Well, I got the estimate for my car... $9,500 worth of damages, too bad the engine wasn't damaged otherwise they would have totaled the car. There is two pages of parts, fenders, bumbers, hood, ac condensor, radiator and a lot of other stuff. I am gonna demand OEM parts only. I know the guy at the body shop, so I'm gonna talk to him and maybe see if I can get a little something out of all of this hassle. Hopefully I'll have it back in 2-3 weeks... and maybe it won't pull to the right. Thanks for all of your responses to my previous post, it's cool to have a lot of support from you guys. I'll keep you peeps updated.

 

They didn't total the car!?!?!?!? HOLY ****, I would not want the car back after that man.....geez!

 

Yeah... tell me about it... anyone want to buy a slightly used Maxima?

 

sneak out there with a sledgehammer and beat the hell outta the motor and ask them to re-assess the damage on the grounds that you think they didn't look close enough...

jk...its good that you're getting it fixed...although it will never be the same...i wanted them to total mine back in 99 at 4.5k in damage and they didn't ....

 

A friend of mine had 16k worth of damage to an Audi a4 1.8 T and they didn't total it. I don't understand sometimes.

 

As long as the frame wasn't damaged, you don't have to tell anyone about it (at least thats the law around here). I wouldn't do this to a private person, but if you want to trade it in on a newer Max, you can keep the dealer blissfully ignorant.

 

What insurance company is paying you? I know that Farmers demands that the body shop use only OEM parts. When I wrecked my car, I asked them and they told me "We only use OEM parts to make sure that the car is completely fixed to OEM standards. We don't want to have a bad reputation of ripping off our clients, so when we need to fix a damaged car, we make sure that the car is back to OEM standards, as if it were never wrecked." I've had awesome luck with them and my body shop! There are a few companies out there that will specify OEM parts, and I know Farmers is one of them. I'm not sure who else is, though.

 

Dont worry. My dad buys Maximas at salvage auctions, the damage you have on that pic is nothing, trust me. I deal alot with crashed cars and have seen much greater damage get fixed w\out any problems. As long as the shop that fixes your car is decent it'll be fine.

 

It might be better for you this way. Just ask Doug what he had to go through to get a new Max after his was totaled.....

At least you didn't hit a police car! j/k Doug!

 

It was front end damage right? Ever thought about putting an I30 front end on your Max? The part cost would be the same and everything should bolt on. You could even get the cool 1 piece JDM headlights if you want. Man, if you live closer, I would swap body parts with you. I would pay you some $$$ and I can get the I30 front end =)

 

Yeah, I do have Farmers insurance and they are going to be replacing everything with OEM parts... except the radiator and the front bumper part. I'm gonna see about them installing a body kit at the same time, I figure what the hell, won't hurt to try. I was told the frame might really be that damage because the accident kinda cut above the frame, but I don't know, I'll know in about 2-3 weeks, they start work on it until Monday. I still have my Altima to drive around in but that might change because someone wants to meet with me at lunch today to get it inspected and if it goes well, they might buy it. So then I'll be stuck driving my moms 91 Camry... doh!!

 

I am assuming it was assessed as your fault and your own insurance is covering the damage. If it were someone else's fault you could ask for and get $ for lost value due to extensive damages (even though they will be fixed). Theory is that 2 identical cars for sale would be worth diffeent amounts if one has sustained 10K in repairs and was fixed while the other was never in an accident. It will be unlikely you could do that if your own insurance company is paying for the repairs.

If you go to sell your car you need not affirmatively tell the buyer if it was in an accident, unless they ask. If you lie about it-you're on the hook for all future owners for the differentiation in value.

As for your OEM parts, your insurance will not opt for them unless they are same or less cost than OEM. The law allows them to use non_OEM parts. However, this is the topic of the large class action suit that was LOST by State Farm in Bloomington, IL last year to the tune of hundreds of millions. SO State Farm may actually give you OEM b/c of that ruling. Oh -what's my authority for my response-I used to be an attorney with State Farm. :-) Good luck.

 

Yeah, it's called diminition of value according to one of the guys at my work who used to be an adjuster, I have yet to talk to my insurance about it though.

 

I would make sure the bumper cover is also OEM.. Mine is aftermarket and doesn't fit worth !@)#(. the top lip of the bumper- just underneath my corners and headlight- doesn't fit right, so the lights stick out about an inch. looks terrible to someone that knows what they're looking at. had it been an OEM part, it wouldn't do that.

the paint is also peeling off it because of the bad paint job.. make sure they do their stuff right!

 

the bumper sits 'in' further (about 3/4 inch), making the headlights stick out some.....


Hmmmm....I guess that means it was in a wreck at some point in its life....

 

with 9,500 dollars worth of damage. They totalled mine with only 2500 and it was still drivable. So I had to sell them the car and then buy the car back from them, then fix it. that sucked. It looks back to oem specs and everything. But I think they put the new cheap nissan paint on the aftermarket oem bumper becasue before I didnt have probs with chipping but now, its chipping like crazy and also its peeling! Not good. The company who fixed it said If I had any probs with the paint or anything I could take it back to get it repainted or fixed for free! But the worst part is, The place I took it to is In Texas. And we just moved to Georgia! Doh...!

 

After all the repairs are done to your car, perhaps you can sell your current Maxima and get a new one? The 20th Anniversary Edition SE looks nice? =)