Having rear-ended somebody on the interstate this summer, I dealt with USAA for the very same reasons you're having to. (great insruance company btw, def. keep something on policy with them for the rest of your life).

Anyways, when my accident happened, I slid under a car that was at a dead stand still on the interstate. I needed a new bumper, hood, both fenders, radiator, bumper support, and radiator core support.

Well, my car is an 05' and at the time had 91k miles on it. The wreck happened in South Carolina, and their law states that if the damage to the vehicle is between 50 and 75% of the value of the vehicle, they can, at their discression, total the car. The damage ended up being 9k, which was roughly 70ish% of what the car was worth.

After waiting a few days, I got a call from the insurance adjuster (while I was at Charlotte Motor Speedway at a NASA event, obviously not in my car. He told me that assessing the damages, he had decided to total the car. I told him the car was my baby, and couldn't bear to think that I'd have to let her go. HE even made the point that he was surprised when he found out how many miles were on it - it was in great shape.

I asked him if I could buy it back and he said, sure, but I'll have to wait to get you the price. I hung up, both happy and sad. I was happy because the car was starting to become more of a toy for me and I was looking for another s2000 to turn into a full track car, so there in my lap one had landed - my own!

Anyways, after about 5 minutes, he called me back and told me that if I wanted to, I could elect for them not to total the car. He said I could think about it over the weekend and give him a call on Monday.

After much thought and having realized that I was going to keep the car either way, I elected to have them total the car for a few good reasons:

1) I would be making payments on the exact same car with the same repairs if I had them repair it, plus I'd be out $500 for my deductible.

2) The car was going to become more of a track car anyways, so why track something you're making payments on?

It ended up being that I only had to come out of pocket $800ish dollars to have the car back. I put $3500 into it, doing most of the work myself (minus paint) to get it back on the road.

So, insurance totaled the car (body shop guy in TX doesn't know why they did - the bags didn't even deploy) , I got it back cheap, put way less than I owed on the car before the wreck back into it, and was good to do.

Oh, best part of the deal - I was moving to TX two weeks after the wreck, and the way TX law works, you don't have a salvage title on the vehicle if the damage is less than the value of the vehicle - so, it's paid off, and with a clear title still. Oh, and I just re-upped my insurance - it' didn't go up at all.

Hopefully you will be able to weigh the pros and cons of the situation and come out of it ahead like I did.

 

Yep, that's it. Sorry, not that familiar with the area, was just passing through on 70. Good luck getting back into some form of S2000!

 

Yeah man you definitely saw it then. Definitely a terrible day for me.

acab, thanks for all the info. Like I said before, I couldn't visibly notice any major, if any at all, frame/powertrain/suspension damage so I wouldn't mind there being lots of repairs considering most would all be cosmetic.

I've thought about purchasing the car from them if it gets totaled, but I will more than likely just cut my losses and try to start from scratch again...pay off the loan, save up some cash and start hunting for another one. All of you guys are top notch for offering your advice and support.

Many thanks,


RENFRO

 

No problem man, LMK what they tell you. If it gets totaled and you don't want to buy it back, i might be interested if the price is right. I always like a good project.

 

Sorry about your accident, man. Hopefully you're able to find your way into another S.

 

Good luck with the repairs...sucks that it was your first day.

 

Yeah it does suck. Regardless, I know I want an S2000...I really want my S2000 back. I'm still waiting on photos, but typically what would you guys say the cost is to replace a body piece? I know that it differs depending on the panel, but I was thinking a new body piece + paint + labor = $1200 maybe? My insurance said they do try to find used parts to save on cost, and I know I'd rather have new OEM parts, but I want the car back more. I planned to hang onto it for a long time. I've tried crunching some numbers in my head and I know it's almost impossible to put an exact number on a specific panel, but I just wouldn't know where to start when it comes to costs?

Can anyone chime in with personal experience perhaps?

Thanks again everyone,

RENFRO

 

One other thing...I'm assuming every panel that got hit needs to be replaced, but I DO think that one or two of them can be repaired. The passenger door wasn't hit directly, but was maybe beat up a bit near the seams. Still not sure what has to be completely replaced or not



RENFRO

 

Panels are , say $300-400 per, so nose, bumper, fenders and doors, $2400-3200 new, plus labor, plus paint, at say $1,500? Without unseen damage to deal with, prob close to the $8k you mentioned, at the high end. If they can bang out the doors, get some used parts, and there isn't too much unseen damage, it would be less.

 

Glad to hear you're okay. That really sucks man.

I've owned my S for about a year now and I'm still surprised at how unforgiving it can be at times. Although I have snow tires on mine I've hit some black ice too... not fun.