PINTO CAR CLUB of AMERICA
Welcome to FordPinto.com, The home of the PCCA => General Help- Ask the Experts... => Topic started by: ToniJ1960 on March 07, 2015, 08:10:24 PM
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Wellit wasnt my night got backed into at the grocery store hit right at the rear of the passenger door broaside by someone backing out.
I called the police they said just exchnge information so she wrote down hers and signed it saying it was her fault plus I had a witness with me and he heard her say it was her fault.
Now I have to wait for her insurance company to talk to her then contact me back.
You know theyll say its just a Pinto heres $300 but Im not going to have a salvage title on my car for $300 or $400. I had it sonce 19866 and it didnt look great but I was working on it.
She has geico does anyone have experience with them or advice on what I should or shouldnt do? She emailed a picture of the damage to me right from the scene.
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Dave went through this recently and they totalled his with very little damage.
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My only experience with Geico was nearly twenty-five years ago when my then soon-to-be Mother-In-Law backed into my brand new truck, broadside. They were wonderful with me, settling the claim generously and expediently. That was not so much the case with her; they fixed her car and then canceled her insurance although she'd had no prior claims. Laws vary from state to state but here you would have the upper hand, being the victim of someone else's poor driving. Tell them you want your car repaired, period. It is a collectible and you do not want a salvage title, so you shouldn't have to take that route.
Don't sign off on anything that is less than 100% satisfying to you. Good luck!
Dwayne :)
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Pretty much what happened she backed into me broadsided on the passenger side right where the door meets the rear quarter. Two dents in the door and a pretty good one in the quarter panel plus the door mustve been moved forward a little and its stiff opening and closing.
My car wasnt real pretty or nice before but I was working on some of it.
Geico called me back Saturday night an hour after I called them and said they talked with their policy holder and were ready to have their adjuster meet me at the body shop today.Even were going to give me a rental car to use.
I went out there and told them since its needing a lot of body work already and paint, all I want was for them to pull the dents the best they can and fill it with the minimum amount of filler spray some red colored primer ( I had some on my drivers door) and I would sign what they want and make it eassy on the insur co the body shop and me. I hate leaving my car you know how they treat our old cars.
Well he said they cant do that. I said its a body shop dont they have someone who can pull dents?
He went on to explain they had to issue a warranty as per the agreement between geico and the shop. So he said he would go get an estimate and wtite me a check to take it where I want.
I said I bet itll be 500 or 600 to do that too. He said he would be back i n 15 minutes and handed me a check for $820. Nothing to sign agree to or anything.
Now I guess I might just have to try to pull those dents out myself. I can post a picture of it if anyone wants to offer any advice or suggestions. I know that steel on these cars is hard stff and I dont know where to start puling in the center near the edges etc.
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That's an outcome I didn't expect! Good for you!
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Now I need to learn how to pull dents :)
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Now I need to learn how to pull dents :)
Easy peezee. Go to YouTube and you'll learn. I learned bodywork from it, and the guy painting my car (if it ever gets done LOL) couldn't tell I did it :D There were two spots I missed though. You can pickup a dent puller reasonably also!
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I have one it isnt a real heavy duty one though. I know this steel is hard too. Do you start in the middle or at the edges?
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I have one it isnt a real heavy duty one though. I know this steel is hard too. Do you start in the middle or at the edges?
That depends on the dent Toni. Post a picture of the dent. I would invest some of that money into a 10 pound puller to pull the dents. I picked one up on ebay that works pretty good.
http://www.ebay.com/itm/Slide-Hammer-Dent-Puller-10-13pc-Set-Auto-Body-Dent-Repair-Bearing-Axel-Remover-/171029086836?hash=item27d220c274&item=171029086836&pt=Motors_Automotive_Tools&vxp=mtr
I have been using it and it slaps pretty good.
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Do you start in the middle or at the edges?
You need to assess how the dent was created and then reverse the process. In most cases, this means you'll work inward from the outer edges of the dent. Depending on the damage, especially to the quarter panel, you may be ahead to replace panels rather than pull dents if you want a professional-looking repair. Most large dents stretch the sheet metal and once that happens, repairs are difficult.
Dwayne :)
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With a rear quarter panel wouldnt it have to be cut out and a new piece welded back?
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With a rear quarter panel wouldnt it have to be cut out and a new piece welded back?
It would, but it will produce a much more satisfactory repair in the end; especially if the dent is large.
Dwayne :)
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Its going pretty well so far it was easier to pull out than I thought it was going to be.
But the holes from the dent puller are dimpled out I tried to grind them down but my dremel wont do much on it. So I went ahead and put some filler on it and started sanding a little with 60 grit sandpaper.
Now a see a spot where one shiny metal piece of a screw dimple is showing through,even though I didnt sand much. And I can see a few small low spots in the filler. Near the center. Should I put my filler on it and keep sanding or should I use something else like a glaze?
Is 60 grit still too fine to start with? I didnt get a body fille cant find a cheap one yet. This poly filler dries so fast. Can you sand it with a coarse grit sandpaper before it dries real hard?
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All the high spots have to be either ground down or tapped in. You would be surprised how much a gentle but properly placed tap with a hammer can lower a high spot. Low spots can be filled, but high spots will distort the shape of your repair and lead to endless headaches trying to make it flat. 60 grit paper is great for rough shaping on filler followed by 120 or so for getting things flat and then 220 to make it smooth. If you don't have long sanding blocks of various shapes, I recommend getting something like this( http://dura-block.com/sanding-blocks/ ) Having a semi-flexible block that extends past the damaged area on both sides helps significantly in reforming the original shape and can help you visualize what is high and what is low. don't forget to sand in an x-pattern and wah lah crisp clean panel 8)
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Dremel tools are great, but they aren't really heavy-duty enough for body fender repair. You'd be way ahead to invest in even the cheapest grinder you can find.
Dwayne :)
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Visit pawn shops and chances are you'll find a decent one cheap!