ray_noms

You probably already know how this story is going to go Time for the rant!

A few months back my parents and I went on a week long trip and my brother offered to house sit. I made the mistake of leaving my keys with him (with an explicit request to not touch the car unless he had to move it to work on his STI). After a great trip I come home to an empty garage, and a "my bad". Apparently my brother (or his gf, who i suspect was the culprit - she has a history of crashing my brothers STI) took the s2k out and spun the car into a sidewalk + bushes. The exact circumstances will never be known, since it was a single car accident with no police report.

I was/am still heartbroken. I got my MY05 Sebring S2k with only 32,000 miles on it, and planned to baby it for a very very long time, and how had a car smushed in front bumper, heavily scraped rear passenger wheel, dented door + rocker panel, dented exhaust pipe, and toed in rear wheel (I believe the control arm was bent/snapped).

I made another mistake of letting my brother take care of the repairs, since he is a manager at an Acura dealership and can get work done on the car at a discounted rate by the same guy who services their customers NSX's. I didn't want to go thru insurance since my rates will be hiked up significantly (couldn't go thru my brothers insurance since I would have to treat it as vehicle theft) As a result, the car sat for a couple months as the repairs trickled in. I drove civic with a slushbox for the time being (and was bored to tears). The wheel was repaired supposedly by a well known shop that services Ferrari's (its in Marin), and he got the suspension components and front bumper replaced, and the dents removed at a body shop. entire right side and front bumper was repainted and blended in OEM Sebring silver (at another supposedly reputable shop) , and the car was finally done. Everything looked good at first, or so I thought...

I started noticing things here and there (i didn't get a lot of time with the car since I had been out of the house a lot for work). The passenger rear wheel was slight toed in more than the left + the right side of the car was about 1/2 inch higher than the right (they prob didn't pre load the suspension). The paint on the front faux brake ducts chipped already and overall, the passenger side seemed "duller" and had noticeable orange peel all over, and overspray on the passenger door sill. Over certain bumps and road imperfections, the driver side rear suspension made popping sounds and the car felt "loose" at highway speed. In certain angles, the passenger door seemed to have a crease in it where the dent used to be, and the body shop that reinstalled the blended passenger front fender, installed the wheel well lining incorrectly (it was cracked and curled upwards, causing a slight bowing out of the fender - now permanently that way). Turns out it wasn't really repaired. They simply moved the rear passenger wheel to the driver side, and just filled in the rashes, and didn't quite polish it to OEM spec.

At this point, we are waiting on new OEM parts for the suspension on both sides, and the front bumper is going to be repainted again (since some dufus in an suv scratched it) My brother has "offered" to buy it from me for the amount I still have on my financing. My gf wants me to get rid of it, but for some reason, I keep searching for ways to justify keeping it.

My friend wants me to buy his buddy's 04 Phoenix Yellow E46 M3 (6 MT, no sun roof with 65k mi), and I have been eyeing Lotus Elise's and Cayman S' (but these are way at the top of my budget), yet I am afraid to let the car go. I know I am going to immediately miss the car and regret not having it. What if I can't find the perfect S for me again? I've only every owned honda's, so I am a bit interested in trying out a German car (i did drive a friends e36 m3 years before I got the S) but I am not a fan of the reliability issues. I know there are quite a few S2k's out there that I can eventually buy, but this was MY car, my first true sports car (other than my minty 01 GSR - another low mileage car which I sold for this) and my first convertible (i always thought I would hate convertibles, but now i love them)

I love this car. Despite all of these f$ck ups, I still love the car for its overall looks, raw feeling when driving (especially with the top down) and perfectly running engine screaming to redline. I love how this car is/will be a classic and is reliable till past 200k mi. I still go to my garage to admire the car (and even bought some new cleaning supplies for it) Am I just being stupid? Should I let it go?

What do you guys think?

AZ-S2000

Honestly, let it go. Personally, the fact that there was previous damaged would grind away at me and always be in the back of my mind. I would never really feel the same way about it.. even though I was in love with the car. Even after its repaired, its still not the same. I would get it as best as you can and try selling it. Get another S2K though, there are plenty out there. Stay away from the E46 M3. I was a German car fanatic and only owned BMWs and Audi (mostly BMWs). I borrowed my buddies E46 M and the M3 felt like a boat compared to the S2K. There was nothing that M3 offered that would make me want one. And knowing that most early models and some later models had main bearings going out all definitely made me stay away. Also BMW's version of variable valve-timing (VANOS) is absolute CRAP. From 1999-2008 NO model was spared from VANOS problems. All the 3-Series from 1998-2007 had issues.. so did the 5s and 7s. They are expensive to repair or replace, and it isn't a permanent fix either. E46 M3s are one of the worst to repair. Cam bolts were often found loose on M3s too.. so much crap. And I ask where is the fun in owning that..? Everything is expensive on them, to mod or to fix. Find another S2K and you'll be happy again. Im at 200K miles on my S2K and its going like it was at 100K.

cosmomiller

This can have a major impact on families but your brother did break your rules.

I would sell the car to your brother. Wait for another S to pop up. They will sooner or later. Get another sweet one and lesson learned.
Good luck.

JL140

Let it go, you'll only feel pain everytime you remember or notice the things that will never be right with your car again. The S2000 you left behind when you went away is long gone, and it's not coming back.

Sorry to hear, but you'll be happier with a new S2000.

MyEeek

Agreed with the others. Let the car go, whether you sell it to your brother or to another buyer. Find another one with low mileage in what you consider is pristine condition.

And set a new rule for your car: nobody drives it but YOU.

TooSoon

I think you need to...

Fokker

This thread really should have started with, "A few months ago, my brother and his girlfriend passed away...". Search for a new S. Your brother broke it and he should buy it.

takeshi

His insurance wouldn't cover it even though he was (allegedly) driving it? Always use a highly recommended shop for any work versus going the cheapest route if doing repairs. It's unfortunate but you'll just have to chalk this up as a learning experience on multiple fronts.

How you proceed is ultimately your call. If even getting it repaired is going to bug you then you need to let it go. If you're ok with properly performed repairs then proceeding with getting it properly repaired may work for you. I generally don't have concerns if there's no frame damage. I recently hydroplaned my Boxster and scraped every panel on the driver's side and dented both wheels as well as one of the rear suspension pieces. The shop I selected not only did excellent work but insurance and the shop offer a lifetime warranty on the work as long as I own the car so I have no problems with it. However, your situation and preferences seem to differ. There are plenty of other S2000's out there if you want another. You might just have to pay more for what you want given the current market.

If you want to go German there are reliable German cars out there. Just make sure your wallet can afford the risk of an unreliable car. Buying is going to be just the start of the costs.

ray_noms

We share the same insurance company, AAA NCNU (different policies). If I want his insurance to cover it, I have to treat is as vehicle theft (which as much as I was mad at him, couldn't do that). Otherwise, I had to treat the incident as permissive use of the car.

I trusted that he would use a more reputable shop as he always does with his own car. But now I know not to trust him with my things...

AZfury

Props to you but i would have murdered him or his gf whoever it is, I would let it go, or sell it to him for book value of the car not how much you have left to owe, find another and move on, his fault not yours, there are consequences