modzs

That'll buff right out






...cuz no one else has said it.

nathanwl2004

iTrader: (2)

Up date:

car as the shop and starting to get fixed as of this morning. hopefully it won't take to long and the insurance company won't try to be all gay about it.

nathanwl2004

iTrader: (2)

thanks man I needed to laugh a little, I'm just now starting to try to get my sense of humor back.

CRIDDA

iTrader: (10)

Man its just a car, you and your wife are ok, thats all that should matter. So I have had a similar incident, and when it was all said and done, I look back at that night and laugh about it. Cause the only thing I could think about was the looks on everyones face when I was hydroplanning sideways in front of them. You'll be alright man, when you get her back, make sure to give her a little extra love.

Paul350Z

iTrader: (1)

It's just metal, rubber, and a few other things put together than we call a car. Junk that some people buy to fulfill their empty and meaningless existence. The true thing of value in the car is you and your wife and that's all that ought to matter in the long run. Car and insurance payments are nothing ... if one of you were to be injured for life, or worse, killed in the accident, that would be a toll too high to pay. How much would you be willing to pay a month to prevent your wife from dying in an accident ... everything I assume.

Live and learn.

Drive careful.

mindsblank06

Thanks, I agree. I am his wife. He's been really down and out since the accident. He used all of his savings from Afghanistan to put down on the car. It has a lot of meaning to it. But i agree, cars can be replaced, we cant. Still doesnt mean that car didnt have a lot of meaning to him. But he's coming around.

CRIDDA

iTrader: (10)

Im glad to see that you are here and all right. I know what it must have meant to him to get that car and it can be fixed or replaced. I also have much respect for him for choosing to join the armed forces and you for sticking with him through thoose rough years. I wish you guys the best, and look at the bright side of things, you got to live another day.

Vorais

I am also confused by all the accidents that just happen for no apparent reason with the 350Z. They don't seem to happen as much for the G35 which by all accounts is the same platform. Hell, back when I was 16 with my 1975 Monza with LT-1 swap I never had this problem. Same with my 700hp 1972 Firebird. I owned both of those cars where I grew up near Eugene Oregon where it rains often and snows that nice slick wet heavy snow. The only time I ever had a problem was with the Firebird and stepping on it a little too much going around a corner. Neither of these cars had traction control, or even anti lock breaks. Both of them have a lighter rear end than the 350Z and thus hydroplane more readily.

I also drove a Skyline GT250 (G35 here) in Japan most of last year and never had a problem there either even though some of the roads would literally flood with up to 10" of of standing water.

Here is my take though on the issues with the 350Z..
Too many people grew up with FWD cars and thus are unfamiliar with rear wheel handling characteristics. When something starts to happen they try to correct for it the same way they would with a front wheel drive vehicle. Depending on what caused them to start to lose control to begin with, this can cause a minor situation to become a serious and sometimes even a deadly situation. The G isn't involved in as many wrecks because the demographic for it is older, and thus more their drivers grew up driving rear wheel cars. Also, many people out drive the Z because it is capable of more than they are.

In YOUR situation I can't say what caused you to lose control because I wasn't there. It could have been a random act of something such as hydroplaning in several inches of water as a gust of wind was shifted in such a way that it pushed harder on your rear than your front end due to traffic causing your rear end to swing wide. This was then further aggravated by the wake of the car you were passing pushing the rear end even farther out causing it to pass the point of no return. Or more likely it was from something a little more common such as correcting as yo

Karma_Hunden

When you have a car like the Z...basically, when you have a RWD (or even FWD) car that pumps more than 250hp/250tq++ you should be careful with the throttle you put...its always too go accelerate straight, let go, switch lanes (let the tyres rotate with intertia/momentum/speed and not forceful force/acceleration) and accelerate again.

IMO, you shouldve bought an AWD ...jk man, that sucks, but at least you and your wife are ok and Im sure you insurance will cover it.

Morningglorie

My sympathies too. So if they're fixing the car, that means the drive train was all right?

When you get it repaired, be sure you get better tires!! Go to tirerack for some ideas, or check around on the sites here. Don't let them just put the same brand of tires on it again.

What year is your car?

I was actually hoping for you that the car would be declared totalled and you could get an '07, or a lightly used '05 or '06 maybe, in a higher trim line so you can get traction control and all the goodies. Well, next time...

Glad to see your sense of humor is coming back. You will have many, many more cars in your life. As so many others have said, you and your wife will be fine, and that matters so much more.

nathanwl2004

iTrader: (2)

it's an 03.

right now they made an initial estimate, before it was move from the storage lot it got towed to. they moved it to the shop where it will be repaired at. the repair shop still hasn't been able to get it apart (as of this morning) because they just called me to get my permission to start work on the car.

they won't know for sure whether or not it's totaled until the get it further apart. the more I think about it, I do wish that as you said, it is totaled because I would much rather just by a new one that has a clean title with less milage, and more options and safety features. not to mention I would just rather have a car that I hasn't been wrecked.

right now the insurance company is trying to get me to put some after market parts on it to save them money, and I don't think they want to replace the whole hatch assembly which I want them to. maybe when I push the issue the will finally declare it a total loss. like I said from the begining I want it back in exactly the shape it was pre-wreck and if they can't do that, then I want it totaled.

I guess we'll see how it's all gonna play out.

thanks for all your responses

Morningglorie

How many miles on it, and what condition was it in before it was wrecked? KBB gives estimates for private party sale of anywhere from $14,000 - 17,000, depending on condition, and retail price from a dealer, in excellent condition, around $18,000. Generally a car is considered totaled if it would cost 75% of the value to repair it.

So, depending on how the appraiser looks at it, if repair costs are close to $10,000, or more, then most likely it will be totalled.

Some years ago someone ran a red light against me and smashed into my 8 year old Stanza. It was declared totalled even though the damage didn't look that bad, because costs of repair would have been too high a percentage vs. what it was worth. The other guy's insurance (State Farm, maybe? I don't remember for sure) was very decent, paid me for car rental for two weeks and gave me decent value for my car. I bought a new Camry and was happy with it.

So, you never know, could be a blessing in disguise here. VERY disguised, I know. But if you end up with a newer car, with traction control, that might be a good thing for you.

By the way, DON'T give your permission for anything until you've talked with your insurance agent. Let the insurance people fight it out, and you stay out of it.

r0mey

iTrader: (35)

sorry to hear this happen man im glad ur okay though

nathanwl2004

iTrader: (2)

unfortunately it was an 03 base with about 68400 on it miles but I would say that it was in excellent condition. I think I still owe about 13000 I think.

this brings up another question that maybe someone can anwser for me, does anybody know how the estimate fair market value for a car that has been totaled?

one more question. if they don't total it out, the will have to replace the muffler atleast if not the whole exhaust system. if they do end up replacing the exhaust system, what might they do about the Test Pipes that are on there now?

Morningglorie

So, with 68,400 miles on it, that's higher mileage than average by a little bit (average was 60,000) so that detracts from the value. Let's call the value maybe $14,000. If repair costs are estimated at more than $11,000, for sure it will be declared totaled.

If so, then the insurance company pays you what they figure it *was* worth, minus your deductible. Let's say they figure $14,000, you have a deductible of $1,000, they pay you $13,000 and take the car. (Make sure you take whatever personal belongings, tools, maps, etc. you might have had in the car.)

It doesn't matter what the fair market value is for a car that has been totaled; they own the car and can do what they want with it if they declare it totaled. You take the check down to your favorite Nissan dealer and start all over again. ;-)

If they DON'T declare it totaled, you're in a tougher spot, because you've got a car that's been in a serious accident and repaired. Its value after that is always going to be less than a comparable car that is pristine, with no accidents.

Let's hope it is totalled. Clean start all around.

2003DropTopGT

Unfortunately, this will not always be the case. Don't forget that the insurance companies care only about themselves, and don't care how this sh*t affects people's lives. I'm not being pessimistic, I'm giving you the cold truth. I've seen plenty of wrecks, worse than yours, who have not been totalled. The only way it'll be totalled is if you frame got twisted into all sorts of hell, which it appears it hasn't. I'm honestly guessing that your damages will be no more than $6,000-$7,000.

Also, if the insurance is trying to give you s*** for it, and skimp you out of the repair costs, F*** THEM! You pay insurance for a reason, and there was no way this accident could have been avoided, so stop telling yourself this (and don't let them tell you this). The road conditions were bad and it was just unfortunate that you hit a slick spot on the road.

Tell the insurance company that you want everything OEM. If you want to at least have a chance to have the car totalled, why would you start crippling yourself in repair costs already (higher repair bill = better chance of a total), by having them go aftermarket? First off, don't go to one of their repair shops. If you know of a good, but Expensive, one in your area, go there instead. Your insurance company can't make you take the car anywhere. The repair shop that you take it to will not skimp out on parts (because they're also not associated with the insurance company), because why would they put on something less than optimal for your car? The quality of the repairs lies with them, and they have a reputation to build.

Anyway, good luck, glad you and your wife are ok.

CRIDDA

iTrader: (10)

If you owe 13,000, then pray that its not totaled, because now you will have no money for downpayment and no car. If you dont owe this much, lets say 5k-7k, then thats a different story, cause that will give you a few thousand to put down on a new car. Good luck with everything.

Zshazz

I'm sorry to hear a fellow NCer lost his car to the rain. Hopefully you'll get treated right. Also, thanks for being a soldier for us!

mindsblank06

If for some reason the car does end up totalled, I understand that the insurance pays a check for the fair market value, and then the car becomes theirs. But what becomes of the mods that we put on it? Will we get a chance to take them off?

Plus like nathan said.. What could happen when they realize we have test pipes on their? just curious..

thanks everyone for your input.

CRIDDA

iTrader: (10)

If it is a total loss,you can get your mods back if you have the factory parts to replace them with. If not and its bolted/secured to the car it stays with the car. Having TPs on the car did not cause the accident, so I dont see a problem there.