Hey what's the going rate around you guys for frame time in a body shop?

My friend did it when he said the left rail was bent down a bit on my civic after I smacked a deer and b/c of some headlight misalignments w/ a new rad support I believe I got screwed and he didn't actually lift anything.

I got another friend that has a pro shop (certified by ...whoever... that there work is guaranteed perfect or $ back) w/ a laser frame machine and charges like a 60 or 90 hookup charge and like 100/hr after that or something to that effect. I can't remember exact prices, I was j/w what you guys see frame work in your area, both in pro shops and out.

I never thought I was going to need to take it there b/c A) It's not affecting the headlight aim any, B) You can't notice it while you drive b/c it's not throwing the car out of alignment, and C) I seriously didn't plan on keeping the car. Though now that I'm thinking about actually keeping it I'm wondering if I should address this problem.

Thanks in advance .

 

those prices are about right for an expensive machine like that. i worked in a collision shop for a couple of years.

so did they fix it and then charge you without permission? if they fixed something, you should be able to get the print out, and it will tell you the points that were bent, and how much they were moved to get back into spec

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by Garage 808 Hatch &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">those prices are about right for an expensive machine like that. i worked in a collision shop for a couple of years.

so did they fix it and then charge you without permission? if they fixed something, you should be able to get the print out, and it will tell you the points that were bent, and how much they were moved to get back into spec</TD></TR></TABLE>

I knew the pple my whole life so it wasn't really an issue.

I hit a deer and the deer bent the left rail down a bit. Nothing really noticeable, but the frames on civics bend easily - they're not exactly Humvees when it comes to damage endurance. So he was leaving for vacation like on a Wednesday or something, and mine was down there for awhile. (he went on vacation for like 6 days) and I talked to him the Tuesday (day before he left) and he's like "yeah, I already put it on the frame machine, going to do the rest of the body work when I get back." Then I had to remove the driver's headlight to put new bulbs in (b/c of PS canister in the way) and when I reassemble it it won't line up for ****.

Now I saw the new rad support in his shop but it is possible that he bent it putting it on. The old one WAS NOT fixable to any extent where he fixed that and put it back on. So either he bent the rad support putting it on or he never fixed the frame - just said he did. Headlight is misaligned by like 1 or 2cm, no difference in handling like would be w/ a twisted frame, no off balance, uneven tire wear, excessive camber/caster/toe - everything is fine 'cept that light.

My belief is that the car never saw the damn frame machine. I think he just looked at it and said "eh, it's fine, he won't notice it" - which he has the experience to tell, but when I was up close 'n personal pulling the housing i definitely noticed it. Though he's a jerk off that does anything to save a quick buck.

I know a guy who owns a pro shop about 30 minutes from me (pro shop = like, all work 100% guaranteed). He did the frame work on my Jetta when I bought it (his frame machine discovered one of the rails was bent down 4mm or some stupid **** like that (which had no effect on anything). His is laser, everything is 100%. It's not ridiculously expensive, hell of a nice guy. I'll take my bumper and fenders off and just drive the car like that there, to take some time off the labor, and I know he'll charge less for not having to remove them .

Now that I'm thinking of actually keeping the car I'm thinking of taking care of this problem. Nothing big, just rather not have it. That and the cheap son of a bitch who fixed it didn't replace one of the headlight housings (b/c it didn't need it) so the headlights look like **** w/ one side new and the other 12 years old. Going to get new housings, I was thinking of looking for one pieces, don't want any smoked ****, or JDM ****, or any aftermarket **** though, furthest I might go is one piece because they look better. Though I want this guy to scan the frame first to see if there's anything up.

Sorry about long response, forgot I made this post .

 

Bump, I know I can't be the only one that's ever had framework done...