gasongasoff

Got into a little fender bender last month (not my fault), which would require replacement of the front bumper. It's 2 years old with 30k miles, but has been covered with a clear bra since it was new.

Would it be fair and reasonable for the insurance company to replace the bumper with an OEM reconditioned (i.e. a repaired salvage part)? Or should I expect a new OEM part? If this was a Toyota Camry, I could care less, but just wanted to get people's opinions.

jhbrennan

You might check with the Porsche Approved Collision Center in your area and see what they say - personally I'd insist on new.

TommyV44

I believe you should get new!

Tom

0356kid

I also believe you should get a new OEM bumper. Also, my insurance covered my clear bra as long as I provided a receipt (not my Porsche though). This may vary from insurance company to insurance company though.

max_porsche

I just went through this process after getting rear ended. This is how I handled it:

1. Got a copy of the police report - this took a few days to get this after the accident. This noted the insurance company and policy number of the bozo that ran into me - and it also noted the driver was given a citation.

2. Contacted their insurance company with details from police report. Next day they got back admitting fault and confirmed would be covering the repair costs. I went to their recommended repair shop for an estimate only (do NOT need to use their recommended shop).

3. Got a ridiculously low estimate from their recommended repair shop - only repair and no replacement on the bumper. Recommended body shops from insurance companies try to keep costs as low as possible to keep the leads coming and will use salvage parts to help keep cost down. Anyway, it was just an estimate as a baseline - for me their estimate for the repair was $550.

4. Located a Porsche Certified repair shop. From what I could tell this actually means something - the shops have to pass certain standards, Porsche specific training, etc. Ask your local Porsche dealership - the place I went is where Porsche sends all their work in my area. The Porsche certified repair shop said they only replace with new parts per Porsche recommendation. Their estimate for my repair was $3k. They handled communication with the insurance company to get approval on the estimate. Had to wait a few days for the insurance company to send an adjuster onsite at the repair shop to review/approve their estimate. It was approved with no problems. The shop said they always are in cases like this - they are not running up the tab they are just fixing it properly. This included replacing the clear stone guard on rear fender lip that was there prior (noting since you mentioned the clear bra up front, no doubt you should have this replaced as well).

5. Diminished value claim - in my case with a police report, insurance claim, and $3k repair it's almost certain to show on a future CarFax. Even though the repair was relatively minor and properly repaired, we know most people do not want to buy a Porsche with a story - or - they at least expect a discount. So to me it was very valid to pursue. Diminished value laws vary state/state - and how much can be paid varies on the year of the car, mileage, and severity of the damage. I had a 3rd party to give an a diminished value estimate - it came in around $1,500. Am currently finalizing negotiations with that with the insurance company on this subject.

Hope that helps...

okbarnett

lets say the ins requires you use used parts if available. the body shop searches the whole us for a junk yard with the exact same car. there is on and they get it, go over it, paint it and put it on the car. as its a good one, youll never know the difference.
its the same age as yours, its been newly painted. if you get a new one, its also newly painted. so what difference is there?
Now, lets say you wrecked your car, the whole back end is wrecked. it goes to junk. the junk yard sells your (perfect front bumper, you say, protected so good since new) front bumper to a shop that needs one. so is that an inferior part for some one else to get? why wouldnt that be good or bad for somebody else to use again?

Chris51080

Provided they use a factory Porsche part, new or reconditioned would make no difference. Sometimes, the insurance companies will try to get you to accept aftermarket panels; I would never accept that. Stick with OEM and don't worry about new vs. reconditioned.

tony2u

I had a situation a few years back. (Background; I worked in a bodyshop in my younger years) My car was rear ended. Their insurance was paying for the repair. I made it clear I wanted it returned in the same condition as prior to the accident. They said they approved a OEM reconditioned bumper. I came to pick up my car and the repair shop said they put on a reconditioned bumper. I was pissed at the over spray on my tail lights. That's when I looked at the lumpy bumper. Then I noticed a tiny dent that I put on the bumper. "Wait a minute that's not a re-conditioned bumper. That's MY bumper. He said technically after he "repaired" it it was now a OEM re-conditioned bumper. I huffed and puffed with the insurance company and they forced the body shop to buy another bumper. Technically isn't a reconditioned product a repaired product? He was right and wrong. He told me he was going to buy a reconditioned bumper. Not recondition mine. I won and gave him a bad review for being a slippery dude.

kellen

9 year thread resurrection!