Appraisal/Body Work Recommendations?

[barrylevine]

I rear-ended someone yesterday; I was in a line-up at a light, then we were moving, but the guy in front stopped suddenly, and I didn't catch the change fast enough. It seemed I whacked him pretty hard, and my airbag went off. When we got out and inspected, the other car didn't seem to have any damage at all. My front plastic panel was dislodged and cracked, and rubbing the tires. I pulled over into a nearby donut shop lot, and pulled it back into position, then drove home 22 miles without any problem. It was night, and I have no garage, so I waited until this morning for a good look. It's a lot worse than I thought.
There's a steel bumper behind that front plastic that took a nice hit, dented in 1-2 inches, and some metal behind it also, and where the bumper is mounted on the right is pushed in also. The windshield reservoir is cracked somewhere, fluid drains right out. However, I see no coolant fluid in the driveway, so it looks like the radiator and its connections escaped damage.

The car (2016 iMiev) seems driveable, and I hope fixable. The blue-book site shows used 2016 models run about $8-9,000, so I think it won't be totaled, but can't be sure, considering that dealers have a captive market as far as what is charged for parts and labor. I have a local guy I'd like to use rather than the dealer, though, if possible.

One question I have is how this affects the warranty, also whether non-dealer repair would void the warranty.

I'm also considering some DIY on this, depending on what the insurer tells me. The main thing is putting in a new airbag, and making sure it'll work properly. Not sure how strict inspections are either. That inclination is probably a hold-over from when cars were simpler, and I used to get under the hood.

I'm happy to hear any comments.

 

[JoeS]

Can't help, but here's an anecdote:

I have a friend in NOLA who had a fairly minor hit on the front end (someone made a left turn in front of him) of his 2016 i-MiEV and, after repeatedly trying to get it fixed, he eventually gave up and took the insurance money. The bumper and bumper cover damage was minimal IMO but added up to around $10K(!), but he was told that the airbag deployment mandated replacement of the dashboard (!) and that was unobtainable from Mitsubishi. He drove the car around for a few weeks after the accident with no problems (other than the airbag light?). I was away on a trip during this time and we miscommunicated as I would have bought this otherwise pristine low-mileage i-MiEV, which got junked and disappeared. BTW, my friend replaced the i-MiEV with a Bolt.

Have no idea about how warranty coverage would be affected.

 

[barrylevine]

Thanks JoeS

It sounds like my i-miev would get totaled based on your anecdote. That there were so few sold in the U.S. doesn't help as far as junkyard parts.

I don't understand that bit about replacing the entire dash if the airbag has deployed, it has an odor of scam, but isn't the whole system one huge scam? Replacing the steering wheel airbag looks rather simple, if it's at all like the Mitsubishi Galant - just 2 torx screws: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ErXKzZ0obzA
There is also a matter of the sensors, and resetting the associated computer.

 

[Don]

If the pax airbag didn't deploy, I'm sure what you have is fixable . . . and you can probably do some of it yourself. Pretty sure you can find a used airbag from another Mitsubishi vehicle, as the steering wheels are the same

My wife was hit by an F-150 that pulled out in front of her - She had her right turn signal on and was in the right turn lane approaching an intersection and this guy *thought* her turn signal meant she was going to pull into the restaurant he wanted to pull out of, so he basically drove right into her path at the last second

The damage to our car was confined to the front passenger side - Headlight, fog light, front bumper cover and the steel bumper behind the bumper cover. No airbag though. Like you, I popped the bumper cover away from the tire and we drove it home. The son of a close friend owns a body shop and we took it there for repairs. Our insurance company wrote up the estimate, which had to be expanded when it was found the inner steel bumper need to be replaced. The other guys insurance paid for the repair and it came to $3,500. We were without the car for 2 weeks, but didn't get a rental as we have plenty of cars to drive

Don

 

[barrylevine]

Thanks for the info.
It looks like a new airbag can cost another thousand, if new.
Folks are selling used, but I'll bet many are withdrawn Takata rejects.
I wonder where your guy found an inner steel bumper. Off a wreck? From Japan?

 

[Don]

I wonder where your guy found an inner steel bumper. Off a wreck? From Japan?

Probably from Japan - Thinking back, it might have been 3 weeks or even a bit more before we got the car back

I would do an airbag search to see which Mitsu cars had Takata recalls and then maybe source a used one not on that list online from a wrecker for half or less if you're at all worried about the car being totaled. Then, you can change it out yourself before you take it in for the repair estimate . . . . though, you may find that there could be another part which must be replaced because the airbag blew

Don

 

[barrylevine]

I would do an airbag search to see which Mitsu cars had Takata recalls and then maybe source a used one not on that list online

That is a great suggestion. I bolded "not" for clarity. I found the list, which I'll append in case other members need to find a replacement airbag.
Source: https://www.nhtsa.gov/equipment/takata-recall-spotlight

Airbags recalled on these models:

2012 Mitsubishi i-MiEV
2014 Mitsubishi i-MiEV
2016-2017 Mitsubishi i-MiEV
2004-2007 Mitsubishi Lancer
2004-2006 Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution
2004 Mitsubishi Lancer Sportback
2006-2009 Mitsubishi Raider

 

[Don]

I *think* the 2012 iMiEV airbag recall (and possibly the 2014 too) was just for the passenger side and not the drivers airbag . . . . at least that's what they changed on my 2 cars when the recall came out. Don't know if there's a way to differentiate that on the government list or not

Don

 

[JoeS]

A few years ago, after a garage support structure column at a local market jumped out and bit the right front bumper of 'my' i-MiEV that my wife had borrowed, our forum community provided a lead for a worldwide parts source which also contains an Illustrated Parts Breakdown (IPB). Here's the link to our Tech/Ref (read only) post:

http://myimiev.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=19&t=3004#p26197

Just checked it, and that UAE link is still good and shows our i-MiEV parts details. Note that hovering the mouse arrow on top of the item without clicking highlights the item in the bill of materials as well.

Unfortunately, I could not find anything dealing with airbags, although they show all the seat belt hardware.

When I ordered a few small plastic parts they were very inexpensive and arrived just a couple of days after I ordered them.

 

[barrylevine]

I *think* the 2012 iMiEV airbag recall (and possibly the 2014 too) was just for the passenger side and not the drivers airbag

I just looked at my receipt from this, and you are correct - ONLY the passenger side airbag was switched for a new one.

 

[barrylevine]

I have a question re the windshield washer reservoir (mine apparently got cracked in the accident, as it has a fast leak now).

There was no separate listing for it at the PartSouq website (what a great resource), and it appears to actually be part of the cooling fan shroud in that illustration. Nor can I see any way of detaching it.

Is that the case (has anyone has replaced the fan shroud?)

Thanks all.

 

[barrylevine]

Just an update: Not so easy as in the video to remove the IMIEV's airbag.
At least on my 2016 model, I find that the airbag assembly appears to be retained by 2 phillips tamper-resistant screws (they have a center pin, and require a special bit.)

I don't know if this is typical of recent Mitsubishi cars or idiosyncratic to the imiev.

 

[barrylevine]

Replacing the steering wheel airbag looks rather simple, if it's at all like the Mitsubishi Galant - just 2 torx screws:

It is the same. At first I couldn't find the L. side torx at first because the steering has to be straightened out for both screws to be visible. Duhh!

 

[Don]

Are they really Phillips head, or (more likely) tamper proof Torx screws?? The make 'tamper proof' Torx screws which have a little pin in the center, so a standard Torx bit won't fit. The special tamper proof Torx bits have a hole drilled in the center to accommodate that little pin. You can buy a set of the bits fairly cheaply from Lowes or maybe NAPA. They come in the same sizes as regular Torx bits - T-10, T-15, T-20 etc. Ask if you're unsure

Don

 

[barrylevine]

Are they really Phillips head, or (more likely) tamper proof Torx screws?? The make 'tamper proof' Torx screws which have a little pin in the center, so a standard Torx bit won't fit. The special tamper proof Torx bits have a hole drilled in the center to accommodate that little pin. You can buy a set of the bits fairly cheaply from Lowes or maybe NAPA. They come in the same sizes as regular Torx bits - T-10, T-15, T-20 etc. Ask if you're unsure

Don

Actually, they are regular torx screws. At first I couldn't find the L. side torx at first because the steering has to be straightened out for both screws to be visible. Duhh! Pulled off the old airbag this a.m.
* * * *
Here is a list of Mitsubishi cars with what appears to be the same driver side airbag configuration as the IMIEV. I looked up images of various Mitsu cars interiors on Google, and it was pretty obvious which airbags were the same.
Lancer 2008 - 2017
Pejaro Sport 2009 - 2015
Eclipse 2016
It's possible that some models vary, though.