Nissan 370Z Forum - View Single Post

axmea? · 05-14-2013, 12:58 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jordan3720

Hey guys, so I found a thread on a car with similar damage, but the OP ended up not having any frame damage, so here goes:

I got into a wreck nearly 2 months ago in my Z, some girl hit my passenger front fender/front bumper going 25-35 mph. The damage didn't look to be too terrible, but it was unpleasant nonetheless.

Long story short, I get the car back the other day, and the total cost of repairs was $16.5k... Yikes. As I was going through the receipts, I found a few line items that struck my interest and fear, they read:

"Remove/Replace RT upper rail (HSS) 3.5 labor hours body
Remove/Replace LT upper rail (HSS) 3.5 labor hours body
Pull for Frame/Unibody Mash 3.0 labor hours frame
Pull for Frame/Unibody Sway 5.0 labor hours frame
Pull for Frame/Unibody Sag 4.0 labor hours frame"

This was to my complete chagrin and completely blindsided because when the car was in the shop and I received my original estimate, I asked if there was frame damage and the reply was "no".
Is there any way for me to find out how extensive these repairs were, and to judge that the repairs were done to a level of quality that my car is still safe for the roads, as well as auto-x? This is my first wreck with a magnetude above fender bender, and my favorite car I've ever owned, so I just want to explore all possible avenues before taking a huge hit and trading her in... Any wisdom please?

It is somewhat extensive but you need to check how well the shop did. I did some research a while back when my sister's Accord was hit. Her's was worse. A good shop can correct it like new if they diagnose the issues properly. If they rushed and hacked, you'd be in trouble. In addition to your alignment specs (caster to check for square as opposed to diamond - you want your car squared perfectly), you can do a visual by having a friend drive your car with you following and driving around the vehicle at good speed. Follow your car 3-4 cars behind and check if your car is running straight and not traveling at an angle. Then look at it directly from behind to check if it is twisted or not. Try to get in front of your car with another driver and with you looking behind look at your hood line and check if it is square with your roof line. Most importantly of course is how well it drives at normal speed at normal roads and then at autocross.

MASH: Type of frame damage in which a portion of the side rail is bent down causing buckles to be formed on the underside.
UPPER RAIL: Part used on top of the shield to increase the strength of the front section.
SAG: Type of frame damage in which one or both side rails bend and sag at the cowl causing buckles to be formed on the top of the side rails.
Sway: Type of frame damage in which both sides of the rail is bent in the direction of the impact to the frame.

Good luck.