Well, I'll spare you the sappy details of an event that I'd rather not re-live anyway...

suffice it to say that I went backwards into a tree at 50mph, and now I need advice.

My car is damaged pretty bad. The rear window is shattered, the rear trunk and rear bumper are damaged beyond repair and need replacing. The two rear quarter panels and doors can probably be repaired/repainted. Two rims are scratched/gouged to oblivion and I don't know if there is frame/suspension damage.

Here is what I need advice on: what should I do?

1. File insurance claim. Keep in mind that I filed a claim for an accident 4 months ago ( few g's worth of damage), so I'm loath to file another one, especially for damages this bad... my insurance will undoubtedly go up - if the company doesn't drop me.

2. Take out a loan and repair the damages myself. This involves co-ordination on my part, out of pocket finances for rental car and repairs etc...

If you can add advice, or have other suggestions, or can just lend me some of your life knowledge, I'd appreciate it.

The only saving grace for me right now is that the car is paid off (just finished too http://www.i-club.com/ubb-files/smilies/frown.gif ) and at least I don't owe money to the bank for it.

thanks,
Matt

[This message has been edited by Mizen (edited May 07, 2001).]

oh yeah - does anyone want to buy a banged up RS - or know of a way that I can sell it? I think that this one has some bad chi... I'm not looking forward to driving it again...

How bout driving classes. Just kidding, sorry about your crash--what happened to the beauty of AWD? I'd make the claim, deductables are not much, and if your record is ok and you were not at fault in the last crash, you shouldnt get hit bad. Sounds like your suby got f*&%#@.
Good Luck

I say file a claim. That is why you have insurance. Your premium will go up, and they might even drop you, but not before they pay for the damage. If I were you, I'd take the car to a good body shop and get an estimate. If the price is something you are willing to pay, than don't report it, but if it's basically totalled, report it to the insurance company, and they might total the car and give you whatever the bookvalue is.

My two cents.
Danny

I'd get an estimate first.. then decide. Since the car is paid for, your insurance could go up a bit and you chances are you could afford to make the xtra payments. But if the estimate isn't that much, then don't claim it.

File it... it is totaled or damn near it.

If you've managed to hit a tree backwards that bad that you've screwed up the doors, rear quarters, trunk, bumper, break the rear glass, you've also managed to bend the hell out of the frame.

Are there any kinks or anything in the roof? That'd be the killer... bends in the roof would mean that it is definitely totaled in that type of accident.

Oh and I guarantee you that you screwed up a bit of suspension, but you didn't say how you managed to hit the tree like that orwhat terrain you were in at the time, so I couldn't estimate how much suspension damage there might be.

Just FYI, I went through the insurance rollercoaster about this time last year when I was in a bad accident (not my fault), and here's what I learned: In order for the car to be considered a total loss, the cost to repair it must exceed a certain percentage of the market value for the car. For my insurance company, it was 80%, but this may vary. Cost to repair can also include "loss of use" or rental car costs for the time it is in the shop.

If you do decide to make an insurance claim, make sure you take it to a place you trust to do quality work, and possibly hire an independant appraiser. A less respectable mechanic might low-ball the repair costs in order to get the extra business. My costs were close enough to the threshold that the insurance company sent in an appraiser of their own. Hope this helps.

Jordan

Thanks for the advice guys - definitely keep it coming, if anyone has anything to add to the mix...

I was on pavement when it happened, and jumped a curb backwards before being stopped by the tree. I don't think there are any kinks in the roof - but I'd have to check for sure...

I'm going to get an appraisal today just to see what the damages are going to be...

Definitely jump in if you can add any other points of interest on this topic.

Damn, just file a claim already. That's why you're paying for insurance. Geez. Why would you pay them all that money and then not even use their services? You think your insurance company would rip you off by raising your premium? Ha! You lose lots more money by not making claims.

Your car's totaled.

Take a look at this:
http://www.maitreg.com/Cars/impreza/accident_010201

That was $6000 and yours sounds much worse.

[This message has been edited by bryanw (edited May 07, 2001).]

sounds like your car will require several thousands of dollars damage.

smartest thing to do at this point is file a claim and deal with the consequences of high rate insurance later. get your car fixed first... that's what you pay them for.

j. www.subiegal.com (http://www.subiegal.com)

file it. period. You are way beyond the value of the car in repair costs. On top of everything else, you probably did something to your tranny, and if the force was enough, and at the right angle, your whole tranny may be smoked, or need heavy repair.

They will total the car. And yes your premium will probably go up. and go up signifigantly.

The good news? you will have a decent downpayment on a new REX! Affording the ins on it may be another story though......

bryanw - yeah my damage looks worse than that... I should be able to post pics soon, as a friend with a video cam/scanner just took some for me (thanks).

Everyone keeps saying file for the claim - and I must agree it's very tempting... I'm still up in the air right now, some estimates should be rolling in tuesday morning... since the tree was angled inwards towards the car, as opposed to being straight up and down (perpendicular to ground), I'm *hopeing* damage is cosmetic only... and with junkyard parts, if available, I'm hopeing repair costs won't break me...

However, since I just filed a serious insurance claim, that will follow me around for years to come, I'm really not looking forward to filing another one... an extra 2k per year over 3 years might not offset the repair/rental costs at this point in time...

I just don't know dude, I'm confused...

one thing I can say for sure is : I definitely DON'T need a WRX... I need a 3 cylinder geo metro!http://www.i-club.com/ubb-files/smilies/wink.gif

Yeah, you need to chill out on your driving.

By the sounds of it, I don't expect the damage to be under $6-7k. :-/

Suck it up dude, and file a claim.

In the long run you are better off. The damage could be worse than the original estimate. what are you going to do then? especially if you have already leveraged what ever you got to get a loan to pay for the original estimate?

unless you have full access to a complete body shop I would file the claim and deal with it.

Yeah, your insurance will go up but that will force you to be a better, safer driver.

I would definitely file the claim. When i had my old 96 dodge avenger, i was driving down this hill when it was raining and made the last turn at the bottom and my front tires never grabbed and I slid off the road over a curb into some guy's lawn missing two huge trees by about 1 foot each side. I totally ruined the back axle and i think every piece of suspension on the back part of the car as well as ruining driver's door. I filed the claim and after everything was over, was almost 5k worth of damage. Really close to being totalled. Anyways, insurance didn't go up because allstate gives you like a grace accident. Only down side was car never handled like it used to and never will. either way, the outcome won't be great unfortunately. I would still file the claim and just hope for the best. Good Luck

Sounds like about a $12,000 claim to me.

If you do file, it should be a total. If you don't, our insurance might not go up.

I rolled my old RS Jan. 2 and it was around $12k worth of damage. Got a new one and someone pulled a hit and run about a month ago while I was in the store. Around $5k worth of damage. I'm sure my insurance is going to go up but it better than not having my car.

Yeah - that's another good point - I'm sure that all the Impreza owners really need someone else to file another insurace claim -causing their insurance rates to go up...

unless you have a mega big bank account, I'd file a claim...plus all the interest on the loan would equal the same as an insurance rate hike until you did something to bring it down again.

[This message has been edited by smacksube (edited May 07, 2001).]

File the claim, you'll kick yourself if you don't.

But if you're up for kicking yourself, let me know how much you want for it.

-Simon

You'd be crazy to pay for it out of your pocket. If it costs $10,000 to fix and you pay the bill, you're out $10,000, no matter what. If they pay it and raise your rates $100/month, you could pay that extra for 8 years before equaling $10,000(not including interest on a loan). You can calculate from there: raised $200/month=4 years.

Many insurance companies will total a car with ANY roof damage, as its a liablity concern. They don't want a $1,000,000 claim when someone rolls that car and the roof colapses like a house of rotted cards and the driver dies. I have personaly seen a truck with a mild dent in one upper corner of the roof and a bent fender get toataled, even though the cosmetic damage would have been under 10% of the car.

Also that damage to your car CAN NOT BE FIXED. It can be made to look like it was never hit.... until someone looks under the car and sees the 1/2 @ssed welding that attaches a misc assortment of straightened parts and Cut'n paste new parts. My SHO was tagged in the rear by a civic, and my trunk is still a mess, as the load floor has creases, and a "junk" pocket is alot shallower than it was before. The structural beam is a mess and anouther hit there will finish the poor car off as a Justy could smash that 1/2 flush with the rear window no problem.

Oh and do you have any idea how messed up the suspention is back there?

As much as paying out of pocket may appeal to you, it's time to suck it up and face reality. You got major damge. It will not be worth it to pay for it yourself. Sit down with a calculator and figure it out. I had to replace a hood, driver side fender and corner light and that was already $3k. I don't think yours will come in at anything less than $10k.

Yeah, after doing a bit of math myself, I was starting to come to the same conclusion... I may still try to sell the car though... so many options.

Everyone can check out the pics in my member section. Just search under 'Mizen' and view pics... I'd link it here but I can't figure out how.

Uhm, Matt, one word comes to mind, and that word is "FUBAR". That's an old military acronym meaning "f**ked up beyond all repair"...

Right now, your only realistic options as I see them are to:

A: Not call your insurance carrier and part the car out, and use whatever money this generates towards your next vehicle.

B: Report it to the insurance company, get the car totaled, take the payout and get a new car.

Your C pillar is screwed. The car *MIGHT* be usable to someone as a dedicated race car or rally car, but it's never going to be 100% for the street ever again without dumping more money into repairs than the total value of the car itself.

On the upside, it doesn't look like you hit the tree (a magnolia, judging by the bits of tree stuck in the trunk) squarely. So the major pieces of the drivetrain are probably in good shape. The rear diff might be toast, but I doubt it.

My advice would be to take the car, get your personal belongings out of it, take off whatever aftermarket pieces are on there, and call it in to the insurance company.

Well, thanks for all of the good advice folks... I called my insurance and filed a claim yesterday... I'm hopeing for the best. But I'm a realist so:

My rates will probably go up by a factor of 1.5 or so... and I'll be driving a damn rental car for a month while my car is either fixed (doubt it) or totaled (wait for the check)...

ughhttp://www.i-club.com/ubb-files/smilies/frown.gif

pics i wanna see some pics

pics in the member section - just type in 'mizen' and view pics

voilahttp://www.i-club.com/ubb-files/smilies/smile.gif

then, be sure to type 'OUCH'

[This message has been edited by Mizen (edited May 09, 2001).]

they're not seriously gonna fix that thing are they? Egads...if you're possibly parting out- lemme know -- hehe-

On a related note, I'm curious about the discussions of roof dimples resulting from an accident- I'm askin' because on my brother's old car, there used to be this little dimple in the roof near the a-pillar, and for the longest time, I wasn't able to figure out what it came from, is this type of dent caused by structural damage from an accident? If so, what's the reprecussions of this on the car? Reading some of the previous posts has got me very curious

Mizen: i know how you feel, i just sideswiped a guardrail on a wet pavement corner two days ago and my car is in the shop with an estimated $4-5K body damage. I called up my insurance company to file the claim and the policy person said that my premiums will go up, but prolly not as much as i thought. I pay a lot anyway, about $1800/year and it will prolly go up to $2050/year which incrementally isn't bad. And my insurance increases is not dependant on cost of repairs, only if i was at fault or not at fault, and in my case i was. So $5000 or $50,000 my rates go up the same.

I was initally advised by one friend once the insurance company pays my repairs that i should jump ship and change companies, but another friend told me that i could get even more screwed by starting with a new company fresh from an accident. What are you guys experiences on that.

Ed

I would ask about buying back your car. I have heard that they will et you do it for as little as $250, and the motor alone is worth alot.

Judging from the pics, it does look there may be frame damage. While it may be possible to save the frame alignment by bending it back on a rack, I wouldn't recommend it. It'll be weaker. Time for a new ride.

Man that's gotta be rough. I dread the day that I wreck my car. Hopefully It'll never happen (knock on wood).

You could, and this is probably what I would be tempted to do, get an older L model with a good body and swap all the running gear over to it. You could claim the insurance, get the money, buy back your car. You could probably find an older L with a blown engine/tranny etc, for cheap. With the extra bucks you could put a turbo on your new creation.

that's a total, no question
the c pillar is what'll do it; you don't want the car in that condition, it'll never be the same/safe

all these pictures of thrashed subies are making me sad... the horror... the horror...

sorry to hear about your car man, and like everyone else has already said, its totalled. http://www.i-club.com/ubb-files/smilies/frown.gif

Cool - thanks for posting the pics... they are looking pretty sad. My car has some serious bad karma now...http://www.i-club.com/ubb-files/smilies/frown.gif

I glad to hear that so many people think it's totalled, I don't think i could stand waiting 2 months for it to be fixed... all the while driving a less than exciting car around...

I do need to get a beater... my rental car is $30 a day, and that's hell on the wallet, the insurance will only cover five days of it too... the only good thing about the car is it's reliable - which is good b/c I work shifts at work and being late means making enemieshttp://www.i-club.com/ubb-files/smilies/frown.gif

thanks for all the kind words guys and gals.

<IMG SRC="http://216.242.153.40/MembersList/UserPics/1608/matt2.jpg" border=0>
<IMG SRC="http://216.242.153.40/MembersList/UserPics/1608/matt4.jpg" border=0>