Expensive knock (radar unit damaged)

[chris69]

So today I had a very minor collision with a deer that shot across the road in front of me. It was so slight that the deer ran off seemingly unharmed, but the bumper obviously flexed and the paint has shed. Now all the ADAS systems are offline and bonging warnings at the start of every journey. The impact was only to the N/S front bumper and nowhere near the radar. Spoke to my local dealer who said the radar units are so delicate that even the slightest indirect impact will make them fail internally. The repair quote is in excess of £1,500 to replace the radar unit without even touching the bumper ouch!

 

[Bricktop X PWR]

So today I had a very minor collision with a deer that shot across the road in front of me. It was so slight that the deer ran off seemingly unharmed, but the bumper obviously flexed and the paint has shed. Now all the ADAS systems are offline and bonging warnings at the start of every journey. The impact was only to the N/S front bumper and nowhere near the radar. Spoke to
my local dealer who said the radar units are so delicate that even the slightest indirect impact will make them fail internally. The repair quote is in excess of £1,500 to replace the radar unit without even touching the bumper ouch!

If you are so inclined, pick yourself up a used unit from somewhere like ASM and do it yourself.

 

[Everest]

Oh deer!


(sorry)

 

[chris69]

If you are so inclined, pick yourself up a used unit from somewhere like ASM and do it yourself.

If I could (I can’t) calibrate it myself then I probably would.

 

[fred12345]

Try taking it to another MG garage for a quote to align it only - see what they say, whether the unit needs replacing or not. also, if there are any independent garages that might quote, why not try your luck...
Shouldn't insurance pay for it, by the way?

 

[Coulomb]

The radar unit might not be that delicate, so it might not need replacing at all, just adjusting. Getting the bumper alignment fixed might even restore it, though that seems unlikely.

 

[BOB353]

Shouldn't insurance pay for it, by the way?

X 2

 

[peterseddon]

Someone reversed into me and his towbar "adjusted" the radar unit, I got all the messages too, but after two days all started working again. Took 2 months to fix.

 

[Gadget Geek]

At those prices I would definately go through the insurance. If you got your insurance through Go.Compare you can even claim back the excess.

 

[Gromitlad]

Mine came loose off the bracket last year. Stopped working and got warning bongs. I gaffer taped it in place and drove, started working again. Did this several times when the tape lost its stickiness. Obviously I got it fixed correctly back in place in time but my point is I’m not convinced on them needing calibrating. I’d be inclined, if it is actually damaged, to replace with a second hand unit and as long as you’ve got it lined up fairly square you may find it ‘recalibrates’ on its own accord. Got to be worth a try rather than the £1500 dealership fee?

 

[chris69]

Thanks all. It’s in the body shop at the moment having a new bumper, lower trim, wheel arch trim, and radar unit, plus a resprayed wing where removing the bumper pulled the paint with it. It than has to go to MG to be recalibrated at £249. Total cost to the insurance company is almost £2k for what looked like fairly innocuous damage.

 

[Daveap]

Took my MG ZS in for its 5th year service and mentioned my front radar unit was intermittently playing up thinking it would be repaired under warranty. I was informed it did not qualify for a warranty job as “it was caused by impact damage”. Quote for repair was £1200 (£600 parts and £600 labour including the recalibration).

Irritated that I never knowingly had an impact - surely the surrounding units would have shown signs of damage? I decided to take a closer look at home thinking DIY and indeed found the mounting bracket had failed and the unit was flapping around on its cable. I could not be certain if the bracket had failed though vibrations/wear and tear or indeed had suffered an impact. I decided to remount the radar unit on the bracket with the aid of resin expoxy putty. It worked a treat. Very solid mounting in what appears to be its original elevation and bearing. After one drive and “one bong” the unit now operates as normal. My conclusion is the unit was ok and they seem quite robust considering mine has been flopping around for a while. Secondly I subscribe to the idea that the unit has an element of self calibration. Either that or I am extremely lucky that I mounted it exactly as when it was new! That’s £1200 the dealer will not be seeing!