Its good news that they total the car. Have fun shopping for your next SC430!

 

matt i agree with you. I was a little heartbroken when I first got hit, then when i could see somewhat more objectively assess the photos, I was a little conflicted. the hope was that only superficial surfaces were spindled, folded or mutilated. first estimated repair cost to retrofit and replace with OEM ...$6000...not to bad

Then after the shop look in more depth, they found severe misalignment in the hardtop hinge mechanical morass..which yielded a supplemental repair estimate of over $10,000.

What would you guys recommend ? living with a repaired c430 or finding a replacement that is clear of mishaps?

 

Just a quick glance at Autotrader indicates that a 2006 or newer with less than 60kmiles is going to cost in the mid $20ks. To get one with less than 150k miles, will bring that down to the mid teens. So to get a similar car that is low mileage, you'd have to cough up quite a bit of scratch. Even going up to 150k miles, you'll likely have to cough up several thousand $$ to get the same car. So it becomes a decision of what you can live with.

If you have a good shop, they should be able to restore the car to equivalent working order. Then again, what will they be missing. Not to mention that you'll now own a car with a wreck in its record. Tough call.

If you go for the restore path, be sure to get the lost equity claims in there.

 

Bre if your set on finding a new SC430 to replace the one you have I would follow through with that. BUT if your set on keeping your car I would ask the body shop what is the warranty for the repair. Every major accident I've been in all the repairs are lifetime. Just a little piece of mind if you do decide to keep that car.

 

I made the mistake of not accepting the total on a vehicle and had it repaired instead. I was stubborn and in hindsight stupid too! The problem with the repair is you go from a car that had a pristine history (great resale value) to one with a serious wreck in its history (mediocre resale). Needless to say, the resale of a vehicle that has been in a collision is a lot less than one that has not.

Take the total, make sure you get full value for it and find a pristine replacement.

Insurance company may want to total it anyway to avoid potential issues. And they are going to want you to sign a medical waiver (it was a rear end collision = whiplash, neck, back, etc.) They are motivated so make sure they are fair to you.

Ask a good dealer sometime the value of a pristine SC with a perfect carfax versus one that had $10,000 or more worth of repair work from a collision. My guess is a lot of dealers would send that repaired car right to auction.

 

chapter 3. Hinges damaged Insurance declared it a total loss..

 

NCBill...you are absolutely correct. although sometimes it seem hard to part with something you were emotionally attached to. Well. I am going to regroup. Thanks all..wonderful advice

 

Big relief, now you have a clean slate, Congrats!

 

Yep, plenty of good SC430s available. You'll find another one before you know it.

 

Chapter 4. Totaled out at $18,000

 

they gave you $18k for a 2006!!!

that is so awesome!!!

 

Very nice.

 

I guess that depends on the mileage... low mile 2006...go for a bit more than that.

 

107500 miles good to very good condition, new tires, 2 owner (me being one of them, clean CARFAX, mantained w/records

Should I go for more? how does one do that?

 

I would say $18k is pretty good...comparable cars with similar mileage are going for $15-16k on Cars.com. The only trouble would be finding the same color combination?