I've got a few friends that do this type of work for a living - i'm going to have them take a look at it in person and see how they feel. I dont expect the fix to be perfect aesthetically, it was never really perfect to begin with. Its probably going to come down to measuring those strut towers.

If I do end up keeping the car the insurance money is going towards an LSX swap.

 

just so you know... they better have some pretty good tools and deadly accurate.. or you're going to have issues with wheel alignment, body alignment, ect... ive been in your shoes before with 2 other cars, both Fbody's.. one being a 4th and one a 3rdgen..both hit in the front like yours,

tried to fix both.. even went on frame alightment racks.. .. both never felt the same, one would always pull slightly, no matter how you adjusted the steering or alighnment, the other would have a vibration issue, and after countless wheel bearing changes, steering knuckle changes, it was the frame slightly off...

 

IF you get rid of it, at least give it to someone who will fix it back up. It would be nice not to see another nice thirdgen wind up at the junkyard.

 

That can be fixed, my dad had a 1994 firebird hit the same way and he fixed it. Won't need much work if you know people who can do it.

 

Look for a new one, things are never the same after that kind of damage. Take your time and see whats out there. Keep it and see what you might want for your new ride off it. Good luck!

 

I've already driven the car and can confirm that none of that exists as far as the driver can tell.

The concern here isnt that the car 'won't be the same' - because that's not relevant. I know it would be the same. The question is - do i want the same?

 

Update: Sourcing parts has been a pain in the ***. Finding a donor car is also testing my patience. And then the insurance company decides to send me a certificate of destruction. Even though we negotiated for a salvage title. At this point I'm trying to decide if its worth perusing, or if i should just parting the car out. So here is a heads up for everyone if i end up deciding to part the car out. Here are a list of parts I have on the car. Most of the suspension/transmission stuff has been done very recently. It may or may not end up in the parts for sale section soon.

LS1 Big brake upgrade kit with spindles, earls SS lines.
GTA Crosslace wheels
konis yellow struts/shocks
J&M strut mounts
Ground Control Weight jacks
SLP 1 3/4" headers - coated.
T56 transmission including bell housing, crossmember, pedal assembly. (everything u need)
Rear 91-92 Spoiler
Headlight Control Module
Light Weight Aluminum Driveshaft

I'll update this thread with an answer as far as if i will part the car out or not - it depends on whether or not the insurance company fixes the title issue.

 

I'd tell the INS company to stuff it and send you a clean and clear title for the screwup. That car can be fixed correctly and for a reasonable amount of money,IF IF IF you do some research 4 parts and have a shop that cares.
If people only knew how far off these cars are b4 they get wrecked they would freak...

 

Man that is just a complete shame..it's nice that you got a pretty nice sized check for it though

Hopefully you can fix it, but if you do decide you don't want it let me know how much you want for the T56 setup, I've been looking for one.

 

You definitely made out like a bandit from the ins. company. I say let the car go and find another. Trying to get a rebuilt title is a complete pain in the ***. For $6xxx.xx dollars and less you can still find a nice 3rd gen. Part out your car and have even more money to spend.

 

I'm left with no choice.

https://www.thirdgen.org/forums/fire...rmula-5-a.html

 

Damn, if I wasn't buying a house, I'd buy her for the parts. That interior, suspension parts and the T-56 would go nicely in my 1992 Formula.

 

Yeah, all the aftermarket stuff is about 1 year old, 2 years max. Wish I could have enjoyed the car longer.

I even replaced the dash 1 month ago.

 

A damn shame...........

 

you can buy a clean thirdgen with 6k.. Thats what I would do.

 

find a good solid roller and swap everything you can....
youll wind up with money left in your pocket for upgrades, and a nice start for a drag car....

 

could always be worse lol

 

Man, I thought I heisted the insurance company...

I got $5000 for mine on top of keeping the car without a salvage title, but I had $18,000 worth of receipts backing that up.
https://www.thirdgen.org/forums/memb...-good-3rd.html

Looks like you did a damn good job dealing with them.

Congrats.

 

It doesnt get any worst than this video. This guy is lucky that he survived.......
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9P82I...P4tp14rn8xqrMQ

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lu1qseXaPeA

it does get worse...that guy surivied too....the car was hauled off in 3 or 4 peices.

 

Yup. There is a member here on this board somewhere who (IIRC) lives near the crash site. I also saw this video on The National Geographic Channel about 3 months ago. Brutal impact. Kid is lucky to survive.

 

i watched a show a while back and they took they kid back to the crash site to find out why he went airborne. there were still peices of his car there.

 

HAHAHA. Yeah man. Thats the same one I saw. I think the show is called "The Indestructables". The crater is still there too where he launched off.