What's new
By:

Sideswiped my garage door frame this morning. Insurance vs. Out-of-pocket + DFW shop recs?

spacefugitive

spacefugitive

Member

Verified Owner
Joined
Feb 16, 2026
Messages
31
Reaction score
18
Cars
AT
As the title says, I had a brutal start to the morning and managed to sideswipe the garage frame while backing out. I'm incredibly bummed out and trying to figure out the best way to handle this.


Given that Lucid uses an advanced aluminum space frame, I know body repairs can get incredibly expensive and require specialized tech. I'm torn on the best financial move here:


  1. Should I file an insurance claim? (Worried about premium hikes, but if aluminum repair costs skyrocket, it might be necessary).
  2. Or should I just bite the bullet and pay out of pocket?

For those who have unfortunately been through this, what was your experience?


Also, does anyone have firsthand recommendations for Lucid-certified body shops in the Dallas-Fort Worth (DFW) area? I want to make sure whoever touches it actually knows how to handle the platform.


Appreciate any advice or comfort you can throw my way!
 

Attachments

  • 6a7a633b-24be-4c02-aea5-763899c29bc3.webp
    6a7a633b-24be-4c02-aea5-763899c29bc3.webp
    1.1 MB · Views: 186
The repair estimates I’ve heard for Lucid authorized body shops have been ungodly. If it were me I’d be seeking quotes from well rated local body shops first.

I can’t see much from that angle but looks like the bumper pulled out and may clip back in. Is the metal dented? Paint scratched? A better picture may help.
 
I don’t know if Stuart’s is Lucid approved but they do absolute top notch work on all the exotics and have a sterling reputation in DFW.
 
Option 1 and 2 aren’t mutually exclusive:
1. Go to 2-3 body shops and get quotes.
2. Call your insurance company and ask them the impact of your deductible and any premium cost changes.
3. Choose the cheaper option.

Based on the photo it looks like the damage is pretty far from the structural space frame. Looks pretty minor.
 
Can't tell if there's any paint damage or denting to the body panels. Looks like it just needs to clip back in. Curb rash on the wheel seems to be the worst bit. I'd go to a local wheel specialist and have it reconditioned. Probably a couple hundred bucks out of pocket. From the picture I'd probably be looking at handling this without involving insurance. Don't know what the OP's deductible is, but I doubt this would be significantly above that if at all.
 
Here are additional pictures. There is a little damage to the paint.
 

Attachments

  • 20260707_095531.webp
    20260707_095531.webp
    363.8 KB · Views: 151
  • 20260707_095524.webp
    20260707_095524.webp
    676.6 KB · Views: 129
  • 20260707_095516.webp
    20260707_095516.webp
    841.3 KB · Views: 142
Yeah, that bumper probably needs to be replaced. That piece just above the sensor has a crack that ain't gonna go away. Unless you can live with some residual effect of the crack being visible after the paint repair it would seem like an insurance claim / Lucid repair.
 
normal car I'd figure about 1000-1500 repair. Lucid though, especially with that sensor being in that state, I'm going to guess $5000+ more if the metal fender is damaged before a buff out of those white marks. They'll need a front bumper cover, brackets, and a full sensor callibration from a Lucid Certified shop for sure.
 
Unfortunately any repair requiring parts, and this one does, will have to go through a Lucid certified shop.

With regards to the decision to go through insurance or pay the cost on your own, it’s a tough call. A claims adjuster won’t be able to tell you the impact this might have on your premium. That’s an underwriting decision ina different part of the organization. The claim will remain part of your underwriting history for several years and I would expect that it would result in premium increases over that time. At the end it would likely be a wash. Whatever you recover above your deductible will likely be paid back over subsequent renewals. If you can stomach it you might want to pay out of pocket and save your insurance for something more catastrophic.
 
Looks like Park Place is your closest Lucid certified shop in Dallas:
Screenshot 2026-07-07 120405.webp



I would replace that bumper cover if it were at my facility, which sells for around $1500 excluding labor, paint, and tax. Price typically ends up in the $4000 range. On a Lucid, the entire unibody is considered to be the "space frame", and it's almost completely made out of aluminum to shed weight. If the edge of the quarter panel where the bumper mounts is cracked, you that panel will require replacement, which will cause the repair cost to jump significantly due to the labor involved to replace that part (it's riveted and bonded to the unibody), along with all the adjacent panels needing refinish work (Upper/lower trunk panels, uniside jamb, and the right rear door), which could push that up over $20,000-$25,000 pretty quickly.

As others have mentioned, parts are only sold to Lucid certified facilities at this time. I find it interesting that many forum members recommend take the cheapest way out to resolve this. Yes, cost is important, as are the potential impacts to the policy premium, but a car like this--that is extremely complex to service and perform collision repair on was never intended to be affordable.

And that also goes for my side of the coin, given what I have invested in tooling and training to fix these cars properly and maintain whatever value we can for you all as owners. To each their own, but there's a reason why I have a sign in my office that says "Good, Cheap, Fast - you can only pick 2"
 
Andrew@CCRC said:
unibody), along with all the adjacent panels needing refinish work (Upper/lower trunk panels, uniside jamb, and the right rear door), which could push that up over $20,000-$25,000 pretty quickly
Click to expand...
Whoa...🙈 that could,be crazy expensive..
 
Andrew@CCRC said:
On a Lucid, the entire unibody is considered to be the "space frame", and it's almost completely made out of aluminum to shed weight.
Click to expand...
Interesting. I’m on the carrier side and this might be why some carriers won’t insure them or the rate is so insane you won’t want to. They are definitely exotics.
 
Andrew@CCRC said:
I would replace that bumper cover if it were at my facility, which sells for around $1500 excluding labor, paint, and tax. Price typically ends up in the $4000 range. On a Lucid, the entire unibody is considered to be the "space frame", and it's almost completely made out of aluminum to shed weight. If the edge of the quarter panel where the bumper mounts is cracked, you that panel will require replacement, which will cause the repair cost to jump significantly due to the labor involved to replace that part (it's riveted and bonded to the unibody), along with all the adjacent panels needing refinish work (Upper/lower trunk panels, uniside jamb, and the right rear door), which could push that up over $20,000-$25,000 pretty quickly.

As others have mentioned, parts are only sold to Lucid certified facilities at this time. I find it interesting that many forum members recommend take the cheapest way out to resolve this. Yes, cost is important, as are the potential impacts to the policy premium, but a car like this--that is extremely complex to service and perform collision repair on was never intended to be affordable.

And that also goes for my side of the coin, given what I have invested in tooling and training to fix these cars properly and maintain whatever value we can for you all as owners. To each their own, but there's a reason why I have a sign in my office that says "Good, Cheap, Fast - you can only pick 2"
Click to expand...

Excellent info. Thanks for being part of the forum and sharing your knowledge!

If I ever need similar, you'll have a customer in me.
 
Yeah those numbers are insane for a couple hundred dollar scrape. There is no universe where a small cosmetic scrape essentially makes the car disposable because of those costs.

I think you can get this done right for a lot cheaper by a high line body shop. The Lucid tax is ridiculous.
 
Leftlane said:
Yeah those numbers are insane for a couple hundred dollar scrape. There is no universe where a small cosmetic scrape essentially makes the car disposable because of those costs.

I think you can get this done right for a lot cheaper by a high line body shop. The Lucid tax is ridiculous.
Click to expand...
It is crazy how much repairs cost, but if the the costs are high, it tells us that it isn't "a scrape."
 
Leftlane said:
Yeah those numbers are insane for a couple hundred dollar scrape. There is no universe where a small cosmetic scrape essentially makes the car disposable because of those costs.

I think you can get this done right for a lot cheaper by a high line body shop. The Lucid tax is ridiculous.
Click to expand...
That same scrape 3” lower would be $1500, yeah I guess you could burn in a blend and just refinish it on the car but you don’t do that on a $100,000 car, you do that on a 10 year old Honda.

That same scrape a few inches higher and you’d be looking at $10k if it didn’t hit the space frame and $25k if you did. The repairability of a Lucid is absurd, yes, but these are 6 figure bespoke EVs sold by a boutique brand, it’s gonna cost you.
 
Andrew@CCRC said:
Looks like Park Place is your closest Lucid certified shop in Dallas:
View attachment 39831


I would replace that bumper cover if it were at my facility, which sells for around $1500 excluding labor, paint, and tax. Price typically ends up in the $4000 range. On a Lucid, the entire unibody is considered to be the "space frame", and it's almost completely made out of aluminum to shed weight. If the edge of the quarter panel where the bumper mounts is cracked, you that panel will require replacement, which will cause the repair cost to jump significantly due to the labor involved to replace that part (it's riveted and bonded to the unibody), along with all the adjacent panels needing refinish work (Upper/lower trunk panels, uniside jamb, and the right rear door), which could push that up over $20,000-$25,000 pretty quickly.

As others have mentioned, parts are only sold to Lucid certified facilities at this time. I find it interesting that many forum members recommend take the cheapest way out to resolve this. Yes, cost is important, as are the potential impacts to the policy premium, but a car like this--that is extremely complex to service and perform collision repair on was never intended to be affordable.

And that also goes for my side of the coin, given what I have invested in tooling and training to fix these cars properly and maintain whatever value we can for you all as owners. To each their own, but there's a reason why I have a sign in my office that says "Good, Cheap, Fast - you can only pick 2"
Click to expand...
Ludicrous paying 25k for that……of course it is sensible going the cheapest route. What a joke…..Lucid needs to start working on getting these obnoxious repair costs down. And we all know how Lucid independent body shops intentionally overcharge!

Lucid is not a Rolls Royce or a Ferrari to pay that much, it’s ONLY a 80-100k vehicle and paying quarter of the price for such repair is daylight robbery!
 
Leftlane said:
Yeah those numbers are insane for a couple hundred dollar scrape.
Click to expand...
Well, that’s because it’s not a couple hundred dollar scrape. :)

Refinishing a wheel with some curb rash costs $250. That’s not what happened here.

Leftlane said:
There is no universe where a small cosmetic scrape essentially makes the car disposable because of those costs.
Click to expand...
Nobody said it’s disposable. Those costs only go up that high if the quarter panel is damaged. If it’s just the bumper, it’s much cheaper.

Leftlane said:
I think you can get this done right for a lot cheaper by a high line body shop. The Lucid tax is ridiculous.
Click to expand...
You literally cannot get a bumper to a non-Lucid certified body shop. They will not sell it to them, because they do not have the training to perform the service.

You can certainly take it somewhere to get painted, but YMMV and you do so at your own risk; anything around that part that is damaged will pretty much guaranteed not be covered under warranty in the future.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top