...she woke up saturday morning to find someone had gone to town on one side of her car and one side of her hood while parked in her apartment lot. Not your simple line, we're talking lots of lines and a star designs here and there (from what I've been told). Taking insurance out of the equation, what would you do if that happened to your car? She's kinda freaked out by it, and I don't really know what to tell her.

Any particular places in the area you'd take your car for an estimate? Would the estimate be free? Any ballpark figures on what the repair might be? It's a black car, which I thought would be the easiest to touch up and make presentable again, but what do I know.

Any responses would be appreciated. Just figured I'd help her out if I could.

Thanks.

Estimate should be free. If they want to charge you for an estimate your getting shafted.

I've tried touching up cars... There is a lot more to paint than most people realize. My touch ups are not pretty. If I had a star scratched into my hood and wanted it to look decent again I would bring the car to a professional. Just my two cents. It sounds like it will not be cheap, with the extent of the damage, though. I would still call the police though. If they get serious about it they have all sorts of little tricks to find out who did it.

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the hood and one whole side of the car will not be cheap. There isn't any good ways to "touch up" panels that have been keyed. I wouldn't be happy with anything other than a complete repaint of all the panels damaged. If I had to guess, going off of your description of the damage, it's probably $750-1000 at most body shops.

I guess her mom took the car in for an estimate today and it was over $2100. She's telling me the car is considered totalled 'cos the value of the car is only around 25 or 26 (a mid/late-90s Lumina). The sad thing is, the car only had 50,000 miles on it. And it was handed down from her grandma.

People really piss me off sometimes....

Thanks for the responses.

..

those must be some deep scratches eh? If that's the cas then yeah $2100 doesn't surprise me too much.

If the insurance company totals it, you should be able to buy it back from them for salvage value. I would bet that it would be less than $500.

Get a few bottles of Black Nail Polish that is color matched well(women usually have the best eye for this, just ask them), and touch it up like you originally planned. I don't think it will look the greatest, but it will be better than totalling the car or driving it with massive scratches. If she turns in the claim will her rates go way up?

_________________
Bad decisions make good stories.
Look at it! LOOK AT MY @SS AND TELL ME IT'S PRETTY!

I was thinking the same thing about buying it back for salvage value, but I wasnt sure how it worked. It will be interesting to see. Sounds like a nifty way to get a free $1500 as long as she can live with a car having a sub-par touchup job.

Although I'm sure her rates will go up....

Your not getting $1500 for free persay... You will also have a car with a Salvaged title. I'm not sure if thats something you want ether. Another reason to touch it up and not turn it into the insurance. I'm not sure how they would cover the car in future accidents with a salvaged title, which may be something to look into. Plus if the insurance company buys the car, it's their car. If they think they can get more at an auto auction they might refuse to resell the car to you. I've seen that happen a few times.

Where did she go for an estimate. Did you get a second opinion?

_________________
Bad decisions make good stories.
Look at it! LOOK AT MY @SS AND TELL ME IT'S PRETTY!

I'm not so sure about it having a salvage title. However, I do know that american family and state farm will insure a salvage title the same as any other auto, provided the car is roadworthy. If you opt not to repair the damage, they may deduct that from any future claims you make. Plus we're not talking about a car that is going to have much for a resale value anyhow so a salvage title won't make much difference. The best bet is to call and find out how your insurance company handles these situations.


I agree that they can sell at an auction, but you should be able to find out if you can buy it back before you agree to the settlement.

I've seen it happen for dumber stuff. Example. I've seen an insurance agency threaten to total (or salvage title) a Stealth for having to replace the side skirts under the doors. Those side skirts on the 2nd gen stealths are about 1,400 bucks from the stealership. Now add paint and a body guy to put it on, it's a nightmare. It's about money and car worth for the salvage title. I believe that currently it's about 90% of the car's value. I'd have to check though. I'm going ice fishing with my agent this weekend, I'll have a little chat with him to refresh my memory.



correct. If it gets keyed again, or hit with a baseball bat, or anything else they feel has already had it's value taken away from it(ie paint and body) they will probably opt not to give you money for it.

If your not worried about selling the car at a later date the salvage title probably doesn't mean much, especially if it's a 500 dollar car. any car that runs is worth 500 dollars. But salvage titles can scare off potential buyers when it's more than a 500 dollar beater.

_________________
Bad decisions make good stories.
Look at it! LOOK AT MY @SS AND TELL ME IT'S PRETTY!

I could probably do it for 1/2 the price.....

Thanks Brain

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1992 RT/TT Black.......lots of goodies.

Apparently she MAACO'd it and bypassed her insurance. *shrug*