Carl's Collision Center covers all of Aquidneck Island from one shop: 166 JT Connell Highway in Newport, RI. Newport, Middletown, and Portsmouth all get served out of the same certified location, no matter which end of Route 138 or Route 114 your address sits on.
If your car was damaged on the island, you don't have to leave it to get it fixed right.
Where exactly is the Newport shop?
166 JT Connell Highway, Newport, RI 02840. Phone is 800-624-4051. We're open Monday through Friday 8 to 5, and Saturday 8 to 11.
JT Connell runs right off the main artery into Newport, so the shop is easy to find whether you're coming down Route 138 from the Pell Bridge or up Route 114 from the south end of town. If you've ever driven past Naval Station Newport, you've been in the neighborhood. Drop the car off in the morning, and you're not fighting cross-island traffic to do it.
Do you serve Middletown and Portsmouth too, or just Newport?
All three. Newport, Middletown, and Portsmouth.
People search for an "auto body shop Middletown RI" or "collision repair Portsmouth RI" expecting a Middletown or Portsmouth street address to pop up. Here's the honest version. Aquidneck Island is about 15 miles end to end. The drive from Portsmouth down to our shop is shorter than most people's commute, and you only make it once, on drop-off. We coordinate towing too, so if the car isn't drivable, you may not have to make the drive at all.
Middletown sits right in the middle of the island, which puts us a quick hop down Route 138 or 114 for you. Portsmouth is the run north past Middletown toward the Sakonnet end. Wherever you are between the Pell Bridge and the Mount Hope Bridge, one shop covers it.
Why does one shop work for the whole island?
Because the island isn't big, and the certifications that matter don't move with you.
A lot of body work is the same regardless of address. What actually separates shops is training and equipment, and ours doesn't change depending on which town you live in. We're I-CAR Gold Class, the highest training standard in collision repair, and our technicians are ASE-certified. We carry more than 20 manufacturer certifications, including Tesla and Mercedes-Benz, which means the carmaker has signed off on how we repair their vehicles.
We also do ADAS calibration in-house. ADAS is the camera-and-sensor setup behind things like automatic braking and lane-keeping. On a newer car, those sensors have to be recalibrated after a collision, or they read the road wrong. We don't ship that work out. It happens at the Newport shop, on the island, same as everything else.
What are the island-specific things you actually fix?
Salt, deer, and summer traffic. In that order, most weeks.
Living on a saltwater island is hard on sheet metal. Salt air finds every chipped edge and seam and goes to work on it. When we repair a panel, we refinish it with the PPG paint system and bake it in our CMC Italian infrared spray booths, so the finish seals properly instead of sitting there soaking up moisture off the bay.
Then there's wildlife. A deer crossing Route 138 at dusk in November is a real and regular way to crumple a front end out here. Picture a 2021 silver Highlander with a caved-in grille and a folded hood. That's a standard week for us. And in summer, when the bridge backs up and every road into Newport fills with visitors, the low-speed fender-benders multiply. Bumper covers, a scraped door from a tight parking lot off Thames. We see all of it.
Will you handle the insurance and the rental?
Yes to both. We bill your insurer directly, and we have rental cars on-site, provided by a third party.
We'll work with your insurance company and handle the claim paperwork, so you're not stuck playing middleman between the shop and the adjuster. If we get the panels off and turn up more damage than the first estimate showed (that's called a supplement, the extra work discovered during teardown), we sort that out with the insurer too.
One thing worth knowing, calmly: in Rhode Island, you choose the shop. Your insurer can suggest a place, but the choice is yours. If you'd rather keep the car on the island and bring it to us, that's your call to make, and we're glad to work with any insurer to get it done. (More on your right to choose your shop if you want the longer version.)
For the rental, you can pick one up when you drop the car off, so you're not stranded waiting on a ride home to Middletown or Portsmouth.
How do I get a price without driving over?
Use our free online photo-estimate tool. You snap a few photos of the damage, send them in, and we get you a ballpark before the car ever leaves your driveway. Start a free photo estimate here.
If you're closest to the city itself, there's more about the shop on our Newport location page. Every repair we do carries a lifetime warranty.
Frequently asked questions
Is there an auto body shop in Middletown RI or do I have to go to Newport?
Carl's Collision serves Middletown from our Newport shop at 166 JT Connell Highway, a short drive down Route 138 or 114. We coordinate towing, so if your car isn't drivable you may not have to make the trip yourself.
Do you do collision repair for Portsmouth RI?
Yes. We cover Portsmouth from the Newport location, a quick run south on Route 114. Same certified technicians and same lifetime warranty as every other repair we do.
Can I choose Carl's Collision even if my insurer suggests a different shop?
Yes. In Rhode Island, the customer chooses the repair shop. Your insurer can recommend a place, but the decision is yours, and we'll work directly with your insurance company on the claim.
Do you calibrate the safety sensors after a collision?
We do ADAS calibration in-house at the Newport shop. That covers the cameras and sensors behind features like automatic braking and lane-keeping, which need recalibration after a crash to work correctly.
How do I get an estimate without coming in?
Use our free online photo-estimate tool at carlscollision.com/estimate. Send a few photos of the damage and we'll get you an early ballpark before you bring the car over.
