like a phoenix rising from the ashes.. with tires

[ghini]

Took it to the body shop for an estimate.

He looked it over, did some calculations..

He says a rough estimate of the value of my car is $5000

They total a car when repairs are over 75% of the value of the car. $3750 in this case.

He said that repairs looked to be about that much and there is a good chance they will total it.

They need to do an official estimate and get word from the insurance company, but I'll be used car shopping in the meantime.

Comments

[kittenspeaks.livejournal.com]

How much are you looking to spend.
My mechanic down there has been culling leads for me ever since my car was totaled in my absence. And if he endorses them then it is a good car. Shall I put you in touch?

[xopherg.livejournal.com]

find out if you can buy back the car after they total it. if you go to a body shop and let them know you're paying out of pocket, you might get it fixed on the cheap.

[lorigami.livejournal.com]

that's so retarded.
get your money, buy back the car for 400$, then fix your car and have it "rebuilt". what the hell is the point of trashing a mostly good car? 100k miles on a Honda is nothing!

[notgruntled.livejournal.com]

I don't think you have to worry about he car being "trashed" -- if Uglor opts not to fix it up, someone else will.

But if you know a good body repair guy or can DIY, and you're not too proud to use body panels pulled from the junkyard, it's not a bad strategy. My dad once totalled a car (actually, my stepsister did), bought it back, replaced the body panels himself, and actually turned a profit.

[lorigami.livejournal.com]

not neccessarily, my car that I'm still driving (as-is) was "totalled" and if we hadn't bought it back, it was headed to the crusher.

[g-sabine.livejournal.com]

I always saw you as a Miata man. Personally.

[covenant.livejournal.com]

I'm finally ready to let the Integra go :-)

[mumpish.livejournal.com]

Your next car.

[notgruntled.livejournal.com]

Craig's List isn't a bad way to buy a car, but I'm a fan of Carmax -- decent prices and minimal hassle, though they are a little annoying (extremely mild by car-dealer standards) in pushing the extended warranty. They don't have many cars under $10K, so it'll depend on what your price range is.

For $30 you can get a Carfax subscription with unlimited queries, so you can make sure you're not buying a prettied-up crash victim or a Katrina salvage job. I think they have a mobile version of the site, though I can't find it just now, so if you have a smart phone you can punch in the VIN and get a report while you're standing by the car.