My three week old Prius v got rear ended this morning . It was a chain accident, the traffic in front of me stopped so I stopped, the SUV behind me stopped but I think it was too close to me. I heard a really loud noise, and the SUV was shoved hard into my car. The plastic rear bumper cover of my car got damaged and separated from the metal. When I push the plastic rear bumper forward, it travels about 1 to 1.5 inch. The driver side tail light was cracked but the passenger tail light appears to be OK. I have several questions: 1. Will they replace the plastic rear bumper cover? Will they buy this from Toyota and the color will match perfectly? 2. Can they replace the metal bumper? Or will they patch it up or pull it out? 3. Do you think the car is damaged some how?
They will replace the cover, tail light and metal bumper with factory parts and then paint with factory color. You will be happy although I'd recommend having a dealer do it. They will closely check the unibody and subframes but you are probably good. They will give you a detailed estimate but won't know everything until they pull it apart. Maybe one week to do the job. Don't rush them unnecessarily. Test drive and make sure you don't have any new rattles or noises.
Since the bumper cover appears to be cut, they will replace it. They will replace, aslo, the aluminum bumper stiffener and the styro-foam energy absorber. Let's hope there is no damage to the body sheet metal of the rear body and the bumber mounts. If they are damaged, they will have to be realigned.
My 2010 was hit in a very similar incident earlier this year. The car pushed into me hit a bit lighter, wider, and more evenly than the SUV that hit the OP, so there was no metal or taillight damage. Under the bumper cover is a layer of impact foam. Mine was not replaced, but OP's will need replacement. However, the at-fault party's insurance would pay only for a refurb bumper cover, not a new one. I chose to pay about $50 extra for new. Either way, it comes unpainted and is painted by the repair shop. I could choose any shop for repairs, but the lifetime repair guarantee applied only if the work was done at a shop on the insurance's approved list, which actually had very many names. No local dealers were on the list, only independent shops. I selected three convenient shops that were near the top of both the other party's insurance company list and my own insurance's list, got quotes from each, then asked my independent Honda* mechanic for his opinions of those three. He had a very clear ranking. I was pleased with the result. The CarFax report didn't hamper the trade-in value three months later, after seeing the before-repair pictures. * my household has only three years of Toyota experience, but more than fifty car-years of Honda experience, which led to a favorite trusted shop.
i was told damage must be 25% of the cars worth to be reported to carfax. also i have nationwide, they have really good appraisers. when i had my accident the appraiser found things that left me was astounded!! because i have been around all kinds of body work most of my life. also with my ins, the guilty party does not decide how or what is used to repair my vehicle. also my bumper cover was dented, and they could have used heat to get the dent out but they replaced the cover and repainted it. i guess they couldn't be bothered (time is money)
The CarFax record on mine did not list a damage value, which ended up being less than 4% of what it traded in for. With a choice of paying the $50 difference between what I wanted and what the other party's insurance would cover, or paying the entire repair under my own insurance (it was less than my deductible), the answer was obvious.
there are some things that (on purpose are kept in the dark) i had a two week old car that was totally destroyed by a drunk driver. his ins co wanted to pay off 75% of it's total worth. i went to get a lawyer, and was told by two different firms, "it wasn't his fault he destroyed your car" ! i remained obstinate, and persevered. i got my 100% . some lessons i have learned in my lifetime are, don't ever tell people your poor, forget the saying, give someone enough rope and they will hang themselves. (you give them enough rope, they will hang you!) and never offer any information! lastly absolutely nothing is written in stone !
If an accident report is written by Law Enforcement, you'll see that accident show on Carfax eventually! Or, if not, sometimes the insurance companies report these things.
My incident was written up by an LEO. The striking car was well over that 25% threshold, the middle car may also have reached it. I pulled further ahead to a more protected pullout spot, and the officer never actually went up to look at mine.
I got the bumper and parts replaced. the paint looks great and it is impossible to tell that the difference. However, when I look inside the rear wheel bays, the left side and right side fittings, linings and snap-in fasteners are not symmetrical. I feel that the body shop left out something. Worst, some of the snap-in fasteners are loose. I don't know if they are loose as designed or they were not installed properly. I need to compare my car to another Prius v. Is there any Prius v owner who lives near Mira Mesa/Sorrento Valley in San Diego that want to let me take a peek at your car for about 5 minutes? I
I swear that I noticed the same thing when examining my rear mud guards. I thought the plastic fitments in the wheel bays were assymmetrical. I'll look tomorrow to reconfirm and let you know.
Yep. The rigid black plastic cover against the rear of the wheel well, that covers the fabric liner, is substantially larger on the drivers side than the passengers side. I think I freaked when I first noticed it too.
