Princess Prius has $3,000 paint damage...my poor baby

Hello and welcome.

From what I have seen, there are no tax breaks on the 2008 after a certain period in 2007 (do a search on this).

Not living in NY, I couldn't recommend a repair shop. I'd say check with your local BMW or Mercedes dealer and see who they send their vehicles to. I know of a repair / paint shop here that does all high end vehicles (BMW Benz, Rolls, Porsche etc...) and they also do other vehicles as well. Price in some cases I have found to be less that some other shops.

In any case, it can't hurt to ask and get an idea and then compare them with other repair / paint shops.

 

Sorry to hear about that. Whatever you end up doing, do it right. Go to a top quality shop that knows exactly what they are doing and not just someshop your insurance company refers you to. Fix it right and it willjust be amad memory. The alternative makes you re-live it everytime you go to your car.

 

Sorry To Hear Of Your Mis-fortune. I Have Been In The Auto Body Trade For 40 Years. First Ask Your Insurance Company If They Have An Approved Shop Near By. Then Ask The Shop If They Have A Down Draft Baking Spay Booth, Ask To See It. Ask What Brand Paint Will They Use On Your Car And Brand Clear. German Glasurit Is The Best. If You Need More Info Pm Me. Btw, Dealers Are Natorious For Sending There Auto Body Work To The Cheapest In Town So They Can Make The Most On The Jobs For Doing Nothing. See If Your Toyota Dealer Has An In House Shop Of Their Own. Ask To See It And Their Both .

 

I can feel your pain, when it comes to paint scratches. It is like being cut by a sharp knife. Your best bet is to find a Toyota dealer near you that has the best facility and be assured that your car paint job will be done right. Good Luck.

 

Prince Prius has had a run of bad luck recently of a similar variety.
Three weeks ago, a teenager hit my rear bumper backing out of a space in the ADAMS RAMP--a hit and run, until she was foolish enough to park in my reserved space the following week. I found my paint on her left front bumper at the correct level.
I wanted to fix the bumper so my prince would be perfect again. I went to Northtown, where they quoted $1500 for repairing the scratch and a deeper scruff in the bumper. (See my post). With the recent storm, I postponed doing anything.

This Sunday, at the TOPS on Union Road by the Galleria, someone keyed both doors on the driver's side--I wasn't even near anyone, having parked far from the world of other cars to avoid issues like the bumper boo boo. I like my prince but I'm about to give up, sell him cheaply--and move on to taking the Metro instead to avoid the stress.

For the bumper painting, Northtown wanted to paint the entire rear quarter panel, the back door, the frame above the back door, pop windows, and do the bumper--which is nice, but...

Having had two episodes in less than three weeks makes me re-evaluate this--particularly with posts elsewhere that the Prius paint and clear coat are too thin.

I don't know a good, affordable shop for the Prius... yet. When I locate one, I probably will consider painting. For now, I can't justify the cost until I go through another month or two without similar events. I'm not sure why people here in Buffalo are behaving so badly of late.

About five years ago, when my daughter was distracted backing out of our drive, she hit the side of our Saab. We went to a paint shop on Kenmore Ave (not the Saab dealer). I can't remember the name but am looking frantically through receipts as they did a very good job pulling a major dent and painting--including the plastic bumper. They were labeled as a paint shop--not a collision shop. If I find the receipt, I will post the name.

Please let me know where you do have the paint done--and the results.

 

I forgot--regarding the tax credits (see my prior post on this relative to alternate minimum tax).

1. If you have ANY AMT, you cannot take a credit--even if TaxCut or TurboTax initially show it. It disappears at the end. I talked with the people at the "Complex Law Division" at the IRS and we went back and forth on my return last year to see if I could do something to eliminate my AMT and take the credit--it was a wash. If I had not had AMT, I would have been eligible for the full credit.

2. If you do your taxes with TaxCut or the like, put in the SALES TAX on the car which is 8.75 in Erie County. Although you can you deduct your NYS income tax or property taxes on your fed taxes, you can't on your NYS income tax. That's where putting in the SALES TAX (even if you don't use it on your federal return) comes in. You can deduct the sales tax on major purchase that are not consumables, electronics, or similar. That, depending on other issues, may get you above the standard deduction for NYS income tax.

3. The cut-off date for the credit for the Prius (and the amount you can deduct) are at Toyota's web site and at the IRS.gov site. They depend only on the date you purchased the vehicle, assuming that you put it in service in 2007. If you put it into service this year, there is no credit.

Notice 2006-78 announced the credit phase out schedule for advanced lean burn technology vehicles and hybrid vehicles manufactured by Toyota Motor Sales USA, Inc. (Toyota and Lexus vehicles). For the period of 10-1-06 to 3-31-07, purchasers of qualifying vehicles are eligible for 50% of the allowable credit. For the period of 4-1-07 to 9-30-07, purchasers of qualifying vehicles are eligible for 25% of the allowable credit. The table below includes both the full credit and the reduced credit amount depending upon when the vehicle was purchased.
The date of purchase determines the amount of the credit available for a vehicle, i.e. whether a vehicle is eligible for the full credit or whether a portion of the credit is phased-out. The placed in service date determines the taxable year in which the credit may be claimed. The purchase and "put into service" dates can be different years for someone who purchased the car near the end of 2006 at the $1575 credit level. The rest is fairly straight- forward.


Purchase Date--for the amount of the credit:

IR-2006-154, Sept. 30, 2006
1-1-06 to 9-30-06
$3,150

10-1-06 to 3-31-07
$1,575

4-1-07 to 9-30-07
$ 787.50

On or after 10-1-07
$ 0

This is the link but I suspect you will have to paste it into your browser:

http://www.irs.gov/newsroom/article/0,,id=157557,00.html

 

You may have a case on this. I hope you got a police report.

 

Re: TAXES: In addition to the Federal tax credit, which you have heard about, make sure your STATE does/doesn't have tax credit. Oregon hides their's pretty well unless you go to the State's Department of Energy Web site.

Re: REPAIR...if you have a regular mechanic, ask him/her who they recommend. Most mechanics know the good body shops in town. Our's recommends one for when insurance will pay and a second for when you are paying out of your own pocket.

Difference, no free loaner car, takes longer, no fancy waiting rooms at the cheapy place and they will "skip processes" if it can be done safely and with your consent.

The other shop is about twice the price....