Look out for that F150!

[geargrinder]

Yeah I hear where you're coming from Jax, re: moving on to a newer better car.

If your plan was to try to find another E39 - and I hear that it is not, sounds like you're going much newer / lower miles this time - I'd just toss out the concept of "value of known issues". Aka buying a new used car no matter how good it looks you're always starting over in terms of 'knowing everything' about the car and there's always a bunch of stuff that needs doin'. If your existing car has had work put into it, and you know it head to toe, there's a huge value in that. I just went through it w/ a bud of mine and his Vulva wagon as he was thinking of finding another one instead of redoing the suspensh, pretty sure I convinced him his known otherwise rock solid car is better than the other-used-Vulva-that-will-only-need-same-thing-in-a-year-and-maybe-has-buncha-other-secret-lurking-issues...

Only other thing I'd say is... before you completely walk away from the buy it back option... I personally have bought back wrecks and flipped them unrepaired. The street value of your car is NOT REALLY $400 (part of the insurance industry structural scam of course...) When I sold my wrecks, I had buyers in hand before I even finished the paperwork w/ the ins company. Made a quick extra few hundred bucks for doing absolutely nothing. For example maybe Snotty would pick it up and fix 'er up. If you were in my neck of the woods I'd be super interested in doing a deal. And to be clear - the car still drives, right? Just that smashed in fender and door?

[toybreaker]

Find out what your state requires to “total” your vehicle. Go to a collison repair place not BMW and get lower quotes. No need to total it to get it fixed. Start quoting what Maryland requires to total and say representation in the same sentence. The insurance company will back off and fix your car.


. Also if you have receipts for the recent work that does raise the value of you vehicle. Insurance companies look for the cheapest way to close a claim.

[BimmrMeUpSnotty]

Well, if it’s just gonna go get dismantled, if you buy it back, let me know what you want for it, I’d love to have a second Oxford Green 2 528 wagon. To save another wagon would be a great win!

[JaxPlanet]

I sent you a PM Snotty.

[JaxPlanet]

Since this would be the first time I have taken the salvage option, I did some research and I would like to share what I have learned for those who find themselves in the same position.

The most important part is that you cannot drive, insure or sell the car until EVERYTHING below is completed:

1. You send unsigned title to the insurance company selling you the salvage
2. The insurance company sends the title and a form, which declares the car a salvage, to the MVA with the processing fee ($40 in Maryland and the insurance company is paying this for me)
3. The MVA sends you a Certificate of Title
4. You have your car transported an inspection station and make whatever repairs are necessary to pass.
5. You take the Certificate of Title and passing inspection report to the MVA, pay the fee ($40 in Maryland), and they give you a Salvage/Rebuilt title.

This means the total cost of buying back your salvage is the total of these costs:
Price of the salvage
Titling cost
Towing cost
Inspection cost
Cost of repairs, if necessary

In my case, that is $673, if no repairs are required. I am told that, if my door opens and closes freely, which it does, and the damaged panels are no danger to pedestrians they will not affect the inspection.

[amancuso]

Does this mean a rebuild is in the works???

[BimmrMeUpSnotty]

It means that Maryland is a little more complicated when it comes to rebranding a vehicle with a salvage/rebuilt title. Jax is doing all this, and I will be his cars new custodian when the dust clears. Been an absolute pleasure yakking with him over this and...... lol, other subjects of good conversation. He took very good care of his wagon while in his ownership, it only makes sense to give his car a new lease on life. Gonna be funny owning two 2000 Oxford Green 2 E39 528’s!!! But I have a plan..... one of them is gonna grow legs, Dr Jeckle and Mr Hyde. Think, 2017 ZL1 Camaro, wrecked, all the parts that matter, LT4, 6 speed, hopefully the Brembo brakes, M5 lsd and shafts, transplanted into an unsuspecting green wagon.... Muhuwaahaahaahahaha!!!

[computiNATEor]

Since this would be the first time I have taken the salvage option, I did some research and I would like to share what I have learned for those who find themselves in the same position.

The most important part is that you cannot drive, insure or sell the car until EVERYTHING below is completed:

1. You send unsigned title to the insurance company selling you the salvage
2. The insurance company sends the title and a form, which declares the car a salvage, to the MVA with the processing fee ($40 in Maryland and the insurance company is paying this for me)
3. The MVA sends you a Certificate of Title
4. You have your car transported an inspection station and make whatever repairs are necessary to pass.
5. You take the Certificate of Title and passing inspection report to the MVA, pay the fee ($40 in Maryland), and they give you a Salvage/Rebuilt title.

This means the total cost of buying back your salvage is the total of these costs:
Price of the salvage
Titling cost
Towing cost
Inspection cost
Cost of repairs, if necessary

In my case, that is $673, if no repairs are required. I am told that, if my door opens and closes freely, which it does, and the damaged panels are no danger to pedestrians they will not affect the inspection.

That is way more complicated than California salvage rules, or maybe I just bend the rules more? All I had to do to register my salvaged vehicle was:

a) complete a brake and light inspection (passed with no repairs)
b) fill out paperwork and wait at the DMV for a while.

[geargrinder]

Yeah, just to be explicit... these things are VERY State specific. MD sounds like a bitch! In states I've done it in, the insurance company reports it to the DMV database, the title just gets flagged w/ "salvage" next time it is printed, and thats the end of it. And like I said... sometimes whether it has to be salvage titled might be negotiable... as long as total cost is near or same and you sign off on the 'no more claims' bit...

[BimmerBreaker]

I'd be interested in knowing what you'd want for the whole car if you do buy it back from insurance

[crazy4trains]

I'd be interested in knowing what you'd want for the whole car if you do buy it back from insurance

Read post #32.

[Mike WW]

That is way more complicated than California salvage rules, or maybe I just bend the rules more? All I had to do to register my salvaged vehicle was:

a) complete a brake and light inspection (passed with no repairs)
b) fill out paperwork and wait at the DMV for a while.

Even here in the once great state of California it can vary. I did an E24 one time and it not only needed the brake and light inspections, but had to be inspected by CHP. And 50 miles away, not at the closest station. This was while they were using VIN numbers on panels and it seemed a big concern of theirs where replacement parts came from. In my case most of the body parts were original, albeit damaged, so no receipts were needed for them. Other things I did replace like headlight buckets and the radiator didn't have a VIN on them. They weren't complete a-holes but not exactly friendly either. There's about 3 or 4 different categories of totaled in Calif, including one which apparently cannot be re-registered.

[computiNATEor]

Even here in the once great state of California it can vary. I did an E24 one time and it not only needed the brake and light inspections, but had to be inspected by CHP. And 50 miles away, not at the closest station. This was while they were using VIN numbers on panels and it seemed a big concern of theirs where replacement parts came from. In my case most of the body parts were original, albeit damaged, so no receipts were needed for them. Other things I did replace like headlight buckets and the radiator didn't have a VIN on them. They weren't complete a-holes but not exactly friendly either. There's about 3 or 4 different categories of totaled in Calif, including one which apparently cannot be re-registered.

They checked my VIN tags on the dash and under the hood, but no where else. Odd.

[BimmrMeUpSnotty]

Here in VA, the inspector comes to you. But you have to set the appointment, there are not too many inspectors, they start in the Southern end of the state, and work their way up North. So usually, towards the end of the month for us Northern VA guys. They check your receipts, photos of what the car looked like, vin numbers and the engine number. Car thieves can go to hell.
After all that, MD doesn’t seem so bad, if you are all legit, seems like all they care about is that the car is safe on the road, but don’t seem like they’re too concerned about the crooks.

[geargrinder]

Even here in the once great state of California it can vary. I did an E24 one time and it not only needed the brake and light inspections, but had to be inspected by CHP. And 50 miles away, not at the closest station. This was while they were using VIN numbers on panels and it seemed a big concern of theirs where replacement parts came from. In my case most of the body parts were original, albeit damaged, so no receipts were needed for them. Other things I did replace like headlight buckets and the radiator didn't have a VIN on them. They weren't complete a-holes but not exactly friendly either. There's about 3 or 4 different categories of totaled in Calif, including one which apparently cannot be re-registered.

Man that's a lotta VINspecting. I didn't through something like that for salvage. I'm guessing that's related to CA being generally more regulatory hardass about cars + high population therefore theft rates + maybe gray market concerns. And now that I think of it, I haven't done a salvage car in 20yrs probably so maybe all states have gotten more hardass about it...

When I reg'd my (legally imported and converted) gray market car - because it formerly had a Florida title, and MA is all "psssshhh... FLORIDA title...right..." - it had to be re-signed off to issue new title. It was a cop that did the VINspection, and he basically barely knew what to do... You can have any LEO do it and most have them have no idea whats up so depends on the guy... My guy wandered around the car for 5 minutes... looked at the couple obv places for VIN (window + doorjamb), then poked around as if he knew what he was doing but really I think he was just making a show of it... then reluctantly signed the form for me... Kind of acted like I was under suspicion of being up to some shady business... but that might just be his LEO demeanor at all times unless he's known you for 20 yrs or whatever...

[itsbrokeagain]

I feel your pain bud, at least the insurance played nice and gave you a stellar deal, even though the loss of the car impacts us more than monetarily.

I'm dealing with the same issues now, my wagon got hit last Tuesday by a FedEx truck that decided it wanted to make an immediate delivery and merged from the left and crushed my left rear door and quarter panel, in addition to hitting the front door a bit. Since rear touring doors are pretty much NLA from BMW, and I had just fixed that same rear door last year when my neighbor hit it (she paid me cash), I'm pretty much out of options at this point aside from finding a used door,which are pretty much suffering from various stages of rot.

After the back and forth and rabbit hole I had to go down to even get a number to contact an agent for my claim, I have a feeling I'll be putting FedEx in the same bucket as Yellow cab and TLC insurance....deny deny deny, ignore or refuse to follow up with phone calls, getting an adjuster to come look at the car,and offer me pennies for it.

[geargrinder]

My strong suggestion is to file the claim via your own insurance company and then let them chase FedEx's ins.co. for reimbursement ('subrogation'). I would never try to chase the other guys company down... of course they'll want to drag their feet... you're not even a policy holder... Typically you file the claim w/ your own insurance, then they go after the other guys to pay your deductible and costs...

[itsbrokeagain]

My strong suggestion is to file the claim via your own insurance company and then let them chase FedEx's ins.co. for reimbursement ('subrogation'). I would never try to chase the other guys company down... of course they'll want to drag their feet... you're not even a policy holder... Typically you file the claim w/ your own insurance, then they go after the other guys to pay your deductible and costs...

Yeah I made the mistake of only putting basic liability instead of comprehensive on the wagon because I drive it maybe 1500-2000miles a year. So the only thing my insurance has done is tell me I'm not at fault, and good luck.

That's my fault, which I've learned for next time not to do.

[geargrinder]

Gotcha. Yeah what I used to do with cars like that (low-miles beaters) was put the cheapest collision on I could just for these purposes... Crank up really high deductibles, minimal 'extras' coverage... Basically we considered it "if car gets totalled we'll get something back at least, but if we have small accidents they'll have to be out of pocket"... And then at least you can use them in cases like this.

[itsbrokeagain]

Gotcha. Yeah what I used to do with cars like that (low-miles beaters) was put the cheapest collision on I could just for these purposes... Crank up really high deductibles, minimal 'extras' coverage... Basically we considered it "if car gets totalled we'll get something back at least, but if we have small accidents they'll have to be out of pocket"... And then at least you can use them in cases like this.

I was talking with my body guy just now and he said my insurance is should cover my claim regardless of basic liability or not, and go after the other guys because I'm 100% not at fault. So I'll be calling them back and demanding some better service

- - - Updated - - -

And apologies to the OP for hijacking his thread lol...but it sucks to see two wagons go down ironically on the same day.

[rbelton]

Sorry to hear, but you will make out like a bandit in this case. That is really minimal damage. You can source a door for $100 and fender for $100. Paint and installation around $1000 and a reputable shop can blend the metallic paint properly so you wont be able to tell. So you will pretty much net $4400 for the inconvenience, not bad.

[toybreaker]

marylands total loss threshold is 75% if you can get a quote for repairs using used parts, non oem, whatever and get the body shop to be "nice" about it then tell the insurance company to pack sand and cut you a check!

DON'T LET THEM BULLY YOU!
your car is not a total loss! see the post above mine. you can get it fixed for WAY under the total loss threshhold.

[toybreaker]

what did you end up doing?

[siny528i]

UPDATE:
I just got a salvage quote of $393 so I can keep the car and receive $4942.

WOW! That's a score!
Sorry for your loss anyway...

[BimmrMeUpSnotty]

Jax is still waiting on MVA to get off their butts and print out a form that lets the dmv issue the salvage title.