it is normal?! back panel is pretty deformed

[Eugen E90]

Hi,
I'm new here and a relatively new BMW owner (1year). I have a 2011 328i xdrive. Unfortunately, last may I've had an accident to the left rear corner. I went to a dealer to repair the car and they've sent me some pictures taken during the reparation. In one picture I've seen that the back panel is pretty deformed. The one beside the bumper. The dealer tells me that this is normal, the car comes like that from the factory. It is true?
Did anyone take off the rear bumper? How did the panel looked?
Thanks.

[Pelican Parts]

Hello and welcome to the forum - are you able to post the picture that you go from the dealer? It'll be easier for members to comment on this.

[Eugen E90]

Hello and welcome to the forum - are you able to post the picture that you go from the dealer? It'll be easier for members to comment on this.

I would love to, but I don't know how, since I have it only on my computer.
Can you tell me how? Thanks.

[TutorMonster]

Take a photo on your phone and email it to yourself. Upload it from your computer

[Pelican Parts]

I would love to, but I don't know how, since I have it only on my computer.
Can you tell me how? Thanks.

Since your post count is low, I don't think that this forum will let you post images directly until your post count increases. Try loading them into Flickr or any photo site and add the link to them.

[Eugen E90]

SinceI'm not good in computers, I've just "succeeded" to delete my original post!! So, I'll post it again:

Hi,
I'm new here and a relatively new BMW owner (1year). I have a 2011 328i xdrive. Unfortunately, last may I've had an accident to the left rear corner. I went to a dealer to repair the car and they've sent me some pictures taken during the reparation. In one picture I've seen that the back panel is pretty deformed. The one beside the bumper. (See the picture attached) The dealer tells me that this is normal, the car comes like that from the factory. It is true?
Did anyone take off the rear bumper? How did the panel looked?
Thanks.

ps. And I also have put a picture on Flickr.

https://www.flickr.com/photos/150497...otolist-Vr3T9L

[shogun]

Your original post is still there, you just did not see it, as it must be approved by a mod for a newbie, that is our spam-o-matic system. The link to the pic I removed as it did not work in your first post.
After you got 10 posts, you can direct upload pics and you can try that in our test forum also https://www.bimmerforums.com/forum/f...hp?123-Testing
Test your signatures, pictures, images and everything else here.

The Flickr pic I also cannot access: Page Not Found, Oops! Looks like you followed a bad link.

[Eugen E90]

https://www.flickr.com/photos/150497...otolist-Vr3T9L

[georgebuhr]

I work in a collision shop,and we have done a few bmws. Definitely does not look factory. There are some deformities there, and it looks like they covered up some stuff with seam sealer as well. What I would really like to see is a straight shot of the rear body panel( the panel you trunk lid striker is bolted to). It honestly looks like it should have been replaced.

Just because it's at a dealer does not mean you are getting the best repair, collision work is a whole different world compared to mechanical, and there are a lot of hacks out there, and plenty of those hacks work at dealerships as well as independent shops.

I'm curious if you went through an insurance company to do the repairs, and if so which one is paying for them? At any rate, make sure you get a copy of the final bill when you pick up the car, as well as a warranty in writing. Find an independent inspector and have them look at the car to see if the work that was billed was actually performed, and if more work was needed that wasn't done.

The reason why that is important, is for one thing you could have seams in the back there that are busted loose that could leak. This could lead to rust issues. Even worse is if something is not safe and someone could get hurt if you have a wreck again.

Not trying to scare you, but it seems as though you already don't trust the shop. Maybe paying them a visit and looking at your car would be a good idea.


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

[Eugen E90]

I work in a collision shop,and we have done a few bmws. Definitely does not look factory. There are some deformities there, and it looks like they covered up some stuff with seam sealer as well. What I would really like to see is a straight shot of the rear body panel( the panel you trunk lid striker is bolted to). It honestly looks like it should have been replaced.

Just because it's at a dealer does not mean you are getting the best repair, collision work is a whole different world compared to mechanical, and there are a lot of hacks out there, and plenty of those hacks work at dealerships as well as independent shops.

I'm curious if you went through an insurance company to do the repairs, and if so which one is paying for them? At any rate, make sure you get a copy of the final bill when you pick up the car, as well as a warranty in writing. Find an independent inspector and have them look at the car to see if the work that was billed was actually performed, and if more work was needed that wasn't done.

The reason why that is important, is for one thing you could have seams in the back there that are busted loose that could leak. This could lead to rust issues. Even worse is if something is not safe and someone could get hurt if you have a wreck again.

Not trying to scare you, but it seems as though you already don't trust the shop. Maybe paying them a visit and looking at your car would be a good idea.


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

I don't have another picture. Only this one. The dealer sent it to me. Since it was the second time that I was returning the car because I wasn't pleased with the repair, they sent this picture to show me how "well" they've worked this time.
The insurance company have already paid the job. I was OK with that because I didn't want to go back to this dealer anymore.
Anyway, I have sent a letter to BMW Canada and told them the whole story. Which is much longer. Now I wait for their response.

[georgebuhr]

Yeah something definitely smells fishy. I wonder if BMW would be willing to inspect it?

I'm also curious if you picked the shop out yourself or did the insurance company recommend them?

[Eugen E90]

It's me who picked this dealer. I've thought that by choosing a BMW authorized dealer will have the best service. I was wrong.
The insurance company was very nice. They've tried to help me with this problem.
Now I wait for a response (phone call from a supervisor) from BMW Canada.