Need to find a body shop that will work on a cobra

charlandk · #1 (**permalink**) 10-27-2010, 07:23 PM

I had an accident. It was a slow moving head on collision. (no one was injured) but the fiberglass body doesnt hold up well to even a minor front end hit. I am having trouble finding a place to make the repairs and the insurance company so far has been dragging their heels. Does anyone have any suggestions on a good place to bring my car in the mass, ct. area?

Thanks,
Kevin

patrickt · #2 (**permalink**) 10-27-2010, 07:32 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by charlandk

Does anyone have any suggestions on a good place to bring my car in the mass, ct. area?

Only one of the finest body shops for Cobras in the US. Connecticut Custom Car in Enfield, CT http://www.conncustomcar.com/index.htm

Justin O'Rourke · #3 (**permalink**) 10-27-2010, 09:41 PM

Cranston Auto Body, R.I. 401-943-0622 Many years of experience working on, building and maintaining Cobra's. Fiberglass and paint experts. Ask for Will Park (the owner).

mrmustang · #4 (**permalink**) 10-28-2010, 03:11 AM

I highly recommend Ron Randall

http://www.metal-morphous.com/

Ron has extensive experience with all brands of Cobra replicas.

Bill S.

mln385 · #5 (**permalink**) 10-28-2010, 05:21 AM

You are in Westfield, I had a minor mishap with mine regarding the rear trunk. Brought it to my local shop in Ware I have done business with over the years and it was fixed great.

Can you post pictures of the damage? I can attest to their workmanship and you could even view mine for minor fiberglass issues. If it is significant or reconstruction is needed I can't attest to it, however I would give them the opportunity. They will be up front if they can fix it or not.

Marc

mickmate · #6 (**permalink**) 10-28-2010, 05:49 AM

Does Vintage have anyone they recommend? I have a guy doing my fibreglass now that is very good. Let me know if you'd like to see what we're doing or discuss it.

Cashburn · #7 (**permalink**) 10-28-2010, 06:29 AM

I have been in contact with Kevin already. He basically needs a few estimates to get the process going with the insurance company. I think it would be good for him to share the insurance company name because they are not taking a very active role in getting his car fixed and the company is widely used on this forum.

Having dealt with a couple rebuilds in the last 2 years I can say their response is poor by other company's standards. And that includes the 3 month headache with All State on Dave P's car...

It's not a paint fix, it will require a full nose and other work.

charlandk · #8 (**permalink**) 10-28-2010, 09:16 AM

Thanks for the input all.
My accident was almost 4 weeks ago and the insurance company has not sent out an adjuster yet. They told me to find a place to tow it to and have them do the adjustments. I asked if they had any recommendations as to where I should tow the car so I wouldnt have to tow it to multiple body shops until I find one that will do their job for them. (Mid West Classic Car Insurance) They told me that it was my job to do that. Jay and Vintage have been helpful to me along the way. They are always available to answer any questions and offered me to have the car towed to them and they would help to make a list of what needs replacement and the costs of the parts needed. Thanks again Jay.

Patrick, Thanks for the information on Conn Classic Cars. Enfield is only about 20 minutes from me and they seem to have some experience so I will give them a call.

My front end has cracks and spider webbing that are through out the front fenders and there is damage as far back as about where the fenders reach the windshield. Cracks down where the side pipes exit the fenders also. Lost the radiator and oil cooler. The inside fender walls in the engine compartment are also cracked pretty bad.

patrickt · #9 (**permalink**) 10-28-2010, 09:39 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by charlandk

Patrick, Thanks for the information on Conn Classic Cars. Enfield is only about 20 minutes from me and they seem to have some experience so I will give them a call. .

It's a family owned business and Walt & Diane are absolutely wonderful to deal with. On a scale of 1 to 10, I give them a "10."

mln385 · #10 (**permalink**) 10-28-2010, 10:45 AM

I think you best option would be to find a good body shop willing to perform the work and deal with your insurance carrier. Sounds like you need a whole new nose which will requiring grafting in like the old vettes, this is a dying talent.

I wonder if a new body would be the Better route from BDR? Of course that would be at least a 6-8 week lead time but you could get it pre painted from them as well.

I don't live far from you I have an enclosed trailer with a winch if you need a hand give me a shout.

mickmate · #11 (**permalink**) 10-28-2010, 12:42 PM

From the damage you describe it sounds like a new nose at a minimum is the way to go. Anywhere it is cracked it should be cut right into from both sides and repaired with the same material it was built with. With spider cracking it really should be stripped and backlit to evaluate how far the problem has spread. The radiator and oil cooler spill their guts into the cracks and make them all but impossible to repair or bond anything to.

charlandk · #12 (**permalink**) 10-28-2010, 02:18 PM

Marc,
Thanks for the offer to lend a hand or use the trailer. I appreciate the offer. Since the front end is already smashed pretty bad, I will probably just have it towed since they cant do much more damage to it at this point.
It is amazing how many people on this site will jump to help one another. Great site and a great group of people.

Trueoo7 · #13 (**permalink**) 10-28-2010, 08:02 PM

They had these sitting in the BDR shop down in Florida back in July...

http://www.clubcobra.com/forums/atta...0&d=1279592438

Don · #14 (**permalink**) 10-28-2010, 08:57 PM

Walt @ Conn Custom Car is one of the shops that prepares Cobra bodies and paints them for ERA. Consider showing him some pictures etc. Excellent reputation

744 Enfield Street
Enfield, CT. 06082
Tel: (860)253-9553
Fax: (860) 745-5686
Email: walter@conncustomcar.com
Shop Hours: Monday - Friday (8:00am to 5:00pm)

http://www.conncustomcar.com/

mln385 · #15 (**permalink**) 10-29-2010, 05:27 AM

This brings a question to mind, anyone know how much an entire body would run from BDR? Painted and unpainted.

To me it would seem a better route to get an entire body put on rather than graft in a front clip, then you could sell the back half later.

Don · #16 (**permalink**) 10-29-2010, 09:47 AM

Kevin, just an aside, if you do visit Walt at Conn Custom, the building he is in was at one time a Studebaker dealership, might have been owned by his grandfather, but not sure. The family lived in the house next to the facility.

If you desire or are required by the insurance company to get another opinion/estimate another excellent shop in Enfield is Enfield Auto Restoration. They worked on my AMX and I would definitely returm. However, do not know if they have expertise with fiberglass.

http://enfieldautorestoration.com/

http://www.enfieldautorestoration.com/location/

Jon Abrahamson is the owner

kayakjack · #17 (**permalink**) 10-29-2010, 10:43 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Cashburn

I think it would be good for him to share the insurance company name because they are not taking a very active role in getting his car fixed and the company is widely used on this forum.

Having dealt with a couple rebuilds in the last 2 years I can say their response is poor by other company's standards. And that includes the 3 month headache with All State on Dave P's car...

I don't have a dog in this issue, but could someone enlighten me...

When you buy from someone like Mid West Classic Car Insurance I suppose Mid West acts as a middleman and places you with an insurance company that assumes the risk. Is that right?

Then if you get in an accident, do you deal with Mid West or the insurance company to get the $ to fix the car?

If you are insured with Allstate or someone like that, I assume you deal direct with them.

I don't know much about how this works. Hope I never need to.

Cashburn · #18 (**permalink**) 10-29-2010, 12:45 PM

Jack,
When these things occur it is different from one to the next. The better companies send a representative out right away or hire a third party adjuster to look at it and work with the owner and the repair shop to get things repaired in a suitable time.

Part of this process is to take your agreed value, subtract your deductible, subtract the work/parts needed, and make sure that number is higher than the number they get from the auction house that would sell it if they instead total it.

The reason it is important to share the name of the insurance company is because that is more important than what they quote you for a years coverage ... it's important to know how they handle a claim if you ever have this situation.

kayakjack · #19 (**permalink**) 10-29-2010, 01:37 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Cashburn

Jack,
When these things occur it is different from one to the next. The better companies send a representative out right away or hire a third party adjuster to look at it and work with the owner and the repair shop to get things repaired in a suitable time.

The reason it is important to share the name of the insurance company is because that is more important than what they quote you for a years coverage ... it's important to know how they handle a claim if you ever have this situation.

Thanks for the info. Would it be the agency who sold you the policy (say... Mid West) or the insurance company they placed you with that would send out the representative/adjuster? If you buy from an agency representing multiple carriers, does your binder come from the agency or the carrier?

I agree, I want to have confidence that the people insuring my car will pay without headaches if I need them. I wonder if there is a relationship between how much your premiums are and how many headaches you have?

Jack

patrickt · #20 (**permalink**) 10-29-2010, 01:40 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by kayakjack

Would it be the agency who sold you the policy (say... Mid West) or the insurance company they placed you with that would send out the representative/adjuster?

The insurance company.

Quote:

Originally Posted by kayakjack

If you buy from an agency representing multiple carriers, does your binder come from the agency or the carrier?

Generally it will come from the agency on behalf of the carrier, or from the carrier itself.

Quote:

Originally Posted by kayakjack

I wonder if there is a relationship between how much your premiums are and how many headaches you have?

There is not.