blueraven

My Son got rear ended this morning and I'm wondering what you guys/gals think his car is worth. The damage isn't extreme, and the car is still driveable but he lost everything in the back and the rear area was pushed in. The cost of body work makes me think it's going to be totaled. The low retail is $1300 and the Avg. retail is around $2000. The car is a 84 GSL, the body is a 7 out 10 and everything works with the exception of the AC, but it is still complete and installed. It's an auto with a 12A, and has 96,000 miles. It was a pretty good car and ran great.

Blueraven

Rx-7Doctor

iTrader: (13)

Without seeing the damage it's hard to say. Body work is extremley expensive.
If it's insured and they total it out, i recommend buying it back and usiing the parts off of it on another rx7. Also after buying it back you may find someone that do the
work at a good price as long as the frame has not been compromised. rx7doctor

jays83gsl

Hell, if it's in good condition (minimal rust, whatnot) then I'm sure you can get a good $1500 for it.

That's playing it low, though.

cosmicbang

Use the NADA retail prices. Low $2275, ave $3225, high $4400.

http://www2.nadaguides.com/uv/viewre...wPr=1&wPg=2032

I would ask for at least $3700 from the insurance company, less ~$200 for salvage value, buy the car back and strip it. You can probably find a nice one either running or non-running to replace it and pocket around $2,000 to compensate your inconvenience.

jays83gsl

God bless the slippery, slightly evil minds on this board

blueraven

I'm with you jays83, I've checked the NADA and Kelly's values and as far as I can determine, the fair value is between $1500-$2000. The other driver's insurance is State Farm and I've had mixed dealings with them in the past. I guess I'll just have to sit tight and see what they offer. It's really a shame, because I'ld just spent over $600 getting the bin rust repaired and fixing everything except the AC. However the blessing is I was going to have it repainted in a month or so. The paint is in good shape, it's just the sh-t brown color and my Son wanted black.

Blueraven

John64

Don't buy it salvaged. It will be the biggest pain in the *** you ever had. Insuring it is next to impossible, let alone the documentation the DMV will need for it to pass inspection. Everything you do to it will need a receipt plus pictures.
I had an accedent 3 months ago and it was a basic total. They would have given me $2400 and that was in show car condition. I got my autobody man to do it for $1 under a total, $1999.00. Check my pae for the pics and explanation.

John

blueraven

Thanks John, the damage as I see it is like your pics for the passenger rear, except it goes across to the driver's side. The car was towed to a repair lot and I haven't really looked at it yet. However, the damage may be more, when it was hit, it was in park and it traveled 300 yards before going down a 15 foot embankment. I was shocked that the body damage wasn't more, but it may have trans and rear end issues. Got a call from State Farm and their adjuster is going to look at it. I doubt I will fix it, but if the price is right, I will buy it back and part it out. I hoping to get $2000+ as will as get the car back.

Blueraven

cosmicbang

Do whatever you want; it's your car and your bank account. I am speaking from at least 3 or 4 first-hand personal experiences, and this is my advice. (You may or may not get the same results.)

You don't need to simply take whatever is offered. The insurance company is a business, and this is a business transaction. There is nothing evil or shady about maximizing your end of the deal--within the law of course. The fact you or I know how and where to bargain-hunt when buying a car is totally irrelevant.

If you can make a resonable justification for your numbers, the insurance adjuster will have to listen. The NADA retail values (low $2275, ave $3225, high $4400) are perfectly legitimate. You can also find classified ads, print and on-line to support higher prices.

Typically, adjusters have a lot of work to do and simply want to settle the claim smoothly in accordance with their guidelines. They have enough problems with all the personal injuries and fraud, and often have some threshold e.g $5,000 below which they can pay the entire amount to settle.

As far as the salvage, each state has its own rules and they do vary. In all my cases, I was able to retain the car--to do as I chose--without any change to the title. The insurance company simply deducted the resale salvage value (~$200) from the settlement amount. Nevertheless, I would have kept the cars for parts alone. Yours may not make economic sense to repair, but keeping it allows you to strip the parts to sell or re-use.

Glad your son was evidently not injured. Good luck with whatever you do.

(note: the NADA link should work now, hopefully)

blueraven

Thanks Cos, I agree with what you say, and trust me, after paying insurance for over 25 years, I owe them nothing. I will get the most I can. And nobody was hurt in the accident, but if I get screw, I can see a major back injury in my Son's future

blueraven

John64

I have to tell you that they offered me only a $25 buyback if I salvaged it. But after doing the math is was not worth salvageing the car.

blueraven

so what did you end up with the settlement?

Blueraven

John64

I took the 1999.00 check and got her fixed. Better then ever. Check out my page for everything shes got.

John

blueraven

Well settled with State Farm, $1900 + I got to keep the car. I will be picking it up today and doing an evaluation of the damage, after my initial look over, it doesn't look that bad, but there could be some hidden damage. Anyway, thanks for all the advice, and keep an eye opened if you are looking for any great parts off a stock 84 GSL, if the fix seems to much I will be parting it out. The car still drives and I will be driving it home today.

Blueraven