I need a brilliant bodyshop please

[BlimeyCharlie]

Hi all,

I will need a brilliant (ideally) bodyshop to sort out what another insurance 'approved' firm have not been able to do, which is repair my car, mainly respraying and nothing structural.

What I don't want is the car to come back looking like a child has resprayed it, as is the case at the moment.

The car is an M3 and was in lovely condition.

I do have a few names of places, but want to make sure I've got as much choice as possible.

Anywhere in the Rushden, Thrapston, Wellingborough, Corby area will be fine, or a bit further.

Insurance company will be paying for it, not me.

Thanks in advance

[BlimeyCharlie]

bigburd said:

I can tell you where to avoid!

Hmmm, so can I! x2!

Alas, I followed the one of the above recommendations, and the paintwork was good enough. Not perfect, but plenty good enough. A 'bit' in one of the wing mirrors meant points deducted, but good enough really. A million times better than the job done by Borstal Body Bodge of Corby-don't think I can say which firm it is, can I?

Anyway, there were other problems...

1-Car 'finished' after 2 weeks, but parking sensors had not been touched, so still not working.
2-Wing mirrors now not working either.
3-Picked the car up on a Friday, and left it out over Saturday to clean etc on Sunday. Had very heavy rain most of Saturday. On Sunday discovered the entire battery tray covered in water, about 4/5 inches of water in there, which of course had slopped about all over boot and rear seats when I'd gone for a spin prior to cleaning it. Problem was trim/seal had not been clipped into place above rear light. So several joyless hours spent sorting this out.
4-Another 3 weeks elapsed trying to sort the wing mirrors out, with the car being passed around various garages and then sitting there gathering dust because I think it was now a 'mates rate' situation. Parking sensors done too, but that was the easy bit.
5-When car finally finished, it didn't have any fuel in it-as in the 'range' readout was blank. So driving a cold car, for nearly 10 minutes through a town centre to get petrol was a 'slightly' tense experience.

Also, the 'courtesy car' I had booked 10 days earlier for my first stint was suddenly not available. I was told this on the morning I was due to take my car in. So no courtesy car for me then.
For the second stint, the 'courtesy car' available to me was an un-taxed car that had sat unused for weeks/months. Hmmm.

The impression I got was that they'd have been quite happy to give up with the wing mirrors, despite knackering up the wires etc themselves when they removed them from the car (of course I was not informed of this when I picked the car up originally-how weird)

So, all in all, not an experience I'd want to repeat again, but maybe I was plain old 'unlucky'.

Just make sure you don't sign paperwork to say 'job done' without checking everything works on the car!

And, to re-cap, I took the car there and got a quote to do X, Y and Z work to the car. If something gets knackered during this work then it should not become my problem, should it. That is not a question, either!

Seriously, thanks though for all recommendations.

[BlimeyCharlie]

All this forum action has dredged up many memories for me.

Some good, some bad.

If Frank Spencer Manual/AutoServices is still trading, then I should have taken it there really.

Or Mr Bennett, of BBC's Take Hart fame, who opened his own car repair business after his career as a 'man-who-busts-a-window-with-a-ladder-then-stands-in-a-tin-of-paint' dried up.

Maybe the drive tarmacing folks? They do a good job. Cash discount too-the insurance firm will love that.

Seriously, thanks for all the suggestions. Keep them coming.

I may post a few pics of the 'original' work carried out by the chimps at their bodyshop teaparty as a special treat.

Can I do this?

"SOMEBODY STOP THIS MAN!"

Edited by BlimeyCharlie on Wednesday 20th March 12:33

Edited by BlimeyCharlie on Wednesday 20th March 12:33

[BlimeyCharlie]

bigburd said:

I can tell you where to avoid!

And thanks for your comments too.
Forgot to reply to you.

There is no such thing as an 'awkward' customer when it comes to paint/bodwork repairs.

The reason I gave is that if somebody has chosen an M3, 911, R32, RS4 etc etc to own then that person is usually discerning, and have not chosen a 'normal' car for a specific reason-they appreciate 'high' quality and engineering.

They do not expect, and nor will they tolerate, poor quality. I'm not suggesting a 'normal' car should have a poor job done either.

So stick with being awkward. It seems most bodyshops rely on ignorance. And either a job is done correctly, or it needs doing again.

That is how I work anyway.

Edited by BlimeyCharlie on Wednesday 20th March 12:39

[BlimeyCharlie]

Jimbo666 said:

BlimeyCharlie, I may have misread so apologies but where did you take it to in the end?

No apology required, m'duck.

I'm not sure if I'd say they were bad, as it was one of those things I think.
I'd rather not say, as not sure if I can or otherwise.

However, the place I originally went to was in Corby. They were utter sh*t. The biggest shower of sh*t imaginable.

In fact, I'll post some pictures of their craftsmanship soon, and folks can judge for themselves if I am picky, or otherwise.

If it helps someone else then great. I've never experienced such poor 'customer' service either, ever.