sorry to hear that, and the rear quarter panel too, the door skin can be replaced and resprayed but the rear quarter will have to be pulled out.

i know how you feel, i only had mine 5 months and someone hit it in the car park and hit my side window with their mirror and gouged it

it will get better over time and every car gets knocks you just got yours in early

 

Oi, really sorry to hear about that. I was pretty upset when my sister accidentally backed into my rear bumper and tore part of it off the car (of course I didn't let on to her that I was upset, as she already felt horrible about it). I'm really glad to see the damage isn't too terrible.

Look at it this way, it's the first of many grand adventures! It's like 'Mater said in Cars 2 (don't judge), "Every dent tells a story".

 

This is truly a great forum. All the great people who've posted in this thread are proof positive of that. Thank you all!!

 

If you want to know where to take it to get fixed...take it to a shop that works on Hondas all the time and that would be one of Hondas "certified" body shops.

Honda Body Shop Locator: Recognized Collision Repair Centers

People always have strong opinions on which repair shop to use, but I always tell people to take it to a shop who repairs these cars all the time. If you have to sell it in the future, than you can explain that you took it to the shop which Honda recommends.

Also, keep pictures along with the repair estimate so you can show people the damage. The damage seems minor.

 

Thanks for the information.

I'm taking it back to my Honda dealer's body shop. If in the future I decided to trade the vehicle, they'll have all the information on file.

I don't foresee trading it for a long time to come. I really like this car a bunch.

 

wow, that sux dude. hope they fix it right and compensate you for diminished value. around here I see lots of newish used Fits on craigslist with rebranded / reconstructed titles and they loose a lot of value. And rightfully so - who knows how much structural damage there was and how well it was fixed. Id say take lots of pics of the damage in case a future buyer wants proof that the accident wasn't so bad.

My Fit is only a few weeks old and yesterday I was almost taken out by an old lady in a cherokee who just came into my lane. Besides upgrading the crappy horn than went meep meep, I might get one of those automotive DVRs (Amazon.com: HD 720P 2.5" LCD Monitor CAR Dash Dashboard CAMERA Cam VEHICLE VIDEO Accident RECORDER DVR Support SD/MMC Memory Card : Up to 64GB: Car Electronics)

 

I dropped off the Fit today. They said maybe it'll be done by Friday. They handed it over to their most meticulous technician, per the nice folks at the shop. He works on all the new cars. I'm real pleased I decided on this shop. They have been really friendly and very thorough this far. After I get it back, I'll post some pics.

 

Bodywork (like car detailing) is more of an art rather then a pure science.
So I wouldn't necessarily limit myself to a place that only does Hondas or is on Honda's list. Plus it's not that Hondas are so exotic and foreign, it's not like a collision shop has never seen a Honda before.

That being said, I'm sure most ones that went through the trouble to get Honda recognized are probably great, but I wouldn't necessarily rule out a well respected shop because they aren't on that list. I'd be just as comfortable with what Yelp reviews say.

Either way, glad that things are moving along for the OP

 

You were pretty much spot on!!

Another update...

I received a call from the body shop this evening. After the technician inspected the vehicle, he said they will need to skin the door. They will have to order the part. The quarter panel and dog leg they will repair, once again as you expected. They'll now have the car until sometime next week. The estimate for repairs is $1,600+.

On another note, my car rental is a 2011 Honda Fit base.

 

Looks like I'm late to this thread but I also wanted to offer my condolences on the accident and glad that as far as accidents go this one wasn't that bad.

From what I gather from your comments the car didn't suffer any structural damage and you can be fairly confident that the body shop will have it looking like new very soon.

Nice that you got a Fit base for a rental car as you can now compare them and share your experience with it.

Best of luck and hope your happy with the body shop work!

 

Thank you!

The 2011 has 23k on it. Since it's a rental, there's a good chance it's been driven hard. The interior is in well used shape. It has Florida plates and the plate was loose. There were no bolts on the bottom of the plate. Rattling galore. I took care of that when I got home. It rides real good. It is louder in the interior than my 2012. More road and interior noise.

When I parked at work this morning, the fuel mileage showed 34.5 mpg on the dash. Traffic was heavy today. It was up to 36.5-38 mpg at times.

My 2012 has had some real nice mpg numbers thus far, but I'm looking forward to breaking it in and watching those numbers improve. The 2011 interior has more gray accents.

I am glad they gave me a Fit to drive around.

 

Sorry to see this happen and good luck with the repairs.

 

Only Fitting!

I more optimistic about the MPG after my 2nd tank showed an average of 30.5mpg after getting 26 mpg from my 1st tank.

 

Good one!

I think mpg will improve with more miles. I pulled into the garage this evening and the 2011 was sitting at 36.8 mpg on the dash. I'll hand calculate it when I fill it up later this week.

Good to read your mpg is moving up real nice!

 

Well, in addition to the engine breaking in I'm also adjusting some of my driving habits and being lighter on the gas. I've been watching the MPG indicator gauge which is giving me a better insight as to maximizing my mpg.

Have you stopped by the body shop to check on the progress of your car or are you just going to wait until it's ready?

 

I enjoy using the MPG gauge. It keeps me occupied on the drive in and it's a challenge to consistently keep it as high as possible on the scale. You can really optimize your mpg by using it.

I'm just waiting until it's done. It won't be ready until sometime next week. They ordered the door "skin" yesterday. The shop has been great about giving me updates on it's progress. I'm confident they'll do a great job.

 

Yea that mpg gauge is addicting to watch and I probably should be watching the road more. Sure is a nice feeling when the bars are lit up all the way to 80mpg!

Cool that the shop is keeping you in the loop. I know it will be nice to get it back again!

 

A small update on MPG with the rental. I filled up this morning and hand calculated 35.5 MPG. Readout was 35.2 MPG on the dash. That's pretty close and very good MPG for a mix of city/highway in metro Atlanta rush hour during the work week.

After the fill up, I drove it into work (36 miles from the gas station). Mostly highway. When I pulled into work, 43.5 MPG on the readout. That's incredible!

I'm very impressed and can't wait to take mine on a trip and see what I can get on a long stretch of highway.

 

That's not unreasonable for metro ATL...

When's yours due back?

 

I'm very pleased with the MPG! It's due back sometime later next week.