Dent on my C300 - Paying out of pocket vs using insurance to fix it.
 

Hi all,
I have a dent on my C300 at the back. This is my first Benz and I don't know how much it may cost to fix it. I used to drive Toyotas earlier and based on my previous experiences a dent of this kind may cost 1000 bucks or so to fix it on Camry's. I don't know how much it may cost on the C300. I always hear that the German cars are expensive to fix.

My question is

1. Do such small dents affect the resale value of a benz?

2. Is it better to fix it myself coz if I claim insurance, my car fax history report may show it and it may effect resale value.
I don't want to hide it from a future buyer, but it is such a small dent which doesn't effect the drivability of the car and the dent is hardly visible unless you look closely and I don't want to have such a small dent to affect the resale value.

I have a deductible of 250, and if it costs around 1000 for the c300, I will have to pay 750 or so out of my pocket.

Please suggest the best thing to do in such a case. If the resale will get affected, I may fix it all by myself if it does not cost too much.

Thank You.

If the dent is that small, I'd t use the paintless dent removal people. No ins. claim, cheap and no carfax.

HTH

That's messed up. If you have a deductible of 250, you pay .... 250! The insurance company pays the rest.

Why don't you get a quote from your dealer first before making assumptions. My dealer subcontracts a service called Ding Wizard, but I dont know how much it costs.

Im curious to see a small dent that costs $1000 to fix, post pics please.

paintless dent removal should run under $100 if its on the sheet metal, smaller than the size of a quarter, and away from any seam or edge.

if it's on the bumper, plan on a full bumper replacement and paint...which could easily hit $1000.

I had a dent removed the size of a golf ball and it cost me $45. If the dent is on a body line they might charge you more but for one dent it may run anywhere from $30-150 depending on where you take it. Do some shopping around before you get the insurance involved!

I have a door ding on my C..estimate to remove it was $100 from the dealership. They end up calling in the Dent Wizard guys, so I imagine I could get it done even cheaper if I took it there myself. Just been too lazy to get it fixed, its annoying to look at, but seems like I'm the only one that notices it. I will be getting it fixed before I go to trade it in though, they frown at dents and dings because they know they will have to get them fixed before reselling the car and subtract that amount from your trade in price.

i had a ding removed out of the body line of the door and it was about $360. find a good body shop or just ask the dealer who they recommend

damn $1000!!! thats damn near a panel replacement. is it really that minor? a minor repair would be one that uses paintless dent repair which should be around $100. i'd say anything more than that would be more of a moderate dent.

Posting Pictures
 

Thank you all for all the suggestions.
Here I am posting the pictures for a better idea of the damage.

Some one hit it on the rear bumper when I had my car parked in the parking lot. It resulted in the bumper come out of the groove on the left side of the car. You can see the point of collision at the back.

to me, it looks like you are going to need a bumper replacement.

Any idea how much does a rear bumper replacement costs roughly. Am I looking at under a grand or more than a grand.

I guess ask your dealer's body-shop? If you have a reasonable comprehensive deductible, I'd use that.

Not a dent
 

From the photos, it's obvious that the bumper cover has been pushed forward and the support underneath is damaged. It's deformed plastic, not bent body metal so forget all the talk about dent wizard. The bumper cover is going to have to come off to repair the supporting structure.

You cannot fix this yourself.

If you only have a 250 dollar deductable then it seems to me you already paid for the fix with a higher premimum.

I believe if you really thought you would not want insurance to pay for any small fixes then you should have increased your deductable to the max to lower your premium (this is what I did).

I'd just let insurance pay for it if I were you. Car fax will list the details of the accident right? Most people are not concerned with parking lot dings so I don't think it will be a big deal.
RP

ya that is not minor. it looks rainy where you are at. just slam your brakes in front of someone so they rear end you and send them the bill.

j/k - good luck

bumper blemish
 

I have been down your road with an Audi rear bumper. Are you near a major populated city? If so, find the largest selling volume and large used car lot Mercedes Benz dealer for your city. Talk to the Used Car or Manager in charge of getting the dealers trade in cars detailed for sale and ask of who he recommends for mobile dent, body and paint repair shop to fix in his area. His word is his reputation of the store, so generally a very true answer. He might recommend a body shop as well. But here in LA the mobile outfit I use guarantees the work, normally 1/4 the price of a body shop and is experienced in highline cars including rebuilding rubber if necessary but does not happen often. Most of this can be done by phone and digital pictures. The worst case scenario here is an educated quote before you take any insurance claims and you may be better paying cash. Just my 2 cents
sj

Deductible
 

You are confused. If you have $250 deductible, then your cost is $250 no matter how much the repairs cost. The insurance policy pays the rest.

Which coverage
 

This is a collision claim, not comprehensive. And it's possible that your uninsured motorists coverage may kick something in also.

Definitely would take it to an authorized MB bodyshop for repairs. Don't sweat over it, just claim it against insurance and your car will be repaired like nothing happened.

Peace of mind is worth $250! :)