TideRace

My front bumper was trailer-balled last week. It was pretty amazing given that the open spot ahead of me didn't require any tricky parallel parking maneuver as it was all red curb and driveway on the other side. Parking technique must have been as follows:

1) throw it in reverse

2) proceed backward until contact is made with short little car

3) throw it in park

4) walk away (see attached picture)

In any case, I now need body and paint work. I have a turbo front bumper. One shop said they didn't think it was cracked and they could remove it, apply heat from behind to reshape, repaint the whole thing and reinstall.

The other shop mentioned the same heat/shape repair technique but said I should push the truck owners insurance company for a new bumper in case this one is cracked and needs to be replaced. So far the other insurance company maintains that the bumper is not cracked and they are only authorizing a repair claim.

So, two questions:

Do these bumpers respond well to being reshaped in this manner?

Any comments pro/con between Queen City Auto Rebuild (recommended by Porsche dealer), or Metro Auto Rebuild (did good work for me previously on the Audi)? Or any strong recommendations for another shop in the Seattle metro area?

Thanks in advance,

Mark

groovzilla

what a complete ass_ole...people around here park by feel. what ever you do i would try to avoid anything being reported to carfax...even though its a simple repair the carfax blemish will effect your resale in the future.

Jacks911

Maybe you and I can get a Two-fer deal. Mine was scratches when I bought it but in January someone "hitched" it again as they drove away. I need to pay for it on my own as they did not leave any ID info - likely just did not care - Have Suv will bang ya person. So I bought a new plate cover and straighten the license as it took most of the force - but the bumper has lots of fine cracks in the paint. The cover is not cracked just scraped on top.

Mark Isreal at Eurotech Bodywerks in Kirkland has a very good reputation on the East side. Small shop & you deal with Mark in person. I plan to get mine done there but am waiting till spring.

tnuvo

+1 TideRace! I hear and have seen Mark Israel's work at Eurotech, and he is the man when it comes to any Porsche body work or mods.

bosstucker

I used to work at Barrier, and we would send all our cars (Audi, Merc, Porsche, Volvo) to Bellevue Auto Rebuild. They always did good work, don't know how they compare to other body shops. If it's not bad, check out Same Day, they do amazing work on small dings and maybe you can avoid the Carfax.

TomF

+1 about Mark. I have been using him for years on several 911s. He is a great guy and does very, very nice work. He is usually very busy, so it can take a little while, but well worth the effort.

TideRace

Thanks guys. I appreciate the feedback. For future reference, the replace and paint cost estimate comes in just under $2K. The repair and repaint estimate comes in right around $1K. Looks like the repaint cost alone (relevant for Jacks911) falls into the $400 - $500 range. That's for repainting the entire bumper as opposed to fill and feather.

Capt. Obvious

You may be in luck:

http://seattle.craigslist.org/est/pts/2860235378.html

TideRace

Good find Captain. I'll check it out.

ivangene

avoid RNR in Bellevue

Queen City is suppose to be good