Expert: William Forster - 1/3/2008

Question
Mr. Forster,
I have a BMW X5 that was recently in an accident.  The total cost of repairs is $30,000 and appears to include items which would indicate frame damage.  Specifically, there is language that says:
Repair of Radiator Supports
Panel Assembly INR FN LT repair and finish
Realign Control Points
Unibody Realignment
Pull Lt. Strut Tower
Pull Rt. Strut Tower

The most severe damage was to the front passenger side of the vehicle.  In your opinion, is the "frame realignment" a proper form of repair for this level of damage.  My initial thought was that the car should have been totaled.   

Thanks
Eric

Answer
Eric, repairing light damage to structure is far better than replacing it. I personally don't like to disturb factory welds and structure unless it's damaged beyond what I-car recommends. When a unibody is wrecked, simply replacing the bent pieces will result in a car with panels that won't align. The car is damaged in what is known as the cone principal. The initial point of contact is majorly damaged, but the damage traverses thru the vehicle, lessening in intensity as it goes through the structure. Sort of like a reverse shotgun blast. The unibody needs tweaked back into alignment to reverse the damage. A vehicle is totaled if the damage exceeds 75% of the vehicles value- 30,000 is a lot of damage. You might wanna check on it's blue book value. I can't do that for you here, I don't offer vehicle appraisals. Bill