A young lady turned left in front of my wife Monday night.

The good news is my wife and the young lady walked away from the accident. The girl was cited for failure to yield.

The bad news is she hit the Z in the front left wheel. Shoved the wheel and everything else back about 8 inches.

I don't think the damage is enough to total the car. But I'm not sure I want to keep it anymore. I doubt the ability of any body shop to repair all of the damage.

What should I do if it is not totalled?

 

You have 2 options:

1 - Suck it up and keep the car. It probably isn't THAT bad.

2 - Sell or trade in the car, but be forthright about what happened. You won't get as much for it, but if I were the buyer I'd be mighty pissed off if the seller didn't tell me the car wasn't involved in an accident.

That's about it. You won't have much luck trying to convince your insurance company to total your car, which doesn't sound like it IS totalled.

 

With the left front suspension being crushed, what are the odds that it won't be THAT bad.


There is only so much you can do with bent metal.

I suppose they could replace the entire left side of the sub-frame. And all of the damaged suspension components.

But what about the things that are not visibly damaged or don't seem to be damaged? But will fail earlier due to the wreck.

I feel like I've been stolen from. I started the week with a good car, now I've got a three wheeled liability.

 

front bashed in, maybe hit the engine comaprtment, frame... probably totalled.

 

If they don't total it you can sue for loss of value. Probably in small claims court.

 

I have talked to a recommended bodyshop here in Orlando. They are called Excel.

They say they have a certified appraiser that State Farm will except. That worries me because I think they'll try to fix the car no matter how badly its damaged. State Farm wins, Excel wins, I lose.

Bill Ray Nissan will take the car and repair it. They say they may even trade with me for a roadster if I want to. I wonder how many ways I can get hosed there. Dealerships worry me.

Classic Nissan just informed me that will not take my car in trade at all since it has been in an accident.

 

no you can't.

 

just keep in mind that they have to repair the car to it's original condition. this also includes value. i don't htink you can take it to small claims court, but i do know that ins co.s do pay for pain and suffering, (this also includes the time you have to take off work to deal with this issue, as well as just the aggrivation it caused)

you also have the right to take the car where you want it fixed. meaning cost won't matter (to an extent) if you get the car back from being repaired and you're not satisfied, take it back. have htem do it again. never finalize anything until you're happy.

now, as a rule: hte ins co. is gonna be a huge pain in your ***. they are a big corportation out to do one thing: make money.
but trust me, be a pain in their *** right back. the bitchiest customer gets more of what htey want.

(i've delt with mult. ins cos both bike and auto) if you have any questions, pm me. i'm actually currently helping my bf through a claim.

one of hte biggest things to remember is time is on your side. (well, sorta.) the more you're willing to wait, both for them and for things to be done right, the more likely you are to get what you want. but also keep in mind that you want to be a thorn in their side. call them at least once a day, leave messages. make sure they stay on the ball.

hopefully, they'll be able to repair and/or compensate you to your satisfaction. good luck!

 

get rid of it....a car is never the same when it's hit like that

...too many variables can be affected and easily missed therefore creating missed errors(possibly longterm). most mechanics will get the job done(fix it to the miminum requirement-performance and longitivity/warranty ). the SCAR will always remain...i believe it'll run...but it'll never be the same-and you will feel it.

get a new one for your cars sake...and most importantly your conscious's sake.=)

p.s. unless you have a friend who can examine it....let him decide AND let him work on it...hopefully you can trust your friend=) he'll work on it like he's mr.uncle which is better then stranger=)

good luck.

 

Post some pics even though it won't show all the damage but it'll give us a better idea of how bad. I don't know what to say unless I see some pics. Anytime there's an accident that damages any part of the frame, it's better to let it go. It'll never be the same afterwards.

 

Here's a few pics....

 

Another...

 

So what do you think?

I doubt it's totaled, but how do you un-tweak the suspension?

 

Lost this one somehow...

 

I don't think most people understand how good some body shops are. When it comes to frame damage there is a lot of shops that send it to a company that does nothing but repair frame damage. They have charts that is supplied by the car manufacturer with all of the dimesions that is needed to make a car strait. They measure so many different points it is crazy. I wouldn't worry at all about the how tha car will end up after it gets fixed if you find a quality frame specialist and body shop.

 

I'm looking, but how do I know when I've found one that will work for me and not the Ins. Co? And will do good work?

 

It really doesn't look that bad but, then again I only have these pic to go by. Are you certain that the wheel is moved back by 8 inches?

 

Thats bad, buts it's not lost....

They will not total that car... so its going to be fixed anyway. If you want the trade in for the roadster... take it... nows your chance.

But if you dont want a roadster... relax... let the shop do its magic. Then take the car out and see how it reacts... I bet you wont be able to tell the difference.

 

I had my wife stand next to the hub of right wheel and I stood next to the left wheel. We just compared where I was standing to where she was. The 8 inches was probably + or -, but that pretty close.

I might not be able to tell the difference initially. My biggest worry are probably eight months to a year down the road.

 

might I recommend you go to 350zfrenzy, and look for member ZPRESENCE.
http://www.350zfrenzy.com/forum/show...&threadid=2193 He has a body shop in orlando, and from his pics (and seeing the engine covers he's been painting for people all over the country), does excellent work. His shop is All Car Services, and he truly loves and takes pride in his work, plus he drives a Z. He repaired a DB car that was hit right after purchase and had extensive damage, and documented all the work online at 350zfrenzy. They also do a lot of work on NSX's and other exotics.