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ERIE, Pa. (Erie News Now) – The roads may finally be cleared, but if your car suffered some damage while parked on the road, you aren’t alone.
As plows come barreling down the streets, if they’re not careful, your car’s side mirror could become an expensive causality and it could get complicated by supply chain problems.
Fred Vannucci, the Parts Manager at Auto Express KIA said, “I’ve never seen it this bad before in the 40 years I’ve been doing this. It’s terrible. I’m probably looking at 100 back orders a day.”
Vannucci said although they have seen some come cars needing repairs, the supply chain issues have made it a challenge.
“We’ve seen a few at KIA, most of them are at the body shops getting them done or people themselves will put them on”, said Vannucci.
Victor Irizarry, owner of Prestige Auto Body, said he’s repaired five mirrors this year which is average, and no matter how minor or severe, the damage is, it will cost you
“We have one right now in the shop, it’s a Lexus, high end vehicle, we have quoted this vehicle, we haven’t been able to find one used or on the after market for it because of all of the options for it, so this particular vehicle is about $900 plus for the mirror before labor”, said Irizarry.
But if you want to save the cost and headache of repairs, planning ahead could save you and your wallet.
One of the things you can do to prevent damage from happening is by simply pushing in your side mirror especially if it’s parked on the street when you leave your car. You should also park in a driveway instead of a street if you can, and follow the parking rules in the city. All these things will help you not pay for repairs down the line.
But Irizarry said some people are handling the repairs themselves.
“A lot of people don’t actually come to the body shops, they try to fix it themselves, put a piece of tape on it, which is not the correct fix, or screw and they get until springtime”, said Irizarry.
He stressed no matter where or when, mirrors need to be repaired, “Do it now, do it later, you still have to get it done.”
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