Paint Questions

[Bretski1]

I live in a sketchy part of town until I graduate (200 more days) and a 7 y/o neighbor kid decided to have a spelling bee on my t4r. I took it to a body shop and they said it would be upwards of $5k to paint between glass and trim removal, paint, clear coat, and reassembly.
My wife spoke with the mom, who hasn't worked in 8 years, has 3 kids by as many dads in as many years, and has no money (but affords to smoke a pack a day).
What should I do? $5k seems like a TON for a vehicle I paid $8k for 3 years ago. I hear a lot about Maaco being a lot cheaper, but crap work. Any suggestions on what to do? My insurance deductible is $500, I'd rather not file a claim through my own company, but I don't think I'm going to see a cent out of Ms. Chimney down the road. Also, if I do get a new paint job... What color should I do?!?!?!

 

[wolfgang]

Bummer! I'd present her with the repair estimate for sure - maybe she'll keep closer eye on the future juvenile delinquent. Probably reasonable cost for all that work. Unless she pays (LOL) it's not worth putting that into a 14 year old car - especially if you use it off road. Maybe just apply good coat of wax to keep from rusting. When you move from ghetto part of town upon graduation - get it fixed. Stripping off trim and sanding yourself would reduce repaint cost. New paint will be softer than original baked on so it isn't as durable.

 

[sawguy]

You pay for insurance, why not use it?

 

[IBallEngineer]

You pay for insurance, why not use it?

Insurance will most likely total the vehicle if they go by that quote. And I think 5K is cheap for that kind of work.

Don't change the color, painting the jambs is horrible work and the engine bay is a major issue for color changes.

Maaco is horrible unless you like paint on all your trim.

The only answer is to sell me your ride for $2 and cry. OK maybe not.

 

[Frontier719]

I'd be absolutely pissed. Try insurance first. If thats a no go, get some estimates, and have your lawyer hand deliver them. A 7 y/o kid should know better. Unfortunately, irresponsible people need to learn their lessons the hard way.

 

[Bretski1]

Thanks guys. Vandalism is covered on my policy, I just hope it won't affect my premiums. Had anyone had any luck with factory paint pens? I don't need it to look perfect, I just don't want people's eyes to immediately go to the misspelling of female dog and the acronym for Ship High In Transit.

 

[masphx]

Plasti dip or wrap the 4runner.

 

[Jaketino]

Plasti dip or wrap the 4runner.

This is probably your "cheapest" route. The benefits are that you can peel it off later and get it painted later but it may peel off on its own.

 

[thor999]

I can relate, being from the ghetto that is southside St. louis... but I cannot advise, as I had only ever had liability insurance back then...

 

[Bretski1]

I finally got on my laptop to post a pic of some of the scratches (tapatalk is sucking). At least he dotted his i.
Am I a bad person if I get the $500 for the deductible from her, then cover it w/ a paint pen and use the $$ to get sliders??? :boink:

 

[4Runner4TW]

I finally got on my laptop to post a pic of some of the scratches (tapatalk is sucking). At least he dotted his i.
Am I a bad person if I get the $500 for the deductible from her, then cover it w/ a paint pen and use the $$ to get sliders??? :boink:

Absolutely not! I would not let them get away with this scott free. It sounds like her and her son need to learn some responsibility. I think at least 500 is fair.

 

[Kryptoroxx]

I finally got on my laptop to post a pic of some of the scratches (tapatalk is sucking). At least he dotted his i.
Am I a bad person if I get the $500 for the deductible from her, then cover it w/ a paint pen and use the $$ to get sliders??? :boink:

You could also do the sides of your truck in bedliner and get your sliders lol. Two birds with one stone.

 

[BlackCat914]

have her pay your deductible. Claim it on your insurance. They will total it. Buy it back, use the money to have the whole truck rhino lined, pocket the rest. Win.
buy her kid a coloring book and a pack of markers.

 

[Bretski1]

have her pay your deductible. Claim it on your insurance. They will total it. Buy it back, use the money to have the whole truck rhino lined, pocket the rest. Win.
buy her kid a coloring book and a pack of markers.

I've never dealt w/ a salvage title and totaling a car. Will they give me the option to buy it back or do I need to make a fuss about it?

 

[IBallEngineer]

I've never dealt w/ a salvage title and totaling a car. Will they give me the option to buy it back or do I need to make a fuss about it?

It's not up to them, it's YOUR truck, they are required to give you fair market value, but if you want the truck they have to offer it to you at SALVAGE value, which on some cars is high, shouldn't be on this one.

 

[zacattack20]

Damn I would have flipped a shit if someone did that to my truck. I would go after her as much as I legally could. If she isn't working she should be able to watch her damn kid. Maybe she needs something harsh to knock some sense in to her.

 

[infamousRNR]

this is super weak! what the heck... the mom might have a flat tire every single day for the next 200 days.....

my 2 cents is to get the insurance money, get the salvaged title and LINE-X it..

 

[KidVermicious]

Am I a bad person if I get the $500 for the deductible from her,

That's tough. If she's a good person in a bad way and just doing the best she can, it'd be hard to look her in the eye while you take her money. On the other hand, if she needs to learn a lesson as much as her kids apparently do, go for it.

In terms of how you fix it, there's some good ideas in this thread. I'll suggest another, and that's a community college body/paint shop.

If you go the insurance route, here's how it works. They'll estimate how much it'll cost to repair the paint. You're welcome to get other estimates if you disagree with them. Once you agree on how much the repair is, they compare that to the value of the vehicle - different companies have different "total" thresholds, but if the amount of the repair is too close to the the value of the vehicle (and you can argue with them about the vehicles' value too), they'll want to "total" it. When they total it, they give you the negotiated value of the truck, and you sign the title over to them. It's important to note that you don't have to take their offer - if they're stuck on the idea of totalling it and you don't want to do that, don't do it. They'll cancel the claim and you keep the truck, but get no money. If they want to total it, it's entirely possible that they'll be willing to sell it back to you for approximately what they think they can get at auction, but they don't HAVE to sell it back to you, and in some cases they won't (whether or not you have a lienholder plays into this, because banks and credit unions just want to get paid for their interest in the vehicle and don't care about whether you like it or not). My suggestion would be to call your agent and explain what has happened and go over your options. You can talk to them without filing a claim, and if you do file a claim and it goes in a direction you don't like, cancel it.

 

[mxer]

File a police report and go through insurance. I can't stand these drains on society.

 

[T4R2014]

Am I a bad person if I get the $500 for the deductible from her, then cover it w/ a paint pen and use the $$ to get sliders??? :boink:

Why on earth would you feel like a bad person if you make her pay for the damages that HER improperly raised kids caused? Dude, file a police report. It is the only way that degenerates like this will learn their lesson. All that does is make your truck look terrible. That is straight up vandalism and I would make them pay every single penny. Touch up paint isn't going to cut it with that.