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How I saved Rs. 35,000 in running board repairs on my BMW 5-series

6th June 2023, 10:08 by Ananth Iyer

Since, I was not very sure, I decided to stay & check the work. He removed the side skirt, managed all sensors carefully, then an old fellow took a heat gun & softened the hanging fiber part.

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I bumped my 5 Series into a very low metal railing in a very crowded market in Noida & even though I was just parking & almost crawling, I got my driver side side skirt badly damaged & I was sure I had to get it changed. Attached picture for reference at the end of post.

Next Morning, I called BMW service center & I was quoted 40K for the side skirt & since it was just start of my Insurance, I did not want to give up 1 zero dep claim out of 2 at the start of the policy. So I asked them if they can repair it & they said, they can do it for 13K with some "Repair Kit" which I was not sure about.

I was happy with that but though about just checking some other options, I searched on Google about "Bumper repair shops" as it was a plastic part & found the shop named Lala Bumper Repair ( also known as S & D Automobiles) just opposite of my office.

I just went there to ask if they can repair it, I was not even driving that car so showed him picture & the person who attended me, said they can do it, I will need to show his brother ( who is knows as Lala) and he can definitely fix it properly. But I was not sure as I knew there will be sensors under the side skirts & was not sure if I should get it repaired like that.

Next day, I decided to get it done from BMW itself but since this shop was just few meters away from BMW Deutsche Motors Noida, I just went there to get it checked from the main guy.

Once he saw the damage, he was very sure that he can bring it back to the original shape & convinced me that he has worked on many luxury cars such as BMW, Mers, Audis and more. He also told me that his workshop can repair & paint it to make it just like new. Somehow, after seeing his confidence & as it was an external part, I decided to go for it, He initially quoted 6K for the job but later agreed on 5K which includes paint job too.

Since, I was not very sure, I decided to stay & check the work. He removed the side skirt, managed all sensors carefully, then an old fellow took a heat gun & soften the hanging fiber part. A different guy then did plastic welding to bring it back to original shape.

After that, they fully installed the side skirt to check the alignment which I found unnecessary first, but later I realized alignment can't be checked without installing the side skirt. They had to remove it once again to align it properly.

After this process, I came back to my office & he followed up with me on whatsapp & updated me about the progress. I was very impressed with overall work, his knowledge & professional behavior.

I gave my car around 11AM & got it back on same day 5.30PM.

Location

Things I Liked

Big Space, can accommodate good no. of cars & office to sit & check the work
Reasonable Pricing
Experienced staff with good knowledge of dealing with luxury cars
On time delivery

Things which can be improved

Since they don't have a paint booth, you may get some dust particles in paint
They did not do clear coat on top of paint which would be very good for the car.

I am attaching some pictures of damage, process & final result.