Hello,
My partner misjudged a bend in our '72 MGB GT on Saturday and, to cut a long story short, we ended up on our side (nearside) in a ditch. Both of us were fine, and the car has sustained surprisingly little damage.
The left front wing and left door have both dented, but no paint breakage. The windscreen is broken on the left side, and there is kinking in the roof - it looks like the A-pillar has been pushed back a smidgen. There is almost no scratching or scraping, most likely due to the squelchy muddy nature of the ditch - I'm still fishing handfuls goopy mud from the bodywork :-).
For a better idea of the damage, see the photos:
So, I now have a few questions. I am insured with Lancaster/Groupama under the MGOC scheme. How likely are they to be amenable to repairs (if possible) being undertaken at a repairer of my choice, rather than one of their 'approved repairers'?
If I am allowed to choose the repairer, given it's a classic MG, am I likely to be better off taking it to my friendly-but-standard garage (who happen to have an accident repair business), Drewett's in Headington, or to somewhere less geared to accident repair but more geared to MGs - e.g. Manor Farm Garage near Wantage, or Oselli in Witney?
Should the shell be deemed unrepairable, I am considering a rebuild around a Heritage shell. I see these cost GBP 4060 - how much are labour for transfer of the bits from my car, painting, etc, likely to set me back?
Finally, the poor car was unceremoniously dragged out of the ditch backwards by the rear axle (nngh). I can't see any signs of resulting damage, though I will probably get the alignment checked. Was this the most sensible purchase point for the winching, or could I have recommended something better?
TIA, Arthur