guys are not up to the task.
Minor paint scuffs can be polished out. Can't tell from the pic which it is.
I’m willing to bet that your $4,600 estimate is WELL BEYOND the tree company owner’s deductible. Kudos for not caving and going to his buddy, and getting proper estimates from Lexus certified shops.
I believe you will need a new hood, so that will be $1,000 for the part, plus paint, plus labor. That won’t be repairable — if they attempt it, it will NOT be satisfactory due to the crease.
I think you’re (or the tree company’s insurance) is looking st a $7K bill, all in. For the job to be done right.
Thanks for reminding me….I went and got a 2nd estimate from another Lexus Authorized body shop in Jacksonville. In and out quickly. This one came in far less, $3200!
I asked the writer directly, can the hood be repaired and he looked at me like I was crazy, he said “Sure, no problem.”
The first one does seem padded. Why do I need rockers on both sides for a right side hood and fender dent/scratch?
A good shop is going to add some margin in for unexpected things they find when they disassemble things, and/or extra time to make things right. Like I said, my insurance adjuster ("writer") wildly under-estimated the cost of the job of repairing my wife's IS500. A job well done is always going to take longer than someone just slapping it together and calling it complete. That's the kind of stuff that good shops go to the mat with the insurance companies on.
I'm not convinced that the hood is fixable given the location of that dent on that crease. Of course, per my previous paragraph, some shops may just "bondo" it with filler and paint it. A good shop will replace the whole hood, because they know that even PDRing it will never get it to what it was when it left the factory. And honestly that's what you want. You want to look at that spot the rest of the time you own the car, and know that it was properly repaired.
I had my wife's car's hood replaced last summer for damage MUCH smaller than yours. A new hood comes from Lexus primered, so basically the shop just has to prep and paint it, and fit it correctly so that the gaps are even on the sides, and so forth. A good Lexus certified repair shop will totally take care of that stuff.
New IS500 hood being cleaned and buffed just after Cloudburst Gray paint (underside) by Lexus-certified body shop. New IS500 hood just after new Cloudburst Gray paint. Hood is being wet-sanded and buffed. New IS500 hood just after new Cloudburst Gray paint. Hood is being wet-sanded and buffed.
Last edited by gerryvz; Jan 19, 2025 at 06:22 AM.
Reason: added hood photos
I agree I want it done right, which is why I went to an authorized Lexus body repair. There’s two in Central Florida, one in Orlando and one near Cocoa Beach (Melbourne). Then there is one in Jacksonville. I have to trust that the Authorized Lexus repair is going to do what’s best.
All of which are an hour and twenty away from Daytona.
Finally got the adjuster out, seemed a decent guy. Said the hood needs to be replaced. He also paint on the left (other) side also will likely need some blending due to the wide plane the fenders have on the top side, exceeding 6”
He mentioned that not only is the hood aluminum, but it is thin and designed to flex under pressure from wind, why fixing isn’t an option.
The hood scratch
