Last year, I bought a new car. Rather than trade in my old one, I decided to sell it myself. Before I put it in the market, I took the car to a local shop and got my old baby a new paint job. The new paint made all the difference with the car. While operationally it was sound, the outside was not all that great. After the fresh coat of paint, the car generated a lot of attention from prospective buyers. I even had a bidding war going on between two parties who really wanted it. If you have an older vehicle to sell, it pays to invest in a new paint job. Let me tell you more about why this strategy works. Follow my tips for selecting the color and the paint type, and you'll get a great price for the old jalopy.
Selling Your Older Car: Why a New Paint Job Matters
3 Things To Understand About Getting Your Vehicle Fixed After A Collision
Nora Boyd
If your vehicle has been damaged in a collision, you are going to need to take it to a collision shop in order to get an accurate repair estimate. Here are a few things that you need to realize about how collision estimates and repair work.
#1 They May Need To Take Apart Your Car To Determine Damage
One of the first things that you need to realize is that the collision repair shop that you take your vehicle to may actually have to take your vehicle apart a little bit to accurately estimate how much damage was done to your vehicle.
For example, if you were hit in a rear quarter panel or on the bumper of your vehicle, many of those panel parts extend underneath one another. To determine the full extent of the damage, those panels may need to be taken apart or off your car so the collision shop can see what damage is not visible to the naked eye just from looking at your vehicle.
If you are just looking for an estimate and want to get multiple estimates from more than one shop, be prepared to pay some labor costs. If your insurance company is paying for the damage, realize that labor hours will start adding up as soon as a shop looks at your vehicle and drafts an estimate. It often takes money and work to determine what needs to be done to your vehicle.
#2 Collision Repair Is About Fixing The Exterior Of Your Car
Second, you need to understand that a collision repair is about fixing the exterior or the body of your vehicle. It is about fixing the damage to the body panels and paint and making the body of your vehicle look like new. It is not about fixing any damage that may have been done to the internal mechanics of your vehicle.
Most collision shops don't even begin to figure out what mechanical damage your car may have undergone until they have fixed all the auto body damage. That means that your estimate is going to be based on fixing the exterior of the car, and you may incur more costs down the road if anything is damaged internally or mechanically on your vehicle.
#3 Collision Repair Takes Time
Finally, it is important to understand that collision repair takes time. It is not something that is completed quickly, even if the damage seems minor to you. The collision repair experts are going to first need to remove the panel, fix the damage, and then repaint the panel before putting it back on your vehicle. There is lots of waiting and drying time involved in these processes and they often can't really be rushed that much, so you need to be prepared to not have your vehicle for a while.
For more information about the process, contact a company like High Point Body & Paint.
Share