Cost of repair for Mazda 626

I recently slid my 2002 Mazda 626 into the back of a Jeep on a patch
of ice. The spare tire mounted to the back door of the Jeep made
contact with the hood of my car. The bumper never made contact with
the Jeep, but it did get slightly damaged. If you look at the engine
compartment, the radiator has been pushed back, till it almost touches
the engine.

The car still starts and is driveable for short distances, although
I've not tried to drive it for more than 30-40 yards at a time.

The first estimate for fixing the car I got was $7500. The second
estimate I've got is $4900, though the guy knew how much the first man
was going to charge me.

I was wondering if someone could help me get a ball park estimate of
how much fixing my car would cost me. I'm told I need the following:

* Hood, hood latch & hood hinges
* Front bumper
* Left and right front corner lights
* Grill
* Radiator, upper and lower tubing & cooling lines
* AC Condensor
* Radiator support
* Cooling fans
* Exhaust manifold shield
* Transmission coolant lines

The $4900 price includes painting and taxes. Is this a resonable price
or is it inflated?

Any help would be appreciated. Towing this car from place to place is
getting pretty expense.

On Tue, 30 Dec 2008 05:41:06 -0800 (PST), , in an
obviously impaired state, wrote:
>
>The first estimate for fixing the car I got was $7500. The second
>estimate I've got is $4900, though the guy knew how much the first man
>was going to charge me.
>
>I was wondering if someone could help me get a ball park estimate of
>how much fixing my car would cost me. I'm told I need the following:
>
>* Hood, hood latch & hood hinges
>* Front bumper
>* Left and right front corner lights
>* Grill
>* Radiator, upper and lower tubing & cooling lines
>* AC Condensor
>* Radiator support
>* Cooling fans
>* Exhaust manifold shield
>* Transmission coolant lines
>
>The $4900 price includes painting and taxes. Is this a resonable price
>or is it inflated?

$4,900 certainly seems reasonable for the work listed. $7,500 doesn't
sound TOO far out of the park considering it's done at a dealership
shop or shop of similar quality work using OEM parts. Remember, these
quotes are prepared under the assumption that you will be covered
under your auto insurance. It's amazing how much less the quote would
be if you brought the car in, asked for an estimate, and told the shop
manager that you'll be paying out of pocket...

>
>Any help would be appreciated. Towing this car from place to place is
>getting pretty expense.

BTW, what has your insurance appraiser given you for a settlement? I
usually have mine within 48 hours. When I had to "offload" my bike
(at about 2mph, btw), I had a check for $2700 within three days. When
my Daytona got sideswiped by a milk truck at a traffic light I had the
check to get the entire left side of the car repaired and repainted
within two. The appraiser came to my house both times, even though
both vehicles were driveable (or rideable, in the case of the bike)...
--
Ray Sirois
SysOp: The Lost Chord BBS
http://thelostchord.dns2go.com:6080
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