Advice on hail damage

My new truck was recently in a bad hailstorm and received pretty hefty damage from golf ball to baseball sized hail. Before I meet with the insurance estimator I want to have a plan of attack. I'm paying the proper top ups on my insurance because it's a brand new vehicle, so I don't want to get low-balled on repairs.

• I will have to wait for months on backorder if I want a new windshield that says "Toyota" in the bottom corner. A reputable glass place in town says they can get the exact same spec (and likely the one Toyota buys and puts their logo on). I'm thinking I'm ok with that...
• I know the fenders can probably get PDR, but the hood and roof are toast. There are sections of the roof where hail hit near the edge and broke the paint. I have no idea how the moonroof survived! Should I be asking to get a new roof cut and welded or am I ok with grind & fill mixed with some PDR where they can? It seems to me there is a lot that can go wrong with a full roof replacement (moonroof, tons of electrical). Will grind & fill restore a factory look?
• I am definitely going to push for a new hood - I'm hoping one of the places I trust can get Midnight Black Metallic absolutely perfect because there is a lot of character in the colour.
• My ceramic will likely need to be re-installed...

All these years and I've never had hail damage... I've also never owned a vehicle this expensive before, or had something like this happen so soon after purchase, so I'm definitely more concerned about getting it perfectly restored.

Lesson: never loan your wife your truck for the weekend... ha!

 

i am so sorry. That looks painful

 

This should be fine. I've had replacement windshields before, and I've never been able to tell a difference. Unless you have acoustic glass, which I'm 99% sure is limited to the Capstone (maybe the Platinum too?) then there I'm sure there is no difference, at least not one that would impact value in a significant, measurable way. Just make sure that your local shop can recalibrate you LTA/RSA camera (if needed), since it's behind the windshield. I would make sure to ask about that.

You're not going to get a new roof because of hail damage. That would cause more harm than good. A good body shop is going to be able to remold the metal and paint blend. Body work has come a long way in the past decade. It's amazing what a skill body shop is capable of.

A new hood is likely based on the damage. That's an easy panel to replace. Tougher part is going to be availability, I would imagine.

As long as that's a known "upgrade" to your insurance company and they included that in your coverage, they'll likely include that in your settlement. This is why it's important to always notify your insurance company anytime you spend big dollars on an upgrade. Otherwise, they're only obligated to restore it back to OE-spec...minus any depreciation, that is.

On a side note...I'll caveate the above as being based on my experience in the US. YMMV in CA. I'm sorry that your truck took a lickin' like that. At least no one was hurt. If it can do that amount of damage to your truck, imagine someone caught outside. Yikes.

 

In my experience Toyota's sheet metal is pretty thin and is very easy to PDR. Unless the hood is alu, it can be fixed easily. The roof edge is harder to pull properly out, but I saw a worse damage on a pre-Ford era Volvo's door (sheet metal is twice or more thicker than in Toyota) PDRed out with no visible defects.

 

That is terrible. I'd be livid albeit not much you could've done besides park it in a garage or use one of these bubble thingies

 

Total a $70k+ truck for hail damage?

 

Yup - why are sitting under underpass? Me - to wait out the hail and prevent damage. Wife - it’s only a car. Me - SMH

 

With the dimples you get better gas mileage.

 

You also achieve distance. More dimples = more distance. Sooooo technically, more hail damage, better mileage.

 

Thanks for all the replies.

My wife had the truck camping… I’m trying to tell myself it isn’t her fault, but I do think I would’ve jumped in it and found some creative shelter or thrown blankets on it .

Sigh… (insert bad joke about included her in the insurance claim to get a new model with more smart features and less mileage)

 

Salvage sell price plus saved repair costs can do it.

 

Those are some hefty dents and I feel your pain. I went through the same almost a year ago with my 2022, but I had pistachio sized hail coming in on 50 mph winds. The roof, the hood, all down the driver's side, and the right front quarter panel were damaged, to include trim pieces. After the insurance rep looked at the car, the body shop said the cost was good but after they started, they had to go back and ask for another $1,500 to get everything done. Once the shop took the truck, it was between them and the insurance company for any additional costs. The hood was completely replaced because the cost for PDR was well over getting a new hood and painting it. The hood was the worst and it looked like someone had hit it about 500 times with a small hammer. All ended up good and the truck looked like it it was just delivered.

The odd thing was the insurance rep thought the composite piece on the tailgate was damaged by hail, and it was just minor manufacturing imperfections. The body shop ended up going back and forth with the insurance company and made it look better by sanding it down, filling it, and repainting.

 

That is definitely terrible hail damage especially for the Winnipeg area. I can't offer any technical advise as it's never happened to me, but whatever happens I hope you get your truck back like it was the day you brought it home.

 

Geez, that's painful. We've had a couple of hailstorms in Calgary this summer but not that size, at least not in the city. Hopefully you will get that fixed soon and will be happy with the results.

 

Yep just like a golf ball ....Lol

 

Let me know how the insurance process goes and what they offer you to repair it. I’ve got similar damage and just wondering what to expect in terms of payout.

 

I got the windshield replaced today. I was surprised to see they got the OEM with all the little Toyota graphics along the bottom. Cost was $1200 CAD - I will submit for reimbursement. I don't even have an appointment with the estimator until September because there is such a long list of people with hail damage.

 

Well in that case I’ll let you know how mine goes as I have an estimator coming out next Friday for it.

 

"It's a mental game"....ain't that the truth!

 

All this pdr is probably more than the vehicle is worth.

 

That sucks man. I wouldn't worry about the glass as long as the glass shop seems competent and says it will have the proper sound resistance.

 

Impressive.

Also glad the sunroof held, that would be scary in a hail storm. I really enjoy them though and like the new larger glass.