Re: Dealer Ripoffs!

[Elliott Potter <epotter@abraxis.com>]

>My 1990 200tq was hit the other day.  Nothing serious, basically someone hit
>me in a mall parking lot and drove off without leaving a note.  Must have
>known about Audi repair costs.  The damage was 2 small cracks to the rubber
>part of the front bumper cover and damage to the right corner chrome trim on
>top of it.   I took it to the Audi dealer (I have full coverage insurance
>with a $100 deductible), and they quoted me a price of $796.00.  They
>basicall told me the only way to repair the black rubber part of the bumper
>was to replace the entire bumper cover.  Can this be true or is this another
>case of an Audi Dealer f------ you over.  [...]
>
>Vince
>90 200tq
>

The same sort of thing happened to me in my 93 90CS.  Someone with a
"brush guard" bumped me _very_ lightly, resulting in a pitifully small
puncture in the bumper; the dealer insisted that because of that they
would have to replace the whole rear bumper assembly, plus some other
hardware.  Total estimate neared $1000.  Then I took it to an
independant body shop, and they charged about $300 or $400 to take the
bumper off, strip it, patch it, and repaint it.  They did a *perfect*
job of matching the paint, and guaranteed the patch and the paint color
for 3 years.

They also noted (and I agree) that no insurance company will pay $850+
for such piddly damage.  Shop around and get a better deal.

HTH

Elliott