[kylekay24]

5:30 I had just turned from Oso Pkwy then going southbound on Antonio Pkwy on the very far right lane going straight (40mph). my foot was not on the gas I was just coasting. When I started to slow down I gave my car a little bit of gas to get it coasting again. There were no vehicles in my lane. A red big truck was in the middle lane next to my car. He started merging in to my lane less than about a foot in front of my car with no blinker. I slammed on the brakes and honked my horn. But it was too late and he kept on merging into my lane. My car did not stop in time, the cars hit each other in front of the Cotti Food Corporation. When the two cars hit we immediately pulled over to exchange information. Spoke to insurance. Going to be in a rental until repairs are finish. Taking it back to Alfa and they are sending it to the shop they’ve been with for a long time to get repaired. Any things I should look for to make sure it was repaired properly? Also how long do you guys think it will take?

 

[4doorturbo]

Nooooooo! That hurts to see those pics! Good thing you are OK.

 

[kylekay24]

Thank you so much!!! I’m just sad she is gonna be gone for almost a month. Taking it to Alfa and they are sending it to the shop they use for repairs. Anything I should look for to make sure it was repaired properly?

 

[Rutlefan]

My prediction, three weeks. Sorry about your misfortune. Same thing nearly happened to me. I leaned on my horn and luckily the guy heard it and went back to his lane. Lucky me as I was between him and a guard rail.

My recommendation is find the most expensive body shop you can find. I use the only shop in Maryland that Mercedes allows to fix their dealer cars. They have very expensive jigs and just do absolutely top-shelf no-excuse no-shortcut work. I've had to use them for a Spider that was hit by an SUV, a minivan hit by an industrial lawn mower (luckily I saw it happen), and my wife's CRV twice hit by another driver. In each case the car looked better than before the accident. Even the three-week old minivan looked better as the shop color-matched the bumper better than had the Honda supplier. Moral: it's not your money so go to nothing but the best shop and don't let the insurance company tell you where to fix your car.

 

[ATXQUAD]

Sorry to hear but glad you are okay.

Don't believe your dealer has the best body shop. I'd do some due diligence as you can send it anywhere.

No matter how well they fix it, you now own a vehicle that his been in a collision which will impact it's resale value. That's what you need to be concerned with when dealing with your insurance company. Many confuse their insurance company as being their friend--they are not.

Your rates will go up (no matter fault) and your car will tank on resale.

Painful truths, but good to know now.

Hope it all works out.

 

[kylekay24]

Hey! Thank you for your response. So I called the Alfa dealership near me and they said they don’t do the repairs there but they send it to a shop that they’ve partnered with for about 7 years. All I do is drop off my car and they take care of the rest. Should I do that? Also what should I look for after the repair.

 

[FNM]

Think Ruttle is correct, you want to take it to the best rated place - make sure you read good reviews you don’t want an average place. Parts may take them longer than usual.. may not.

When it’s fixed make sure panels look perfect match/fit wise, make sure the paint is perfect, not flat, not swirly, scratched, poorly finished etc Do this when you pick it up, take a million watt led flash light and inspect the heck out of it before taking it away.

Best of luck - people are idiots sorry for your rubbish Friday!

 

[EricVonHa]

No airbag deployment? That might be the only thing that saves it from being totaled. Everything underneath and everything we can see is a good $20K+ Insurance claim and probably nearly 75% of the actual cash value.

Good luck with it!

 

[ATXQUAD]

Diminished Value. Tow words you need to mitigate against on accidents:

https://www.thebalance.com/diminished-car-value-after-accident-2645571

 

[EricofShaw]

Doesn't look like frame damage/corruption, so its a matter of fixing/replacing panels and inner parts, then making panel fit right and painting. Most even partially decent shops can do that. For me, the thing to ask is that they use genuine Alfa parts, not third party knock offs. And ask your dealer if they know that the shop has equipment dedicated to aluminum panel work, not sharing tools between American steel and foreign aluminum panel beating tools. More harm can be done by the repair if done at a shop that doesn't know or care about the difference. Ask if the repair shop does certified Audi or BMW work: that doesn't come easily and means they know and care... If so, you should be good to go.

Is the Alfa dealer one you're dealing with regularly? if so, then keep and grow that relationship and have them work with you to assure their recommendation does the job the two of you think should be done. They can be your ally, and help make the process much less painful.

 

[kylekay24]

The airbag did not deploy, I didn’t even move out of my seat the impact did not feel hard. The car is leased. I just want it fixed badly but don’t know if I should go through just Alfa or if I can find something better.

 

[BGorilla]

Diminished Value. Tow words you need to mitigate against on accidents:

https://www.thebalance.com/diminished-car-value-after-accident-2645571

OP listen to this guy. You're entitled to a check for the diminished value of your Giulia as a result of this accident. But they won't offer it, you have to ask.

 

[ATXQUAD]

The airbag did not deploy, I didn’t even move out of my seat the impact did not feel hard. The car is leased. I just want it fixed badly but don’t know if I should go through just Alfa or if I can find something better.

Oh. Well lease...make sure you check with that coverage (GAP) and if you are impacted on your lease terms on turn in.

We don't know your dealer or what body shop they are using, so it's impossible for anyone to answer. Ask them which body shop they use and check them out on Google and Yelp. Dealer of course wants you to run it through them as they are getting a cut and their body shop many not the be that great (again don't know--you need to ask their name and investigate). As I mentioned, call your local Ferrari dealer and ask what body shop they use. Anyone can repair your car--but get the best you can.

My .02

 

[Chipshot]

The car is leased. I just want it fixed

OP listen to this guy. You're entitled to a check for the diminished value of your Giulia as a result of this accident. But they won't offer it, you have to ask.

The finance company that owns the car is on the hook for diminished value. Is there anything in your lease about contacting them in the event of damage?

And the big red truck just lumbered away?

 

[ATXQUAD]

The finance company that owns the car is on the hook for diminished value. Is there anything in your lease about contacting them in the event of damage?

And the big red truck just lumbered away?

Yes on a LEASE which he only stated well after he asked and many answered. You still don't know the terms of the lease or the state (it's CA BTW).

Again good luck to OP and hope it works out. I've given you all the advice I can. I personally would not listen to anyone on a forum (including me) and hire an attorney that can help you with your lease contract and liability moving forward.

As to body shop I've given my .02.

 

[kylekay24]

No he stayed, it was an older gentleman I think in his 70s in a Toyota Tundra. We exchanged information. Police officer just put it in his call log, no report was written since no one was injured.

 

[kylekay24]

Yes, thanks again. I called Ferrari, have to call back on Monday since the service department is closed.

 

[Chipshot]

No he stayed, it was an older gentleman I think in his 70s in a Toyota Tundra. We exchanged information. Police officer just put it in his call log, no report was written since no one was injured.

That's good to hear. Your insurance company will likely want a police report. Go to the department and request one. You may need to pay a nominal fee.

 

[kylekay24]

Already called the department with the report number. There was no report written, just a call log.

 

[lockem]

5:30 I had just turned from Oso Pkwy then going southbound on Antonio Pkwy on the very far right lane going straight (40mph). my foot was not on the gas I was just coasting. When I started to slow down I gave my car a little bit of gas to get it coasting again. There were no vehicles in my lane. A red big truck was in the middle lane next to my car. He started merging in to my lane less than about a foot in front of my car with no blinker. I slammed on the brakes and honked my horn. But it was too late and he kept on merging into my lane. My car did not stop in time, the cars hit each other in front of the Cotti Food Corporation. When the two cars hit we immediately pulled over to exchange information. Spoke to insurance. Going to be in a rental until repairs are finish. Taking it back to Alfa and they are sending it to the shop they’ve been with for a long time to get repaired. Any things I should look for to make sure it was repaired properly? Also how long do you guys think it will take?

Ouch! This is the kind of accident for which dash cams were made. Even if the pickup driver is honest, his insurance company will try to put the blame on you so that your insurance is paying the cost. I suspect that they are legally obliged to make an attempt; probably claiming that you were passing on the right and failed to see the other drivers turn signal.

Based on my experience with the repair of somewhat worse damage in exactly the same place on my pickup truck, insist that the repair shop use a frame jig to at least confirm that the frame and subframe are straight. They can look OK, but still be tweaked. "Eyeball straight" is not good enough. On the plus side, if such pieces are only tweaked a little they can be straightened with minimal degradation of performance.