It had to happen. Out for a nice Sunday with the top down, stopped in a line of traffic waiting for the light to change, and WHAM! a guy in a BMW leaves his grille and license plate imprinted in my rear bumper. Sore necks aside, it doesn't look like much damage other than the bumper cover, and then you start noticing things. Like the exhaust is bent, the heat shield and panel inside the bumper cover are pushed in, the trunk doesn't unlatch properly anymore, and there's even a paint chip on the edge of the driver's door - the quarter panel twisted ahead and hit the door on impact. It settled back immediately and the gaps are all good, but this guy hit us pretty hard. The preliminary estimate is over $4K and it hasn't been torn down yet - I'm sure the inner bumper reinforcement, etc., need to be replaced too.
We're told the bumper cover is available with a four day wait. Does anyone else have any experience with this? Colour match shouldn't be a problem - this is the Classic Yellow - non metallic and non-pearl coat.
A buddy of mine in the car business has pointed out to me that the vehicle will now be branded as an accident/repair which will affect the value if I decide to sell sometime in the future, so I should have it fixed and unload it now. I don't want to do that - we like the car too much - but I don't want to take a hit on the value down the road either.
Anyway, any comments or advice is welcome.

 

Dang. Sorry to hear this.

I say get the car fixed and hang on to it. It's worth more to you fixed than it will be to someone that wants to buy it with knowledge of the accident.

That is unless you want to upgrade to an SRT!

 

LOL! It's already been depreciated as much as it can be even after it gets fixed. Glad you're ok, but seriously, the car is worth getting it fixed as it won't make any difference on resale one way or another.

 

Upgrading to an SRT - hmmmmm - do you have one in mind?
I hadn't thought about the depreciation factor, but these cars are still holding their value reasonably well in Canada. That's why I went to Detroit for this one.
I can't really see myself parting with it, though, and you make very good points about the value to me vs a buyer. And it shouldn't be too many more years before the value starts going back up on these future collectibles, either. At least, that's my plan.
Thanks for the input, guys.

 

Sorry to hear about your situation. It stinks to have to deal with things like this. Hopefully when it is all over, it will just be a distant memory. If an insurance company is involved, more than likely it will be recorded with CarFax and the likes.

My advice is to photograph the damage before repaired, and keep it on file. That way if you sell it yourself, and it becomes questioned, you can show the new owner the extent of the damage - be upfront. I don't think it will affect the value as much as a sale. The value may not be affected much, but it may turn a person or two away from buying it.

James

 

The issue will be whether there was any frame or uni-body damage. That's about the only type of accident listed that impacts sale value. As James stated earlier, having a normal accident listed on your VIN report just makes some folks hesitate when considering to purchase.

 

Thanks James -
A good point & pictures have been taken. I'm not really that upset about it. These things happen - I may have been guilty of it myself, in the past. But neither Suzanne or myself were hurt badly - just a little stiff - so I always look on the bright side. I've been hurt before and this is better.

Dedward, you make a good point about the frame or unibody structure being damaged. I've gone to a good high quality shop where I'm known & let them know my concerns on this. I think we'll be OK.

 

So where the pics at?

 

Glad you're both OK.
On a side note I doubt there are many SRT6's in the Ottawa area......what a coincidence---this morning I received an email from Rick 249 (Ottawa forum member) that just sold his SRT6 yesterday.

 

There is a loss in value, even if the car is fixed perfectly. Based on the fact that a knowledgable person, given the choice between two identical cars differed only by the fact that one has been in an accident, and the other not, the buyer will choose the car that has not been in an accident. However, at some reduced financial point, that buyer will choose the car that has been in an accident. It is up to an appraiser to determine the loss in value.

Depending in which state you live, the law states that you are owed that loss in value by the insurance company. It's called "diminished value", and you need to tell the insurance company you're going after it. They will then give you a low-ball offer. If you're happy with it, you settle. If not, you hire a qualified appraiser.

Some states do not have this law on the books, so do some checking. Your loss in value on an exotic car like this could be as much as $1,000.

 

Too bad about the lunkhead having tangled with you. Nice to know that you two were okay for the most part. I think that the fact that you have one of the gorgeous yellow Crossfires will save the day in the end. XFires cars are sought after by serious buyers I think. I've yet to meet an owner who was blasse about their car. Rather, they seem to be passionate. Alot more than you could ever get about a Bimmer I'd think.

Keep the car and consider it rescued from the clutches of a guy who drives like the guy who hit you! I went to Michigan for mine too. That is just one more reason to keep the car. Just make sure that you have someone "fussy" drive behind you for several miles to ensure that it rides straight and is not off kilter, if you know what I mean.

Hopefully we can meet sometime on a GTG. Maybe you could organize a great drive up through the Gateneaus for us!

 

If the 1/4 panel nicked the paint of your door....the uni-body was effected.
Once a car has a "Car Fax" accident history, resale prices go down.
Car dealers will really low ball ya if you try to trade it in, and anybody who looks at it (if you try to sell it yourself) will ask for a car fax. To most people, an acident history is a deal breaker.
Don't settle for anything from the other guys insurance company without a generous "diminished value" figured in.
I'm really sorry to hear about this happening, but very happy you and your passenger are OK. It's something I worry about happening to my car everytime I take it out.
Good Luck

 

Pics are still with the Body Shop. I'll post when I get them. They'll really only show the damaged bumper cover.
I'm pretty sure that we don't have diminished value here for the cars - I may be wrong & will look into it, but that's something new to me.
A GTG in the Gatineau? You know, I try to avoid Quebec - paranoia from motorcycle days, I suppose. But I'd be happy to organize a run through Calabogie & past Black Lake to Griffith, etc. Great roads. It depends on how many hours you want to be out for. I've not organized for more than a few bikes before - I'd need some guidance on expectations regarding stops, meals, refreshments, etc.
I had a great run the weekend before last - 4 days to take the loop from here to Tobermory, across to Manitoulin, south from Sudbury & back through Algonquin Park. No hits, no runs, no errors. Just lousy weather. But what fun we had - only two of us in the XFire.
I'm hoping there won't be any delays getting parts, etc. Suzanne & I are planning a couple of trips in July - first to Cayuga & then to the Picton area. I know there are members down that way. It would be good to touch base, if we can.

 

When I bought my car I ran a carfax and it showed up with a repair that was minor. I went back to the dealer with that info in hand. I asked where was the damage. He said we were told it was on the right rear quarter panel but We coundn't find it. I and my wife went out and looked for it and coundn't find it either. I figured the dealer was blow'n smoke about the location to throw me off. I went over the entire car and coundn't find any signs of repair. About 2 mths. after buy'n it I was claybaring my car and findly found a couple of faint sand lines behind the front door. Looked like a door ding had been repaired. It didn't bother me as I bought the car and am happy with it. So I'd say alot has to with kind of repair work the shop does.

22k and not a dime on repairs, knock on wood!

 

If it makes you feel better I went through the same thing 3 years ago. Bumper looked ok but destroyed and tail pipe bent. Had it fixed. They tried to fix the bumper but it was not 100 percent. They ended up getting me a brand new bumper.

My car looks and feels perfect now. Your car will too. As a matter of fact I took my car to the absolute best body shop in town. They work on ferarri and bentley. My bumper looks better today then it did brand new. I challenge anyone to tell the difference.

Just relax and chill. Your car will come back better than new. Just have a good place work on it.

 

So sorry to hear about the accident. Glad you are ok which really matters. Good luck with the car.

 

Thanks guys - We're going to keep the car. We bought it for the long term so don't really expect too much problem with a depreciating value. I've attached a couple of pictures here that don't really show much other than the bumper cover is ruined, but the real damage is hidden. There's a paint chip on the door edge towards the bottom of the picture that was there before, but if you follow the edge up you can see where the paint has splintered from being hit by the qtr panel. The exhaust is $1260.00, the heat shield is $123.00, the bumper cover is $714.00. Adds up quick, doesn't it. The bill so far is just over $4K but the car will also go on the bench to be measured & have the wheels aligned - that will probably bring it up a few hundred more. But with any luck, we'll be rolling again at the end of next week. It could have been a lot worse - I've seen pictures of others.
Door Edge Enlarged.JPG

Rear.JPG

Exhaust.JPG

 

When a Corvette I once had was broadsided, and the appraiser and I couldn't come to terms...I looked him right in the eye and said, "I think my neck really really hurts right now!"...He was wanting me to take his offer and sign off on the medical....Long story short, I got my car totally repainted and fixed to my satisfaction, and he received his signed medical release...you just need to haggle a little bit...for the record, my neck did hurt....but, my car was more important....lol

 

Hey Oledoc2U - that's good advice. I just got the completed estimate after the teardown - hard to believe, but there's a little over $9800.00 damage. Wow.

 

WOW, they may want to total the car with that much damage.....good luck....get satifaction, it wasn't your fault....