New VW yesterday....accident today :-(

[mhjett]

Good luck; it is very difficult to find a body shop who's going to get everything completely right, but hopefully if you keep pursuing it, they'll fix things to your satisfaction.

Some people might chime in and say you're being picky but I disagree - you had a brand-new car and you were fully insured to restore it as if the crash never happened - you have every right to ensure things are done 100%.

[Shawn O]

I know I'm being picky about the factory decals but the fenders are another story. They flat out installed them wrong. Really wish I was out of this rental car....

[BRealistic]

I know I'm being picky about the factory decals but the fenders are another story. They flat out installed them wrong. Really wish I was out of this rental car....

The sad reality is MOST people just see that their was wrecked car now looks normal and is shiny.
They don't check things like panel gaps, body lines... and so the body shops promise you they are picky then give you the same crap hoping you are the typical idiot.
Good gawd, my neighbor got her SER back with paint edges (tape lines) on the door face that would actually cut your hand.

[mhjett]

The sad reality is MOST people just see that their was wrecked car now looks normal and is shiny.
They don't check things like panel gaps, body lines... and so the body shops promise you they are picky then give you the same crap hoping you are the typical idiot.
Good gawd, my neighbor got her SER back with paint edges (tape lines) on the door face that would actually cut your hand.

Not surprised. There's a ton of people out there who wouldn't know the difference.

One thing I can't help but notice are cars with OEM badges in the wrong places on the trunk, especially VWs - pretty big hint that the car probably had body work done.

[Golgo-13]

$5k easy. sucks man. that dodge has almost nothing wrong with it. it's usually people in trucks like that who drive like idiots. they have much less to lose.

get his license plate. pay a PI a couple of hundred to locate the truck's residence. wait 'til its dark and take care of biz.

[stascom]

Good luck getting it fixed properly. Been there, tried that. Fruitless

[Shawn O]

SHould be ready tomorrow!

[Numbersix]

SHould be ready tomorrow!

Like

Be interested to hear your feedback after the post-repair inspection. I recall from your resto build of your GTI back in the day you are...shall we say...exacting? And I mean that in the best way possible.

[Oh_My_VR6]

Definitely in for a review of the work done. Got my fingers crossed that it's perfect for you dude.

[Aonarch]

yay!

[Project_2501]

Wow this has been a crazy sh!t show... Recognized your name from the Mk2 section here and popped in..

Reminds me of when I crashed my old 2003 Mini S in sleeting rain (last year, late January - New England winters suck!). Except you're taking care of business.

[Shawn O]

Got the car back and its almost up to par, I think it needs an alignment. I can't remember if the wheel was slightly offset prior to the accident since I only drove the car once. Offset to the left and it travels ever so slightly to the right. Might be related to the accident since I was stopped and the car was pushed over a foot or so? Knock the ball joint out a bit?

Other than that everything is great. I was finally able to get them to attach the top edge of the fender at the a-pillar with panel adhesive or urethane. Not sure which, it was some black 3M product I know.

Paint is a perfect match for the original. They replaced the hood, both fenders and bumper. I had them paint an extra set of front sidemarkers that I provided. I also paid them to paint the rear bumper since it had a few scratches. I'm pretty picky and they went so far as to get me the right hood and core suport OEM stickers. Was a bit of a mess since they initially ordered 2012 ones somehow and I insisted the right ones be ordered (they aren't cheap).

Radiator and a/c system were left intact from the accident so they didn't have to do anything there. Radiator fan on the left had a small crack in one blade from the impact (made contact with an engine bracket) so they replaced the fan assembly. Few other pieces here and there: belly pan, fender liners, grills, etc.

They were able to bill the insurance for the "highline" lower center grill as well as the fogs and grills for that. I have to order a wiring harness for that this week.

I've accumulated a ton of euro parts while the car was gone so I have some time out in the garage ahead of me in the next week or so (hopefully).

Still undecided on wheels and tires but I'm leaning to ordering some OEM 18" Interlagos. Not sure about the suspension but I want something mild so maybe just a set of Eibach springs.

Might have to have Clearbra put on the front end as well?

Thanks for all the help with this messy situation.

Still haven't decided if I will pursue a diminished value claim with their insurance. Will find out next week what the actual dollar amount would be and go from there I guess. The repair bill was just over $10,000 with $5,000 being parts costs.

[Numbersix]

Excellent news. Glad to hear it's back and the work was performed to your satisfaction (finally).

I can say the Interlagos look great on a MkVI (disclaimer: I'm biased ).

Does VW offer the DriverGear springs for the Jetta Sportwagen? Might be the way to go if they do. I think that's what my GTI is going to get when I get time to do something about it.

[Shawn O]

I will check into that, thanks! I read a few places that the Eibach Pro springs offered about a 1.2" drop and were a good combo for the stock springs. Not sure I like that but I could see it working for a bit.

Was able to get my roof rack (black powdercoated Thule Aeroblades) installed tonight. Stock Barricuda bike mounts don't fit though without modification. Also popped in an OEM euroswitch and a GTI gas pedal assembly, brake, and dead pedal.

[Shawn O]

Have been driving the car to work the last couple weeks and its had a slight pull to the right. Initially, thought it was just the roads, but after driving my wife's car to work for a few days, it wasn't pulling to the right the same way. Great.

Had it to the dealer last week for an alignment. Alignment was off by only a slight amount. They brought it into spec but it still pulls to the right. Called there today and made another appointment to have it looked at. Not sure why there was no measurement for the front caster taken?

Any ideas? Nothing was damaged in the accident suspension related I was told and no unibody damage.

[s-rocc]

Have been driving the car to work the last couple weeks and its had a slight pull to the right. Initially, thought it was just the roads, but after driving my wife's car to work for a few days, it wasn't pulling to the right the same way. Great.

Had it to the dealer last week for an alignment. Alignment was off by only a slight amount. They brought it into spec but it still pulls to the right. Called there today and made another appointment to have it looked at. Not sure why there was no measurement for the front caster taken?

Any ideas? Nothing was damaged in the accident suspension related I was told and no unibody damage.

Try swapping the tires around? I can't see the pics, not sure how/where it was hit.

[nm+]

Have been driving the car to work the last couple weeks and its had a slight pull to the right. Initially, thought it was just the roads, but after driving my wife's car to work for a few days, it wasn't pulling to the right the same way. Great.

Had it to the dealer last week for an alignment. Alignment was off by only a slight amount. They brought it into spec but it still pulls to the right. Called there today and made another appointment to have it looked at. Not sure why there was no measurement for the front caster taken?

Any ideas? Nothing was damaged in the accident suspension related I was told and no unibody damage.

Stop it and call Jeff the alignment guy. He'll tell you what is up.
Dealers don't know **** about alignment. Jeff is precise and a local legend. Thealignmentguy.com

[McHensley12]

wow, this is quite the mess.. glad to see its starting to come along at least!

[stascom]

Have been driving the car to work the last couple weeks and its had a slight pull to the right. Initially, thought it was just the roads, but after driving my wife's car to work for a few days, it wasn't pulling to the right the same way. Great.

Had it to the dealer last week for an alignment. Alignment was off by only a slight amount. They brought it into spec but it still pulls to the right. Called there today and made another appointment to have it looked at. Not sure why there was no measurement for the front caster taken?

Any ideas? Nothing was damaged in the accident suspension related I was told and no unibody damage.

Told ya.
Take it to an alignment shop. Like the guy above said, dealers don't know shti about alignment.

[Shawn O]

Here is what Westside gave me.

[nm+]

Call Jeff. He'll tell you exactly what is wrong. There's a reason every autoxer in the cities uses them.