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1995 LS400 with 113k Totaled... Worth Fixing or Not?
Hello.
My Super clean 1995 LS400 was hit in the rear driver side when it was parked. Estimate came in for over $9000 to fix it. Car is super clean and had a lot of work done - Timing belt + water pump, Starter, Brakes all the way around, Spark plugs, ECU, and so on. Everything was done at the dealer. Runs good and only has 113K miles. Insurance company totaled it and took the car. I took the $$$. I can buy the car back for $1300 but it will be SALVAGE title. I will also need to pay DMV to register car as SALVAGE $200 - $500. I will also need to repair Damage / Lights and do brake and light inspection $150 here in Cali. Not sure how much repair will run but I can get lights for around $200 online. I am not sure if it worth fixing the car or should I just let it go. Trunk still opens but hard to get it to close. Not sure if there is any frame damage - see the wrinkle on the drive side quarter panel. What do you think I should do forget about it and move on or buy it back and fix it?
I don't have a good answer for you. Insurance said the bill to fix is $9000, you don't get there just from some quarter panels and a smashed light. That suggests frame damage to me.
Are you able to get the adjuster's inspection of the repair bill? That should give you a list of the damage.
But I have a different question if you don't mind me asking.
How much did your insurance payout? Do you feel like they paid the true market value of such a clean & well maintained vehicle?
They paid just little over KBB. The cars they found to compare are very high millage. So they gave me just little over that. I can't replace my car for the amount they gave me. I tried fighting with them about that and I got no where. I was told that car is over 27 years old and not worth fixing. I am trying to find another one like that but they are very expansive and have over 250K miles. So right now I am stuck.
I did get estimate to repair it was Trunk, Quarter panel, Bumper, and lights, all used + paint. I am in Cali so labor is High. Car never made it to body shop. estimate was done based on pictures that some dude took with his phone. But car drives fine.
If you're patient you can repair that. Find a quarter panel and all the other parts you need then find a body shop willing to do the work. You can help things along by removing all the interior parts that are in the way. I will warn you if the inner structure is bent that becomes a very involved repair possibly requiring the fuel tank to come out.
I think it is bent because It was hit by large SUV with push bars and it was also tattled. My LS400 took the hit and did not show much but I know everything is bent. I can tell by the rear glass there is large gap on the driver side compare to passenger side. Trunk lid is also bent. Damage does not look bad on the pictures but I know it is bad when you start getting into it.
Might be worth it to buy it back just for having it with lower miles and everything you've done, the problem is it sounds like you don't do your own work, so to pay someone else its going to be cost prohibitive. As a spare parts car, it's good, not sure about the fixing part, sounds like its totaled obviously.
I was also thinking about having a parts car but I do not have another one like that to use the parts. I have been looking to buy one but all I see is overpriced LS400 with over 250k miles. I have 1994 LS400 but they are little different. I do not think I can use the parts from 1995 on 1994.
As far as I know 1990-1992 1993-1994 1995-1997 1998-2000 different models. I can do some of the mechanical work not body work. The work was done to the car was done by dealer with previous owner before I got the car. The people that had car before me ware old couple that could no longer drive. I had car for 3 years and only drove it 4k miles. I do not drive much. that is why millage is very low.
Prices on cars are starting to come down, but there's going to be dreamers and hangovers from the high price frenzy so people are going to be asking a lot for a while, but not necessarily getting that much as they thought. If you can at all wait to buy for a little bit I would because prices are still inflated but it is starting to shift the other direction.
It's an interesting situation you had with the insurance company. So that's the problem with people asking that much for these cars, what if something happens? The true value of the car is not what people are asking. You basically cannot afford to buy a car that you will not be covered on to fix it or get another one. The prices that people are asking is not accurate, the market is overheated and incorrect.
Yes that is exactly what is going on. People are asking way to much for older cars and new cars are very expansive. I was pretty happy with what I had and was going to keep it for long time. I am not in a rush to buy another one or even buy one at all if prices do not come down. I have other car, it just this one was one of the better cars I ever had. I am on the look out for nice LS400 and I can wait for few years. It took me over 2 years to find this one and I only had it for 3+ years. Or I might just give up and get small 4 cylinder car to save some money on gas. I was paying almost $6 a gallon and getting about 15 MPG on this car. Since I do not drive much I did not really care about having V8. Plus I like the design and everything else about the car. I used to have 1991 Cressida before and this was upgrade.
I would in a heartbeat. I haven't seen an LS400 on the road in our rust belt in a long time, they've all but died due to rot by now
Originally Posted by 400fanboy
I don't have a good answer for you. Insurance said the bill to fix is $9000, you don't get there just from some quarter panels and a smashed light. That suggests frame damage to me.
Are you able to get the adjuster's inspection of the repair bill? That should give you a list of the damage.
Doubtful. Insurance estimates are usually out to lunch, I've seen some include shop time for detailing... That's why shops buy salvage cars and repair them its worth the time. Otherwise IAA wouldn't exist and everything would be scrapped.
Out of the 9k. a bunch is labor since you have to cut weld a quarter. The trunk lid is busted & not worth labor, but the part will cost $$ & paint. Needs a new light, needs a new bumper.
Paintwork & eco fees, along with labor are most of the 9k. Now add on the COVID inflation for parts (new & used), which is a very real thing.
Rule of thumb here (Canada, Ontario) was ~30-40% of the insurance estimate is what it'll cost you to fix it up and make it roadworthy... from what I've seen as an "observer" by a friends local and very successful, its pretty accurate.
I would say take the money and leave the car. As for the amount they gave you, you didn't actually say how much. But, if they gave you $5K for it and if you buy it back for $1300 that only gives you $3700 to spend on repairs and whatever inspections you need done in Ca. to get it re-registered and (salvaged) titled. Then you have a car that's not even worth maybe $2K. What happens if it ever gets hit again? (after doing massive amounts of work to it) What would insurance give ya then, $500? It may have been a nice clean, good running car, but like you've said, it's not a car that you absolutely need and can't live without. I'm sure if ya saved the money they gave you, another nice one will pop up for sale that you'd like. Prices are WAY too high now. I haven't been looking around lately so I can't say if they're coming down or not.
In the pics it doesn't look like a lot of damage but it's all the hidden damage ya gotta watch out for. If you bought it back to have it for a parts car you can make a little cash off it but is it really worth it? You would need a place to store it, and time to take the parts off it. If you sold it as a whole car (for parts or repair) you wouldn't get much for it.
I wish you luck with either way you go, fixing this or getting something else.
If you found one with a very clean body and bad drivetrain/interior (95-97), I would say it would be worth keeping this to swap all the powertrain components and your nice interior into. A motor/tranny swap into these isn't that difficult and then you wouldn't be out all the money you had spent on high quality OEM parts, as they wouldn't be going to waste.
I want to say Thanks to everyone who replied to my post (400fanboy, LeX2k, CLLEXUSS, 01LEXPL, deanshark, Losiracer2) I have done my math and numbers do not add up for me to keep it and fix. I found few shops that can do the work but it will be $5000+. Car will have salvage title and I will have to spend all the money that I got from insurance and more. So after I get the car back and do the work plus all the fees I will be about $7500 into it. A car like this in good condition with salvage title is $3000 at the most here in CA. Plus insurance company will never give full coverage on it. I was thinking buying back for parts but I do not have place to store it and take a part. As of right now I can't find another LS400 with low miles to get as the prices are crazy here in CA. It took me 2+ years to find this one and I will wait till I can find another one in clean condition. This LS400 was build for CA with CA emission and had no rust as it has been garaged almost all the time. But I am willing to let it go with hopes that I can find another one as I know there is no way I can fix it make it like it was.
Again Thanks everyone for taking time with advice.
Letting go is hard especially when you've spent the time and money to keep the car nice. Good news is you're in the Lexus mecca of the planet if you can't find another LS up to your standards then probably no one can.
04-14-22, 12:31 PM
1995 LS400 with 113k Totaled... Worth Fixing or Not?
