Car is total loss - keep and fix or cash out?

[elledub]

Hello All,

Opinions needed please! I have never been in an auto accident before! I was T-boned by an old man who blew a stop sign. Boom :-( He destroyed my driver side front door and did cosmetic damage to every panel on the left side of the car. His insurance (State Farm) accepted liability and has deemed my car a total loss. 2005 Ford Focus wagon. I am so disappointed as I had no loan on the car, it only was up to 81k, I have maintained it carefully, kept it in a garage and it was reliable. It was my perfect Mustachian car.

State Farm has offered $5600 for it which is a fair price. My other option is to keep the damaged car for $4900 and fix it myself. The drivers side front door needs replaced. Other damage is cosmetic - paint and smaller dents. I am good at learning to do new DIY things. The car still drives nicely and doesn't feel out of alignment so I don't think there is any structural damage beyond the crushed door shell. It was a lower speed collision. None of the airbags went off and none of the windows were smashed. I was driving about 20 mph at the time and the guy that hit me probably was going 30-40 mph. He was in a Cadillac and his car barely got a tiny dent and scratch in his front bumper.

Does anyone have experience with this and can offer me an opinion? Should I take the cash and start shopping for a new car (uuugh)? Is fixing this myself and keeping the lesser payout and the damaged car the way to go? I don't mind driving around a car that doesn't look perfect anymore (my teenager might...) I'm not sure what to do here.

[Ecky]

Airbags not deploying is a good sign, but the only way to know for sure is if you can get a mechanic to look at it. If there's no structural damage, I'd go for it.

[Spondulix]

Consider what it'll do for your resale value - even though you're saving $1000 now, when you go to sell it, you probably won't be able to sell it for market value because of the accident history.

Plus, it's a Ford - which once they start having problems they fall apart (in my experience). Personally, I'd take the money and go buy a Honda or Toyota that'll for sure get you past 100k.

[GNR]

If you can sell it as it is, or with minimal DIY repairs (junkyard door), for $700 or more then it makes sense to keep it.  If the door still opens and closes the way it used to then there is reasonable chance a replacement door will fit up, and that should be an easy fix; if the door frame is bent and the replacement won't fit right it won't be worth fixing.

[paddedhat]

Take the money and run. I bought two 2007 Focuses (Focui?) for my kids, a few years ago, while they were in school. Both had far less miles, and one was $5500, the other a few bucks more. The offer from other guy's insurance is more than fair, and should be more than enough for you to replace the car with something similar that is damage free.  That said, I agree with Spondulix, they really aren't all that great of a choice. A Civic or Corolla is a better car by several magnitudes, and far more durable and reliable as the miles rack up.

[Numbers Man]

Hello All,

Opinions needed please! I have never been in an auto accident before! I was T-boned by an old man who blew a stop sign. Boom :-( He destroyed my driver side front door and did cosmetic damage to every panel on the left side of the car. His insurance (State Farm) accepted liability and has deemed my car a total loss. 2005 Ford Focus wagon. I am so disappointed as I had no loan on the car, it only was up to 81k, I have maintained it carefully, kept it in a garage and it was reliable. It was my perfect Mustachian car.

State Farm has offered $5600 for it which is a fair price. My other option is to keep the damaged car for $4900 and fix it myself. The drivers side front door needs replaced. Other damage is cosmetic - paint and smaller dents. I am good at learning to do new DIY things. The car still drives nicely and doesn't feel out of alignment so I don't think there is any structural damage beyond the crushed door shell. It was a lower speed collision. None of the airbags went off and none of the windows were smashed. I was driving about 20 mph at the time and the guy that hit me probably was going 30-40 mph. He was in a Cadillac and his car barely got a tiny dent and scratch in his front bumper.

Does anyone have experience with this and can offer me an opinion? Should I take the cash and start shopping for a new car (uuugh)? Is fixing this myself and keeping the lesser payout and the damaged car the way to go? I don't mind driving around a car that doesn't look perfect anymore (my teenager might...) I'm not sure what to do here.

Welcome to the club. Take the money and run. There could be structural damage or hidden problems that won't show up until later. For example, my brother got into an accident with my car and there was problems with the differential many months later. Plus, your title will be labeled as salvaged and not too many people are going to be excited about buying your car.

[pjm123a]

Went through something like this last year. Another reason to take the money from the insurance company is that if you take the lesser amount and get the car back, it will most  likely have a salvage title. This makes it much more difficult to re-register and kills resale value. It really sucks when insurance companies total a car that has a lot of value to *you*. In my case I knew a lot about the engine in the car, had some spare parts accumulated, and had just done some major maintenance work (replaced timing belt). It may be possible to get a little more from the insurance company if you have recently put some money into the car and have receipts to show for it.

[Syonyk]

Plus, your title will be labeled as salvaged and not too many people are going to be excited about buying your car.

I went through an awful lot of cars before I even knew you could buy a used car without a salvage title... :p

[BlueMR2]

I'd keep it and fix it.  I have no concerns about a vehicle having a salvage title.  People of the mustache shouldn't be selling a car until it's only remaining destination is a scrap yard anyways.  :-)

[Syonyk]

People of the mustache shouldn't be selling a car until it's only remaining destination is a scrap yard anyways.  :-)

Heh.  I've intercepted at least two from the scrap yard and drove them for a lot of years.

[paddedhat]

I'd keep it and fix it.  I have no concerns about a vehicle having a salvage title.  People of the mustache shouldn't be selling a car until it's only remaining destination is a scrap yard anyways.  :-)

 The insurance co. isn't handing out a check for $5600 because they are generous. They have totaled it since, wait for it.................... it's toast. It doesn't need a used door and a $4 can of spray paint, it has significant damage,  and is not economically feasible to repair. Believe me, if it could be fixed with a used door and a few bucks in paint work, the OP would of gotten a check for $1200-1500, and be given two options, #1 Take it, or #2 sue us. There is a big difference between buying a car with a salvage title that has had many thousands of dollars in repairs, and taking a check and keeping a heavily damaged car that needs thousands in work, and would be worth less than the time and money invested.

Insurance estimating is about as far from "seat of the pants" guess-timating as it gets anymore. One of our cars was recently damaged by a little POS sorority twit, who backed into it, and decided that she was not the kind of privileged little cupcake that needed to be responsible for her actions. Security cameras decided otherwise. Her insurer did a workup that ran at least twenty pages of detailed info. and even provided cost, availability, and contact info. for used parts required for the repair. They missed a few minor details that were concealed, and wrote several supplements to the original estimate that added up to a few hundred bucks. When the craft of estimating damages has reached this level, buying a car back and thinking it's only going to take a few hundred in weekend warrior repairs, instead of the $5600 + the estimator figures, well, lets just say that it probably won't end well.

[Zamboni]

Wow, I'm glad you weren't hurt!  Driver's side door impact doesn't sound like a good time.

If a door has to be entirely replaced, then I'd take the money and reinvest in something else. 

Someone I know had an accident like yours and had the vehicle repaired only to have the windshield start leaking around one edge whenever it rained. It hadn't appeared to have been damaged at all in the wreck, but apparently there was a little bit of movement that unsealed it or unseated it a little somehow.

[bzzzt]

The insurance co. isn't handing out a check for $5600 because they are generous. They have totaled it since, wait for it.................... it's toast. It doesn't need a used door and a $4 can of spray paint, it has significant damage,  and is not economically feasible to repair. Believe me, if it could be fixed with a used door and a few bucks in paint work, the OP would of gotten a check for $1200-1500, and be given two options, #1 Take it, or #2 sue us. There is a big difference between buying a car with a salvage title that has had many thousands of dollars in repairs, and taking a check and keeping a heavily damaged car that needs thousands in work, and would be worth less than the time and money invested.

Not necessarily, but with the OP's questions, I wouldn't plan on them fixing it themselves if the B-pillar is bent.

Example, my wife (girlfriend at the time) let her sister borrow her car to go pick up SIL's "mechanic" to fix SIL's lemon POS car. On the way, SIL rearends another car (who evidently had their own problems, because they drove off.). So, car is hammered in the front without collision insurance (bought the car for $350 needing a trans rebuild). We trailered it back and dumped it behind a buddy's building for a few weeks due to me working out of town. When I got back, I found the same car with less crash damage, 50k less miles, for $350 and it only needed a fender that was still good on the SIL wreck.

The car was hit in the RF and the frame rails were tweaked and the PO gave up on fixing it after they put a RF strut on the car (score! new parts!). I took it home, straightened the front end some with a porta-power, slotted the hood hinges to the max to match the crooked front end, set the alignment, and she drove it for 50k miles until someone turned in front of her and was at fault. Insurance paid out $2300, bought the car back from the insurance for $200, and sold it to a circle track racer for $500. SIL still owes us $1000 (KBB value) for wrecking the first car, and it's 5 years later (Bitch!).

Needless to say, I love salvage cars. They look like dollar bills to me.

[BlueMR2]

The insurance co. isn't handing out a check for $5600 because they are generous. They have totaled it since, wait for it.................... it's toast. It doesn't need a used door and a $4 can of spray paint, it has significant damage,  and is not economically feasible to repair.

That's a very black and white view of a situation that can have many shades of gray.  They've totaled it because they cannot restore it to original condition for less than it's worth on the open market.  Original condition and safe operating condition are not the same thing.  Safe operating condition can often be reached for FAR less money.  You're correct that it's not always feasible, but it is quite often as long as the owner is willing to accept that the car no longer looks perfect.  I'm *very* familiar with what it costs to fix cars, and how much of that is usually unnecessary (not to mention that you can often even get back to full original condition much cheaper by putting in the labor yourself).

[Rural]

Check your state laws on salvage titles before you decide. In my state, you can't register a home-repaired car with a salvage title at all because the car dealerships have good lobbyists,

[paddedhat]

The insurance co. isn't handing out a check for $5600 because they are generous. They have totaled it since, wait for it.................... it's toast. It doesn't need a used door and a $4 can of spray paint, it has significant damage,  and is not economically feasible to repair.

That's a very black and white view of a situation that can have many shades of gray.  They've totaled it because they cannot restore it to original condition for less than it's worth on the open market.  Original condition and safe operating condition are not the same thing.  Safe operating condition can often be reached for FAR less money.  You're correct that it's not always feasible, but it is quite often as long as the owner is willing to accept that the car no longer looks perfect.  I'm *very* familiar with what it costs to fix cars, and how much of that is usually unnecessary (not to mention that you can often even get back to full original condition much cheaper by putting in the labor yourself).

You and BZZT are both correct, but there are many caution flags that pop up if you head down this road. First, in my state, you can "buy" your car back, and I was offered this option recently when one of ours was totaled in a hail storm from hell. The deal was the car can be "bought" for X dollars. At that point my title hits the garbage, and I receive a salvage certificate as proof of ownership. I then  have to go through the process of repairing and retitling the vehicle. This involves an expensive ($300) state evaluation of the car to determine if it is road worthy, and that no operational, structural, or safety defects exist.  As a best case, after all legitimate repairs are done to return the car to factory specs, I would be looking at six weeks of down time until I go through all the paperwork and end up with a new, salvaged branded title, for a car that then has extremely diminished resale value, and that I can no longer get collision insurance on. The insurer would sell me the car for the highest bid he got from his salvage buyers. The car is as is, where is, and I have to tow it home.

For those of us that grew up wrenching, it can be a great deal, especially if the company goes right to the edge and writes a nice check without "totaling" the car. But it can take a lot of tools, experience and skill. I have done it in the past, including paying $400 for a $5K econobox that was pushed a few inches, ahead of the radiator support, driving it for a year, and then trading it for a decent pick-up. That job included free use of a buddy's frame rack and a whole pile of tools and skills that a typical member here probably doesn't have.

[elledub]

Thanks for all the opinions and insights. They are helpful. As it stands I still have not made a decision on the car as the insurance office is closed until Tuesday. I did not know about the issue with registering a totaled car so will read the regulations on that for my state.

[elledub]

I decided to take the cash and run :-)

Car shopping commences today.

Thx again for the feedback.

[GlobeTrttr]

Good decision.  Don't rush the used car purchase - takes much longer to find a **good** used car that was well-maintained and sold by an honest, independent seller (avoid dealers).  Look for one with maintenance records.  CarFax is a good place to start for those.

Budget time and money for having it checked over by an independent mechanic you trust.  $5k is enough to get a decent used car with over 100k miles on it and 100k miles of useful life left in it, if you choose carefully.