Good Body Shops in NOVA

[chegoinsung]

Just got into a minor hit and run....and need to find a body shop to take care of my legacy....any good recommendations? I'm going through USAA...so they have their recommended shops, but I wanted to get some good opinions... Browsing through the threads, I found 2 mentioned (Cascades and D&V)... can anyone provide some more info on these or other body shops? Thanks a lot!

[Shawn06SpecB]

I haven't been in the area long enough yet but i would stop in to each shop first

[LegacyGTBiggie]

Only shops I know of are in the MD area. And most have bad reps now. So I would suggest them either.

[chegoinsung]

thanks for the responses.. i'll check out a couple, but i think i might go with Cascades...

 

Anything I should ask or look for? Sorry, I feel like such a newb

[LegacyGTBiggie]

look for how they do their work. It is professional or a bunch of idiots in a shop.

 

Last car we had in for repairs was the Wifes Corolla after a deer ran into it on the highway(literally the SIDE of the car)

 

They fucked up the following:

- replace a headlight with a all chrome one(hers were the dark SPORT headlights) and one was chrome one wasnt.

- removed the pin stripe on the drivers side to buff and did not replace

- did not remove all the dents or do it well

- removed the rubber door protectors to buff and originally didnt replace. Which i pointed out and then they used 1/4" half round home depot stuff that was NOWHERE near the think stuff Toyota used.

- even after all this there were dents and stuff they didnt bother fixing

- found out later they messed up her door moulding. and now i need to replace the tint and have the window moulding replace(too late to blame them)

- fender they put on did NOT line up with the door

- headlight they put on the second time(matching sport color) was a used peice(claimed new) and had a LOT of moisture in it.

 

Needless to say this was a BAD experiance. Though they did end up fixing almost everything and they did have their dent guy fix a few dents on her roof from acorns.

[HarryN]

thanks for the responses.. i'll check out a couple, but i think i might go with Cascades...

 

Anything I should ask or look for? Sorry, I feel like such a newb

 

I can help here.

 

1.) Check out their work area. Is it cluttered with tools and trash everywhere? Or does it look orderly?

 

2.) Do they have parts all over the place, or do they have a scrap area for the trash/recyclers?

 

3.) Is the manager upfront and explains all the work they will be doing, or is he going to ask you to leave your car behind so they can inspect it and call you later?

 

4.) Is the office area clean and professional, or does it look like a junkyard shop?

 

5.) Does the manager curse a lot while talking, or does he keep a professional tone?

 

6.) Does the shop charge you for an estimate, or do they want you to pay for an estimate? If they want to charge you, get out.

 

7.) Check to see how their paint is stored. Is it stacked up in a corner or on a table, or is there a shelf/cabinet/mixing wrack that they sit on?

 

8.) Do the workers give you a weird look when you walk by (or look unfriendly) or are they focused on working?

 

9.) Do they have their hourly rates posted in plain view, or do you have to ask the manager?

 

10.) Are the workers too busy talking amongst each other or are they actually working? Yeah they can be on a lunch break and all, but when after you get an estimate or speak to the manager about your car, are they still screwing around? There are many exceptions to this, but say you go visit the shop a second time post lunch hours, and they are still just jerking around, then I wouldn't bother at that place.

 

Also, it wouldn't hurt to ask around your area and see if anyone else has used that shop before and get some feedback. It wouldn't help to visit other shops as well and do a visual comparison as well as a price comparison for the work you want done.

 

If they have completed cars sitting in the lot, try and inspect them as best you can and look for mismatched paint, poor blending, lingering tape, tools left in the car, etc.

 

I hope this helps.

[chegoinsung]

thanks, as always! i'll be looking on Friday...gotta take some time off... will let you guys know how it all works out!

[IAG Performance]

I know it is a bit of a hike, but if you want this done correctly from a shop that has an excellent reputation, let us know. We have done paint and body work on Go~Rilla's 08 Spec B. Hit him up if you have questions about the quality of our work. We only use BASF products and have a full Glasurit mixing system. Let us know if we can help out.

[HarryN]

I know it is a bit of a hike, but if you want this done correctly from a shop that has an excellent reputation, let us know. We have done paint and body work on Go~Rilla's 08 Spec B. Hit him up if you have questions about the quality of our work. We only use BASF products and have a full Glasurit mixing system. Let us know if we can help out.

 

^^This is a sign of quality. It may be pricey, but if you want it done right and done once, this is the best way to go.