My car recently got vandalized as a result the hood and grill have been replaced. I had repair work done via insurance. My dealer recommended a very good collision center and they in fact did an excellent job. Both hood and grill are OEM parts. They matched paint 100%. Visually no difference. Now i am concerned if the residual value is gonna be less because of this repair. My insurance said they didnt report to Carfax as it was a merely cosmetical job under comprehansive coverage. Body shop did not report either. Do you think it will effect the residual value? Thanks.

 

I would be shocked if this was not reported to Car Fax. It's my understanding that Car Fax pays shops to report to them. Some shops report basic things like oil changes and other service, so I would not believe what you were told.

As to the value of the car, it may affect it in the next few years, if people know about it. But I doubt that's a high a possibility. Down the road, it won't make a bit of difference.

 

I had a Lexus that got stolen in Atlanta and was then involved in a high-speed police chase before crashing into a parking garage. The suspect got away on foot, according to the pursuing officer.

The damage included dented and scratched front hood and front edge of roof caused by breaking through the parking garage arm... and then a broken rear taillight and dent in back from where the thief attempted to turn around and backed into a cement pillar.

Car was recovered by police and taken to the police impound. I retrieved the car later that day. I took the car to a good body shop who did all of the repairs. I don't remember the full cost but it was many thousands of dollars.

The car was about 6 months old at the time this happened. I kept the car for about 5 more years before selling it. Before I sold the car, I ran a carFax just to see how bad it would look. To my absolute shock, the CarFax report was 100% clean. No mention of the wreck, or the fact that it was stolen and recovered by police.


I's sure you all here in this forum will understand my intense skepticism towards CarFax as a reliable source before purchasing a used vehicle.


As for the OP's question, I don't really think a small cosmetic repair should affect the value too much. Just be upfront with any prospective buyer and tell them the truth. The car was vandalized and you had a cosmetic repair done because you love your car and do your very best to take good care of it. If I was buying a used car from someone and they told me your story, I would actually feel pretty good about buying because it implies that you are someone who really cares about the condition of your car.

 

Yup, its totally up to the shop to report report these things. From my experience most dealers will report service done on a car but insurance and independent mechanics and body shops will not report these things.

 

I can see some people wondering if the paint on the repair was as good as the factory paint.

 

Just chiming in to say I had a car in a serious front end accident and after weeks at a very reputable collision shop (who does mostly luxury German cars) and cost the insurance company $10,000; I traded the car in a year later. Between 1 to 3 years later, I ran the VIN several times and nothing was reported about the accident.

Not sure why a reputable collision shop not report to Carfax unless they are not required to. So I question the accuracy of Carfax based on a just a couple of comments here.

I agree with someone here who said it is best to mention the accident in a private sale to show your credibility.

 

I had a discussion with an insurance adjuster about carfax and I was told that they do not report repairs to carfax. So the carfax info is only as good as the data they receive, which from this thread is far from 100%. That said if I was selling a vehicle my own personnel ethics/morals would require me to inform a potential buyer about all the good things as well as bad things, i.e. any damaged repaired etc... Unfortunately I'm probably in the minority. Probably about the only thing carfax maybe good for is title history.

If selling to a private party I would not think this kind of damage should affect the cars price because you have the documentation showing the quality of the work.

 

Thanks for your valuable inputs especially about honesty part But do you actually think it will lower the residual value down the road? Again, shop did a superb job. Paint match 100% + all OEM parts were used.

 

You keep using the term "residual value" like it was a leased vehicle. I have not leased a car in 15 years but if I recall, the residual value or percentage is usually predetermined at lease signing by the leasing company. Could be wrong.

If you are referring to selling the car to a private party, by all means, show the potential buyer the paperwork on what was done and OEM parts used. I am sure it will not devalue the car.

This assumes that the damage was cosmetic only,

 

lol I believe the "resale value" would be a proper terminology to use then Thanks