Expert: William Forster - 12/11/2006

Question
My 2004 lexus rx330 had the passenger side rear corner between the bumper and taillight dented during a parallel park.  The dent appeared to be purely cosmetic and was repaired by a non-dealer body shop.  About 4 months later, the car began to smell whenever there was a heavy rain.  Lexus (more or less) dismantled the car and found that a sum to the left of the dent, underneath some body molding had opened.  It does not appear as if the body shop and performed any work there as the paint was original.  The seam was opened about 1/2" along its length and raised about 1/4".  My question is, should the body shop have examined areas around the dent for damage?  Could this be indicative of a bad seam?  And if so, is there anyway to determine if the factory weld was bad?

Answer
Hello Judah! This is a car, it's made of metal, and  It's an imperfect world. When cars get dented, sometimes seams split, and welds pop. Just because it's  a Lexus, that doesn't make it exempt from the same problems an escort will experience. I can't see the dent, so it's hard for me to guage if the tech should have caught it. I'm going to guess that it was an honest mistake. Stop fretting about a split seam, and a single popped weld. I've seen cars that had radiator supports ripped from their mountings, and a single popped weld in a quarter panel hardly caused me concern. You were never in any danger, the car is structurally intact. The quarters offer very little strength in a car. Have the appropriate repair made, and let it go, my friend. It's just a minor problem. No need to make a mountain out of a mole hill. Bill