Who else was in a car accident over the holidays?

[Mermaidman]

Update: I received the check from the other party's insurance company. Now I'm thinking of buying and replacing some the parts myself to save money, then bringing the car to a body shop to finish the job. Has anyone done that and what should I expect? (For example, would a body shop frown on the customer-installed parts?)

I have the full service manual and the parts that look easy to replace are the trunk lid and broken tail light. The bumper looks to be quite challenging.

Original post:
Stop and go traffic. Dude in jacked-up pickup behind me wasn't paying attention and rammed my car at slow speed. His truck had a little ding and a couple of scuff marks . . . But my car has crunched trunk lid, bashed bumper, one broken taillight, and broken interior trunk trim.

The insurance adjuster just gave me a repair estimate. Guess how much? :Q

Edit 1: Poll removed

Moved to The Garage per Author's request.
Zenmervolt - AnandTech Garage Moderator

 

[zoiks]

Around 4k?

 

[BoomerD]

Your pic doesn't show any possible damage to the rear quarter panels as well (pushed into the doors, etc) but I'm going with zoiks and say about $4k.

 

[darkxshade]

What a great way to start the new year eh?

 

[Mermaidman]

Originally posted by: BoomerD
Your pic doesn't show any possible damage to the rear quarter panels as well (pushed into the doors, etc) but I'm going with zoiks and say about $4k.

Luckily no fender damage, else they might have totalled the car! You guys are really good at this--The estimate was $4800. I thought it would've been $3K max so I was very surprised.

 

[BoomerD]

You can't hardly get a scratch fixed in a body shop for under a grand...I'm not surprised at your estimate in the slightest.

 

[amdhunter]

That is the most mangled license plate I have ever seen. Gonna be a biatch to fix that.

 

[LS21]

just a scratch... will buff right out

 

[drum]

so you didn't put the correct answer in your poll... 4 or 5 could both be right.
Did that happen on the 23rd? what a way to have the holiday ruined

 

[Mermaidman]

Originally posted by: drum
so you didn't put the correct answer in your poll... 4 or 5 could both be right.
Did that happen on the 23rd? what a way to have the holiday ruined

Well, it's not an exact science

I was stuck in crazy holiday shopping traffic when it happened. Here's a lesson for you kids--Call the cops right away to file an accident report. The police wouldn't take a report from me when I called a few days later. Funny thing was, they told me it was required by law to report an accident if the damage exceeds $1000, but wouldn't accept my report . . .

 

[herm0016]

sucks that you did not call the cops. now your insurance will probably have to pay for everything. hope you at least got his info.

 

[TuxDave]

I guessed $4K.

$1K for paint
$1K for bumper + trunk parts
$1K for putting said parts onto car
$1K for fixing everything else

 

[CRXican]

I got hit a few weeks before the holidays. Lady pulled out of a parking spot in a big ass truck she has no business driving and took out my driver-side fender and scraped my front bumper.

The car is a 1996 Miata and her insurance company cut me a check for $1,100 for the repairs.

 

[JulesMaximus]

I hate those lifted trucks.

Lift kits aren't legal for road use. These idiots who install lifts and drive their vehicles on public roads should be pulled over and ticketed.

Why is it okay to hassle ricers but these idiots modify the hell out of their trucks and make them into death traps for the rest of us and that's perfectly okay? Don't get me wrong, I think ricers should be hassled but so should people with illegal lifts on their trucks.

 

[Mermaidman]

Originally posted by: herm0016
sucks that you did not call the cops. now your insurance will probably have to pay for everything. hope you at least got his info.

The guy did share his info. He dragged his feet before talking to the adjuster, but finally did it and his insurance is paying for the repairs and car rental. I knew where he worked so I could have made his life unpleasant otherwise.

 

[2Xtreme21]

You're lucky he had insurance. One of my biggest fears while driving is my car being totaled by some douche with no insurance in a shitty car paying no attention.

 

[Slimline]

Originally posted by: JulesMaximus
I hate those lifted trucks.

Lift kits aren't legal for road use. These idiots who install lifts and drive their vehicles on public roads should be pulled over and ticketed.

Why is it okay to hassle ricers but these idiots modify the hell out of their trucks and make them into death traps for the rest of us and that's perfectly okay? Don't get me wrong, I think ricers should be hassled but so should people with illegal lifts on their trucks.

As far as I know there is nothing illegal about the lift on my truck. Is that not quite the stereotype associating all people who drive bigger trucks as idiots implying no sense of regard for rules of the roads? I do the speed limit, I obey traffic laws, and I off road where it is permitted. That guy in the sentra doing 150km/h down the 401 is much more dangerous in my opinion. Its not the vehicle that is the issue, its the drivers.

 

[Whisper]

Originally posted by: Slimline

Originally posted by: JulesMaximus
I hate those lifted trucks.

Lift kits aren't legal for road use. These idiots who install lifts and drive their vehicles on public roads should be pulled over and ticketed.

Why is it okay to hassle ricers but these idiots modify the hell out of their trucks and make them into death traps for the rest of us and that's perfectly okay? Don't get me wrong, I think ricers should be hassled but so should people with illegal lifts on their trucks.

As far as I know there is nothing illegal about the lift on my truck. Is that not quite the stereotype associating all people who drive bigger trucks as idiots implying no sense of regard for rules of the roads? I do the speed limit, I obey traffic laws, and I off road where it is permitted. That guy in the sentra doing 150km/h down the 401 is much more dangerous in my opinion. Its not the vehicle that is the issue, its the drivers.

True, the driver is a key aspect, but sometimes "accidents" are unavoidable, and by driving a lifted vehicle, even if you aren't at fault, it's possible that your bumper will be much more dangerous than it would without the lift.

 

[Turin39789]

Originally posted by: Slimline

Originally posted by: JulesMaximus
I hate those lifted trucks.

Lift kits aren't legal for road use. These idiots who install lifts and drive their vehicles on public roads should be pulled over and ticketed.

Why is it okay to hassle ricers but these idiots modify the hell out of their trucks and make them into death traps for the rest of us and that's perfectly okay? Don't get me wrong, I think ricers should be hassled but so should people with illegal lifts on their trucks.

As far as I know there is nothing illegal about the lift on my truck. Is that not quite the stereotype associating all people who drive bigger trucks as idiots implying no sense of regard for rules of the roads? I do the speed limit, I obey traffic laws, and I off road where it is permitted. That guy in the sentra doing 150km/h down the 401 is much more dangerous in my opinion. Its not the vehicle that is the issue, its the drivers.

Foreigner

 

[BoomerD]

AFAIK, lifted trucks are legal in all 50 states, although each state may have different restrictions on how high is legal, headlight height and other things.

BTW, the necessary report should probably be made to your DMV, not the police department. (again, each state is different in its reporting requirements, but in Kahleeforneeya, you send the report to the DMV.)

 

[Mermaidman]

I received the check from the other party's insurance company. Now I'm thinking of buying and replacing some the parts myself to save money, then bringing the car to a body shop to finish the job. Has anyone done that and what should I expect? (For example, would a body shop frown on the customer-installed parts?)

I have the full service manual and the parts that look easy to replace are the trunk lid and broken tail light. The bumper looks to be quite challenging.

 

[aleckz]

I would check if it has any frame damage.

 

[halik]

Originally posted by: zoiks
Around 4k?

If there's no unibody damage, you can fix that up for $400: go to car-part.com and find the parts in the same color.