Replaced tailgate around Christmas after a collision, and now noticing condensation inside a taillight. Body shop says they’re not responsible and are quoting $250 to replace. Please advice.
Edit: Thanks for all your advice. I’m going to ask my insurance if they’ll cover this as part of the original collision claim. btw, I posted the same thing to /r/mechanicadvice at the same time, and haven’t received a single reply there till now. Happy to see lemmy doing great as a reddit replacement.
Update: Thanks for all your advice. I spoke to my insurance and asked them if they would cover it as part of the original repairs, and they’ve agreed to do so!
I’ve worked as a mechanic at a dealership before. A bit of condensation is petty normal, even on luxury cars. Walk across a Mercedes parking lot early on a cold morning and you’ll find that most cars have a bit of moisture in their headlights. It’s not very “premium”, but it’ll go away after having the lights on for a minute.
To answer your other question, there’s !mechanicadvice@lemmy.world.
There’s a good chance the seal for the tail light was damaged during the collision and the body shop did nothing to damage it.
If it’s a factory part it should be an easy warranty replace. They’ll still charge labor probably but the part should be free.
put a bead of clear silicone around the top and side seals of the light (where the light sections come together, not where the light seals to the car)
You can always just drill a tiny hole at the bottom of the light and that will allow it to drain it’s a 5 minute fix and nobody will ever notice it
https://youtu.be/H2_uUZ3moYw?t=26 follow from 0:26-0:46. Pull the housing off the hatch and remove the lights to air out. Inspect for any damage.
Those things are supposed to be sealed. Even if they did nothing wrong installing it, they’ve installed a faulty taillight with a busted seal.
Id argue with them along those lines “It’s no one’s fault, but I didn’t pay for a broken tail light”.
Unless you replaced it with a used tail_gate_ they pulled from a junkyard, in that case you’re on your own.
You can get a new tail light for not a ton of cash.
That is a factory light. It’s a 2022 CRV. They’re saying they only pulled it out as a unit and put it back in, and this seal failing has nothing to do with them.
The tailgate was replaced due to a collision but they didn’t install new taillight housings?
I haven’t had to make an insurance claim for an accident but years and years ago my parents neighbor backed into their car and left a big dent in the C-pillar (right behind the back passenger side door) and the insurance adjuster went as far as stating the trunk lid and bumper would need to be replaced even though they has no damage.
I’m surprised your insurance would reuse parts physically housed in the very tailgate that was damaged since they were likely damaged as well.
Apart from arguing with insurance about having it fixed again, my only suggestion would be replacing it yourself as it’s typically very easy. RockAuto has these listed for $60 (from TYC).
I’m with the other people here saying the same thing, that’s a salvaged tail light that was damaged in a wreck. That it was your tail light before it became salvage doesn’t make it ok.
And just because I know how those shops work, if at any point they said something like “we’re gonna reuse your old tail light” and you signed off on that, you might be out of luck.
Maybe your insurance company might be able to cover it under the same claim? It’s worth a phone call or email at least.
If you don’t want to DIY, definitely shop around for a better quote, but you might not find a cheaper total price. I wouldn’t burn a bridge with that shop.
The insurance has agreed to cover the repair, thanks for your advice!
Hell yeah, congrats!
Thank you
What components did they replace with the original work? Did they just replace the bumper cover?
If you were charged for a new tail lamp/light assembly in the previous work, then this is on them. If they only pulled the original tail lamp as part of other work, and reinstalled the original tail lamp, then the tail lamp was probably cracked in the collision. That damage would be easy to miss and can take a long time to become apparant. It sounds to me like this component was not replaced in the original work and you are only now discovering damage that was sustained in the collision.
Too long to find an actual reasonable reply in this thread.
Likely cracked in collision, they probably didn’t see the damage to it, likely didn’t replace it. Buy the piece and replace it if it’s that big of a deal. These pieces are all bolted on from the inside, after taking a few bolts out. This piece can be had as an “Inner Tail Light”, for $70, and replaced in 10 minutes with a small set of hand tools.
It’s already easily accessible in this car because you’ve gotta be able to replace the bulb, so it’s likely as simple as opening a hatch or door panel type thing behind it.
They could potentially fix it for even cheaper by repairing the piece:
- take the piece off
- let it dry out
- find the break in the seal
- use an adhesive to reseal the break
- install the piece back on the car
It’s a little more effort and time without the working light, but it might be helpful depending on @nieceandtows@lemmy.world’s financial situation.
No body shop will admit this especially if it is months after the repair. Condensation is typical in such repairs since the adhesives they use are not most of the times proper and the fitting is not the best.
Does that mean this is shoddy workmanship but I’m shit outta luck?
If this was an insurance repair, contact your insurance company. They have policies for when additional repairs are needed afterwards. Tell them it’s something you noticed later. And if it’s anything that could plausibly be related to the accident, they should cover it. It’s possible there is still concealed damage that is putting stress on the light causing it to separate and let moisture in. If your insurance company OKs it, I would let a different body shop handle the repair and check out the previous work.
If you paid out of pocket, you’re probably out of luck at this point.
I spoke to my insurance, and they’ve agreed to cover this, thanks for your advice!
