00 White 5spd. Maaco?

[fanz]

Well, long story short: as I was backing out of the garage, my leg got caught in the steering wheel hole, and i ended up scrapping along the mailbox.

So now theres a gillizon small dents (I tried to pop some back up). I guess it's time to take it to Maaco for molding repair... its the cheapest, since I'll be trying to sell the car before I leave for college.

Heres some pics:
http://home.earthlink.net/~zhaosan/images/DSC00196.JPG
http://home.earthlink.net/~zhaosan/images/DSC00190.JPG
http://home.earthlink.net/~zhaosan/images/DSC00187.JPG

So, I was wondering, should I strip the wax off the damaged panel area before I take it to Maaco, or should I just leave it be?

Edit: should this belong in the Sound and Shine forum? Sorry, if it does...

 

[ChrisYellowV6]

um.....how did you get your leg caught IN the sterring wheel? *heres your sign*


um...i'd say ask them would it be cheaper if you did that if it would be then do it, if not dont worry about it.

 

[fanz]

the house is on a high sloped hill, so i was adjusting my seat while letting the car slide down to the road (big mistake), so i pushed the seat a little too upfront and my knee couldnt stretch out because the steering wheel blocked it.. err.

dang.. the worst part of this is that the mailbox punched in the panel pretty good... but the mailbox wasn't even dented or anything..

 

[Ghostalker]

lol,
when mailboxes ATTACK!
sry man, all i can say is dont take ure car to maaco for paint, my friend had a REALLY bad expierience with them... on his altima... lol

 

[marvinmycat]

Don't mess with it. just take it in as any work they do will more than likely screw up the paint job anyway and will require sanding, painting, finishing.

 

[Ghostalker]

yeah, our maaco just decided to sandblast my friends altima (he had put a body kit on it, rice! we actually put it on in my driveway lol) when the blasted it, it ripped apart the body kit, it looked like they took a chisel to it, seriousely, they put his car in the back so no one would see it... and think less of them, i forget exactly how we got out of it, but i assume he refiberglassed it, like the bottom of a boat, lol, or bondo or something stupid, because it looks better now... (dont see him much anymore anyhow)

 

[97v6Silver]

you can prolly get that popped out pretty easy for cheapo

 

[1Slick5.0]

MAACO I would highly discourage that. Those guys suck ass. I wouldnt just say that but ive seen work theyve done from 4 differnent locations. The only reason i can figure they do such ****ty work is well. There employees arent exactly the highest paid on the market. And Body work isnt exactly supposed to be one of those quick get your car out as fast as they can things. Take it to a repitable Baody shop. 9 Times outta 10 it wont cost much cause they wont Panel it. They will blend it.....

 

[Ghostalker]

and half the time it will be cheaper to go to a reputable shop, because you wont have to get repairs for your repaint/repair!

 

[fanz]

hmm thanks for the replies..

i really don't know any reputable body shops in my area (charlotte, nc), since most of the maintainence were done personally. However, I believe all it needs are some moldings and a layer of paint over the affected area. One of my friends got his DSM repaired at Maaco, he said it wasn't bad.. but his car is kinda crappy to begin with.

anyone ever taken off the rear quarterpanel before? it seems bolted on... or maybe I should sell it like it is right now.. since college starts in 2 weeks.

 

[97v6Silver]

reputible shop = one that garentees factory parts and garentees work and is not maaco

 

[Ghostalker]

exactly, it has a gaurunteed match blah blah

 

[fanz]

i see,

but molding is the same everywhere isnt it? changing the whole quarter panel would cost too much, but there is a wrecked mustang in a local junkyard; however, I cannot seem to be able to disconnect the panel from the car.

all it needs are some moldings to fill the bumpity dents and some paint over the moldings and most people shouldnt be able to tell the difference.

edit: maybe 'molding' isnt the right word, more like solder or body-fillers and paint over it

 

[splatteredguts]

let me put it this way... it'd be better for both you and the potential buyer in the long run if you just left it the way it is than to take it to some place like maaco. if i was buying your car with that dent in it, i'd guesstimate how much it'd cost to get it fixed by a good body shop and just have you take that amount out of the sale price. i'd feel pretty comfortable by knowing what's damaged and being able to choose who repairs it, and you still get a good amount for the car while saving yourself some time... we both walk away happy. now, if i was buying your car and noticed you had a pretty shotty maaco job on it, i'd probably be a little suspicious as to what else might be wrong with the car that you're not telling me. because after all, if you don't care enough about the car to spend a few extra bucks to get some quality repairs done, what assurance do i have that you've really taken care of the car at all?

just my $.02

 

[marvinmycat]

Very well put!

 

[fanz]

Thats probably the best way then.. I'm trying to keep inmind that most people here in Charlotte doesn't know jack about cars thoughs.

So how much should it be worth?
00 White 5spd manual
64K on the odometer
Stock with Cruise, spoiler, thats it..
I was thinking if I fix it, I can probably list it as $7500 and get about $7000 for it after bargained down. What about now? how much does a quality body repair cost?

Well, its been fun with this car. I'm just afraid of people test driving it without any intention to buy.. just to rev up my motor to redline. Even I haven't rev'd it higher than 3K.

 

[splatteredguts]

that sounds like a good price to start with. as far as fixing it, you should probably get some estimates from a few different body shops in your area to see what all is involved in the repairs and how much it'll cost. if you happen to get lucky and find a really good deal then go with it. otherwise, if you decide not to fix it yourself you can still give the estimates to the person who wants to buy your car so you'll have a basis for negotiating the price down. plus it gives them a little extra assurance that they can trust you.

edit:
and btw, if someone takes it for a test drive, just tell them not to rev it up or beat on it. and if they do, tell them to pull the car over and kick them the f.uck out.