Two body repair quotes: dramatically different pricing

[bhlackey]

I was stupid and had something fall on my truck. It landed on the left 'hip' for a 4" gouge and a couple of small dents. Probably the best thing to do is leave it (it's what my wife says), but it bugs me, so I went and go two quotes. Both are from Certified Rivian repair shops. One is $1950 and the other is $4350.

The expensive one seems insane as they want to remove the frunk tub to disconnect the 12V and then also disconnect the high voltage. Which seems excessive as there is no welding. I'm terrible at reading these. What is the cheap one missing that I need to ensure that they do? I might be able to swing the $2k, but want to know if I'm missing something. The cheaper one works with the service center a lot. They seem to have a ton of experience which is good. But I'm afraid that they'll do something cheap and like blend the clear coat (which Rivian is very against https://oem1stop.com/sites/default/files/Rivian_POS_Clearcoat-Blending_Revised(7-27-23).pdf) or miss something important.

Any ideas/suggestions/help?

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[jrmbadger]

I'd buy Touch up paint from the Gear shop first and do my best to make it look a little less noticeable. You may find that it doesn't bug you afterwards and you've saved yourself some money.

 

[UnsungZero_OldTimeAdMan]

The expensive one seems insane as they want to remove the frunk tub to disconnect the 12V and then also disconnect the high voltage. Which seems excessive as there is no welding.

They were probably following Rivian's very conservative guidance to the letter. Rivian tends to be very conservative, to aggressively limit their liability.

Is there a dent? A PDR specialist can probably get it out. As for paint, any touch-up specialist can probably fill, blend and polish it. Some PDR specialists do both. I would look on Yelp to see who is in your area (and what they've done) and start making calls/visits to get their opinion. Damage looks too minor for full-on body shop work.

 

[portdirect]

100% PDR and touch up paint this - will it be perfect? Probably not. Will it be better, cheaper and less hassle than what’s on those invoices? absolute certainty.

Think of it as the 1st notch of hopefully many more to come.

 

[SwaziCAR]

$2,000? Leave it for now.

 

[hammick]

I'd buy Touch up paint from the Gear shop first and do my best to make it look a little less noticeable. You may find that it doesn't bug you afterwards and you've saved yourself some money.

I agree. Touchup paint and maybe see what the dent removal guys can do. It's a truck. That being said I'd be really upset if that happened to my new truck.

 

[Riviot]

I'd buy Touch up paint from the Gear shop first and do my best to make it look a little less noticeable. You may find that it doesn't bug you afterwards and you've saved yourself some money.

Concur. My little giant ladder slipped out of my hands while taking it off the wall hook, left this beauty. I touched it up since and leave it as a reminder to slow down and take a breath.

Also, it's a truck. Treat it like one.

 

[CharonPDX]

Just adding to the choir - PDR plus touch-up-paint should be good enough.

But I'm also in camp "it's a truck" and haven't bothered repairing any of my dents/dings/scratches yet. (I'll only bother repairing if it's on a surface that would rust given the damage. I got a ding in my tailgate day 1 of ownership, accidentally dropping the tailgate on my trailer's jack thinking I had clearance, only to discover I was wrong by about 1/4 inch.)

 

[CrazyOne]

Wife hit a cart rail at Target. I left it alone. I don't care about dings on that side now .

Try some rubbing compound and polish. Buffing should make the scratch blend into the paint. I can't tell from picture if clear coat was removed or not. If it was, use touch up paint and some YouTube tutorials. If you are not satisfies, you can always give it to the pros for repainting.

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