Suburban crunched my Boxster

[newob]

Hello all,
I have not been on here in a while so here is a little update.
About 2-3 weeks ago my Boxster got crunched

here are the pics, the story is below










Here are the ones of them fixing it.






Ok so the scoop

I was in a line of cars pulling up to turn left or right onto a T intersection.

2.5 car lengths back from the intersection was some train tracks. Mr suburban was illegally stopped on the tracks (he was almost across on the down hill slide of the little hill the tracks are on, but his tail end/luggage rack were in the RR crossing).
I was legally stopped at the white line before the train crossing.

CHOO CHOO

He floored it backwards when he heard the train coming. He was trying to get out of the way of the crossing guards and the train. (He didn't see me since i was so low to the ground and his tail end was higher due to coming down the other side of the little RR crossing mound.)

Looked like an elephant was going to sit on me. He floored it so hard that i got to the horn about the time he hit me.

THE INSURANCE DILEMMA!!!

So he is a nice guy, we both have insurance, Statefarm (his insurance) accepted the claim, and we get the car taken to advanced collision repair since the Porsche dealer here does not have a auto body shop. They repair the car almost 100%, looks like a great job, but they had to order a couple different headlights. I get a call this morning from the shop (mind you, this is like 3 weeks after the accident, they have been taking their time) and they say:

"Oh yeah, so the car is completely done, they are washing it as we speak, but since the headlight fiasco, it brought the total repair bill to over the threshold for totaling the vehicle." :troll:

So as i am writing this the insurance company is deciding what to do.

I WANT MY DAMN CAR BACK! IT'S MINE! I CAN'T FIND ANOTHER LIKE IT! I JUST HAD $3K WORTH OF IMS BEARING UPGRADES COMPLETED!

[ianacole]

That sucks. If they total it, you may be able buy it back for a portion of the payout. But, depending on the state, it will mark the title as "salvage" and show up in carfax. Depends on if you care or not.

[Deserion]

Can they really total a car that has non-structural issues, after it was repaired, due to the cost? That doesn't make sense. I could see a total before repair, but not after.

[epapp]

Wow. I would be irate if the shop told me that.

I wouldn't take my beef with them since they bought the lights and since they already paid, its now up to insurance.

Just wait calmly for insurance to call back and if they say something you don't like, then talk to a higher-up. Always seems to work for me with insurance situations.

I would say you have some bargaining chips: why did the shop take it upon themselves to buy 'many different lights'? The shop also took a long time to do the repair and this has been quite a frustrating experience all around etc, etc.

[BIGJake111]

Originally Posted by newob

Hello all,

I have not been on here in a while so here is a little update.

About 2-3 weeks ago my Boxster got crunched



here are the pics, the story is below





















Here are the ones of them fixing it.













Ok so the scoop



I was in a line of cars pulling up to turn left or right onto a T intersection.



2.5 car lengths back from the intersection was some train tracks. Mr suburban was illegally stopped on the tracks (he was almost across on the down hill slide of the little hill the tracks are on, but his tail end/luggage rack were in the RR crossing).

I was legally stopped at the white line before the train crossing.



CHOO CHOO



He floored it backwards when he heard the train coming. He was trying to get out of the way of the crossing guards and the train. (He didn't see me since i was so low to the ground and his tail end was higher due to coming down the other side of the little RR crossing mound.)



Looked like an elephant was going to sit on me. He floored it so hard that i got to the horn about the time he hit me.



THE INSURANCE DILEMMA!!!



So he is a nice guy, we both have insurance, Statefarm (his insurance) accepted the claim, and we get the car taken to advanced collision repair since the Porsche dealer here does not have a auto body shop. They repair the car almost 100%, looks like a great job, but they had to order a couple different headlights. I get a call this morning from the shop (mind you, this is like 3 weeks after the accident, they have been taking their time) and they say:



"Oh yeah, so the car is completely done, they are washing it as we speak, but since the headlight fiasco, it brought the total repair bill to over the threshold for totaling the vehicle." :troll:



So as i am writing this the insurance company is deciding what to do.



I WANT MY DAMN CAR BACK! IT'S MINE! I CAN'T FIND ANOTHER LIKE IT! I JUST HAD $3K WORTH OF IMS BEARING UPGRADES COMPLETED!

Argue the cars value up and it will not be totaled, trust me they would rather pay the repair than buy you a new boxster. There is no way they would total this car knowing how much they would owe you to buy a summer market S with litronics and other options.

Regardless very sorry to see and wish you luck, so many insurance claims on this forum and it seems it is never the P cars fault.

[jdraupp]

Umm...isn't this illegal? The insurance company decided to fix it, any supplements are on them. If they approve the initial quote, they also accept that any supplements will need to be covered. They can't just decide its totalled...

I had a POS sentra...guy turned in front of me and i t boned him. His fault, insurance said ok to the 3200 dollar quote. Just under their threshold to fix it. Ended up with supplements being 6000...they covered it and I didn't have a salvage title. Don't let them screw you on this. Salvage title is going to harm you in the long run.

[Giller]

Why would the garage need to order a couple different headlights? And granted they are expensive - how much over could it have put it?
I would certainly fight this and put it on the garage. They ordered the wrong part - why is that your fault?
Let us know how it turns out. I've dealt with State Farm myself through the years and have always found them easy to work with. Fingers crossed it's all good when they get back to you.
And man, red does look good on a Box.

[JayG]

If the insurance company totals it, they not will have to pay to replace your Boxster, they will have to pay for the repairs that have been done.

I would first talk to the adjuster and if that doesn't get it resolved, speak with their manager and keep going up the food chain until you get it resolved. They probably don't have your car valued properly anyway. Remind them of the true market value based on your upgrades

I really don't think they will want to effectively pay double the car value.

Sounds like the repair place screwed up with the lights and is trying to cover extra costs

[newob]

Still haven't heard from them. Well initially the quote to repair was around 6900. So that sounded alright. Then they ordered the first headlight for 800. (That was included in that estimate) it was going to be a used headlight. Well it arrived and was the wrong size so they sent it back. They then. Ordered a second one and that one arrived broken in 5 places. So they sent it back. Finally they had to order a "newer" one from another source and it cost 1600. So that's what pushed it over the edge. So looks like an 800 dollar increase. They better cover that though. I will fight tooth and nail. I will get a lawyer if I have to.

[BIGJake111]

Originally Posted by newob

Still haven't heard from them. Well initially the quote to repair was around 6900. So that sounded alright. Then they ordered the first headlight for 800. (That was included in that estimate) it was going to be a used headlight. Well it arrived and was the wrong size so they sent it back. They then. Ordered a second one and that one arrived broken in 5 places. So they sent it back. Finally they had to order a "newer" one from another source and it cost 1600. So that's what pushed it over the edge. So looks like an 800 dollar increase. They better cover that though. I will fight tooth and nail. I will get a lawyer if I have to.

Even then, that should not be 70%. Depending on your miles you could easily argue In a total loss replacement situation, the car is valued from 13 to 17.

[newob]

Originally Posted by BIGJake111

Even then, that should not be 70%. Depending on your miles you could easily argue In a total loss replacement situation, the car is valued from 13 to 17.

Yes that is what I thought, the car (986 s 2000) has 39,000 miles
Upgrades
Ims, rms=3300
Sparco race seats=2000
Carbon fiber dipped interior =800?
Kenwood surround sound system with 550 amp =1000?
Upgraded rims =2000
Lowering springs=800 ish
Brand new tires=1200

When I kbb the car originally it was 17,600 before any of those upgrades. I don't understand how they could total it. I am praying it's just a Minor add on to the original estimate and nothing major.

[BIGJake111]

Originally Posted by newob

Yes that is what I thought, the car (986 s 2000) has 39,000 miles
Upgrades
Ims, rms=3300
Sparco race seats=2000
Carbon fiber dipped interior =800?
Kenwood surround sound system with 550 amp =1000?
Upgraded rims =2000
Lowering springs=800 ish
Brand new tires=1200

When I kbb the car originally it was 17,600 before any of those upgrades. I don't understand how they could total it. I am praying it's just a Minor add on to the original estimate and nothing major.

Make the insurance aware of the miles upgrades and recent services, now way they want to replace your car.

[thstone]

Originally Posted by Deserion

Can they really total a car that has non-structural issues, after it was repaired, due to the cost? That doesn't make sense. I could see a total before repair, but not after.

I don't know about TN, but in CA the law is very clear: the insurance company can total it at any time and it is ENTIRELY at their discretion. The car owner does not get a vote or any say in the matter. If you don't like the ins company decision, your only recourse is legal.

Ask me how I know all this.

[thstone]

Originally Posted by BIGJake111

Make the insurance aware of the miles upgrades and recent services, now way they want to replace your car.

The ins company will not consider the retail value of the upgrades. They will write down everything to pennies on the dollar since the equipment is considered "used".

Ask me how I know all this...(http://986forum.com/forums/general-discussions/43878-ahhh-my-car-hit-bad-today.html)