Sharna Olds (17) left her car parked in the Smiths City car park while she worked at the nearby Andersons Bay McDonald's on Sunday.
She later found her car windows smashed, the back seat badly damaged, two tyres slashed, panels scratched, all the petrol siphoned out and the spare wheel, the jack, seven CDs and a first aid kit stolen. The car, which was given to her by her father before he left for Australia, was covered by third party insurance, which did not cover vandalism.
After reading about the Taieri College pupil's plight in the Otago Daily Times, Bodyline Collision owner Sean Blair offered to repaint the car free of charge.
''I went to see them and I could see the distress on their face, and they were not happy about the incident at all, and I said we will clean it up and make it right.''
About five Bodyline Collision staff would offer their free time over a weekend to strip, prime and repaint the Nissan Primera which, hopefully, would be returned to Sharna by next week.
Sharna said she was delighted by the offer.
''I didn't expect anything. I just wanted to do the article in case anyone saw something.''
The car could now be driven again, after she bought two second-hand tyres. The windows would be replaced, as her insurance policy included glass cover.
