oceanengineer

Backed my car into a large pickup truck parked behind me in a parking lot - I had barely left my spot before the bumper hit my trunk (the beeps sounded at the same time as the crunch from the impact) - the bumper was much higher than mine. My fault as I was a bit distracted (talking with my colleagues), and I am bummed...

I will go by the Audi dealer tomorrow to see what would need to be done - the bumper hit the truck to the left of the license plate (missed my bumper) leaving a crease and pushing the trunk lid up a bit.

Would this require a new trunk lid or would they be able to work out the crease and the general deformation of the trunk? I am hoping I won't have a major issue with the color matching (Daytona Grey). Anything else I should be aware of that is specific to this care when getting repair work done?

atlanta A6

A similar situation happened with me this past December. Two months in the body shop and paying for a third party estimator as part of Geico's treating a 30 year customer like a piece of you know what ended in a 12k repair. Before you fall off your chair, my minor incident created a deep scratch and small dent in the rear quarter panel and per Audi standards, you cannot and should not chemically burn in clear coat within a panel to blend it in. If you look at our quarter panels, there is no stop point or break point above the doors as there is in many cars so to properly clear coat a repair, you must clear coat the quarter as well as the roof and around the front and rear glass which requires removal of part of the interior the headliner and glass. Yes sounds absolutely ridiculous but the body shop I go to does world class repairs to Porsche Audi Ferraris etc and they did it correctly. However, a trunk lid repair would be eaiser as long as you didn't damage the quarter panel they can replace the lid, repaint and clear coat that alone. Dont worry about color matching-go to the best repair shop you can find, do the research first and they will match it better than new.

DB22

I got rear ended last year and the bumper etc was trashed but I thought that the trunk lid was OK. Inspection by the Audi approved body shop found a minor crease in the trunk lid that could only be seen in specific lighting and they stated that the trunk lid must be replaced as straightening of aluminum was not possible.

oceanengineer

Thanks. I've been buried in work but have tomorrow to look at the damage more closely and visit a couple of shots that have been recommended and the one associated with the Audi Dealer. I was feeling comfortable about the Audi shop but the reviews on various website were not very comforting either 1* or 5* so seems a bit hit and miss.

I had felt more comfortable going with the Audi recommended shop (does not seem to be very many Audi Certified Shops around in Houston) but I have heard good things about the other two and the quality of work so will also talk to them.

snagitseven

Audi does certify some of their dealers' collision shops to work on repairing aluminum parts. Not too many though - requires special tools, jigs and training.

oceanengineer

Finally managed to find time to speak with my service advisor and he said he had to recommend the place they own across the street and then recommended another shop (run by an Audi owner) which coincidently was right next to my office.

This shop is a Bentley and Benz approved shop (was surprised to see the number of wrecked Bentleys in the parking lot - I counted 4) and they were extremely neat and professional with an excellent shop so have decided to take my car there assuming I get insurance OK. Current estimate around $3800 that includes a lot of hardware (trunk lid, hinges, lock, and some additional kit around the bumper and behind the panel). Though initially the dent did not look that bad, after I cleaned the area noticed that the bumper was pushed down just a bit and the panel behind the trunk slightly deformed. I am hoping I can drive my car the next 2 weeks (after sealing off the trunk) before I head out of town for 2.5 weeks which should give them enough time to get the job finished.

atlanta A6

Good to hear and the description of the shop and the cars peoople trust them with is a good sign. Make sure you ask the to show you on your car what they plan to paint and what area will need the clear coat to be resprayed. As i mentioned, they should not "break" the clear coat by spraying part of a panel and need to go to the end and edge of whatever panel they respray. If they dont, you will end up with a line showing where the clearcoat ended that they spray. Audi does not recomend blending clear coat mid panel even if that means going across adjacent areas or removing things like taillights to ensure everything is covered by the clear coat.

oceanengineer

Thanks - will confirm regarding blending and clear coat. He did mention that they coat the entire car (which will not be painted/coated) with a product that prevents overspray etc. that they will wash off after they are done.

oceanengineer

Finally had the repairs done - final bill $3500. The shop did an excellent job - color matches perfectly. Required a new trunk lid, hinges, struts and to blend the paint/clear coat on the rear quarter panels. Also had some scratches on the bumper so that was repainted as well.

Decided to drop all name plates except the 4 rings on the trunk lid - i think it looks a lot cleaner and easier to wax!