stephen3lindsey

Well this is my first post on here and probably my last. I got in a wreck today, messing my front end up pretty bad. This is very bad timing for me for a few reasons, the first being that today was the first day of Spring Break from college. I also had plans for tomorrow for my car. I was going to get the oil changed and all that and then wash it, since it's been forever, as you can see from my pics. Check out my cardomain page for all the details.

My cardomain page

aminus21

iTrader: (14)

sad to hear that man.. did the guy stop after you got his plates?? good luck with the insurance company. are u planning on another 3rd gen??

stephen3lindsey

No, the guy ran through another stop sign after I got his tag and left. I don't know what I might be gettin, probably not another maxima unless I can find a newer one at a good price.

Michael

iTrader: (21)

oh thats not that bad man. bring it by my house and let me take a look at it.

You still have my numbers from the PM I sent you a few weeks back if so call me? If not PM me again and I will give them to you.

Did it happen here in Meridian or your home town?

seriously it doesnt look that bad to me and I could fix it for you pretty easily unless there is more damage that what is shown. Let me take a closer look at it and see exactly what it would need to be fixed...I know I already have a good radiator support as well as a "decent" hood and bumper.

Of course if insurance is going to take care of it then take it to a shop and have it done but if you are stuck with insurance not covering it and need cheap labor and parts then let me know.

stephen3lindsey

This happened down here on the coast. I'm not driving it back to school in Meridian. It's just gonna sit here at the house until it gets fixed or whatever else can be done. Thanks for the offer, but I don't think this car is gonna be driven by me any more. I was really lookin to get a new car anyways, so this could turn out to be good in a way.

Michael

iTrader: (21)

OK cool then...good luck with whatever you decide to do.

Scope

iTrader: (5)

IMHO Unless the ins. company decides to fix it let awsm66 fix it (if there isn't much damage) and that way you can sell it for a much better price than just getting rid of it. BTW sorry to see this happen. That is a great looking VE.

'90Maxima

Doesn't look too bad, i should post a pic of my crash now i've been driving it like that for six months, i got a tow bar through my number plate and the bumper has an inward v shape the sides also stick out. radiators loose too!

ArcticDC5

Sorry to hear about that. I wouldn't get rid of it if I were you. A fender, hood, corner light, bumper and headlight from the salvage yard would probably all that would be needed.

Anyways, I am glad to hear you chased down that a**clown intrepid for trying to run. Please keep us posted as to what happens with everything, the driver of the other car should go to jail if thats not a stolen car.

Cliff Clavin

iTrader: (11)

that'll buff right out...


Maybe michael can help you get it back on the road. If the insurance totals it out, than you can buy back the car for a couple hundred, take the money and pay him to fix it. You could end up with a nice paint job and probably some extra money for mods, like some rims.

internetautomar

iTrader: (30)

Dude! that ain't damage.
get it fixed, unless the car has some other major problem.
BTW check to see if you have a coverzge called underinsured/uninsured motorist coverage.
in illinois it's almost mandatory (maybe it is) to have it because of situations like this.

Alex_V

you think thats bad? thats nothing compared to my car, the pass side is smashed in to almost touching the engin, thats nothing. LMK if your going to get rid of the car i may buy it! can it drive as is? PLMK/PM me

~Alex

GRNMAXDMON

iTrader: (1)

that is nothing compared to my accident. i agree with everyone on here on fixing it cuz it seems to be a minor accident. i can get all the parts for about $150 from a junkyard and just put it back together. but good luck on whatever it is that ur gonna decide on and sorry to hear about ur crash. good thing that u and ur girl r ok is what is in important. good luck.

Mattster

its funny how the hoods bend up that way. My hood is bent up funky like that but not nearly as bad. Fixing it up shouldnt be bad for the parts but paint will be the biggest expense. I got a new hood from a Junkyard for $75 wrong color but still its not bent.

Minty91GXE

iTrader: (3)

that is totally fixable, within a day or two

slap on new bumper, take off hood, jump up and down on it, voila!

but seriously, dont get too down, you can get that fixed NP

goon9

iTrader: (13)

looks like a simple tweak on the fender, new bumper cover, heck throw in some e36's and it's better!

Sereously, it's not a difficult repair. you can get the parts at a junk yard. Get someone to paint it.

But when you go somewhere to get a quote, do what kikcaffine did and gotto a SUPER high dollar classic auto body repair place. Get them to make out a quote for ALOT, then send it to the insurance company.


...Heck ppl drive around with worse damage.

stephen3lindsey

Well this morning I went out and looked at my car in the garage and found some more things... When I popped the hood, it barely came up, so i had to find the latch to open it. Then i had to literally pry the hood up because the spring and all that was smashed in. Turns out the radiator is bent in along with the support that is above it. I took my CD changer, speakers, and filter out just in case it gets totaled so I can at least do somethin with those things. From the looks of it, my dad isnt wanting to fix it up, so I'm probably going to end up with a new car soon. Thanks for all the input from everyone though, I was just giving up on it, but after seeing all the replies I really had hopes of getting it fixed. Maybe I still can, but I'm just gonna have to wait and see.

Michael

iTrader: (21)

well find out how much it will cost to buy back if it is totaled. If its cheap enough I will get it and fix it if you dont want to keep it. I have the radiator support and its not a big deal to cut out and weld in plus I have all the other parts. I could get it fix it and sell it so that it doesnt get trashed. Or I can fix it for you...you can pay me a little for my time and sell it to make some money.

anyway its a lot to think about but I would hate to see a nice car otherwise trashed because of that little damage (little to me because I have the tools and parts to fix it).

Again good luck with whatever your decision is but keep my ideas in mind.

doomtoo

Mine was worse O:-) My grandpa helped me pull out the interior frame/body, I got a new hood for $50, fender and and headlight +turn light + radiater overflow for a grand total $150. The radiator isn't perfectly up against the body anymore, and the head lights just barely off, but it still looks pretty good for the money. My latch is still a little off (don't know where to set it), but the hood was up enough so I couldn't see out of the window all the way, and the fender was crumpled / pushed back so the door wouldn't open up. No interior damage, just barely made it to pushing the radiator overflow into my AC belt, and knocking around the radiator a little.

I'd say it'd definatly be worth fixing...

stephen3lindsey

Well it looks like some of you guys arent as smart as you seem. I took my max in today to get looked at by the insurance guy. After he looked at it and called some people, he ended up just totalling the car. So today was the real end to my maxima. I guess it was a little worse than all of yall thought. But thanks for all the replies anyway, maybe if i can find the right car, I can end up with another maxima, but that doesnt look too likely. I have a few things that I kept off the car that I'll probably sell for some extra money, so if anyone is interested let me know. Again, thanks for everyone's input, the max almost made it through...

MaximaBalla

Get a newer Maxima or at least keep it in the Nissan family?

internetautomar

iTrader: (30)

you do know that some "adjusters" get kickbacks for totaling out cars.
Food for thought

vansskaterfreek

iTrader: (14)

i say you get jumk yeard parts, get a hood, quarter panel, paint it, it'll be your best bet man, probably the cheapest, i did that with my max, just need paint, looks great!!! id say fix it up man, or if u dont want it, sell it you can get a thousand or two for it still

Michael

iTrader: (21)

not as smart as we seem...what the heck does that mean? I take that as an insult. I have been very willing to help you out even to the extent of giving you parts and very little labor cost to fix it and you say I am not smart. I know cars...I know body work. I didnt see all that was messed up from the pics but I could have fixed it for very little because I have the parts. Guess what they totalled the 93 that I got and replaced the quarter panel on. Just because they total something doesnt mean its not fixable.

I still think you should have bought it back from the insurance agent (couple of hundred bucks) let me fix it for a couple hundred and sold it for a few thousand.

Oh well to each his own...have fun with your new car whatever it is. I still wish you would have given me a chance to at least buy it from you for what the insurance would have let you buy it back from instead of just junking it. I mean it wouldnt have cost you a dime and you would still get the same amount from insurance...I could have even come and picked it up.

vansskaterfreek

iTrader: (14)

that guy is right, you cauld have sold it for a couple thousand, **** i have seen piece of **** maximas with 180k sellign for 2-3 thousand with dents/ and with no options in it

Minty91GXE

iTrader: (3)

you're the dummy, dummy
they total anything - total doesnt mean dead

goon9

iTrader: (13)

you know... That max isn't worth the reapir. I'll give ya 150 for it.

Scope

iTrader: (5)

I'll give you 200 for it. Seriously though the insurance company was gonna total my car when my brother wrecked it. It has a dent in the quarter panel and the gas door isn't able to close anymore. The quarter panel isn't fix able because well it pushes against the frame. My trunk is offset and it won't close correctly anymore and I can only open it with the key. If I use the button I'll have to press it like 10 times. To repair was like 1200. Not including paint. I denied that he total it and settled for half the damage costs.

Cliff Clavin

iTrader: (11)

I agree 100 percent.

Insurance companies total out cars because having a shop do repairs is expensive.

Doing most of the work yourself (or all of it, in awsm66's case) saves thousands of dollars.

You could have bought the car back for probably less than $200, then put another $300 in parts, paint, etc. and had a car worth $2k or more.

Or you could have used the car yourself and bought new stuff for it with the rest of the insurance money. It's not some kind of scam, it's the reason there are lots of really good cars out there with salvage titles.

For example, my father-in-law had a body shop (retired this year) and my wife's brother worked there. I bought a "totaled" travel trailer for $400. The blue book on it was about $2500. The side was smashed in during a police chase. I paid $200 for a piece of sheetmetal cut to fit and $100 for paint (and labor to my wife's brother). It is just fine now.

stephen3lindsey

Well yall may be right but it wasnt up to me at all. I'm just the driver, not the title holder, I had very little to do with the decision. Letting them total it was the best option, if you want the car, it'll probably be in some salvage yard around the coast by next week. I liked that car a lot, but with the miles it had and the type of driving I do, back and forth to school almost every weekend, just didnt seem too ideal to keep it. No disrespect was really meant to anyone, I was just saying what was on my mind. But whatever... maybe I will stay in the Nissan or Maxima family, but if I dont, I'll still be in the import family, which is still good.

I just cant believe that something so insignificant as a forum post on here would get all yall mad and stuff... it's almost funny to me. Maybe that's just how I think about things, but I may not be the only one who thinks that. I appreciate all the help everyone was giving and all that, but dang, one wrong thing said and everyone jumps all over me. I know that everyone here knows a lot more about cars and stuff than I do, so I'm just gonna accept that and move on... maybe I can learn a little something from this, but for now, it's a dead issue. So I'll just keep to myself from now on, thanks for all the help from everyone.

Minty91GXE

iTrader: (3)

what you need to understand... is that it was a Five Speed VE 3rd Gen. Those are basically sacred around here

chchmax

Looks like an auto to me?

It sucks that they write cars off so easily, over here that car would be almost still driveable

Good luck with whatever you buy next!

Michael

iTrader: (21)

I am not mad nor did I jump on you. I just stated that with all the help I offered you didnt even consider it and basically said I was dumb lol.

Now if you would have come on here and said...sorry I don’t have the title and there is nothing I can do about it so it really doesn’t matter what advice you give me...then that would have been cool but you didn’t. You came on here and said we were not as smart as we think and that the car is totaled and made it sound like you were making the decisions.

I understand when it’s not your decision. I was young and had a car in my Dad's name once too but you never mentioned that.

You don’t understand what I was talking about when I said buy the car back. When the insurance totals you car you can buy it back from them for a couple hundred buck. Then you can either repair it or sell it or strip it and sell the parts. That option is gone after a junk yard gets it and I can not get it from the junk yard for a couple hundred.



Anyway there is no way I can translate disappointment through the internet but that is what I was (besides the insult after trying to help). I was and am not mad like I said I just think it’s a shame is all. You could have made some money back on the car or better yet I could have lol. Like I said though if you didn’t have power to do anything then I totally understand.


Again I say have fun with your new car.

Black92GXE

iTrader: (3)

I'm an adjustor for Progressive Insurance, so I thought I would chime in..

first this:

QUOTE:
"its funny how the hoods bend up that way. My hood is bent up funky like that but not nearly as bad. Fixing it up shouldnt be bad for the parts but paint will be the biggest expense. I got a new hood from a Junkyard for $75 wrong color but still its not bent."

that is because hoods have crush zones and are made to bend like that...that way they don't transfer the energy of the crash into they passenger compartment, but instead they absorb it. after a crush zone has been compromised, it must be replaced. no exceptions for insurance companies. compromised could mean everything from a chip in paint in the crush zone indicating stress to the hood being bent in a ^ shape.

second:

what most of the guys said in their posts was true. insurance companies will do the "most cost effective option" when it comes to repair vs total. the sad thing is that many of our cars are not worth more than 4K. It doesn't take a lot for the labor, parts, paint, materials, and etc. to add up for a repair to be done by a body shop. plus you have to add in rental car costs and other related expenses. this is why companies total the car.

from the looks of it, your car is/was very fixable, would just have a salvage title, or you just tell them no thanks and have an awesome guy like awsm66 help you out.

i can understand why you went the way you did. when most people hear the words "total loss" they freak out. One thing you have to know is that insurance companies cannot search ebay or maxima owners parts inventory. that is why the adjustor had to total the car.

one other thing, i'm sure some adjustors for other companies may get incentive for totaling cars, but i don't see why insurance companies would want to if the price they had to pay for the "salvage" was going to be more than the cost of repair..... just not good business sense. also, it would suck for the company to pay more than the cost of repair and then the owner retains the salvage, negating any reason the insurance company would be interested in totalling the vehicle anyway (now they cannot auction off the salvage to recoop some monies they paid out)

anyway, my .02

goon9

iTrader: (13)

I talked to gieco about getting full coverage, they'll on ly pay out for stock parts. Thy gave me the option of getting an apraisel... But if I do thatthe retail value would climb on my car, thus living in georgia I'll have to pay the tax on the every year on my b-day.

Black92GXE

iTrader: (3)

Some insurance companies give a certain allowance for aftermarket or upgraded parts. I know the basic on any policy with the company I work for is $1000, but that only means if it is attached to a car, ie. speaker box has to be bolted or bracketed down. CD cases and other things in the car are not covered.

The other option is to go for a "stated value" policy, which is usually only used on classic cars.

Just more food for thought...

internetautomar

iTrader: (30)

I NEED one of those. Seriously, I do.
won't drive my camaro until I have one

89badmaxse

iTrader: (1)

if thats real bad then my first maxima must have been demolished lol mine was horrible and i fixed it but after it got rear ended i was over it no cutting and fixing of the quarters for me

stephen3lindsey

Well just to update, I went out this past Saturday and got a 1999 Civic Ex. So it looks like I'm out of the Maxima org. Thanks for all the comments about the old Max.

internetautomar

iTrader: (30)

cool, now we can point and laugh when we smoke ya