Service King SUCKS ASS!!

[Rick Modena]

Your insurance company will use "alternative parts sources" for your repair, unless you have the rider on your policy as stated above. Some will use only original OEM parts on a very late model vehicle, some wont.

Aftermarket parts are very similar to any other replacement part, like a coil pack for your engine. There are some that are made better than the factory part, and there are some that are complete junk. When they stamp out a fender, new dies are used for the higher quality parts. Those dies get worn, and the tolerances on the end product get sloppy. The body lines dont come out as crisp, fitment isnt as nice, etc. After the dies are worn, they get sold to the companies that are producing the cheapie parts that you see at the ultra-low buck crash parts places, like certifit. They can buy the still usable, though slightly sloppy dies at a fraction of what it costs to have a die set made. The good quality parts are priced higher because of the higher cost of the dies and the QC processes. - Interesting side note, I got to watch a cell phone video taken buy one of our buyers at corperate while I was there, he took it on a tour of one of the plants in asia somewhere. The parts popping out were sorted after the stamp 3 ways. Two were aftermarket, one of those being a CAPA, and the other went into a Honda box. Same part, produced at the same time.
CAPA is a certification process, so that sticker on there *should* mean that it meets or exceeds oem standards. Distributors pay extra for that testing, and certification. It's expensive. Generally the CAPA certified parts carry a bit of an extra cost because of that. Since it is expensive, and each sticker has a cost associated with it, the same run of parts may have a batch of capa and a batch of non capa in the same run. So same part, one certified and one isnt. Just because it isnt certified doesnt necessarily make it inferior, but it gets harder to tell. I may have 4 different lines of a fender available for the same car. 3 of them may be the same part in a different package, and less a yellow sticker on one of them. I also have a line of the cheaper cost stuff that is made at the end of a run rather than the first of the run. Again, it's all about the cost of production. I do know that there are counterfeit CAPA stickers out there, so if it sounds too good to be true, it likely is.

Recycled parts are and should be a viable option for a repair. They are what the car was produced with from the factory. Some insurance companies want a part that came from a car that is same model year or newer and/or lower miles. Some want the cheapest price they can find. I get a kick out of people who scream OEM when the insurance is repairing a fender bender, but want a used engine to save a buck or two at the mechanic.

Ive been in this industry a while, and Ive seen really nice repairs, and Ive seen some trash, too. A quality shop doing quality repair work with quality parts puts out a quality product, just like anything else.

Wow, you really are smart, you just post stupid.

I wrote a similar few paragraphs at Canada on this very subject, almost to the word and I have had to repeat it hundreds of times to pissed off customers. Reading the declarations pages from your Insurance provider will usually help, but most people don't.
I've had a State Farm adjuster telling me that I had to fix a fender on a brand new car (2012 Toyo Prius) it was a few months after the guy bought it. I told that clown I was putting a new fender and not fixing it, because it was a new car and they were repeat, great customers. He argued that he was not, i told him whatever, pay to fix it, I'll take the loss and replace it. After he couldn't find one LKQ or aftermarket, he bought a new one.
Probably the thing that pissed me off the most, is I asked him if he worked at a shop and he said no, just went to college and SF's estimating program. I've been doing this shit for 30 yrs., fucking moron...

[joe50]

I've done my research. Sorry it doesn't match up with your ignorant opinion. They are top companies per their customer service ratings and amount of people insured.

You sir are the ignorant one. I have worked for all of them. Most people don't have a clue as to how their car is repaired. They just see it shine and go on. You must be one of those. You wouldn't know a crappy repair if it bit you in the ass. Customer service is just that. SERVICE. Not quality. A good blow job or waiving a deductible will make anybody happy.

[Denny]

You sir are the ignorant one. I have worked for all of them. Most people don't have a clue as to how their car is repaired. They just see it shine and go on. You must be one of those. You wouldn't know a crappy repair if it bit you in the ass. Customer service is just that. SERVICE. Not quality. A good blow job or waiving a deductible will make anybody happy.

Do you even know what that comment was about, dolt? He was asking how I came up with the list of top insurance companies. I showed him how that list was compiled. I never said they pay for their customers to get quality repair. No wonder you have "worked for all of them." As soon as you open your mouth, you're back in the unemployment line.

[line-em-up]

While we're on the subject. Where would you guys recommend to get a front clip for a mid-2000's Camry. My neighbor has one that is wrecked in the front. The fenders, hood, nose and whatever else in the front are damaged. I thought about seeing if he would sell it, but I don't want an unfixable money pit.

[Scott Mc]

Annnnnd Denny lands a huge hit!

[talisman]

Do you even know what that comment was about, dolt? He was asking how I came up with the list of top insurance companies. I showed him how that list was compiled. I never said they pay for their customers to get quality repair. No wonder you have "worked for all of them." As soon as you open your mouth, you're back in the unemployment line.

Isn't this the dumbshit that was pissed that an article about bsharers Fairmont in MM&FF didn't mention that he had painted it, and he wanted "proper credit"(he acted like Bryan wrote the damn article. lol)? I don't think I've ever seen an intelligent post out of him, he just goes into instant meltdown mode if anyone either vaguely disagrees, or just fails to remember him, apparently.

[kennybo]

You sir are the ignorant one. I have worked for all of them. Most people don't have a clue as to how their car is repaired. They just see it shine and go on. You must be one of those. You wouldn't know a crappy repair if it bit you in the ass. Customer service is just that. SERVICE. Not quality. A good blow job or waiving a deductible will make anybody happy.

Very true.

[joe50]

You said they were top. I stated why they weren't. You go ahead and purchase your insurance based on your research. If you ever really need that insurance then you will find out why I made that statement. I work in the collision industry. Therefore I could possibly work for all of those companies in one day. I have to listen to the people that get screwed by those insurance companies. I'm not unemployed. I have a wait list for vehicles to work on. I do quality repair. And yes I get upset if I do a damn nice job for someone and another tries to take credit for it. The people that don't understand are the ones that don't know how much work it takes to make a car look that good. Especially when it has been previously wrecked and the paint is over 20 years old.

[Mark Preus]

You said they were top. I stated why they weren't. You go ahead and purchase your insurance based on your research. If you ever really need that insurance then you will find out why I made that statement. I work in the collision industry. Therefore I could possibly work for all of those companies in one day. I have to listen to the people that get screwed by those insurance companies. I'm not unemployed. I have a wait list for vehicles to work on. I do quality repair. And yes I get upset if I do a damn nice job for someone and another tries to take credit for it. The people that don't understand are the ones that don't know how much work it takes to make a car look that good. Especially when it has been previously wrecked and the paint is over 20 years old.

I painted that car!!!

[BradM]

I painted that car!!!

Lol, whoops

[talisman]

I painted that car!!!

Oh dear.

[joe50]

Ok. Good for you. Mr. Prius

[Denny]

Ok. Good for you. Mr. Prius

So, he painted it, not you?

[Cobraman]

Oh dear.

lol

[Scott Mc]

Actually I painted it, under an awning, in a windy March storm. Not my best work, but eh....