Bad luck or what? Rear ended on my way to a car dealership...

pcsavvy · Oct 6, 2019

Hi all,

Last week I was about 5-10 minutes from a car dealership about to exit the freeway when suddenly, BAM, I get rear ended by a 1997 Dodge Caravan. Oh no and crap were my first reactions, I get out we exchange info and take pictures of the damage incurred.
The rear bumper is scratched and some of the plastic is bent in ways it wasn't meant to be. The person who hit me had liquids draining from the his engine so he had to be towed. I was able to drive away but damn I was about to work some numbers and possibly buy a 2020 Hatchback Sport to replace my 2017 Hatchback Sport.
The body shop says it will take 3-4 days to fix so I am currently renting a Dodge Challenger. It drives like a boat, it is nice with all the extra power and all but my civic has spoiled me for light and feel every dip in the road like a roller coaster.

So now I wait till the damage is fixed and hope that it is only the bumper and lower skirt that got damaged and not the frame of the car.
I guess the deal was not meant to be at that moment.

zroger73 · Oct 7, 2019

pcsavvy said:
I was able to drive away but damn I was about to work some numbers and possibly buy a 2020 Hatchback Sport to replace my 2017 Hatchback Sport.

I guess the deal was not meant to be at that moment.

If I were you, I'd drive directly from the body shop to the dealership. Once the damage hits CARFAX in the coming weeks, the trade-in value of the car is going to decrease about a grand. I wouldn't volunteer that information, either, unless you want an even less fair trade-in offer.

Micah · Oct 7, 2019

zroger73 said:
If I were you, I'd drive directly from the body shop to the dealership. Once the damage hits CARFAX in the coming weeks, the trade-in value of the car is going to decrease about a grand. I wouldn't volunteer that information, either, unless you want an even less fair trade-in offer.

He's not wrong. Arguably bad for karma, but car dealerships do much much worse things. All used cars are sold and traded as is unless otherwise explicitly stated.

Be aware most dealerships have people with a very keen eye for repair work. I'd had them pull out paint meters and walk around the car to make sure nothing has been repainted.

zroger73 · Oct 7, 2019

Micah said:
He's not wrong. Arguably bad for karma, but car dealerships do much much worse things. All used cars are sold and traded as is unless otherwise explicitly stated.

Be aware most dealerships have people with a very keen eye for repair work. I'd had them pull out paint meters and walk around the car to make sure nothing has been repainted.

I can see that happening with a collectible or exotic vehicle, but I'd be very surprised to see a dealer use a coating thickness gauge on a regular production vehicle with a dollar value of five digits or less. Heck, it's not unusual for new vehicles to get damaged and repaired after they leave the factory and before they are sold with the customer being none the wiser.

I've never had a dealer take a "paint meter" to any of my two dozen+ trades from $3,000 beaters to $50,000 SUV's. In fact, the only time I even had one suspect a vehicle had been repainted when in fact it had not been repainted was a first-generation Ridgeline with a front bumper that was popped out of place - something that is very common on first-generation Ridgelines.

Micah · Oct 7, 2019

In NJ - they've done it to me on a 350Z, Z06, and two Mini Coopers - all were worth under 30k trade in

Mae22 · Oct 9, 2019

Micah said:
Be aware most dealerships have people with a very keen eye for repair work.

You would THINK this was true, and maybe in a lot of cases it is. But I had a different experience. Years ago I was the last car hit in a bad 5 car rear-end pileup. I literally had a scratch on my bumper, not even an insurance claim, but I was listed as an involved party on the police report. The problem is that somehow my vehicle was mixed up with the person who caused the wreck when it was reported to CARFAX, but I had no idea.

When I went to trade that car in years later, it should have been worth about $6K, and that was the preliminary offer from the dealership, pending the CARFAX report. Further into the deal, the salesguy comes back and says "we can only give you $500 for your trade since it's been totaled and repaired." WHAT? No, that never happened. CARFAX said it had. I said to him "Do you mean to tell me that your trade-in appraisers are so inept that they can't look at my car and be able to tell that it has never had any body work done, much less been totaled?" He insisted that they could only go by the CARFAX. I walked out of the dealership that day, and it took me weeks to get the police reports and have it all straightened out with CARFAX. They are a bitch to deal with, but eventually the "total loss" was removed from my CARFAX record and my car resumed it's full value.

My advice to the OP - if you want until everything has processed with the accident before you trade the car in, pull your CARFAX before you go into the dealership to avoid any nasty surprises.

Micah · Oct 9, 2019

Mae22 said:
You would THINK this was true, and maybe in a lot of cases it is. But I had a different experience. Years ago I was the last car hit in a bad 5 car rear-end pileup. I literally had a scratch on my bumper, not even an insurance claim, but I was listed as an involved party on the police report. The problem is that somehow my vehicle was mixed up with the person who caused the wreck when it was reported to CARFAX, but I had no idea.

When I went to trade that car in years later, it should have been worth about $6K, and that was the preliminary offer from the dealership, pending the CARFAX report. Further into the deal, the salesguy comes back and says "we can only give you $500 for your trade since it's been totaled and repaired." WHAT? No, that never happened. CARFAX said it had. I said to him "Do you mean to tell me that your trade-in appraisers are so inept that they can't look at my car and be able to tell that it has never had any body work done, much less been totaled?" He insisted that they could only go by the CARFAX. I walked out of the dealership that day, and it took me weeks to get the police reports and have it all straightened out with CARFAX. They are a bitch to deal with, but eventually the "total loss" was removed from my CARFAX record and my car resumed it's full value.

My advice to the OP - if you want until everything has processed with the accident before you trade the car in, pull your CARFAX before you go into the dealership to avoid any nasty surprises.

I got over on a car dealership twice. First time was with a 2002 Mazda Protege which I had turbocharged and caused the trans to slip like crazy before the engine blew. I put it back to stock and told them it was a good but boring commuter. They gave me a good trade in value towards a WRX. The second time was with a 2002 Chevy Z06 which had electrical issues and a leaky roof and trunk. Again, no issues on carfax so they gave me more than I owed on it (bought for 26k, sold for 24k 3 years later). But when I bought that Z06, I was trading in a 2005 350Z which had the door repainted because my sister threw her door into it and put a nice ding in the door. It looked perfect to me and everyone else who saw it after the body shop repaired it. But when he pulled out the paint meter I was impressed. In any case, I bought it used, and sold it used. Chalked it up to "previous owner issue".

Lesson here, dealerships vary like a mofo. Thankfully there are plenty to pick from.

pcsavvy · Oct 9, 2019

I am picking up my car tomorrow. So let the deal hunting begin....

SCOPESYS · Oct 9, 2019

pcsavvy said:
I am picking up my car tomorrow. So let the deal hunting begin....

The time to find a Dealer that you will trust to do service work on your car is when it does NOT need any service work done, and you have time to pick and choose a Dealer that will impress you,
If you don't actually NEED then when you are looking, it is really easy to just "walk away", if you have any doubts.

It's that same "I am in control" feeling, when you are 1st looking for a car, and have not yet SIGNED anything at the Dealership... you are free to walk anytime you don't like anything they say or do .. (and they know it !!)

pcsavvy · Oct 10, 2019

Picked up my car and the back end looks brand new. I am debating whether to detail the water spots on the passenger side doors and bottom sills. With a good wash they are barely noticeable but when the light hits it certain way you can see the remnants. The body shop guy suggested a detail would get them out.

Bad luck or what? Rear ended on my way to a car dealership...

pcsavvy

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zroger73

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Micah

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zroger73

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Micah

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Mae22

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