About a week and a half ago I'm on my way to work when an import, driving an 02 Mustang GT, decided to make a left directly in front of me at a traffic light . Net result was a head on collision. I was going 35-40, he was doing about 15 - 20. My car (92 TA w/ 305 TPI auto, leather seats, everything works, etc with only 83,000 miles), is pretty much mangled up front. It needs the core support and everything in front of it in addition to the obvious sheet metal. The frame ends are a little damaged as well. Engine still runs good. For some reason it didn't hurt the ac condensor or radiator. The other driver was cited for failure to yield right of way and was found at fault. The car has sustained enough damage for the insurance company to "almost" total it - my option. I still have an 86 black & gold Recaro optioned TA (loaded) and an 88 Formula 350. I'd planned on selling one this fall anyway (not the vert though). Now I'm wondering how much the vert would be worth in this condition if I were to sell it? The top is worn and the rear seat back is baked from the sun and the air bag will need to be repacked. Thoughts on it's value?

 

Here's a few more pics of the damage:

 

looks repairable, why not fix it?

 

The plan is to repair it. Estimates are in the $4500-$5500 range. Just considering alternatives, such as buying another one that hasn't been crashed.

 

Update: The passenger side frame rail on the car will need to be replaced. The driver side might be able to be straightened. The price to fix the car has now went up to $8K-$9K; more if the driver side rail can't be fixed and has to be replaced too. For that price I won't be repairing it

 

wow your getting expensive quotes look around a little bit, it should't be that much. i know this from a worst experience.

 

That really sucks...

I HOPE you can get it fixed. Mostly on the sentimental side when I say that. It's not like it's a regular Trans Am which they made lots of... it's a Convertible which they made so few of when compared to the total production of the 3rd gens. Would hate to see one less out there.





Now that being said... what color interior did you have?? I *may* be interested in it if it's tan ... and the wheels...



I feel like I'm grave robbing already.

 

I've gotten several quotes and they seem to be consistent but there's getting it fixed and getting it fixed right. Some shops don't want to touch it. I've seen some of the work coming out of the cheaper shops and I'm not impressed. There's nothing worse looking, imo, than poorly fitted body panels.

91 Ragtop: The seats are tan leather, driver front has the inflatable lumbar supports, bags are good and work fine. Driver seat has some wear, passenger seat is great shape, back lowers are fine but the top rear has started to dry out and crack. Wheels are good.

I may or may not be parting it out. I still might park it and repair it over the course of a few years. It's been in the family since 94. I'll have to see what happens and what the insurance company offers in the way of a settlement.

 

wont the other persons insurance cover it? if not, wont yours? If they didnt total the car they should fix it.

Only if it's fixed back to 100% would i keep it. it was always bother you seeing things that werent fixed right. was a nice looking car.

couldnt you get a donor car that was rearended?

 

I am not sure how your ins company works, but if they recommend a shop and they do not fix it correctly they should not have anything to stand on if you say its not good enough... They should put it back the way it was...

As far as value, if fixed correctly it should not take anything from the value, Never take it to a dealership to have it fixed 90% of the time dealers do crappy work.

John

 

That is a LOT of damage -- the quotes he is getting reflect that. A collision shop can't fix that kind of damage for a few thou. I understand only wanting it done if it is 100%. Some repaired cars never drive straight again. Unfortunately, a 305 car crashed like that is going to bring pennies on the dollar for value. Maybe $750-1000?

 

I would think that around 9K, that thing would be totalled. Why dont you just let them total it, take the 9k, buy it back for very little, part it, whatever, buy yourself a nice replacement vert, and still have money left over to play with.

Just a thought.

 

Insurance companies will only repair damage up to about 70-80 percent of the value of the car. Establishing the value of these cars are a little different because these are special interest vehicles. Insurance companies hate these types of cars because they have very little information to base a valuation on. Normally an insurance company will use "book value" - and that's not a true reflection of market value. I'm trying to work out a deal where they write me a check up to the value of the car (the value is as yet to be determined and that's the sticking point) less $1.00. Then the car isn't technically totalled and I get to keep the car with the title and possibly repair it at a later date or part it out.

Bottom line is that these cars just don't have the value yet to justify $8k in repairs from an insurance company's view point.

 

That's the most important part you have to make them understand. This isn't the average rusted out T-Top 3rd Gen that we see running around. This is what amounts to a limited production car that does have value. The fact that yours was in great condition with mileage under 100K should say a lot.

 

Sorry to hear about your car. If I were you, I would fix it as it looks like its in pretty good shape and it is extremely rare. If you decide to part it out, let me know as there are several items I would be interested in.

 

yeah they should fix it, I mean aint that the reason you pay there stupid fees every year?
Its like it aint youre falt so the other guy should pay youre Insurance companie and they should fix youre car, over here that car would have been worth 25-30K before it is wrecked but it is a little different over there I guess.

 

Man, that looks just like my car. My heart just sank!

 

I was told that one reason the price of the repair is so high is because shops don’t want to weld and section the frame. They want to replace it because they are concerned over their liability if it would fail in another crash and someone (me) would get hurt as a result. I’m not so concerned about it because it’s at the front near the crash bar where the damage is located. I have the car home now so I am going to start disassembling the front end in a few weeks and see what I have underneath the sheet metal. The adjuster said he will try to have a figure worked up early next week and I already know it won’t be what I want BUT some insurance companies also like to pay to make a problem go away and if they don’t step up and do the right thing then I’m going to become a huge problem for them.

 

The problem is they will give you the BOOK price. That is why componies who insure car for agreed price are popular with builders. The car might be 500.00 book price. If the repair is 2500.00 you still only get 500.00. I had a cherry low miliage x19. A guy backed into me. Repair est were 2000.00. They gave me 500.00. When I balked they just said thats our offer and hung up.

 

"Stated value" policies are useless. The problem is they will only pay the book price BUT if the book price to repair is more than the stated value then they will only pay up to the stated value amount. I do have the right to go to arbitration if we can't reach an agreement though.

Speaking of insurance companies, are there any that are good to the classic car owners? I'm not talking about a museum quality, $75k insured car but our 3rd gens. For example, it wouldn't matter if I had put $20k extra in upgrades in my car - it's still a 92 TA and that's what they would base their pay out on.

 

I've planned ahead to prevent this situation from ever happening.
- Got my car appraised. Came back with a value of $21,000.00CDN.
- Took the appraisel to my insurance company.
- Requested the 19A clause (almost universal amoung insurance companies both in the US & Canada).
This clause, when signed between you and insurance company, is a contract that states that the value of the car is recognised as the apprasied value NOT the book value. And if written-off, the replacement value will be the appraised value. The only catch is that you have now put a cap on your car's value (for the term of your insurance coverage which is usually annual). If the insurance company's investigator comes back with a higher value, you will only get the appraised value. But what is the likelyhood of that ever happening! And you can always get your car reappraised every year or two to stay current with the true market value or if it's condition changes (like a paint job, new interior, or whatever).

Anyone interested in getting your nice ride properly insured, get it appraised ASAP. Then be sure to go and ask your insurance company for this option or something similar. If they don't offer it for some reason, go someplace else. If you are still having trouble, then there also insurance companies that specialise in special interest and unique vehicles.

Check out all your options before something happens. Because if you wait, you might not have any!

 

well, what about the guy who hit you? Since he was at fault, shouldnt he pay to fix it? At least his insurance co. should fix it right? Not sure how insurance works but he was aty fault wasnt he??

 

It's the other guy's insurance company (GEICO sucks by the way) that I'm having problems with. I'm trying to leave mine out of it as I'm sure it would be the same hassle because they all use the same valuation method.

I've used the appraisal method before on other cars that I've had but not on this one, and it typically will only work when you seek compensation from your insurance company. The car just didn't quite have the value yet to justify a yearly appraisal and increased premiums over what I was already paying for it and the others that I have. It had nothing custom done, was bone stock, it had some flaws, and probably wouldn't have sold for more than $8500 max anyways which is about typical from what I've seen for these cars in Florida in similar condition. Florida doesn't allow you to collect diminished value either.

If you have a lot of $$ invested in your car then listen to what Iroctopless said or you may regret it later.

 

Wow!

Wish I would have known about what Iroctopless posted a year ago.

My insurance valued the car at $5500 and the repairs were estimated at $6000.

I did not want the car to go to the junk yard, so...
I took the money and bought the car back from them.

Did the repairs and she's still running, but as a worthless car.

I get compliments all the time as to how nice the car looks.
But always think to myself.... if I were to ever sell it.. I'd get nothing since it's a salvage title.

As for my story... I should have taken the money and bought a replacement vert. Or... should have had the car appraised prior to the accident.

Our cars are gaining in value but the insurance companies only look at book value of which you are tossed in with all those other junker camaros that are on the roads today.

I never really thought about it until I read this thread.

Some good stuff in here for those who own a unwrecked car.

 

I wouldn't say she's worthless, but it will be worth quite a bit less than a clear title. However, if you have good documentation of the kind of damage, how it was repaired, pictures, receipts, safety inspection documents, etc, etc, you will improve it's value considerably to a wary customer.

It's sometimes surprising, but there are car buyers out there looking for properly repaired and safe rides (Provided the seller can provide evidence as such. The buyer will most likely also have the car inspected). This route, for those willing to take the risk, allows them to acquire a car that normally is in a market they would not be able to afford. Clearly not as an investment or for resale, but just as a decent daily driver to enjoy.

PS; sometimes, if a car owner has good documention as to a car's condition (pics, receipts, etc) and/or any unique options, before an accident occurs, they can personally challenge the insurance company's assessed value.
While it may not always work, I have seen it done successfully. Never hurts to try, if you think you have a case.

 

ouch bro that sux hope u get it fixed soon

 

if your gonna sell it I might be interested in buying it/trading somethin for it.....

 

How much will insurance give you? At 8k or 9k, you're going to get a damn good repair job, and jeesh, who's complaining about new paint? Runs fine, everything is fine, just pretty much body and frame work. How much will your insurance cover? Your vert is gorgeous, I'd hate to see it go unrepaired.
PS - Keep in mind, should you sell it, you won't get much.

 

No insurance company will give you more than the car is worth or it will be considered "totalled". Typically they will write you a check for 99.5% of it's value and not total it. I'm still fighting with the insurance company to establish the value. Keep in mind the accident happened on June 5th too so this has been dragging out over a month. They've been unable to find any comparables in the local market so they expanded to a nationwide search but were still only able to come up with about 5 - 6 other sales. The adjuster told me this is the hardest car he's ever had to try to put a value on. Right now we're around the $7,500 figure plus a few more per day to cover the cost of it's loss of use so we're getting close to the $8k figure which is what I was looking for. I'll keep everyone updated.

 

UPDATE: Today I finally settled up with the insurance company. We reached a final price of $7,500 and I got them to write me another check for loss of use for $600. I can live with a total of $8,100 PLUS I still have the car and it's not totalled - now I just have to decide whether to repair it or part it out.

 

Due to any possible frame concerns, I'd use the cash to buy another vert and keep the old one as a great parts car. Plus you could sell the odd piece you're sure you won't need and make a few extra $$$ on the side.

I'm glad to hear that things seem to have worked out for the better. What a lot of crap to go through, but that's probably typical when dealing with insurance companies.

 

Yeah, this car is toast. It's good for parts only. I'm not sure if I'll be buying another one just yet. My wife has been after me to get rid of one of them (pretty sure she didn't mean to do it by crashing one though) so she'd shoot me if I brought another one home right now. I can live with my 86 TA & 88 Formula 350 for a while but I know one day I'll get the itch to buy another convertible and when I do I'll have a garage full of parts

And on the brighter side of things - there's one less Mustang on the road today!

 

I guess there is a silver lining to every cloud.
Good luck ahead with all your projects.

 

For what it's worth, I worked as an adjuster for a MAJOR insurer about 10 years back, and I have also worked the body shop end of the deal. I have actually seen a 3rd gen used in a frame sectioning demo, with great results. They barrier crashed a mid eighties Sport Coupe at something like 15-20mph. This tore up all front end sheetmetal, and wrinkled the unirails back to the strut towers. The same car was then pulled on a frame machine, and a salvage nose was put on it. The rails were sectioned just forward of the towers, and used inserts inside the rails. After finishing, you simply could not tell the car had been sectioned at all. They recrashed it at the same speed as before, and remeasured the damage. Identical to the original impact. I can tell you as a shop guy, and I imagine others here could too, that we rarely replaced entire rails, front or rear. We often made the appeal for a complete rail replacement, but my guys were all too happy to section them after a frame pull and avoid the teardown needed to do the whole rails. A competent body man in an equipped shop that is interested in saving the car can do this quickly and with undetectable results. I would rather have this kind of work done on my car than something like a quarter panel or trunk floor replacement any time. Don't send that car to the scrap yard, fix it. If you don't, someone else will. Just my 2 cents. Oldtimer.

 

dude that really sucks iam sorry to hear bout it! but its ur decion to fix it or not but if i was u i would

 

I'd hang on to it because it is getting rare to find verts, or sell it to somebody who will fix it up.

 

And the reply of the millenium! Go buy a good condition TTop car and chop it. You will find it very easy to use every last vert part that you allready own to bring back your dream car. That being said... we do not need any flameing from the TTop crowd. Chop away BRO!

 

I know these cars are pretty rare, but that being said, I think it's easier to buy another one than fix this one. There doesn't seem to be a shortage of them here in FL. No shop was really interested in touching the damage on this one. I believe anything can be fixed but with this type of damage it's not worth taking an $8k gamble to have it turn out less than my expectations. It seems there's a new one for sale every few weeks in the papers or the websites. I'm keeping all the parts from it I can and putting them in storage. Probably in about a year I'll start looking for another one. I've not had any trouble finding them for sale - it's just a matter of what condition. Having the convertible specific extra parts sure gives some peace of mind when it's time to buy one.