Recommended Panelbeaters in Auckland?, Who do you use?

[steve R 0]

so i had a little accident on the motor way this afternoon, was looking over my shoulder to change lanes, when the person in front of me slammed on the brakes, for no apparent reason, traffic was flowing fine, was doing 100ks on the inside lane, by the time i looked back it was to late

damage is pretty bad, bonnet wasted, right front panel wasted, right head light smashed panels pushed back in onto the radiator etc. and not know what else as couldn't get the bonnet open or look around the car so im looking for some where to get the car repaired (by insurance) if they will have it repaired.

who do you use? who would you recommend?

[my_e36 43]

I presume you want good job done?

Euro Collison in Glen Innes

Evans in Penrose

[steve R 0]

of course, i dont want cheap and nasty. European specialist would be preferred

Edited March 15, 2008 by 328imobbin

[greenday-rulz21 4]

Sorry to hear mate, must have been the worst timing ever.

Definitely Precision Autowerk

Come highly recommended, have done a A+ job on the 540 before. Even replaced all original stickers under the bonnet after it was repainted.

One of the cleanest workshops I've seen, and the most impressive. They fix Ferrari's, Maserati's, Mercedes, Bimmers, Aston Martins everyday. Expensive though but if insurance is paying...

[steve R 0]

yea was terrible timing but these things happen

yup thats who i had in mind.

[*Glenn* 854]

I presume you want good job done?

Euro Collison in Glen Innes

Evans in Penrose

+1 See Dave

[cainchapman 0]

Euro Collision is who BMW use

[bimmer boy 21]

At my work JC BMW we use Precision aswell, they do excellent work!

BUmmer about the car man, get it fixed quick!

[steve R 0]

so i heard back from the insurance company today. its a borderline write off. around about 6g damage, but still need to get a panel beater to look at it. The cars insured for 12g

so now I need peoples opinions, I told the insurance company I want it to be repaired at precision or Euro collision, they said either place is to expensive and if I choose to have the work done there then they would write it off.

So can any one else recommend a place to have it done? i want a good job done.

I have also been thinking about sourcing the parts myself ( brand new, genuine) as I get them at a good price, do you think this would be acceptable to an insurance company? And then I could have the work done at precision etc.

Just trying to get some ideas of what to do next

Thanks

Steve

Edited March 17, 2008 by 328imobbin

[bimmer boy 21]

Steve mate, I think and this is just my opinion is to just write it off.

If you cant get a really well done panel job from a specialist it would be easier to write off the car. I dont know if you still can buy back your car but if you can buy back the car and take all the bits and pieces worth saving then scrape the rest and buy another cool E36 with the payout money.

Thats what I would do anyway, I'd much rather have a different car that hasnt been crashed than one that is all fixed but not perfect and have things break a few months later, Ive seen it happen too many times. But thats just me

[my_e36 43]

Who assessed the damage to be at 6G? Insurance assessor or a panel beater?

Me too would go for write off, if you can't get a good job done. It may never drive the same after repair. See if you are allow to swap any after-market bits with stock stuff before they took the car. When they wrote mine off, I was allowed to swap the factory headunit back in before they took the car.

Edited March 17, 2008 by my_e36

[steve R 0]

i have been thinking exactly the same thing, only problem i have with that is the fact that it would take me awhile to find the right car in the right condition, i have an idea in my mind of what i want and i know they don't come around very offten and would probably be looking at spending another few grand on top of the pay out money.

the other issue i have is with the wheels, if the car is a write off, the wheels will be staying with the car, and i wont be getting any extra money for them. would cost atleast 2.5g to replace these. Unless i can go down to the tow yard and throw some other wheels on it

[bimmer boy 21]

Yeah thats what I meant by buying back the car so you can get the wheels off and other bits you could keep or sell. They usually sell the car back to you at a really low price but not sure if they still do that

[steve R 0]

Who assessed the damage to be at 6G? Insurance assessor or a panel beater?

Insurance assessor

[Andre3000 55]

I recommend Greenlane Auto Panel Repairs. They specialise in european cars. I went there a few times with my old peugeot and Graham's always been helpful. I think its 251 great south road. Good luck

[Yuen 16]

Steve, do you have any pictures of the damage? Buy-back is an option but may not be that great a price. And I thought write-off was only if the repair costs > 75% of insured value. In this case it's only 50%?

I would either get it repaired by a very good shop, or just take the money and go. IMO the 328 is still depreciating so you can always keep the cash and take your time to shop for the car you want and be better off. It's just a matter of time. By keeping the cash you also open yourself to options ie: E46, etc. Also keep in mind your car having been in an accident will be worth less when it comes to selling it. Financially it probably makes more sense to write it off (but you haven't told us the KMs, and I haven't taken your wheels into account).

At the end of the day though not all decisions are rational. We all have an emotional tie to our cars (or is it just me?) so you might want to keep it.

[M3_Power 636]

The only 2 panel beater I'd use in Auckland

Euro Collision - Dave's great and does A1 jobs ... They are very busy though.

Ray Haslars Autohaus by Eden Terrace - they are the official Audi and Porsche repairers and do very very good jobs (on par with Euro Collision in my opinion) and slightly cheaper than Euro.

Both of the above use the official Glasurit paint from Germany - the same OEM paint used by BMW manufacturers.

[steve R 0]

the write off in my policy is stated at 60% of the insured value. the insurance company also had the car valued at the same time today, and it was valued at 12k, the same its insured for.

its has 114ks on the clock.

the damage is all to the right hand side of the car. from what i could see it needed

new bonnet

new right front quarter

new radiator and other bits

new headlight/ indicator etc

front bumper is repairable

and other bits and pieces

the other thing to consider is that 328s cant be imported any more so maybe the value wouldn't drop that much.

i have thought about writing it off and getting an e46. but my friend has a 328ci and i really wouldn't be interested in anything less than a 330ci. which is out off my price range....and i would prefer and e36 m3 for that price. to many options to consider i will call the insurance company tomorow and see what options i can sort out, supplying parts may be an option and that way i will be able to get it repaired where i want. but i dont know if thats acceptable.

any idea of what it would be worth to a wrecker? 1995 factory M-spec 328. in good condition (minus the accident damage) half leather, Msport suspension package etc

Edited March 17, 2008 by 328imobbin

[QuickSilver 0]

Ouch mate, that suck big time, very sorry to hear.

When my car was written off I had it assessed by an insurance assessor at a panel beaters, they were fine with me taking off my mags and putting on some other wheels, should be fine as long as you make a point to get them back.

Otherwise, there are two panel beaters I used to repair my e30 and they did top work, Glen eden panel beaters, and Drackovic panel beaters on west coast road, their not euro specialists but their affordable and I was very happy with their work.

[mrad01 0]

I recommend Greenlane Auto Panel Repairs. They specialise in european cars. I went there a few times with my old peugeot and Graham's always been helpful. I think its 251 great south road. Good luck

Another is Bays Car Painters and Collision Repairs. Ask for Grant Hannah. He is a BMW nut and does work for BMW dealers and fanatics...

http://www.bayscollisionrepairs.co.nz/

[HELLBM 1531]

Call or text me. I`ve just wrecked a couple of 328`s.

I can explain all of your options and give you the "real" repair prices

Regards Ray

0212435526

HELLBM

[steve R 0]

So in a new twist to the story, my dad was talking to someone at work today about my crash.

Turns out they were driving in the middle lane behind me and saw the whole thing happen. She said that the car that i hit had slammed on the brakes because the car in front of her was going slow (a 4x4) she hit the 4x4, which would explain why she was going so slow when i hit her, but the 4x4 didn’t stop. i didn’t see that happen as i turned to look over my shoulder, but i did here her tyres screech, which is why i looked back.

i didn't walk around the front of the car that i hit to have a look so did not see any damage.

I couldn’t understand why the car i hit needed to be towed when the only damage that had been done was to the bumper and hatch. it was in alot better shape than mine. so maybe this explains it?

I was given a $150 fine at the scene by the police for Careless driving, do you think there is any chance of me getting off that? I also realise that from an insurance point of view…I went in to the back of her car so that makes it my fault. But should I argue this?

Anyway, the car is off to BayCollisionRepairs tomorrow and will be assessed on Thursday, if it’s a writeoff I will most likely buy back the wreck and. Then decide what im going to do from there

Edited March 18, 2008 by 328imobbin

[my_e36 43]

I was given a $150 fine at the seen by the police for Careless driving, do you think there is any chance of me getting off that? I also realise that from an insurance point of view…I went in to the back of her car so that makes it my fault. But should I argue this?

Most likely you can't get off the fine, because if you had follow 2-second rule then you would have plenty of time to slow down and avoid the crash.

Basically, when you run into someone from behind, it's always your fault. The only exception is when the car in the front was reversing.

[Yuen 16]

Hmm getting $12k for a 95 328i with 114kms is pretty good. Even if you take the wheels into account, it's still a fair price.

About the fine, not likely as said above but I'd give it a shot anyway, since you have witnesses why not try.

[steve R 0]

Hmmm well im at least going to make the police aware of what has happened, and be getting a statement from the witness.