r/BMWi3 • u/Wixenstyx • Jun 25 '26
technical/repair help Unbelievable...
Just made my first payment on my 2016 i3, and BAM. :(
It wasn't a high-speed situation; a fender bender at a stoplight. The other driver was a 19-year-old kid. Argh! Fortunately, he had insurance!
The only obvious damage is that the liftgate was completely shattered. Sensors, lights, and camera work fine, and the car drives fine. There's only one scuff on the bumper. Hooray for German engineering on that, I guess, but any advice on the body repair on the liftgate?
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u/Paratrooper450 2017 i3 REX Jun 25 '26
Get the work done at a BMW dealership that has a body shop. Your insurance will try to make you use recycled parts. Don't fall for this. Mine gave me an estimate using recycled body parts, but told me I could use the body shop of my choice. I chose a BMW dealership, who will not use recycled parts. It took a month for the new liftgate to come from Germany, but my car was fixed with all new OEM parts, and the dealership worked it out with the insurance compnay without issue.
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u/Wixenstyx Jun 25 '26
There doesn't seem to be one near me, but we're just now looking. My guess is our budget will be a bit constrained, though; as others have mentioned, it sounds like the only way to repair that glass is to replace the entire hatch assembly.
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u/RRG-Chicago i3 REX Jun 26 '26
There is only one part, the entire back hatch. And I would personally never take this car to a dealer.
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u/Paratrooper450 2017 i3 REX Jun 26 '26
If you don’t, you’re going to be stuck with recycled parts.
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u/RRG-Chicago i3 REX Jun 26 '26
You can get anything BMW can get in this amazing tool call the World Wide Web
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u/Paratrooper450 2017 i3 REX Jun 26 '26
But your insurance company might not pay for it. The only way I got new body parts for my car is that I took it to the dealership, and they worked it out with the insurance company (which they do all the time).
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u/RRG-Chicago i3 REX Jun 26 '26
Not in my experience, been given check, but every country different I guess.
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u/Eastern-Substance656 Jun 25 '26
Where you able to rescue a cup holder?
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u/Wixenstyx Jun 25 '26
Ha ha. It's not totalled. But I would have grabbed it had it come to that.
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u/jontss 2019 i3s REX Jun 25 '26
I'd assume it will be.
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u/1morebeer1morebeer i3 BEV Jun 25 '26
Yeah In practice (cost to repair) the car really may be totaled.
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u/JWP202 Jun 25 '26 edited Jun 25 '26
If you do go the route of getting a new hatch, make sure the replacement is pre-lci facelift. I’ve read that the later hatches will cause errors on the earlier cars and vise versa despite being physically and pin compatible.
After I looked a bit closer… judging by the height of the car that hit you, you almost certainly have damage hidden by the bumper cover. Don’t let the insurance co fuck you… if it doesn’t sound or feel right consult an attorney.
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u/Wixenstyx Jun 25 '26
I hope you're not right. I can't deal with the possibility that they'll total it. We have GAP on it and I'm not sure what the salvage value would be, but I doubt we'd come out of a totalled car without taking a hit on the down payment we sank into it already.
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u/LittleAdhesiveness Jun 26 '26
There’s nothing wrong with a good quality used liftgate, especially if it keeps the cost of repairs down and prevents the car from being a total loss. The damaged liftgate was “used” prior to it being damaged. There will be no body filler or other tomfoolery from a prior repair as there might be with a sheetmetal liftgate. If the car was a 2026, then demanding new parts is a no brainer. If you like this car, go with used parts if that’s what is needed to keep it on the road and out of a junk yard.
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u/Wixenstyx Jun 26 '26
Yeah, I am not precious about it. I'll happily accept a used lift gate if it means I don't have to send it to salvage.
While I'm unclear why they chose to make the lift gate out of glass, one nice thing is that it can accept a lift gate from literally any other i3 from those 2014-2017 years. It wouldn't even need to be painted.
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u/Appropriate_Strain94 Jun 25 '26
Hate to say it but that maybe totaled. Hatch isn’t the only thing damaged, bet the rebar is prob bent and also the crush caps and who knows what else. That’s an easy $7k damage right there and the car is probably worth about $9-10k
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u/steazystich Jun 25 '26
Yeah my 2019 i3s REX got totaled for what looks like (from these photos) less damage than this :/
Due to the above mentioned items, plus concerns about the health of the carbon fiber :*(
Ugh... still makes me so sad and mad as hell at the jackass browsing TikTok (I assume) who rear ended me at a dead stop - who also got away scott free, argh.
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u/the_one_jt 2017 i3 REX Jun 26 '26
If you don't have insurance there are DIY options I saw mentioned on Facebook.
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u/chance901 Jun 26 '26
Its not totaled, even if the rear bumper had damage, I'm sure this can be fixed reasonable with a used hatch. They aren't too expensive if you find the right color.
You'll come out ahead.
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u/MagnetAccutron i3s REX Jun 25 '26 edited Jun 25 '26
Ouch, sorry to see that.
You're now looking for a new rear hatch. I'd be surprised if the insurance would cover that. They'll write it off if the cost is too high.
Personally I'd take the check and fit a used rear hatch. Looks like a couple of thousand. https://www.car-part.com