totaled

[lowmiler]

Originally Posted by 2TrunkSteve

If they want to repair the car, I recommend that you push for a partial tear down of the damaged areas before they start any repairs. The body shop will begin the tear down as an "investigative expense" (to be paid by the insurance company) before any repairs would be started. If the insurance company balks, make sure you make some noise about the complexities and differences of the Boxster - it's no Chevy. They (SF) will do this. That will get you a whole lot further with fully understanding what the damage is. They will either total it or you will be more comfortable with what is damaged and its repairability because you know up front and before repairs are made.

Remember, this process is somewhat of a negotiation. As they tear the car down, I would get photos and post them here on the board to get some of the experts advise. It's a talented group and they are here for you!!

mp

Thanks for the info Steve. That is some great advice. The guy from state farm came out to my house today to look at it and start the process. He was punching all the info about the car into a small hand held computer and taking pictures. It had different costs associated with fixing the car on it. 2000 dollars to fix the air bags. Wow! I think things could add up very fast. We will see.

Not trying to jump ahead, but if it is totaled and they give me a fair price, what do you think about a buy back?

[husker boxster]

Originally Posted by lowmiler

what do you think about a buy back?

Why would you want to buy it back?

Why take dollars away from your new replacement?

It would be totaled - determined by experts to cost more money to fix than what it's worth. Unless you plan to fix it yourself so you can save on the labor cost, you'll be throwing your money down a rat hole.

Parting it out sounds like a money making idea, but will get old in a hurry when you've made your 20th trip to FedEx to ship a cig lighter. Then what do you do with the carcass when everyone's done picking it over?

Let it go and move on. My Dad liked to say there's always another car around corner.

Do you have any pics that you can post?

[eightsandaces]

Originally Posted by lowmiler

This will be considered a single car accident. The driver in the suv did not stop. I hope there won't be any problems with my insurance company (state farm). 17 years with them and no accidents or claims. I am very upset at this situation. As everyone else on this forum feels, I really loved that car.

IMO, the most IMPORTANT thing to do is make sure you don't have any medical issues that won't fully manifest till later. A woman ran a stop sign and put me through a windshield at age 24, I felt OK once I healed up but years later I had major back surgery due to that injury. There is no going back, so just make sure if you have any pain or issues as a result of this crash that you at least document those now, then make sure you know the state law on how long you can follow up should you have an issue later.

[mikefocke]

because once they say it makes no economic sense to fix it, unless you have skills and value your time at less than a shop would charge, it still makes no sense. Plus there may be hidden damage to the suspension, chassis may be slightly bent, etc. After an accident, you are often better off if they do total it and you get a accident free replacement.

In my case the insurance company merely passed the whole process on to a third party company who specialized in getting the most $ out of parting out a wreck. All I had to do is receive the estimate and sign over the title and hand them all the keys.

Yes, you could part it out yourself but what a hassle. Think of all the shipping and crating issues as well as the removal of parts and the disposition of the carcass.

My case they gave me more than I paid for the car 6 months earlier. And I had bought in the spring and the car was totaled in November. Not to mention I had told them and the DMV the honest purchase price when I bought the car. I ended up being able to trade up to a 2 year newer car and to an S from a base for only $1k more than the $ they paid me. They even paid for some of the taxes and registration fees I had paid when I bought the car.

If they do decide to total the car, be sure and get all your personal stuff out (even dumb things like CDs) and it is fair to remove any mods as long as you replace them with stock parts (tail lights and side lights, for example).