Durrr

Same thing happened to a friend (less speed involved) a few years ago to his silverado, he fought and got it totaled, and replaced. Trailer hitch was hit @ about 25mph, buckled the frame down and even though it COULD have been repaired, its safer in the long run to get a frame you know is going to be true. Who knows, maybe in the future, the same thing happens again, but the repaired frame torques and gives way... then what...

Lexls400

Sorry to hear about your GX. I heard before that if a car ever gets a bent frame it never drives right. But on the plus side if you do decide to get rid of your GX it would be easy to find another one just like it to replace it because there are alot of them around. Good luck to you!

-Joe

Nauticalx

Not true....a bent frame PROPERLY realigned will ride as if never hit. The key is to get it PROPERLY back within specs. Good luck with the repair.

gr8smiles

Just an update for those that might want to hear the ending....

The insurance company would not 'total' the truck. They REPLACED the frame with a new one. During the process, they messed up the tranny, so Lexus replaced the transmission....(luckily under warranty)

It turns out that the guy who hit me had insurance. I have gotten the car back and went straight to a non-lexus dealer and traded it the day after I got it. I was able to trade it for 43k. It drove fine for the 24 hours that I had her back.The carfax was clean and that is all the dealer cared about.

I am still dealing with the guys insurance company as they only want to pay about 1/2 of my 58 days rental. They obviously don't want to pay diminished value, so I will be filing suit for that and the rest of the rental.

I ended up buying a Tundra (for towing and the lake)and a 350z for my daily driver. I really hated having SO much money tied up in 1 vehicle, now that I see how quick that it can get damaged.

I have learned a lot from this experience and thank everyone for their help.

BLKGX470

oh darn...we lost one member

now to think of what he just said...it is alot of money for one car. and he just said he got a tundra and a 350z for the price of 1 Lexus...hmmmm...

gr8smiles

I also had an 04 BMR R1150 motorcycle that I sold as well. But yea, for not too much more, I ended up with 1 nearly new truck (that I got at 0% and the inside looks and sits better than the GX) and a nearly new convertible....

xenon666

The diminished value claim is only recognized in certain states so I can understand the need for a legal proceeding. But I don't see how you're not entitled to a complete reinbursement for the rental?


43k is awesome on the trade. Guess the repair work was done fairly well.

gr8smiles

He asked if anything had happened....I told him that I was rear-ended. He asked if the Carfax was clean....I said yes, that I had just checked. He said..."Tell me no more"

He said that everything was under warrranty until 50k anyways. I did not protest.

Tennessee does recognize diminished value. We will see if it applies here, but my attorney thinks that I will have no problem collecting.

The body shop is at a Cadillac dealer locally and has done all my body work for the last 25 years....since I rolled my dad's new 1981 celica on my high school graduation night!

I could not tell that anything had been done to the GX., but I was not wanting to take the chance down the road, since it only had 8k miles on it.

The G Man

This is one of the reason I would never buy a low mileage used car.

I6turbo

iTrader: (1)

LOL That is the horror story that scares most people, but really it is EASY to tell if repairs such as this have been made. That is, unless one is just simply clueless when it comes to automotive matters beyond twisting the key and driving away. Granted, much of the population is, but I wouldn't have any fear whatsoever that I'd buy a previously wrecked car -- particularly one that has had the frame replaced -- and not know it. It'll be very obvious once you get it up on a lift and start looking around. LOTS of bolts will have marks on them, the bushings will be sitting in slightly different places, and there will be tons of tell-tale signs for anyone who knows anything at all about the mechanics of vehicles. FWIW, I've owned about 28 used vehicles in my lifetime and about 5 new ones. I've never had a single used vehicle give me any significant problems. In fact, the biggest POS I've ever had was one of the ones I bought brand new.

Now, determining whether or not an engine or transmission or some other subsystem might have a minor problem, or a potentially major problem waiting to happen is more difficult (but not at all scary to me and lots of people like me). But, for example, if you're buying a used Toyota product from a reputable dealer (such as my local Lexus dealer) you have very little to worry about with a used vehicle. I'd say you have less to worry about than buying many of the domestic or European vehicles brand new.

The G Man

But it is still a chance not worth taking in my opinion just to save 2 or 3 thousand dollars on a $50000 car.

I6turbo

iTrader: (1)

I agree it's not worth trying to save 5% when buying a near-new car -- just pay the additional $ and get a new one if you're that close to spending for a new one anyway. I was talking about buying a low-mile car that is 3+ years old where you can save a bunch of money. Once you get to the point of saving 30-60% of the new price, it starts looking a lot more attractive, particularly if you're not afraid of getting "someone else's headache."