Repair Costs/Experiences

[snwbrdraw]

After about 1.5 weeks of ownership and less than 500 miles I got into my first accident with my new Versa SL Hatchback. I thought I'd start something about the experience...

Here's what happened - Driving to work from Doylestown to Malvern, PA and slid off a 15 mph curve due to some Black Ice. Had to choose between a metal road sign and a wooden fence - I chose the fence.

From what I could see after dropping it off at the dealership - The front bumper brackets broke free causing the whole thing to drop down about 6 inches, I lost my Nissan Emblem somewhere in the snow, and either the Windshield Washer or Coolant tank broke as something light blue was leaking.

So far the car was moved from the dealership to the collision center and my Car Insurance is sending their appraiser guy to authorize the repairs.

Anyone want to guess the damage costs or what I may not have noticed upon my initial inspection?

Right now I am driving a 2007 Corolla from the rental place...Is it bittersweet irony that the Corolla was the "other car" I chose the Versa over????

[Clipsed]

you are looking at about $2500-5000 in repairs, I will give a lil more detail when I get back from school in an hour and a half

[proxim2020]

you are looking at about $2500-5000 in repairs, I will give a lil more detail when I get back from school in an hour and a half

Sound about right with all of the estimates that others have come to the board with similar damages. Although it would be something new to me, I don't think the coolant would be blue. There's a good chance it's the washer fluid reservoir.

[Clipsed]

the front bumper alone is $500, you are looking at about $1500-2000 in labor, and paint alone on the bumper itself, plus any additional parts, and adjustments that need to be made. You may not realize it, but there may be damage to mechanical components that you do not know about. This could run another $1000-2000. If your air bags went off, then boy are you gonna be hurtin. A reputible shop will do a great job from anywhere between $2500-6000. Be glad you have insurance, and get some better tires and most importantly drive safely. Hopefully you were not injured in the accident.

[snwbrdraw]

Thanks for the information...I just got a call from the collision folks and they won't/can't touch it until the Insurance guy comes out which shop lady said she was told, "...sometime this week."

I am totally fine except for my pride. I previously drove a Tacoma 4x4 and on several occasions spoke of how great I was at pulling out of spins - backed by several passengers. If anyone ever had one you can attest to this truck's horrible handling without the 4WD turned on. In this case I had 0 chance of performing a similar miracle as that stupid fence was less than a foot away from the road and by the time I realized I was sliding I only had time to choose what I was going to hit.

It's amazing that a bumper re-fasten would cost that much but I'm not surprised. As for the paint - funny thing is, I noticed no scraping or dents of any kind. I was probably only going like 5-8 mph when I hit so maybe I was lucky on that one. No airbags deployed either. Your right about the mechanical/structural issues that could be hidden. I guess I'm secretly hoping for more than the $500 deductible worth of damage so I can say that I actually used the insurance I've paid for my whole life at least once!

That Versa on Ebay is starting to look mighty attractive....

[Clipsed]

lol @ flea bay Versa@ They want $1500 for a paint stress on my front bumper, to take it off, repair it, take off the old paint, prep it, re-paint it, and re fasten it. You do the math!!! lol

[DreamU]

Last summer someone keyed my Acura in Bend, OR. The scratch was only about a foot long on the left rear fender, and not deep - they just broke the surface. But it cost $900 to repair/repaint.

[proxim2020]

Ouch!

[snwbrdraw]

I just got the initial estimate from the Insurance Adjuster - $879.53

From what I can translate from the estimate sheet they FAX'd me, they are replacing the entire front bumper, covers, grill guards, fenders, and some molding instead of just re-attaching it and charging a bunch of money to match it to the original paint.

They guy did admit it will probably go up once they peel off the damaged parts and look under the hood to inspect for engine/structural issues. At the very least they better find what was leaking under there...

Honestly I hope they find/fix a bunch more as at this point I'm paying most of the bill outta my $500 deductible. Still waiting for the whoever's fence I hit to call too.

[DreamU]

Wow, your estimate to replace all those parts is less than what it cost me to fix a single scratch on my rear fender. Off-hand, I'd say you are getting a great price to repair your Versa.

[Cellmice]

Wow sucks to hear that. I had the same problem exiting a highway hitting the wall though, Slided my 90 maxima and the fender, headlight broke. After a couple more looks later found the holding 2 pins on top of the radiator broke and leaking coolate though streem. So time to get the car i been looking for the last 5months, now i'm finally own the car i wanted. A Versa SL with CVT.

[motoguy128]

Sorry about the accident. Have you ever tried using the parking brake to induce some oversteer. This car reponds well to getting the rear end sliding and then giving it some gas. Otherwise it understeers (plows the front end) terminally.

Remember in FWD, in most cases you want to stay on the gas, getting on the brakes or even lifting throttle is the worst thing you can go. sometimes just lifting the brake will cause the car to right itself and get back under control.

[snwbrdraw]

A status update...in case anyone is still watching this.

I just received a call from the Collision people and was told that Nissan has just announced a National Backorder for the bumper. I'm not sure what that exactly means but I am sure I won't be getting my car back for quite awhile!

More bad news is that my rental coverage is coming close to maxing out on just this one instance! The collisions place is trying to work with my insurance to see if they can work something out since the delay is no one's fault.

At this rate my 3 month XM trial will be non-existant once I get my car back! All this for a stupid fender bender...what a nightmare!