RIP Camry! (Formerly Camry Crunch)

[CALL_911]

I'd probably just fix the Camry.

[thewizard16]

Thanks for the input guys. I did a lot of research on the consequences of fixing the Camry yesterday and discovered that although it is fixable, I would then need to have it inspected to have the salvage title "cleared" to a rebuilt title to make it road legal again. That didn't sound so bad, just a minor hassle, but apparently no regular car insurance company here will touch a salvage/rebuilt title for anything other than liability, plus the car's value drops to about 30-50% of a clean title simply by being labeled rebuilt. Even if I could get my insurance company to take it back on after the rebuilt title is issued, I'd be paying for inspections and coverage on a car that they now value at 30-50% of it's previous value, which is a dumb move financially. So, I'd be putting $1500+ into fixing the car that would now be "worth" $800-1500 after repairs. That didn't bother me from a resale or trade in standpoint, but with my limited finances for the forseeable future, it means that any future accident would leave me without a car and with a settlement amount of $0 if I wrecked it or a third of what the car was worth (and less than the actual repairs) even if someone else hits me and their insurance is responsible for the damage... Plus I'd have already spent the money for repairs and buying the car back at salvage value, so I'd be considerably worse off financially if something were to happen to it. If I knew I would have the cash on hand to just replace it with another similar car in the event of an accident I wouldn't worry about it and I'd just keep it with liability only, but I don't have that luxury and I need the safety net of full coverage for now. Buying a different car means I am less familiar with the maintenance history and mechanical condition of the vehicle, but it's also naive to assume that just because I've poured money into keeping the Camry's guts in good shape to date that something major won't fail in the future. So, the risk of keeping the Camry is looking like more of an emotional choice than a logical one, and I've decided I should suck it up, take the check, and get a different car. Expect a thread on that soon, but for now:

RIP Camry.

[AutobahnSHO]

Sorry to hear- at least it was just a Camry.

j/k- I wept over getting rid of my 11yr old car when the engine assploded, even though I already had a replacement in the driveway. It was my SHO though.

[Speed_Racer]

That sucks, but I'm glad you've figured out a bearable solution. It's always a bummer to lose a reliable car to unforseen circumstances, though.

[VTEC_Inside]

Dig up your receipts for more recent repairs and try to recover whatever you can from the insurance company.

Try to get as much as you can from them.



Also surprised that the damage would cause it to be recorded as a loss/rebuilt on title. I can see the insurance company considering it not worthy to repair, but there isn't anything I can see that would warrant a 'rebuilt' title.

[TurboDan]

Dig up your receipts for more recent repairs and try to recover whatever you can from the insurance company.

Try to get as much as you can from them.



Also surprised that the damage would cause it to be recorded as a loss/rebuilt on title. I can see the insurance company considering it not worthy to repair, but there isn't anything I can see that would warrant a 'rebuilt' title.

Yeah, same here. Wizard -- are you sure it would have to have a salvage/rebuild title? Those usually come into play if the car was driven into a flood, or something to that effect. This damage looks mostly cosmetic. You might just have to have it re-inspected by your insurance company for them to cover it again.

I once had to do that with a car. I had an older car that was involved in a very minor accident, but because of one part being outrageously priced (a rear bumper), they "totaled" it. The car was actually fine, and I had it fixed with a used part. Because it was "totaled" they sent a guy out who literally walked around the car once, said it was fine, and that was it and put it back on the insurance plan at no extra cost.

A salvage title would actually be issued by your state DMV. I really can't imagine why that would come into play in this case.

[Onslaught]

I'm not sure about this one. But I think every state has different rules about salvage titles. My Miata has one and it's damage was much less this this Camry.

[AutobahnSHO]

Sometimes just the fact that the insurance co "totalled it" means the title has to be redone.

[thewizard16]

Reached a settlement today. Car shopping will commence soon.

Yeah, same here. Wizard -- are you sure it would have to have a salvage/rebuild title? Those usually come into play if the car was driven into a flood, or something to that effect. This damage looks mostly cosmetic. You might just have to have it re-inspected by your insurance company for them to cover it again.

I once had to do that with a car. I had an older car that was involved in a very minor accident, but because of one part being outrageously priced (a rear bumper), they "totaled" it. The car was actually fine, and I had it fixed with a used part. Because it was "totaled" they sent a guy out who literally walked around the car once, said it was fine, and that was it and put it back on the insurance plan at no extra cost.

A salvage title would actually be issued by your state DMV. I really can't imagine why that would come into play in this case.

According to what I've read and what I've been told, in Arkansas any time the insurance company calls something a total loss it becomes a salvage car with a new title issued by the state. You can buy it back from the insurance company practically immediately, but the title they give you back will be a salvage title. No estimate the company honors was coming in below 70% of the car's value, so they were going to total it no matter what. Once a salvage title always a salvage or rebuilt is what I was told by the people I talked to here. I was told getting a salvage title inspected by the state and all that here and having it determined that the car is fine structurally only takes you back up to rebuilt, they never "clear" the title back like it was. They may have been wrong, but I doubt it. Even if they were though, it's done now and it was probably still the smart choice.

[Onslaught]

That's the way it is in NC too. A long time ago if the car had been on the road for some time the title could be cleared again. But not anymore.

[Eye of the Tiger]

When my Jetta got totalled, I just signed a paper saying I had repaired and/or determined it safe to drive, and got my rebuilt title. I fixed nothing.

[Madman]

It's a lot harder to "wash" car titles these days.  Once branded with a rebuilt title, it's nearly impossible to make it go away.

Take the money and find a new ride.  If you need some inspiration, my SOTW thread is just a click away! 

Good luck!

[TurboDan]

Weird. These states should think about changing those laws. Being "totaled" is a monetary determination, not a mechanical one. Hell, on some cars you could literally have a rock hit your windshield and it would technically be "totaled" if you had an old enough car. I'm glad, for once, New Jersey has a better system.

[2o6]

Given the mechanical hacks that many people try to pass off, I think the system is good as it is.

[TurboDan]

Given the mechanical hacks that many people try to pass off, I think the system is good as it is.

Not really. It sounds like it punishes people who have minor damage to an older vehicle. These salvage titles should be based on mechanical, not monetary, determinations.

[cawimmer430]

Are you going to hold a funeral for it like this guy? 

Man Holds Funeral For A Beloved 1982 Honda Civic
Resilient car had become local legend in one New York City neighborhood



The 1982 Honda Civic had been overturned in riots and had its four tires stolen. It sustained major damage during an accident. It logged more than 170,000 miles on its odometer and became a neighborhood fixture.

On Saturday, the 30-year-old car affectionately called "Bluey" by an entire New York City neighborhood was retired to the junkyard.

But not before it received a proper sendoff. Its owner, Harry Ettling, held a New Orleans-style funeral procession up Seaman Avenue near 207th Street. Mourners gathered. Tubas played. A bouquet of flowers rested on Bluey's rusty hood.

"Everybody in the neighborhood knows this car," Ettling tells The New York Daily News. "People have come up to me and said, 'Ever since I was a little toddler, I've been seeing this car on the street.' And that's a beautiful thing."

The car managed the parade route under its own power and received a police escort. A flatbed from A&G Used Auto Parts then hauled the little Honda away.

Cause of death was not engine-related. Rust, which had overtaken most of the body, and had corroded the bottom of the vehicle too. Ettling was afraid his feet would fall through the floor.


Link 1: http://autos.aol.com/article/man-holds-funeral-for-a-beloved-1982-honda-civic/

Link 2: http://www.nydailynews.com/new-york/mourners-fill-streets-inwood-man-honda-civic-finally-dies-30-years-article-1.1129571

[2o6]

Not really. It sounds like it punishes people who have minor damage to an older vehicle. These salvage titles should be based on mechanical, not monetary, determinations.

OK, maybe I misread what you were getting at. That sounds fairer.

[thewizard16]

Finally called back an insurance investigator who called me earlier this week... Apparently the driver of the Honda has hired a lawyer and has "injuries". Fantastic. 

[AutobahnSHO]

Finally called back an insurance investigator who called me earlier this week... Apparently the driver of the Honda has hired a lawyer and has "injuries". Fantastic. 

Write down everything said/done at the injury site that day. You might need it..

[cawimmer430]

Finally called back an insurance investigator who called me earlier this week... Apparently the driver of the Honda has hired a lawyer and has "injuries". Fantastic. 

Sounds like a cheap way of wanting to become rich. What an asshole. 

[Cookie Monster]

Sounds like a cheap way of wanting to become rich. What an asshole. 

Unfortunately it happens more than you think.

[cawimmer430]

Unfortunately it happens more than you think.

If I ever want to become millionaire, all I need to do is go to America, eat a McDonalds and then sue them because I didn't know the coffee was hot and I "burned my hand".


Yeah, this stuff happens often. A shame that there are lawyers out there who also exploit this as a means to make more money for themselves...