Toyota Yaris Body Repair Questions

chris077

I damaged my toyota yaris 2007 radiator grille (section below hood and above bumper) when I hit a deer at night. Kindly advise how I can get it fixed economically. Is it advisable to get a refurbished spare from an auto body repair company? How can I locate a auto body repair company around Edison, NJ?

vjmango

Just purchased a 2007 Yaris liftback. Did not notice this during test drive(which I performed during daylight)...but there is a lot of distortion in the windshield....especially at night. I'm talking double vision kind of distortion. Oncoming headlights appear to be stacked, tail-lights, street-lights and traffic lights also appear to double up vertically. I have never experienced this in any windshield and am quite shocked to witness this in a new car. However, after googling "windshield distortion"....I discovered I am not alone and this is quite a widespread problem. It has been noticed in Corollas' as well as some Lexus'. Has anyone else witnessed this in a Yaris??? I believe proper vision is a safety issue and that Toyota should replace my windshield........any input out there??

lhanson

I have had my Yaris liftback for 10 months now and have never had a problem with the windshield and have never heard of anyone else with the problem you stated. If it is bad as you have stated, I am sure that it will be replaced under warranty.

brucepadgett

I have an '06 Corolla, and haven't noticed that kind of distortion (and I tend to get bothered by any type of problem). Take your Yaris back for repair.

jollyreaper

I'm annoyed. Had to park my Yaris at a crowded costco and some megatard in an SUV smashed the front right quarter with their door. It isn't just a scratch like someone opened it carefully, it's a proper dent. Ugh! Also have some other miscellaneous scratches. Is there any recommended way of taking care of this? It's such a young car, I hate for it to show age early.

lucynethel

Body Shop?

jollyreaper

That'd cost an arm and a leg though, right?

backy

Depending on the damage, a paintless dent removal place may be able to repair it 99% for a much lower cost. (I have used DentWizard on multiple cars and they did a good job.) Depends on the dent and also how much of a scratch there is and whether a touch-up would be acceptable to you. Otherwise I think you are looking at a body shop.

PF_Flyer

Since we don't have one, let's make this the start of a discussion to ask questions about Yaris body repair.

I'll rename it to reflect its new purpose!

fastrunner

I have found that Maaco is reasonable. Stop by and get a free estimate. That is a good start.

rhankins

I have a 2006 Toyota Yaris (4-door) and this has been the second time in less than a year that the back windshield has shattered. Has anyone had this problem; am I looking at repairing another windshield down the road? I'm really concerned. Each time, it has happened in the morning after closing the door. I thought it might be the heat, but the first time it happened it was in October on a cooler morning but around the same time at 7:45 am.

Any advice? I've taken it to the dealer for replacement, again.

R

PF_Flyer

Both times in the morning is probably coincidence, but since you mention that it has happened twice, do you think it's possible that your early morning door closings are harder than usual? Not that it's your fault at all! The rear window should be able to withstand normal operation of the door.
Just trying to think of possible causes as I doubt that temperature has anything to do with it. I suppose it's possible that there's some kind of stress on the glass from the frame that's being hit "just right" and causing the disaster.
What's your dealer saying? :confuse:

rhankins

I called Toyota to see if others are having this problem. They have not heard of this problem, but I'm giving them my information, but they have no other cases. Maybe there is a defect in the glass.

I've reported it, so if it happens again, then there is a tracking record.

Thanks

PF_Flyer

First I've seen it reported here, so I'm not thinking it's a widespread thing either. I had an issue with windshields on a pickup once. There was a crack in the windshield when I was looking at the truck, and the dealer replaced the windshiled when I purchased it. A couple of weeks later, the replacement cracked, so they replaced that one... and that one cracked. So when they did the final replacement, they figured out that the frame was putting a stress on the windshiled for some reason and they did a bit of careful grinding on the glass before they put it in, which eliminated the stress and the windshiled never cracked again.

Since it happened twice, I'm leaning towards some kind of minor deformation of the hatch that's stressing the glass. But that's just my two cents!

schwinner

I got my 07' with some bent/ broken plastic on the front. Looks like maybe it hit a parking block, there are some 3-4" cracks running up from the bottom. Luckily that whole front clip is the same plastic used to build snowmobile hoods, So I fixed it like one!
Step 1- Stop the Crack, take a 1/8th inch drill bit and drill a hole at the very end of the crack. This will give it a stopping point and keep it from spreading.

Step 2- More Holes, with same bit, go to the open end of the crack about 1/4" up from the edge of the clip, drill a hole 1/4" to the side of the crack then do this to the side directly opposite the crack. Move an inch up the crack and drill another pair of holes. Depending on the length of the crack do a pair of holes every inch.

Step 3- Stitch it Up, Using an 1/8th inch wide nylon zip tie (the good black ones) thread the tie in one hole and out the hole across the crack. Use pliers to pull the crack together tightly then snip off the extra.

Step 4- Stand back and admire your repair, Ideally you are going for kind of a "Fight Club" sort of look. Seriously, you can't see mine unless you kneel down and look, I'm confident the cracks will not grow anymore. Naturally you can use this repair as needed, It might be an emergency fix to let you finish a road trip with out breaking off more pieces or it can be a permenant repair for when the parking block is higher than you thought.Enjoy!

tuzo

Hello everyone.

I had a question about the frame of a Yaris. If I'm not mistaking, it has a uni-frame or something like that. What I was told is that if it is involved in a collision and if it sustains frame damage, that it can not be repaired to the condition it was in prior to the accident. I was also told that the entire frame would need to be replaced. Does anyone know about the frame for a Yaris and possible flaws related to the frame?

This is a reason I'm a little hesitant in purchasing one. Any help would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks,

backy

There is no "frame" per se as it is a unibody car--like almost every other vehicle sold today except for trucks and large SUVs. If the car is in a collision and sustains damage to the unibody, it is sometimes possible to repair the damage and there are machines designed for this purpose. I don't see how the "entire frame" could be replaced without replacing the car, pretty much.

As with any car, it can happen that a collision can total the car, because the cost of repair is more than the salvage value of the car (usually around 70% of its current value). Because the Yaris is inexpensive for a new car, it might be easier to total it than a more expensive car, just because repair costs can be high these days even for a minor collision. (And if the airbags go off, that adds $$$$ to the repair cost.) But this is not just for the Yaris, and should not keep you from buying one.

ttai

A coworker with a Yaris Hatchback was rear ended by a truck going 30 mph. The truck pushed him into the car in front of him. The yaris only sustained front and rear bumper damage. The body held so well, he said they only replaced the bumpers and the Yaris drives just fine. No squeaks or rattles. If you bought a Korean make, you won't do so well.

backy

I'm sorry, after seeing videos such as the NHTSA and IIHS crash tests, some of which are conducted at about 35 mph, and also the huge amount of damage that is caused by even low-speed rear-end collisions on much bigger, heavier vehicles, I am extremely skeptical that a Yaris, when hit by a truck going 30 mph, would sustain damage only to the bumper in the rear. Even ignoring the physics involved, it's likely the truck would override the Yaris' rear bumper.

Take a look at iihs.org, at the photos and videos of their low-speed rear end crash tests, and see how much damage is caused. Here is an example, of rear-end tests done on mid-sized cars at just 6 mph:

http://www.iihs.org/news/rss/pr030107.html

An excerpt:

Results were similar in the rear tests. Reducing the damage required the bumpers to engage the barrier and absorb the energy of the impact, but this mostly didn't happen. A relatively good performer in the full-rear test was the Hyundai Sonata. Its bumper did engage the barrier, and most of the damage was limited to the bumper (minor repair of the rear body panel also was required). Total damage came to $739.

Good bumper performance requires not only engagement with the test barrier but also strength sufficient to absorb the energy of a low-speed crash. Hyundai engineers strengthened the Sonata's bumper after learning about the Institute's upcoming series of new tests.

In contrast to the Sonata, the bumpers on other cars did slide under the barrier, and damage was much worse. The Chrysler Sebring, Nissan Altima, Volkswagen Jetta, and AURA sustained more than $3,000 damage apiece in the full-rear test.

Keep in mind, these tests were done at 6 mph--nowhere close to 30 mph.

ttai

...and yet it happened. Go figure.

backy

Does your co-worker have any photos of this miraculous event? Something like that is certainly worth posting on the Web for all to see, if not front-page news in your local paper. I would also think Toyota would be very interested to pick up the story for use in their marketing. You can't buy that kind of testament to crash safety.

As for what happened or didn't happen... it's one of those things I'd have to have proof of, given that it flies in the face of so much other evidence about how small cars fare in crashes with trucks at 30 mph. I am wondering if, as sometimes happens with stories, some of the details get, um, exaggerated as it is told. You know, like 5 becomes 10, then 20, then 30? Or maybe the truck was going 30 mph before it hit the brakes?

ttai

I'm sure his insurance took some pictures. But I'm not going to bother. I'll let you enjoy your hyundai while in the back of your mind you're thinking you're driving a death trap. harrharrr . Yaris rules.

backy

Hardly. My little car was hit broadside by a semi going at 72 mph a few months ago. Not only did I walk away without a scratch, the car sustained only a few nicks on the plastic side molding. The side airbag inflated, but--and I could hardly believe this--it retracted and recharged all by itself, all ready to go again. So the repair costs on the car were less than $100 (new molding). Yes, quite a car. Nearly as impressive as your co-worker's Yaris, wouldn't you say?

dake

This is my only fear with the Yaris, those acres of smooooooth, slightly curved door panels are just screaming for door dings - I know it's only a matter of time.

lhanson

You are right about that, I have one on each side of my car. It's pretty shocking when it first happens, but you eventually learn to live with it.

aquababe118

Hello,
So the airbag in the streering wheel of my 2007 yaris hatchback has been deployed so we bought a set consisting of an airbag, clockspring, seat belts and module. After replacing the module and clockspring, we tested the electrical current going through the steering wheel airbag connectors and found that there was still 4V of electricity going through them. Is it ok to reconnect the airbag or will it deploy due to this current? Should the seat belts be replaced aswell?

keenereck

Anybody had trouble w/Yaris sedan trunks leaking? I looked at a used 2007 sedan on a lot and the spare tire well had cuppa water in it. Dealer figured it was cause they pressure wash the cars, but I've got a 99 Nissan Sentra w/a trunk leak that won't quit. They did give me a neat idea w/talcum powder to spot to path in that I hadn't thought of, so it wasn't a total waste. Otherwise the car was fine.

dake

Well, there's a guy on the Echo forum that had a leaky trunk and traced it to a bad weld up by the bottom of the back window. He cleaned the area and caulked it and fixed the problem.

Try looking at the metal all around the trunk opening and see if you see any hairline cracks or rust that would be allowing water through.

yaris_1

My 2007 hatchback was recently hit and I am anxious to find out the extent of the damage. I was hoping someone here could give their opinion.

The car was hit on the front right wheel, the top of which is now leaning towards the center of the car. I am assuming the frame has also been damaged from the impact, but this has not been confirmed and it will be a few more days before the insurance guy will come to look at it so no one is saying anything yet. Below are links to pictures of the damage.

Wheel damage
close up

Thanks in advance!

chris077

Hi I was driving through the snowstorm Dec 7, 2009, and because of an accident ahead that completely stopped all traffic moving decided to take the backroads. A bad decision as the backroads were not ploughed. I ended up sliding sidewards at less than 5 mph and came to rest at an angle on the guard rail. The front passenger side bumper and fender got dented due to the weight of the car - no damage to wheel or mechanical parts. No damage to guard rail. No damage to engine or anything under the hood. I am looking for an economical way to get my car repaired. I am looking for any reliable and cheap body shops in Piscataway, Edison, New Brunswick area. Also, I am a handy person and am looking for where I can buy these parts - the bumper assembly including the upper and lower grilles, the front passenger side headlamp assembly, the front passenger side fender (quarter plate) and any associated parts. Thanks, Chris.

camry11

My 1986 Camry has an air conditioner that works fine EXCEPT when it rains. When it rains the air conditioner button blinks and only hot air comes out of the vent. What is the problem