HELP!

[poll250 0]

Right where to start. Well after looking around for ages I bought a 94 VR6 last week, 145,00 miles with fsh. pretty much mint. So all is fine for the first couple of days then on thursday some woman ploughs into the back of me while I was letting oncoming cars through a narrow bridge. great. I just need the help of a few experts on a few things. The garage say its gonna be a write-off, (her insurance are goin to look at it tomorrow) but to me it doesnt really look that bad:

 

As you can see its only the back end thats really damaged.

The things I wanted to know are:

1. Do you reckon its worth fixing?

2.How much should I look to get from them if its a write off?

3.Would it be worth me buying it back off the insurance company and fixing it ? If, so how much should I offer them for it!?

 

Any help would be great, Ive never been in a crash before so Im not really clued up on this stuff and dont want to be taken for a ride!

[grimmy 0]

Jesus Christ thats some bad luck! I'm afraid i can't be of any help just offering my sympathy. It looks really smart in the bottem pic. so could be worth trying to buy it back.

 

Good luck sorting it out.

[Critical_Mass 10]

TBH mate, and im sorry to say this, but it'll probably be a write off. BUT only because insurance companies will only use dealer parts, thus dealer prices. Then theres the fitting and aligning and then spraying.

 

Some idiot hit the passenger side front corner of my G60 xmas eve 05. Only needed a new wing bonnet and bumper. But the repair company said it wasnt economically viable.

 

1, Do you reckon its worth fixing? As a fellow rado enthusiast YES, if youre willing to put a bit of youre own money into it, if YOU feel its worth it then thats the answer youre looking for.

 

2, It all depends on how much you insured the car for and how much the car with same spec would go for in the Parkers manual.

 

3, Your best bet, seen as it probably will be written off, will be to buy it back and do the job yourself and/or a garage you know. Youll be able to buy it back for next to nothing and have some spare cash from the insurance claim.

 

Good luck to you mate, sorry to hear this at anytime nevermind when youve just got the car. Keep us posted of your progress.

 

Gaz

[SteveVPK 0]

looked like a loverly VR

 

i would have thought that her insurance company will try to write it off and offer you a insulting amount for it ( seems to happen far too much )

 

not to sure where you stand on this but if she is accepting responsibility for the accident i would be very firm with the insurance company and insist that they repair it.

[Critical_Mass 10]

not to sure where you stand on this but if she is accepting responsibility for the accident i would be very firm with the insurance company and insist that they repair it.

 

Thats it, with it being HER fault you can possibly play hell and make them fix it. However, this is still a maybe.

[poll250 0]

Thanks for the support guys, I really want to keep her, it seems like such a waste when I know it can be fixed for comparitively little. My sis was in the same kind of position and her insurance company gave her the full worth of her car and let her keep it, without declaring it CAT D or anything. Maybe thats something I should look into as I dont really want to have a car thats been CAT D'd.

 

Jeez I just want my 'rado back lol.

[Critical_Mass 10]

I feel for you bud. Keep the insurance company well informed that you wish to buy the car back. They may just not be bothered if it gets scratched or dented if they think itll be in a scrap yard within the next week or so.

[TomB 0]

If it's the fault of the other party entirely, I believe you can take them to the small claims court for the full value of the repair of a cherished vehicle (if under £5K), even if the insurance co. is unwilling to pay out. Check the Daily Telegraph Motoring section under Honest John for details.

Good luck with it, and it may work out cheaper to get a partial payout, buy it back & have the work done yourself, so while the crash is bad news, it may work out OK.

Cheers,

Tom

[2_Door_fun 0]

Downer bud.

 

Welcome to the club. I had my new G60 about 10 days and bang.. Ya can't win can ya. I hope they will fix it for ya.

 

See my bang here

[KieranM 0]

Real shame dude, hope it goes ok for you, but they can't repay the time lost in not driving it or any inconvience to you!

 

I'm sure i saw that car for sale on the TCS website last month or so (the wheels give it away) cos i was going to have a look at it before a closer one popped up near me which i ended up buying!

 

Good luck!

[poll250 0]

Yeah man thats who I got it from, I think those wheels make the car look so awsome. Insurance inspector went to look at it yesterday so I guess I'll be hearing soon. Fingers crossed for some good news!

[BigTartanJudge 0]

Hi mate, from the pics I can see that your rado needs the following parts to repair it (can't see the boot floor so will not include it). Price are in the region of:

 

Rear panel and light mounting panel £450+VAT and £250+VAT

 

Tailgate £450+VAT (no glass)

 

Rear bumper £420+VAT (no longer available from VAG or ECP, obsolete)

 

Boot floor if required £350+VAT

 

So you have a parts cost of at least £1600+VAT (£1900-ish inc. VAT), poss nearer £2000+VAT. Then there is the labour of which there will be A LOT of hours to replace rear-panel (and pot. boot floor) Then paint and materials, I would have said your looking at another £500-£750 for that, so you prob. looking at around £3000-£3500 to have her repaired by a professional insurance-approved bodyshop.

 

That said you could probably buy a VR6 with blown engine for around a £1000-£1500, use the parts to repair yours and get it sprayed (with settlement cash). Or buy second-hand parts for about £600 (with settlement cash) and get them fitted / prayed for about the same and get it repaired completely for about £1500.

 

They might give you the pay-out for what you insured the car for minus. your excess and offer to sell your the car back for a small sum (£200-£300). You could then get her repaired with rest of the settlement money, but be careful as they may want to register her as CAT C/D which will mean she will be much more difficult to sell on later

 

The value of an average mile standard VR6 in good-nick if purchased on here is around £3000-£3500 (unless with leather or some other extras). Parkers value it at something stupid like £2250. Trade-price (e.g. Glasses guide which is what insurance assesors use to get base prices to decide on costs) will be even LESS.

 

Insurance assesors usually use the "60 % rule" when deciding whether to write-off a damaged vehicle i.e. if the estimated repair costs are in excess of 60 % of the vehicles pre-accident resale value, repairs will not be authorised and the car will be declared an insurance (CAT C/D) write-off.

 

I appreciate that this probably isn't what you wanted to hear but just let me say this. Fight for everything, put together as good a case as possible e.g. photos of pre-accident condition, private and autotrader ads for vehicles of similar spec / condition, adverts on here for cars, get a written independant valuation from a corrado specialist etc.

 

The more of a case for the best value of a car, the more likely they will cave in and authorise repairs to your rado. I went through a very similar experience about 7 months ago now and it took me 4 weeks of hell before they finally agreed to repair my car ! They offered me £1160 for my car originally !

 

Good luck mate with it all and let us know how you get on,

 

Cheers and HTH

[poll250 0]

Wow thanks for all that mate, I really appreciate the time spent on that reply. I guess I've got a long road ahead of me, but it'll all be worth it to hear that engine again.

At best I'm hoping to get good settlement money and not have the car declared cat d, then get parts and fix it. The boot floor is buckled apparently so thats on the list too and there's also a dent in the rear wing where it meets the rear panel, I'm not sure if this can be knocked out or will need a whole new wing! or maybe just something welded on?

Anyways thanks again mate

[2_Door_fun 0]

Wow thanks for all that mate, I really appreciate the time spent on that reply. I guess I've got a long road ahead of me, but it'll all be worth it to hear that engine again.

At best I'm hoping to get good settlement money and not have the car declared cat d, then get parts and fix it. The boot floor is buckled apparently so thats on the list too and there's also a dent in the rear wing where it meets the rear panel, I'm not sure if this can be knocked out or will need a whole new wing! or maybe just something welded on?

Anyways thanks again mate

 

 

Big Tartan is correct.

 

Early November my first G60 was written off. Yes thats two G60's in 2 months :oops: neither my fault. For my 1st 60 my insurance offered me £300. That was it and I was unable to keep the car. After putting together a portfolio of photos from the cars full rebuild that took 5 months or so plus a stack of receipts I was offered £3100 with no argument.

 

So as then here I am trying again to get my new 60's worth loads of printouts and such.

 

Good luck

[poll250 0]

Right! I rang the ladys insurance company cos I hadnt heard anything for a while. Turns out the inspector has classed it CAT C, and valued the car at 1900, but they are giving me the car back and giving me 1700. Now I'm pretty annoyed cos this is almost a grand less then i paid 48 hours earlier, plus i dont want a cat c car cos itll be impossible to sell on. I dont know what to do, she was pretty insistent it was fair and that they were sending me a cheque whether Im happy or not... ARghhhhhh

[BigTartanJudge 0]

B******* to that mate, stick to your guns and get the true value, DO NOT BACK DOWN OR ACCEPT SOME PALTRY OFFER !

 

You really need to be doing the things I suggested like getting cars of similar spec prices of adverts from autotrader, the forum here, other forums. Also, get a written independant valuation of such a specced car from a VW specialist etc. Mention about complaining the insurance ombudsman and they usually start worrying ! They are trying to do to you what they tried to do to me, so don't let them get away with it !

 

Call me if you need any further advice on 07977 190664,

 

Regards and good luck

[gradeAfailure 0]

Refuse it. You've said nor signed anything to say that you're accepting that offer, so don't.

 

Trawl Autotrader and get proof that to buy another one in the same condition would cost twice as much, and also include the receipt for the car from not 48hours previous.

 

Insurers are c***s, fight them.

[Son of a Beesting 0]

Right! I rang the ladys insurance company cos I hadnt heard anything for a while. Turns out the inspector has classed it CAT C, and valued the car at 1900, but they are giving me the car back and giving me 1700. Now I'm pretty annoyed cos this is almost a grand less then i paid 48 hours earlier, plus i dont want a cat c car cos itll be impossible to sell on. I dont know what to do, she was pretty insistent it was fair and that they were sending me a cheque whether Im happy or not... ARghhhhhh

 

Stuff that, they cant do that you have to agree they cant say you hav to accept that offer.

[2_Door_fun 0]

Refuse the cheque. State that the gudie they use for value is infact a GUIDE. Explain the car and get cars for sale of this site and from TCS they only really sell C's. This will help you. It helped me loads as I said earlier my 1st 60 was only valued at£300 :roll: With the aid of the guys n girls on here and some photos of the car in pre crash summer sunshine I got £3100 that is a massive leap. Click the link at the bottom of my sig. My gone but not forgotten corrado. It tells the story.

 

Sad thing is will have to go through all this again for my new yellow 60.. We'll have to see what they say. Also this is a non fault claim you are entitled to have the car put back to pre accident codition.

[poll250 0]

Yeah thats what I thought. I've been looking all over and saving details of vr6's Ive found, I'll give RSA a ring later and get em to email me the inspectors report too. Ive got a folder full of receipts, including the original purchase documents and its VW stamped until 2004 so that must count in my favour, maybe send em photocopies of all the receipts and everything. I know its my statutory right to sue the lady and get my car returned to its original condition, and as i understand it if I take her to court i WILL win, and then RSA will HAVE to pay the full repair costs, so if I dangle this over their heads maybe Ill get somewhere?

 

Thanks for all the support, its reallly encouraging to hear. :)

 

Andy

[Deluk 0]

my first offer was 1500 and the car back, i pushed it up to 2k and the car back, i told them i wanted my money bek what i payed for it and i was not going to send back this offer , he sorted on the phone and sent a new letter out , but then mine is the cheeper 2.0 16v and i stayed real chilled cool as cake .

 

how much was yours to pay for? and start with that figger and dont buge much , have you got a hire car out of them yet?

if its 3rd party you might have to wait , and 3rd party have no rights to take your car ,you make sure you keep it mate get her fixed or break it up, make more money out if this both ways.

 

up to you.

[poll250 0]

you mean third party as in cover? im comprehensive if that helps. i want what i paid back, only trouble is its hard to find another vr6 as nice for the same money! ill give em hell in a bit and see where i get!

[Deluk 0]

ok say you got it for 3.3 k , are you using your insurance then, or her's?

[poll250 0]

Hers, its more than/ royal sun alliance. I wonder if they are trying to hassle this cheque on me so that when i receive it they can say its settled and take my hire car away, even though ive told them im not accepting this as settlement.

[Deluk 0]

defo play on that mate, say you like the hire car, say stuff like you want this sorted asap and so do you , so give me more