Car repair question

[MaryMorph]

We have an older model subaru wagon. The handle to open the rear hatch has become increasingly stubborn over recent weeks, and now we can't open the back at all. We've had some issues with our local subaru dealership so I'd prefer to not go back there if possible for repairs.

My question is, do we go to a regular repair shop or a body shop to fix this? I tend to think of a regular repair shop for more mechanical problems, but I'm not exactly sure where this would fall. I would assume that a body shop would fix something like this in the case of an accident, so that's why I'm inclined to go to them.

Any thoughts?

Thanks!

Mary Jo

[Gumbeaux]

I don't know the answer to your question but I am willing to bet someone here (http://www.forumsubaru.com/) would.

[misskitty100]

I used to work at a body shop (as a bookkeeper) and a body shop could definitely fix something like this. I would recomend going with a body shop that is recomended by your insurance. Dealers will recomend body shops too but often times they recomend the shops that buy the most parts from them therefore benefiting themselves from the referral.

When you get the estimate to fix the back of the car, feel free to ask if the problem is something that they can fix on site or if they would send it out someplace else.

[Robyn1007]

Thanks for posting that forum Gumbeaux, I've bookmarked it for future reference with my new 2007 Impreza 2.5i. Which, by the way, survived a bleach spill on the seat today. I know the fabric is supposed to be stain resistant but I didn't expect bleach resistant. ;) :rolleyes:

[Slowcooker]

DH suggests a repair shop with ASE certified mechanics, since it is a mechanical problem. Hope this helps:)