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Replacing 2018 hatchback rear bumper cover with 2016 sedan

2.1K views 6 replies 4 participants last post by  ruthlesset  
#1 ·
Hi, my 2018 Mazda 3 hatchback (white) was rear ended and the bumper needs to be replaced. The insurance company estimate states that they will be replacing the rear bumper cover it with one from a 2016 Mazda 3 sedan (white).

1. Are the bumpers the same?
2. Do you see any issues with the replacement from a 2016 sedan?
 
#3 ·
I did notice that the 2017 hatchback had an uplift and there are slight changes to the bumper cover. I called the shop (since this was the shop my insurance referred me to) that wrote the estimate and they told me that they this was just an estimate and they would be using the exact match bumper. Does anyone have any experience with this?

How reliable are the shops that your insurance recommends? The yelp reviews aren't bad.
 
#5 ·
I made this mistake a couple years ago. I still regret it.

My car looked good when it got back, but everything else was wrong. Premixed coolant was mixed again, thankfully I figured that out before it got cold. I think it was around -12C I measured.

The plastic splash tray under the engine bay was damaged. They tightened the bolts so hard they went through it.

The AC condenser was trashed in the accident, strangely less than a year later the new one started leaking. The compressor was also seized. Although I can't prove it, I suspect that they did the bare minimum by replacing only the condenser and there was metal debris in the system. I wasn't about to go back there, so I got to foot a bill of about $2500 CAD.

And the worst part? I did confront their manager on this nonsense. He didn't care. Tried to tell me that everything was just fine.

Never trust your insurance company. They will always go with the lowest bidder.
 
#6 ·
As others have said, the bumper covers are different. What is more disturbing is that it sounds like they quoted you for a used part. Insurance always restores the car to "factory" condition, and should only use new parts. There are exceptions for this, usually when the general condition of the car (unrelated to the accident) is very poor. This requirement for factory condition is why cars are totaled by insurance for seemingly minor accidents.

If someone else hit you and their insurance is trying to get you to use used parts, go get two other estimates for using new parts and tell their insurance to pay for real repairs.