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Thread: Look out for that F150!

  1. #1
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    Look out for that F150!

    An 1d10t in a F150 backed into me while I was waiting for someone to pull out of a parking space. I laid on the horns (I have 4) and hit reverse when his rear bumper stopped me in my tracks.
    IMG_0040.JPG

    Front driver's side fender along with the supports behind it and drivers door need to be replaced. The hood bead on the opposite side is perfect so it didn't impact the hood. The repair estimate is $4300, which means the insurance wants to total it and give me $5335. This is a slap in the face after I did a complete suspension overhaul last fall that set me back $4025. I also spent hundreds of dollars with other fixes the last few years. This year was the least expensive ever with about $200 in various fixes and scheduled maintenance. I was all ready to dig into cosmetics when this happened.
    IMG_0044.JPG

    It is important to note that a BMW Collision Center can only purchase Genuine new parts, which makes for an unusually high estimate. However, they will install Genuine parts new or used, if I supply them. I can bring the repair cost down by $350 by purchasing Genuine new parts elsewhere or save around a $1000 by hitting the junkyard.

    Ironically, I paid for this car with the money I received after my 2003 525iT was totaled by a tailgater in 2014 so I am sadly familiar with this repair/total/salvage process. I am being very nice and respectful to all of the insurance company's reps and keeping all my options open as long as possible.

    At this time, I am waiting for them to tell me the salvage cost and discuss the cost of repair when I supply the parts.

    More to come...
    [IMG][/IMG]

  2. #2
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    Wow, sorry to hear. Hard to believe that it would cost that much to repair. Maybe go to a junkyard and pick up a used fender and door and have them painted to match your color. Best of luck in getting your car back to what it was.
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  3. #3
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    It's not that hard to believe. Best case you've gotta blend metallic paint on like five panels and either replace the door or do a ton of work to come close to the pre-wreck state. Labor in the DC area is probably pretty expensive too.

  4. #4
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    A $5300 offer for an 18 year old car is fairly generous. The insurance company doesn't care what you've put into it. The value, to them, is what the book says.

    I would take the money and buy back the car. Find a fender and door and take it to a reputable independent body shop and have them paint it for you. You are paying way too much by going to a BMW collision center. You can probably buy it back and fix it for less than $2000. I have had two body panels painted in the last 3-4 years. I backed into my garage work bench so I had the rear quarter panel painted. The paint match was perfect, and I mean absolutely perfect. I also had my hood painted while having some other work done. The match on the hood wasn't as good but still tolerable. Good luck.

  5. #5
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    I'd take the money and buy back the car. You'll spend some money fixing it but it'll surely cost less than what they estimated. So what if it has a salvage title? If you plan on keeping it long-term that doesn't really matter. I'd fix it.

    Also, people are the worst. I've nearly been backed into by dozens of SUV's and trucks, which is especially stupid considering that almost every newer vehicle nowadays has a rear view camera and my wagon is bright red. I guess even the best technology can't make morons pay attention to their driving.
    1995 525i 5-speed - Thread

  6. #6
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    Quote Originally Posted by crazy4trains View Post
    A $5300 offer for an 18 year old car is fairly generous. The insurance company doesn't care what you've put into it. The value, to them, is what the book says.
    They may not care but it's their responsibility to make you whole again. Can you find a clean E39 wagon for $5300?

  7. #7
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    Thanks for the replies!

    Crazy > You made me feel a little better about the offer. Thx

    Blarf > I completely agree with you. Unfortunately, there are no laws that require that from an insurance company in the state of Maryland except for cars less than 10-years old. My only recourse, if I don't find their final offer satisfactory, is to fill out a complaint form with Maryland's automobile insurance regulatory office. If they agree with me, they will try to get the insurance company to up their offer but there is still no guarantee.

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

    It looks like a no-brainer to buy the car back regardless of whether I choose to part it or fix it. I am certain that I can cover the cost of the salvage and then some by parting it out. Touring-specific parts are quite rare.

    I am not so sure about repairing it. My first concern is that the repair cost is an estimate and it may exceed $4942. This is likely because the hood is chipped and worn to the point where blending from the fender would be too obvious without painting the rest of hood, which would lead so some blending on the opposite fender/door. In addition, the car can't be driven, sold or insured until it is repaired, passes inspection and re-titled. This is a big problem because it is my daily driver. Although I find it unlikely that it will fail inspection, I have to consider that it might fail and require additional repairs. The new title will be permanently branded as "rebuilt/salvage", which further devalues the car so it will be next to worthless, if it is involved in another collision or I try to sell it. All of this does not seem worth the $4300+ investment to me.

    I am still working to up their offer because they compared my car to the the same year and model but it had 55K more miles, damaged rear bumper, missing wheel covers, missing console buttons, and rusted jack points, which is all I could get from the pictures and speaking to the seller. Another concern is the dealer's picture of the cluster was taken while the ignition was off, which could be hiding some serious problems. I also fully expect it to have every single problem I fixed on mine over the last 4-years and be poorly maintained.

    I found a same year with 10K more miles in better condition priced at $5999 but it is a sedan, which are actually more valued than wagons in KBB. I sent the insurance company a link to the car and the reasons why I found it to be more similar to mine.

    Hopefully, this will prompt them to up their offer. Fingers crossed...
    Last edited by JaxPlanet; 09-18-2018 at 11:09 PM.

  8. #8
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    Jax, that damage doesn’t look that bad, did the strut tower assembly get hit too? Or is it just the fender and the door? Did the car get a proper tear down?
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  9. #9
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    Quote Originally Posted by BimmrMeUpSnotty View Post
    Jax, that damage doesn’t look that bad, did the strut tower assembly get hit too? Or is it just the fender and the door? Did the car get a proper tear down?
    Agreed, you really need to have that fender pulled off and look at the structure behind it. If there isn't any damage, I wouldn't worry about throwing a fender and door on it and repainting.

    That's an important area structurally; it's really the only thing keeping the strut towers in place.
    Nate J.

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  10. #10
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    If the door and hood can open and close properly and the airbags haven't gone off, that would probably pass a salvage inspection here in Arizona without any work. Not sure of your state's laws though.
    1995 525i 5-speed - Thread

  11. #11
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    Quote Originally Posted by blarf View Post
    They may not care but it's their responsibility to make you whole again. Can you find a clean E39 wagon for $5300?
    They make you whole by paying book value. I'm not saying the OP shouldn't fight for more money, just that an insurance company doesn't have to pay for mods and maintenance. By doing maintenance, all you are doing is maintaining the value and not increasing the value. The value is what the market will bear.

    I feel for Jax and I would also be ticked and would fight for every dollar. But there is a point where you have to give in to a reasonable offer.

    Image below shows NADA values for my 2002 530i with 126,000 miles.
    Attached Images Attached Images
    Last edited by crazy4trains; 09-19-2018 at 09:39 AM.

  12. #12
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    Real sad story with not a lot of happy endings for this one. Good luck as their are other wagons on the market with low mileage. Just search and you will find them. At a BMW show in Pittsburgh a couple brought a '98 sedan with 6400 miles out of FL. Estate sale. Looked like a time capsule car. Perfect. It makes my 528 look shabby in comparison.
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    Last edited by StephenVA; 09-19-2018 at 09:15 AM.
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  13. #13
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    Man that sucks. From internet pic first glance, strut tower likely OK. Take a look under hood at tower more closely. You could fix with a new fender and door for not too much $$.
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  14. #14
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    Thanks again for the kind words and insights.

    The insurance company has raised their offer to $5999 plus tax and title. The salvage cost is still $393. This is their final offer. I feel a little rushed so I told them I would make the decision whether or not to buy the salvage on Friday.

    If I buy the salvage, which is very likely, I am not going to repair for all the reasons I gave above.

    The only hesitation I have to parting is that I don't want it in my driveway forever. I need a plan to get it parted and removed so that does not happen.

    I see this going one of two ways. Someone buys it "as is" or it gets parted out. The former is not appropriate to discuss in this forum but I don't think there are any rules about sending me a PM to discuss it. Assuming it becomes a part out, I am hoping you can help me put a plan together.

    Here's what I am thinking:
    First, I find out who will be able to remove it from my driveway when the parting is done. Who to call? What will they pay or charge? Can they use dollies to remove it, if I sell the wheels?
    Once that is established, I can sell everything I can until it is in the minimal acceptable condition for the company that removes it.

    What are your thoughts?

  15. #15
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    I'd try to sell it as is... parting out cars takes forever, especially with a non-M car where the parts aren't super desirable. I've parted out a few E39's, including a touring. Your touring has a tan interior and stock wheels, neither of which are hot sellers based on my experience. If it still runs and drives fine I'm sure you could find somebody that would throw you a few bucks for the car. You'll have gotten your insurance payout so whatever you get for the car will just be icing on the cake. Also, depending on where you live, you might run into trouble with your neighbors by parting out a car in your driveway— most HOA's don't take kindly to that.
    1995 525i 5-speed - Thread

  16. #16
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    Years ago I parted out a car. It was a pain... As soon as the wheels are gone, it becomes almost immovable. That's when the neighbors began to complain. I was gonna have it towed to make the neighbors happy but the tow truck said they couldn't tow it without wheels on it. I ended up buying wheels and tires from the very same salvage yard I had it towed to.
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  17. #17
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    This is painful to see...
    Sooo sorry...
    Why not buy the car back?
    At least you know what you have, and what work you have done to it won't be wasted.

    Looking for an E39 belly pan , passenger front inner fender liner …

  18. #18
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    Honestly after reading this whole thread. IF there is no frame damage, IF this is to be a nice DD, I would buy back, rebuild with salvage yard parts, and repaint the whole car with a budget paint job. I did that with 2 prior BMWs (except for the salvage part) and they held up extremely well with care. Better the devil you know than the one you don't.
    Here are the 2 cars I had budget (Maaco) paint jobs on.
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    Last edited by amancuso; 09-19-2018 at 03:54 PM.
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  19. #19
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    Jax, buy it back. I may be able to get it painted on the cheap for you if you are willing to drive it to Alexandria, to the shop that I work at, provided you supply the fender and the door, and that the structure behind the fender is all straight. I have a buddy who is the GM at a yard out near Lovettsville, about 70 miles from me, but I can get him to deliver the stuff to me, or we can head out there and I can introduce you to him, he always has E39's stashed away in the private section of the yard, holds them for me and always charges me peanuts. he's an E36 guy, but now he picked up a 525 wagon, now he's hooked, all that means is he is now getting more E39's sent in. Lol, I rigged it up so that he caught the disease. But I can help get you the parts cheap if you need help getting them.
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  20. #20
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    Quote Originally Posted by JaxPlanet View Post
    Thanks again for the kind words and insights.

    The insurance company has raised their offer to $5999 plus tax and title. The salvage cost is still $393. This is their final offer. I feel a little rushed so I told them I would make the decision whether or not to buy the salvage on Friday.

    If I buy the salvage, which is very likely, I am not going to repair for all the reasons I gave above.

    The only hesitation I have to parting is that I don't want it in my driveway forever. I need a plan to get it parted and removed so that does not happen.

    I see this going one of two ways. Someone buys it "as is" or it gets parted out. The former is not appropriate to discuss in this forum but I don't think there are any rules about sending me a PM to discuss it. Assuming it becomes a part out, I am hoping you can help me put a plan together.

    Here's what I am thinking:
    First, I find out who will be able to remove it from my driveway when the parting is done. Who to call? What will they pay or charge? Can they use dollies to remove it, if I sell the wheels?
    Once that is established, I can sell everything I can until it is in the minimal acceptable condition for the company that removes it.

    What are your thoughts?
    In my opinion that is a very generous offer for an 18 year old car. Take the offer, buy it back and take it to a local independent shop to get it fixed. Maybe you can have a shop take a look at it for you by your Friday deadline. That could give you some confidence that there is/is not significant damage beyond the fender and door and better inform your decision. Don't take it to a BMW body shop.

    Good luck and let us know what you end up doing.

  21. #21
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    geargrinder is offline Having No Trouble Here BMW CCA Member
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    Bummer man. Good color that car too..

    Yeah I think thats a pretty good offer. I've bought back wrecks a couple times. Depending on the state and the insurance company I am sure, sometimes when its borderline, whether they actually treat it as a full on salvage is somewhat flexible (clearly as we all know there's huge gray zones on both sides - cost of the repair and value of the car in good condition...) If you can get them to drop a check to you, and not tag the title salvage and put it all through the salvage title process, that's ideal.

    I've heard sometimes that's 'better' for the adjuster guy too, but depends on the state and the company as I said already whether the adjuster has that leeway and who knows what his personal incentives are on these things... maybe it's better or worse for him to tag it salvage vs regular wreck... I think last time I had a borderline situation the guy said he'd do it either way as long as the money was roughly the same, but if he didn't total it, I had to sign a doc that said I accepted that as full and final payment - aka he couldn't be exposed to me coming back later for a supplement for stuff that got missed in the first assessment.
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  22. #22
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    Snotty > I appreciate the offer but it is illegal and very risky for me to drive it without a title and insurance.

    Regardless, I just can't see putting all of the money I get into a salvage car because I won't get anything back, if there is another collision. In addition, there are still all the little things we face when owning a car this old. I don't think it is wise for me to continue to invest money in a car that is worthless to everyone but our fan club.

    Putting the same money into a used non-salvage car will give me a car that that is actually worth what I paid so I can expect to be compensated, if there is another collision and it is far less likely the car will be totaled. Especially if I get a car that is less than 10-years old, which is when insurance must adhere to higher standards.

    Sure, I may never have another collision but my last 3 e39Ts were totaled by other drivers so it would be foolish for me not to expect another.

    It is time for me to let it go and retain a cheap daily driver to get me through my last few years of mortgage payments and rush hour highway commuting. When that's done, I think I will have more fun throwing my money into a hole in the water instead of a hole in the road because Annapolis!

  23. #23
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    Sorry to hear about your luck. Agreed $5999. is not bad money. Take money,buy back and fix it cheaply.
    My Alpine white touring has a salvaged title from a sideswipe from eight years ago. I paid $1900. for it two years ago and it has been the best winter beater. I drive it on rainy days,during the winter and if were out shopping around. No worries on where I park it.
    I wouldn't part it out,thats a lot of work and winter is not to far off.


  24. #24
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    Quote Originally Posted by blarf View Post
    They may not care but it's their responsibility to make you whole again. Can you find a clean E39 wagon for $5300?
    Best laugh I've had all day. Admittedly it, not to mention the updated offer isn't bad as insurance companies go, but they never make you whole again. How many hours does it take to buy a replacement car? Do they cover that? They are in the business of paying as little as they can justify. And they really don't like older cars or those with a few miles on them.
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  25. #25
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    That’s a good offer.

    Again, depending on if there’s damage that we can’t see... if there isn’t, $393 + a generous $1500 for paint is give or take $2k from the $6k the insurance is offering.
    Nate J.

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