This is kind of funny.....A few weeks ago, my 10 year old son and his friend were riding their bikes near our home. My son accidently crashed into a parked 2005 S Type Jaguar parked on the street
related thread. The driver side mirror was damaged and the back cover had popped off. It was nighttime, so I did not get a very good look at the damage.
The owner stopped parking the car on the street and stored it somewhere else since then.
I met with the owner and agreed to pay for the damage. He told me to only pay for the damaged mirror, not to worry about the slight ding near the site of impact. A few weeks go by with no word from the owner. I knocked on his door to check on an estimate and he told me that a discount price of $1700 was in order which included completely stripping, sanding, and respraying the door. I told him that was way too high and that I would take the car to a reputable shop (Kevin from this BBS) to get an estimate. I spoke to Kevin and he agreed to give me an estimate. The owner of the car said he was extremely busy and kept putting me off.
I set out in search of a new mirror, first from the Jaguar Dealership. The dealership wanted near $900 for the POS mirror! I posted the above linked thread and was directed to several sources. Through Moses, I found one on EBay in new condition for $340. The part number is correct and all is good to go. The seller also has the back cover in the correct color, Ebony Black, with a final price of $375. I mailed payment and did the research on how the mirror gets replaced.
I met with the owner to check out the damage in sunlight. The mirror had a slight crease in the plastic. There was no other damage to it. The back cover of the mirror had popped off, but the scratches appeared extremely superficial. I took possession of the back cover to see if the scratches could be rubbed out with compound. After 20 minutes of care, the finish was perfect! There was no hint of the scratch or damage at all. Too late though because I already order the new one. Cosmetically, the mirror did in fact need to be replaced. The glass was undamaged.
I told the owner that I purchased a new mirror as a replacement part. He told me that he had purchased a new mirror from the dealership at a discount price of $660 through a friend. I told him that I had not agreed for him to buy the new mirror for this price. At the start of the ordeal, I told him that I was going to find the mirror myself and get the damage repaired. As a side note, the owner purchased this mirror about 3 weeks ago and may not be able to return it.
In looking at the door ding, it is extremely shallow and the paint finish is undamaged. I am hiring a paintless dent remover to remove the ding on Tuesday with an estimate of about $100. The repair company is very reputable and was recommended by a friend. I am hoping that the repair can be done.
The total damage will most likely cost me about $500. I am doing the right thing by agreeing to pay for the damage that my son had done on this guy's car. It seems that the owner had tried to inflate the price and rip me off!
The karma part is that I think that it is funny that this guy tried to do me wrong and may be stuck with his $660 mirror.
It was an expensive lesson for my son. In retrospect, I should have called the local police and had a traffic collision report written. That way I would pay the deductable and be done with it. What do you guys think?
David