Mazda CX-7 Body Work and Repair

astegman

Well, it happened - I got into an accident yesterday morning. No injuries, thank goodness, but I need a new bumper. When I brought the car in to the auto body shop, they also noticed a big ding on the passenger side front door (unrelated to the accident; perhaps a supermarket parking lot type of incident?). So that will need some repair as well.

Has anyone yet had body work done to their CX-7? If so, how did it go? I am hoping that the repair place will not have major problems in obtaining a new bumper. I must say, they were excited to check out the car, they hadn't seen one yet.

The other car in the accident, an old Nissan Sentra, had to be towed - was in much worse shape. I must say, the CX-7 is a tough cookie. I was able to drive away and the car seems fine (other than looking a little crappy up front!). Not that I felt the car was flimsy or anything, but now I really feel it's a good, solid vehicle that can withstand a lot.

carlitos92

Bummer. It sucks to be the guy testing those waters... Good luck & let us know how it goes.

I've got only one door ding so far, but it just HAD to be on the driver's side!

-c92

vbbuilt

Thank God, you're OK! I'm sure you'll have a like-new car!

Typically, they'll also have to repaint a good chunk of the vehicle, cuz the colors applied to the new parts, won't exactly match the colors on the other adjacent, unaffected panels. So, they'll have to paint the side panels, too.

I'm not surprised that the Sentra was crippled...it's so much smaller than the CX-7. That's like an antelope buttin' heads with an elephant :P

I know this will happen eventually, but CX-7 is going to butt heads with a larger vehicle (truck or SUV). I don't want to see any one hurt, but it'll be interesting to see how tuff the CX-7 really is.

Once again, I'm glad you aren't hurt (bad case of rattled nerves, huh?)

Vince.

wjbushsr

Wow... we all feel your pain on this one, and are truly happy you walked away.

When I had a wreck in my 02 Camry, I really felt like it would be a hard match on the color, {sandlewood}, but they did. It worked out well enough that you couldn't tell that it was ever hit on the rear bumper, so take heart that it will most likely match.
Good luck with your "turbo-tank"!

astegman

Thanks for everyone's good wishes! I truly appreciate it. The other driver was a high-school aged girl, about 17. She called her mom, who showed up and laced into this kid big-time. I truly felt bad for the daughter.

Anyway, no one was hurt but it was upsetting and a bit scary. My heart was racing this morning when I drove that way again (it's part of my daily commute to work). And now I feel a bit paranoid - I look at every oncoming car like it's a deathmobile! :P It will subside, I'm sure. But in 28 years of driving, this is only my second accident. I'm very lucky.

The auto body shop I'm using is excellent. They took amazing car of my husband's car 2 years ago when he hit a deer. I'm sure they'll do right by me, and I'm confident they'll get the colors to match. I'm dropping the car off on Feb.19th (that was the soonest they could take me, and they have to order the new bumper anyway), so until then, I have to drive around with a less-than-beautiful car But afterwards, it will be like having a new car all over again!

stever

Tis a bummer. :sick:

Please posts some pics on your CarSpace page (people love the before and after stuff).

If you ever see the Sentra mom again, here's a link for her daughter:

Defensive driving school for teens

bigfur

If they were to just replace and paint the bumper cover the paint may not match perfectly, but if you look at new ones on the lot very closely they dont match either. They are painted at different times sometimes in different buildings. As far as the door ding, might be able to do some paintless dent repair on it so no new color would be needed. If they do paint the door they will probably blend the paint into the old paint so you cant notice a difference. Should also note i used to work in auto body so im not just talking out of my...well you know

maltb

I once had the bumper repaired on my Mazda6 after I was backed into. When I went to pick up the repaired car, I spotted from 50 feet away that the paint didn't match. The body shop then told me that they couldn't find the paint code for the silver Mazda6 in their system so they used the Mazda3 silver (not realizing they are different plants using paint suppliers from half way around the world). So, the paint wasn't even close and nobody bothered to even look at the car before they gave it back to me. Needless to say, they had to do the job over. I didn't care; the rental was nice. However, they haven't gotten a single recommendation from me.

bigfur

All they need to do is find the paint code on the door and cross reference it in a paint book. If they cant find it your supposed to get close and tint the paint from there.

maltb

Which is what they did the second time around. They ended up taking the fuel door to their paint supplier for a match.

What shocked me is that:
1) they made the assumption that silver would be the same between models; and
2) nobody (including the painter) bothered to look at the completed job. It was clearly visible close up as well as from a distance.

nmk

Came out of a supermarket in a shopping center and found a small ding on the driver's side door. :mad:

Must have been made by the car next to mine when the driver got into that car.

Seems silly that should have happened. Oh well, does anyone know if this can be corrected?

Darth Vader Grey GT AWD w/Tech Package

carlitos92

The best way to correct it is to break out a window of the car you suspect left the ding (if they're still there.)

Do that to enough people, and behavior in your town will change for the better!

vbbuilt

Frustrating as hell, but that's the price we all live with, living in congested urban areas.

I take great care, trying NOT to ding cars sitting next to me, but occasionally, with strong wind gusts, the door is literally yanked out of my grip and the door is thrown against the neighboring car. Not much I can do about that.

I've got a couple little dinky dings on my sides, too.

I suppose I can park far enough out in the parking lot, to get away from all of the other cars. But then I'd have to put on some hiking boots to get into the store :P

Oh, the inconveniences we have to live with.

Vince.

astegman

nmk, my car's going in for repair this coming Monday the 19th - after having been in an accident last week, I need a new bumper. While at the repair shop getting the estimate, etc., they also noticed a big ding on the passenger's side - unrelated to the accident. They'll first try to pop it out but if that's not successful, I was told they'll order a new skin for the door. So yes, I would assume that your ding can be fixed one way or the other.

maltb

Do that to enough people, and behavior in your town will change for the better!

Do write from prison, will you?

carlitos92

"Do write from prison, will you?"

Hardly.

And Vince, living in a congested area might be the root of the problem, but I think it really boils down to lack of respect for other people's property - whether it's by malice, ignorance, or just lack of control over the rugrats getting out of the Suburban parked next to you. It's just plain rude - especially to ding a car with dealer tags on it.

Sometimes it makes me want to drive around a '77 Toronado held together by duct tape, just so it won't matter...

vbbuilt

"And Vince, living in a congested area might be the root of the problem, but I think it really boils down to lack of respect for other people's property - whether it's by malice, ignorance, or just lack of control over the rugrats getting out of the Suburban parked next to you. It's just plain rude - especially to ding a car with dealer tags on it."

I agree with you wholeheartedly! A very aggravating problem! Sometimes, it's a nasty wind gust (like I mentioned earlier). Others, it's someone trying to shoe-horn an extra large vehicle (like a Suburban or a Tahoe), into a space meant for smaller car and leaving scant inches to open a door. Or some joker, who doesn't know how to pull into a parking spot and pulls in at an angle, forcing every around him, to park in a similar manner.

Nice chatting! Vince.

bigfur

Look for companies in your area that do paintless dent repair. If its a small door ding they can usually pop them out for about 50 bucks.

vbbuilt

I had a dent in my Hyundai. No other damage and the paint wasn't scraped. Looked like someone just took their fist to it. Anyway, a friend came over with a toilet plunger, put some spit around the plunger edges, applied it over the dent, created a seal, and then pulled the plunger. That dent disappeared. I was amazed at how simple that little trick was!

Vince.

bigfur

There are thousands of tricks like that out there. Only thing to be careful of is if the clear coat got cracked pulling out. If so rust could start there easily.

astegman

Dropped my CX-7 off at the body shop yesterday, to begin the repair (new bumper, new door skins). Enterprise picked me up, just as their commercials say they do, and I'm now in possession of a large Durango. So far, so good.

Well, the shop calls me at work this morning to tell me that although they have the bumper, they don't have the door skins. Apparently, Mazda won't even have any to ship for another 2 weeks. Thus, they (the body shop) wanted me to come get my car and bring it back when the skins arrived so that they could repair everything at the same time. I said no. They've got the bumper and my car - fix it. It's a HUGE hassle for me to pick up my car and return the rental and seeing as I busted my butt yesterday to do so, I was in no mood to do it all again in reverse. I'm so angry at my insurance company I could spit (USAA; their idea to suspend repair until the skins come in). Maybe I'm being irrational but I can't help it. I realize they want to do all the paint work at the same time, but...I don't care.We'll see how it goes.

In the meantime, I did take pix of the busted bumper and will try to post same in the next few days. I guess the only bright spot is that Mazda told the body shop that the car's so popular they can't keep the parts in stock. Does that mean that CX-7 drivers are smashing up their new cars that quickly??

nmk

Does that mean that CX-7 drivers are smashing up their new cars that quickly??

No, it only means that other cars are drawn to it with great passion because it is soooooo attractive!! :shades:

Darth Vader Grey etc. etc....

maltb

They must not be telling you the complete story. There are plenty of doorskins out there, but complete doors are in short supply depending on the vehicle production date/vin code. If you care to post the last 6 of the vin I can verify that for you.

astegman

Hmm, interesting, maltb.

Here are the last 6 digits of my car's VIN:

117030

It is very possible that the woman from the body shop said "door" meaning, "complete door" and I just assumed she meant a skin. I don't know. But any info you have would be much appreciated.

bigfur

Unless the reinforcing bar in the door was damaged i highly doubt they would replace the whole door. If i remember correctly you said there was a dent in the door, nothing huge. That to me would just be cause for a door skin not a full shell. Should call them just to confirm what they are doing.

robert52

Ran my new cx7 (1 month old) to the do it yourself car wash the other night, to get some of the salt off, after all the snow we have had. I washed the wheels and tires and took the wand and sprayed around the wheel well and black paint started coming off, revealing the white paint of the body. Not a huge deal, but a little surprising in 2007. Anybody else seen this yet.

maltb

I assume we are talking about the left door as the wait looks to be about a month. If your dealer has already ordered the part, they likely have a more accurate ETA.

Good luck.

carlitos92

Was that black paint, or rustproofing? Be careful.

vbbuilt

carlitos, do you think that might be something that falls under warranty repair? Seems strange that a high-pressure water spray would so easily remove that material. Every car wash I've been to, has that undercarriage spray. I wonder if robert52 problem was a fluke or if there's a genuine problem that's been uncovered (pardon the pun)

Vince.

astegman

I assume we are talking about the left door as the wait looks to be about a month

No, the damage is to both passenger doors. I will be checking in with the auto body shop by week's end, to see how they're doing with the bumper. Yes, hopefully they'll have a better sense of when the doors / skins will be available, at which time I'll bring the car back for Phase II. :sick:

carlitos92

"do you think that might be something that falls under warranty repair?"

Man, it BETTER be! :surprise:

That being said, I guess none of us know what has really been removed by the spray, or what the finish is that he's seeing underneath, but I'd be concerned. When I was putting on my mud flaps, I remember seeing what I thought was a rustproofing "mastic" - thick (looking) stuff that was maybe "troweled" on in the wheel wells... If that's getting blown away, what's left under there to protect from salt, etc?

astegman

Ha!!
Just got a call from the body shop. The Mazda parts man supposedly was not talking about the CX-7 when he said the door panels were back-ordered; he mixed it up with some other Mazda model. Turns out now that they are suddenly readily available. Gee, what a coincidence!!

Also, upon closer inspection, the car also needs a new left headlight, which will take 4-5 days to get. So all told, they're hoping to have everything - bumper; door panels; headlight - done some time next week. Hallelujah.

Meanwhile, I'm getting the hang of driving the behemoth Durango. What a boat! But so far, so good, even on the curvy, narrow Merritt Parkway (Connecticut). But wow, it makes me miss my CX-7 like crazy.

gonadz

It's been over 3 weeks now since the local Mazda dealer submitted a request to Mazda for a delivery date on a new, replacement driver door for our CX-7. As of today, no reply from Mazda, and if a firm delivery date was given they tell me it would take 30 days to get it. UNBELIEVABLE! Less than 1,000 miles on the car, lost traction going less than 15mph on ice, damaged the right side, over $2,500 claim. I finally told the body shop to put the original door back on, put the glass in the repaired back panel, prime and I'll pick it up. Who knows when the door will get there so they can complete the paint / repair. This could go on forever!

astegman

How can I include the pictures of my car right here in the body of this post? I've uploaded them from my camera to my computer, but I don't know how to get them to appear here.

Edited to add: I've now put the pictures of the damage on MyCarSpace. Not sure if I need to provide a link to it (if so, how?), or if people can just click on my user name to get there.

carlitos92

Not sure how to link to it either, but I clicked your name and got to your page, and thus, your album. Worked fine.

It sucks seeing such a new car mangled. Though, I don't feel too bad about my door ding now! Is the wheel messed up, too, or is that just dirt?

stever

You can also go to CarSpace.com and add the member name to the end to get there, like http://www.carspace.com/astegman.

astegman

I am embarrassed to admit that the car was FILTHY beyond belief...nothing wrong with the wheel.

I was dying to have the car washed but was afraid to take it through a car wash and possibly cause more damage (assuming they'd let me even go through). Also, the roads are in such bad shape right now - between the salt, the sand, and now the melting mush - that it's an exercise in futility to have a car washed.

astegman

Picked my car up from the auto body shop at 7:30 this morning. It just figures that it happened to be raining extraordinarily hard - like, monsoon-type/nor'easter-type rain. So I didn't really even have the chance to inspect the work that closely. I'll look it over after work - the weather's cleared and it's sunny now.

I am so paranoid about anything or anyone coming near the car, after all this work to it. Didn't realize just how much I really missed driving it these past 2 weeks til I got behind the wheel - MUCH better than the rental car (Durango). Whew!!

bgradams1

Does anyone know how to remove the bottom rear seat? I asked the service manager at my local dealer and also called the Mazda 800 # with no luck. I would like to remove the seat bottom when I have to transport my dog.

Thanks

vbbuilt

Wow, you must have a really big dog if you need to mod the car like that! :P

If the dog is that big, why buy a CX-7?

Vince.

stever

Maybe it's the claws that are the issue. :shades:

bgradams1

I've always removed the rear seat bottom of any other vehicle that I've owned when taking the dog to the vets. And you're correct - it's the claw thing and also the fact that I lease my vehicles - it keeps them cleaner. Most rear seat bottoms can be removed and reinstalled in a matter of a few seconds by releasing whatever holding mechanism is holding the seat down. I haven't been able to figure it out and according to the dealer's manuals - it isn't mentioned at all. I was hoping someone here might know the secret. Thanks (Larry)

maltb

There should be two bolts holding the seat cushion at the fold point as pictured.

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bgradams1

Thanks - I'll take a look at it this weekend. (Larry)