After 8 weeks and $17,600 in repairs...I'm back
07-11-17, 08:34 AM
#1
Pole Position
Thread Starter
After 8 weeks and $17,600 in repairs...I'm back
After owning my smokey granite mica 2010 460L for only 2 months, I was rear-ended (really badly) while sitting at a stop light in early May. Finally got her back yesterday- took it to a very high end and reputable shop that has body repair certifications on cars ranging from Mercedes up to Lamborghini. It took them 8 weeks which i wasn't thrilled about since I only had 30 days of paid rental car coverage, but I just kept focusing on the fact I knew they would do the job right. In the end, it was $17,600 worth of repairs - trunk, passenger side quarter panel, etc but no frame damage whatsoever. Honestly the car looks way better than when I bought it. The rear bumper had a few scuffs and scrapes which are obviously gone now. The paint is as glossy and shiny as it was rolling off the factory floor in 2010. Everything was inspected by Lexus to ensure all electronics, etc. are working prior to them releasing the car to me. And they even do a full interior and exterior detail before giving you the car back which was an awesome touch.
I also had them investigate my passenger side wind noise issue, which they fixed, and the car now glides down the highway in complete silence. I spent 7 weeks and 3,400 miles in a Cadillac XTS rental and couldn't be happier to be back in my 460. I honestly forgot how incredible the ride is. As Frank Costanza said, "I'm back, baby!"
I also had them investigate my passenger side wind noise issue, which they fixed, and the car now glides down the highway in complete silence. I spent 7 weeks and 3,400 miles in a Cadillac XTS rental and couldn't be happier to be back in my 460. I honestly forgot how incredible the ride is. As Frank Costanza said, "I'm back, baby!"
07-11-17, 09:21 AM
#3
Lexus Fanatic
Glad you are back and not injured. Was the person who rear ended you texting or distracted? I am in the market for a GS or LS because I got rear ended by someone not paying attention and likely on a cell phone which ended up totaling my GS. Sometimes the nice thing about accidents is scrapes/scratches/failing clearcoat/minor damage ends up getting repaired and now looks brand new.
07-11-17, 09:53 AM
#4
Pole Position
Thread Starter
For the other poster, I was actually the front car in what ended up being a 3 car accident. A guy who was intoxicated hit a lady while they were both in motion and that sped her up even more and she hit me. He fled the scene - so he's now facing some criminal charges. He was picked up at his house within an hour of the wreck and was intoxicated so they couldn't charge him with DUI since there was no proof he was actually drunk at the time of the accident.
07-11-17, 10:00 AM
#5
Racer
Glad you didn't experience any lingering injuries, jrmckinley. Sorry this happened to you and glad it is now behind you, no pun intended. The cost of repair, isn't it higher than what you bought the LS for? Which insurance carrier are you with? I am looking to switch insurers, not so much to save money buy rather to have an insurer that actually takes care of their policyholders. Mercury Insurance was great when I was at fault for an accident 10 years ago, but lately they have provided poor service when my Mom and wife were rear-ended in separate events last year, once by someone distracted by their cell phone and another time by an Uber driver.
07-11-17, 12:01 PM
#6
Pole Position
Wow so they didn't total the car, good to have you around. Best of luck going forward.
07-11-17, 12:23 PM
#7
Former Sponsor
I got a chuckle when reading that, because I could hear his voice as I read it in your post. My car is the same year and color as yours. And mine is not perfect in the rear either. If mine were to get whomped in the rear, I have an enclosed trailer, I think I would truck it to the dealer you had yours done at. Thanks for the write up!
Jason
Jason
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07-11-17, 01:17 PM
#8
Pole Position
Thread Starter
Nope, they valued the car just over $26k (I think I paid $25k if I remember correctly), and I think FL requires 80% of value in repairs to consider for totaling. So I came pretty close to losing it, but very glad to be able to keep it. I hunted for 12-15 months before finally pulling the trigger so was not looking forward to trying to find another one!
07-11-17, 02:19 PM
#9
Glad it all turned out well! The pictures are awesome, and all I could think about as I browsed is how I would've loved to be a fly on the wall throughout the entire process. I have always dreaded body work, so it's great you found these folks. The thing looks like a masterpiece; enjoy and glad you're still around (here and in the other forum within CL where we both hang out 
)
)
The following 2 users liked this post by caha14:
jrmckinley (07-12-17),
KYLS (07-13-17)
The following users liked this post:
jrmckinley (07-11-17)
07-12-17, 03:30 AM
#11
Thanks! Here are some photos as the car was being worked on and the finished product. I have inspected it very carefully and can't find any flaws. I'm really happy with the work and it has a lifetime warranty for the paint and/or absolutely anything I'm not happy with. I recently sold a "fun" car that we had and the guy who bought it noticed that the passenger side tail light didn't match up exactly from around the side of the car to the trunk as it did on the left. I had never noticed it, but he was right (and the passenger side of the car had been in some sort of accident). I looked over the LS with a pretty keen eye for those types of details and haven't found anything yet. The shop I selected is known for being ridiculously meticulous and also expensive and slow to turn "big" jobs like this around, but to me it was worth the wait and I wasn't paying the bill whatsoever (not even deductible). I should add that they only used Lexus parts which I felt good about (they had to fight with insurance a little on a few parts, but ultimately they were victorious).
For the other poster, I was actually the front car in what ended up being a 3 car accident. A guy who was intoxicated hit a lady while they were both in motion and that sped her up even more and she hit me. He fled the scene - so he's now facing some criminal charges. He was picked up at his house within an hour of the wreck and was intoxicated so they couldn't charge him with DUI since there was no proof he was actually drunk at the time of the accident.
For the other poster, I was actually the front car in what ended up being a 3 car accident. A guy who was intoxicated hit a lady while they were both in motion and that sped her up even more and she hit me. He fled the scene - so he's now facing some criminal charges. He was picked up at his house within an hour of the wreck and was intoxicated so they couldn't charge him with DUI since there was no proof he was actually drunk at the time of the accident.
07-13-17, 10:04 PM
#15
Very similar to what happened to the wife's '14 on the January rear ending (the 2nd one in April was not any where near that first one..). Our body shop took a full month and the price was about the same...
Welcome back.... Pretty car.... Looks like they did it right....
Welcome back.... Pretty car.... Looks like they did it right....