Repair Costs - Suzuki Swift

CDC2011

I have a Suzuki Swift S-ZL, 5 door, 59 plate.

At the beginning of January a pheasant decided to dive bomb my front drivers side leaving a nice dent which popped a few bumper clips off and a small scratch. The damage didn't seem worth contacting my insurance company so I left it for now thinking it'd be a job to sort out when I had some spare cash.

However I went to fill up my screen wash the other day and wondered why I ended up standing in a puddle of ready mix. I fill it through a funnel so I was sure I hadn't aimed badly...so it would seem the impact of the bird has either dislodged something, or cracked the bottle.

I am still on finance and did intend to buy the car in September, either way I would have got the minor damage fixed before then, however this is now a more serious job as I can only get a minimal amount of screen wash to stay in the bottle.

I can't see the bottle from the engine bay so have no idea what the damage is and getting the bumper off seems awkward without the right equipment.

As I am still on finance...do I have to take it to a Suzuki dealer to fix?

Having never had to repair a car before, does anyone have any idea how much this is likely to cost, and is it worth contacting my insurance company?

Any advice would be much appreciated

jaydeeuk1

CDC2011 wrote: »

I have a Suzuki Swift S-ZL, 5 door, 59 plate.

At the beginning of January a pheasant decided to dive bomb my front drivers side leaving a nice dent which popped a few bumper clips off and a small scratch. The damage didn't seem worth contacting my insurance company so I left it for now thinking it'd be a job to sort out when I had some spare cash.

However I went to fill up my screen wash the other day and wondered why I ended up standing in a puddle of ready mix. I fill it through a funnel so I was sure I hadn't aimed badly...so it would seem the impact of the bird has either dislodged something, or cracked the bottle.

I am still on finance and did intend to buy the car in September, either way I would have got the minor damage fixed before then, however this is now a more serious job as I can only get a minimal amount of screen wash to stay in the bottle.

I can't see the bottle from the engine bay so have no idea what the damage is and getting the bumper off seems awkward without the right equipment.

As I am still on finance...do I have to take it to a Suzuki dealer to fix?

Having never had to repair a car before, does anyone have any idea how much this is likely to cost, and is it worth contacting my insurance company?

Any advice would be much appreciated

Doubt the bottle would be cracked, more likely a dislodged/leaking pipe at the bottom. Get a mechanic to have a looksie, might be a fiddly job, might be straight forward.

Don't tell your insurance, even if you don't end up claiming your premium will go up, and I can't imagine fixing a leaky washer resevoir to be more than your excess!

CDC2011

Thanks. I have no idea with these things at all and really dont want to get ripped off for the sake of what is basically a plastic bottle.

The good thing is I have a bit of screen wash available so I have a little bit of time to get a few quotes and pick the best option for me.

Appreciate the guidance on the insurance - never claimed before and Im still under 25 so you're right, it doesn't seem worth it.

scotsbob

Why not fill the resrvoir and look to see where the leak is coming from? Then you can identify if it is a crack or a dislodged pipe etc.

Look on Google to fing the Suzuki Swift owners club forum and ask there, you should find a member close to you who may fix it for you.

s_b

the bottle will be under the wing liner and usually with cars like the suzuki have one use pony fittings
it really needs to go into an independent garage up on a wheel free ramp and either fix a broken bottle or replace the fractured pump
and just pay the man:)

gilbert_and_sullivan

You need to ask around and find a little one man and his dog bodyshop, there will always be little jobs like this that need sorting during your motoring life, and these are the places to go if you are trying to keep your costs down.

Avoid bigger paintshops with courtesy cars, managers, receptionists, carpets and free coffee to pay for.

CDC2011

Thanks for your posts.

Took my car to a garage near work today and its all sorted. The damage was worse than I thought as once they took the bumper off they found that not only had the bottle split, but a few contraptions behind the headlight had taken a good knocking too.

All done and fixed and it didn't break the bank! So not only will I not be standing in a puddle next time I fill up with screen wash, I also have a decent garage I can use in the event I get attacked by a passing pheasant again. :T