David Jones Posted February 2, 2022 Posted February 2, 2022 Alphard front bumper broken by hit and run driver while we were shopping. Insurance company want to write off car. Difficulty in finding repair shops that will deal with Japanese import. The car is otherwise great.
Rojie Posted February 2, 2022 Posted February 2, 2022 42 minutes ago, David Jones said: Alphard front bumper broken by hit and run driver while we were shopping. Insurance company want to write off car. Difficulty in finding repair shops that will deal with Japanese import. The car is otherwise great. Sorry to hear your news. How heavy was the hit ? I assume you need more than a new front bumper .
David Jones Posted February 2, 2022 Author Posted February 2, 2022 It wasn’t a big hit. It didn’t seem broken at first just a bigger gap where the bumper connects. The clip on the bumper are broken and the plastic box fix it to the main body sheared off. Just frustrating that no repair shops will touch Japanese import. Insurance company are talking about writing it off. To order a bumper replacement is over £1500. I’m hoping to find someone who can repair the plastics on the bumper.
Rojie Posted February 2, 2022 Posted February 2, 2022 1 hour ago, David Jones said: It wasn’t a big hit. It didn’t seem broken at first just a bigger gap where the bumper connects. The clip on the bumper are broken and the plastic box fix it to the main body sheared off. Just frustrating that no repair shops will touch Japanese import. Insurance company are talking about writing it off. To order a bumper replacement is over £1500. I’m hoping to find someone who can repair the plastics on the bumper. Hi David, Please forgive my ignorance. I don't see any damage to the bumper. I do see that the bumper has come away from the white plastic moulding. Is there any damage to the white moulding ? I'll take a look at the ToyotaAlphardEPC.com drawings. Perhaps you could. It may help you understand what is broken, and what is not.
Rojie Posted February 2, 2022 Posted February 2, 2022 6 minutes ago, Rojie said: Hi David, Please forgive my ignorance. I don't see any damage to the bumper. I do see that the bumper has come away from the white plastic moulding. Is there any damage to the white moulding ? I'll take a look at the ToyotaAlphardEPC.com drawings. Perhaps you could. It may help you understand what is broken, and what is not. With a quick look at the EPC, your £1500 looks quite high. Compared to the 1500 most of the parts look reasonably priced. The one part I don't have a price for, yet, is the reinforced bumper beam. Are there some tabs on the bumper that have been snapped off ?I still can't see the damage. Just another wild idea, as I am sure you are aware, there are more than one front valance for these vehicles. Is your machine a Gen 1, or a Gen 1 updated ? My guess is it will be easier to get a front valance the earlier the car is.
David Jones Posted February 2, 2022 Author Posted February 2, 2022 It’s been examined by accident adjuster and the tabs on the bumper front and rear of bumper are broken. The white plastic fixing tabs are broken. They are waiting to see if someone can repair plastic. But they are not too confident. Also we have found that the car does not have a vin number.
Rojie Posted February 2, 2022 Posted February 2, 2022 (edited) 38 minutes ago, David Jones said: It’s been examined by accident adjuster and the tabs on the bumper front and rear of bumper are broken. The white plastic fixing tabs are broken. They are waiting to see if someone can repair plastic. But they are not too confident. Also we have found that the car does not have a vin number. Hi David, Now I AM confused ! The vehicle doesn't have a VIN number ! How can that be ! Have you checked all the labels on the vehicle ? My VIN is on the front of the B pillar nearside. Don't expect the VIN number to resemble a European one. It will be, for example, ANHW10, then a serial number. Mine is TA MNH10W 0099xxx. (where x is a digit). Do you have a receipt, or the auction sheet ? It will be on the auction sheet, and/or the export sheet. If you have the auction sheet, send me a copy by PM, or I'll send you a copy mine by PM. Back to square one. Those white brackets are only 10 to 15 pounds each, not sure without checking, how many are needed. Have you looked at the EPC drawings. If the reinforcement bar is damaged, that could be expensive. With respect for the Loss Adjuster they won't have a clue. Probably never dealt with an Alphard before. There is lots of 'stuff' attached to the front valance, so a second hand replacement could have an inflated price. Have you checked any of the Alphard scrap yards yet ? If the tabs on the front valance (which I cannot see) are broken that could be the issue. £1500 could buy a lot of time from a fibreglass fabricator. I'll check out some potential sources for a new front. Did the assessor mention anything about the bumper beam, or any structural parts ? Hang in there. Someone bumped my Fiesta, Insurance wanted to write it off. Slightly dented door, NO other issues. I still drive it daily ! Edited February 2, 2022 by Rojie Spelling
ThuMentaliss Posted February 3, 2022 Posted February 3, 2022 Looks to me from the angle of the photo that the panel could be stuck back on by using a POLYMER ADHESIVE IE: Silkaflex 521 or the 522 , Tec7, various others on the market these have been used in the caravan/motorhome repairs for years😎
Mike Matts Posted February 3, 2022 Posted February 3, 2022 Hi David The front valance can easily be repaired by a good body shop. I have personally repaired the fixing tabs by reconstructing with fibreglass and resin long winded but doable any cracks and more serious damage can be welded and filled.The obvious answer would be to ask your insurance company for a price to purchase your motor back after they right it off, it is obviously drivable with little bother, giving time to fully investigate repair. best of luck Mike
starider Posted February 3, 2022 Posted February 3, 2022 From what can be seen a repair seems do-able, I think the best course of action would be to remove the bumper to see exactly what needs to be done and just what parts would be needed. It is usual to find with such damage, metalwork can be straightened and if necessary re-welded. I would expect any competent body shop will be able to help. It's certainly not a write off.
Rojie Posted February 3, 2022 Posted February 3, 2022 1 hour ago, Mike Matts said: Hi David The front valance can easily be repaired by a good body shop. I have personally repaired the fixing tabs by reconstructing with fibreglass and resin long winded but doable any cracks and more serious damage can be welded and filled. The obvious answer would be to ask your insurance company for a price to purchase your motor back after they right it off, it is obviously drivable with little bother, giving time to fully investigate repair. best of luck Mike Be careful if you 'buy back' the vehicle as Mike suggests you could. If you do .... The insurance company can, and probably will, categorise it as a category N or Category S. Neither category prevents you from returning the vehicle (legally) to the road. BUT, as the category stays with the vehicle for its life until formally scrapped / destroyed, the resale value will probably plummet. Just another factor in your decision making process ! Best of luck, whatever you decide.
Tony Clary Posted February 4, 2022 Posted February 4, 2022 Hi David, contact First Choice Car Imports of Hockley in essex. They specialize in Japanese imports and also sell spares. Might be worth a call. I've dealt with them and they are really helpful 1
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