+2

That sucks. Hoepfully it works out for you. Try to get the car totalled. Give the tech $20 to tell the insurance guy that it's totalled.

Pray to god that is totaled, even if they manage to get it put back together straight it will never be right again, you will have 4 times as many squeaks as stock and will die if it is ever in another serious accident.

BTW. you do not have to take the insurance company's first offer. Haggle just like it is a new car. When my last car got totaled the original offer was $2100 i refused to settle until they gave me $3800.

Saw this @ Jalopnik this morning.

Jalopnik - Drive Free or Die

Do not talk to the body shop anymore, talk to your insurance agent and let them deal with it.

Thanks everyone for the advice so far. I am new at this and I really don't want to be screwed by either the insurance company or any body shop.

Speaking about advice, anyone have anymore advice on how to deal the the appraiser. Again I have not heard back from the appraiser, but my insurance company said someone will call on monday.

Questions:
Is it important for me to be present at the appraisal? I plan on being there , but I do have classes and that may be difficult.

Should I worry too much that the appraiser might try not to write off the car since they don't want to insurance company to pay out? For some reason I am having a difficult time trusting them.

And the dealer body shop person said he will be present to go through everything with the appraiser, is that shady? May he influence the appraiser someway, since if it is written off the dealership won't get paid?

And if the appraiser says it won't be written off, is there anyway to fight it since I am worried about structural integrity?

Very Respectfully,
John

how come nobody has asked the obious yet?

PICS OF SAID GIRL?

other than that, i hope they total the car and give you a check for a new one!

The appraiser is going to come to an estimate without the help of the body shop. When you are talking to the appraiser (in person or on phone) make sure that you bring up diminished value, who will warranty the work etc. You really want to push the diminished value since with that amount of damage, even if it is fixed very well, will make the car worth thousands less than it would be otherwise.

Can you open the hood? I would bet that with that damage there is all sorts of shit broken, intercooler, battery, ecu, valve cover, brake and clutch cylinders, etc. Make them warranty the motor as well.

Good luck and keep us posted.

He fucking drove the thing.

I wouldn't worry about the dealer trying to get their cut.
If they total it out, they may get a new car sale!

The nice thing about a non bias appraiser that work for the insurance company is that they will give u a honest maybe a little low estimate. I had a insurance approved appraiser that work for the body shop make the estimate on my STI when a DUI driver hit me, they low balled the estimate to get the work just south of the 60% total cost of the vehicle. after they got the work they re submitted a new estimate for new findings after body panels and other things got removed. after everything was set and done they have 27K invested in the car for a 20k car. If the estimate is close to what the minimal requirement for the insurance has to just total the vehicle. U might want them to pull panels off first and re assest the situation. i.e your inner skirts got push out the valve cover got smakehs and now their is metal in your head etc. be a pain in the dick meticulous with it- at the end of the day when you get it back you will notice alot of minor thing and always picture nissan on your hood.

Not gonna read all the posts, but most states have a law to the effect that if a car is a certain age young (yours fits for Florida) then they have to use new Mazda parts.
Also FYG2N is probably all over Nissan forums as we speak

Three miles at ten MPH the car works yes but that hardly constitutes a shakedown. For the sake of totalling the car he should be pushing to get all that shit replaced. Honestly if the intercooler isnt cracked it will be once some miles get put on it.

Just spoke with the appraiser, he didn't say much, he said he read the report from the body shop and will write his own report when he gets back to the office. I asked him about diminished value and he said I would have to talk to my claims agent. The body shop guy puts the cost at a little over $7000. He said that could go higher...I opened the engine and there does not seem to be any visual damage. The dealership said they will do an electronic diagnostic test and put the feels on the alignment machine after its all done. All in all I am pretty pissed with the assessment and the appraiser...

So when I talk to the claim agent after nicely pressuring my idea of giving me diminished value cost (looks futile since I heard insurance companies usually don't do that kinda thing) should I just come out and say why don't you write it off? And I found this company that goes after diminished value claims Diminished Value I spoke to them and it sounds legit. Not sure if anyone heard anything from them, but is that worth a try? They take 1/3 plus $299 of the claim if they settle. If the settlement is less than $1500 we split 50/50. No settlement they don't get paid...

Thanks for all your advice, the claim agent should call me tomorrow.

Wait to hear from your agent.

my 07 GT cost $1800 for the bumper and headlight to be replaced and repainted, along with a few small things. $7000 a hood, roof, windshield, fender, and a-pillars is conservative, to me. Lots of labor in that.

Google'd them...
advocate auto consultants | Rip-off Report: 675107

If the estimate comes back low it would be time to get your insurance company involved, let them do some of the fighting for you, being their customer they are more likely to be compasionate towards you. If PA doesnt have a dimnished value law you might have to sue for it. $7000 seems really low, almost like there is no labor included.

Ok thanks guys! I am sick and done with talking to the body shop, guess I should have listened to you guys. He is still sticking hard on little over $7000 for body parts, paint, and labor. I will just wait to see what my agent says after the appraiser. The thing I am worried about is the appraiser may be siding with him. Even though I go to a huge school (Penn State), the town is small and body repair shops may know the appraisers.

This really sucks how I have to deal with this problem when my car is parked and some idiot mixed up the pedals...

It's your choice where it gets fixed/totaled. Bring it somewhere else.

Don't sign anything from the adjuster or agent till you are happy that they will fix it to the condition it was prior to the accident. Unless you sign differently, this is their legal obligation. Be an asshole about it. Get a lawyer to write you a letter (nominal fee) if need be.

It was her fault, and if need be you have the right to sue her directly outside of her insurance if they won't make it good. Mention this to her and she will pressure her insurance to fix it right.

So.. insist on new parts, and no repairs to the pillars since they are what your life depends on in a accident. If the pillars are damaged and they want to repair them, ask if they will agree to a million dollar life insurance policy for free that covers you in case you get killed by your car flipping over. If they are not that sure about the repair, you are not happy about their offer to "fix" a unfixable part.

THIS!!!

Phone another body shop (pick the best body shop in town... you're not paying for it, pick the best one), tell them you want a second opinion on the repairs. They will send their tow truck over and pick up your car (free!) to bring it there. They want the business, so they'll try to get it.

Remember, it's still your car, you can do with it as you please. If you want a 2nd opinion, get it. Phone the first body shop, say "Thank you very much for your time. A truck from ABC Body Shop is going to get my car." SIGN NOTHING!!!

They have provided you with a rental correct?

Yep they provided me a rental. I got a 2010 dodge charger...It was fun for the first couple of min, but other than some power (3.5L V6) not the best drive. Very heavy and floaty, almost like a camry :o. Thanks again for the advice. If you have anymore please let me know.

if the appraiser desnt come back with the numbers you want, get it to another shop in a different nearby tow if you have to. this schematic works best if u know a body shop of course (if u were in baltimore id hook u up). Point being = accept nothing less than a total loss, do not hire any advocacy "firms" theyll just take your money, hire a lawyer if you have to. Emphasize the car not being safe to drive and be ready to write to and contact insurance regulatory agencies for your state and congressmen if you have to. Point here is no matter how hard anyone tries to fix it, your car is fubared. get a rental from somewhere else rather than the shop that has ur car and make the other chicks insurance pay for it.



Sent from my SPH-D700 using Tapatalk

I'd say you'd be lucky to NOT have engine damage. That impact might have jarred the transmission loose, motor mounts busted, you said you thought you were leaking coolant, pistons might have been knocked outta whack. You could only go 10mph because the car was in Limp Mode, meaning something in there was fucked up.

Do what alien said, call up a couple other body shops and have them appraise it. You do not have to go with the first offer for repairs, nor do you have to go with the first shop you took it to. If the dealership won't cough up the car to the other company, tell them they can either let them pick the car up, or you'll report your car stolen by them(works good with salesmen who won't give up your car keys when you do a trade-in appraisal too).

I was going 10 mph because that's how fast my police escorts were going. So I had three different garages do appraisals and they looked underneath the hood and all. In the end there were over a little over $7000 in damages, there was no damage to the engine from what I can see. They will do diagnostic when someone fixes it. The bottom of the hood was not out of shape just the top. Mostly they said panels needed to be replaced, a couple of the garages I have heard good reviews from and they said they warranty everything, and I have heard good results from some people I know on facebook.

In the end the damage was not as bad as I had hoped/thought. The fix estimate should take around 12-14 days, getting parts may be hard since its in Japan.

Once again thanks everyone for your advice, but totaling it would be possible from all the adjusters and garage personnel I asked to check it out. But some of you would still say that's bogus lol. I did the best I can but the evidence was simply not there.

But I do have one more question, if I were going to sell it in the future would it be better to get the repair done at a Mazda dealership or some other unaffiliated shop where they do all kinds of cars? The shop I spoke to, Black Walnut in Bellefonte, PA is supposedly very good and I got plenty of recommendations from people I know.

Japan for the panels? Yeah, that's gonna take time.

Good luck man, most of the time it may seem like you are getting ripped off but they are just doing there job. It isn't the appraisers money as a matter of fact it was her fault so your insurance company doesn't care how much it is they won't be paying for it...

The biggest thing to keep in mind is that since you're not at fault, she is, you are in a position to demand the repairs be perfect. You are well within your rights to have nothing but OEM parts used. Sometimes insurance companies will hassle you about this, but just call up an agent, then talk to their supervisor. That'll already put up one notch on the squeeky wheel list (squeeky wheel gets the grease).

Because she is at fault you can demand that all suspected damaged parts be replaced. This means things like shocks, springs, tires, lugs, knuckles, any part that could have been overloaded is "suspected damage". They'll try to cheaply get out of it by saying they inspected it and has no damage. But you are within your right to say that a car was not designed to have anothers car weight on top, and therefore suspected damage could have led to significant durability loss in those parts and therefore you want them replaced.

Just hold your ground. It's not your fault and therefore you shouldn't settle for any short cuts. None.

This is a classic Genpooh hate crime.

Actually, his insurance DOES pay for it. But it was her fault so the part about them not caring still holds true. Sort of.
And don't get anything fixed at Mazda. All of there mechanics tried to tell me our turbo was oil cool at the last meet we had. I had to email the president of the dealership the facts, because they were all so adamant about it. "we work on these cars everyday. What would you know?" oh I don't know, I bet I spend more time driving it and reading up on it than you guys spend fixing anything that actually gets fixed with attitudes like that. Ha. So yeah, take to the best body shop around.
Also, to add to that other post. Wouldn't matter if you were at fault. Someone is paying for the repairs and you ALWAYS have the right to demand that those repairs be perfect. There should be a lifetime warranty on anything the shop fixes also.

Depending on which insurance agency he contacted it could be his or hers paying for it. In the end hers will be paying for it either directly by paying for the repairs or by reimbursing his insurance for the repairs.

Alright. In Ontario, we have no fault. It's always the policy of the damaged vehicle that pays, unless they sue the person for not having insurance or something.

Hey SpeedEMS, +1 for PSU, as I am alumni. I grew up in Central PA (Lock Haven) and there is no good body shops in that whole area. Mostly just college town rip-off shops. I am familiar with Black Walnut in Bellefonte, but I would be suprised if they get your baby back to showroom condition. I am not sure if there is really any other options at this point, damn shame they didn't total it.

I only know of one place in all of central PA I would trust, and that is Todd's auto body in Lock Haven. Its about 40 miles away and he is a bit expensive, but the shit will get done right.

Expensive?!? He's not paying!

Well, if the other shops say the same thing as the dealership, it might be a good thing to have the dealership do the work. Tell them you're not sure how well it's gonna be when they're done and you wanna trade it in. The body shop gets to work on the car, the used car lot gets another car to sell, and you can get a new car off their lot.

I have some update. I have decided if there is any work I will get it done at the Mazda Dealership. The at fault insurance company (Geico) called and they assumed 100% responsibility of it. They said I can go through them without my insurance company to get everything fixed. I said no because they would only take it to their shop and I feel as though they would try to use fabricated parts. As of right now my insurance said they will use all OEM except for the windshield.

Now I have a couple of questions, the insurance company is paying around $7200 for the first round of work. This number can go up if the dealer finds more issues while repairing my car. I was thinking how much would this car net as is for parts, I can combine that with the insurance payout.

However, there is a downside to this option, the body shop could uncover other issues and they can supplement the bill to the insurance company. So another point I was dabbling on is getting it fixed and then put it on the market to sell. How much do you think I can net for this 2010 with 15,200ish miles? I know no one on here would but I kinda screwed myself over for it by putting it online lol but if its all fixed with warranty and full working order how much?

John

My car was in a collision before I bought it and I still bought. So long as all that work is warranteed, you might have to list it a little longer, and take a small hit, but it won't be a 7000 dollar hit. I'd list it for 3 grand less than what pus with the same mileage in your area are being sold for and be prepared to go down another grand or two from there. Pretty sure, by law, that car that new has to have all brand new OEM parts put on it. I would have taken geico's offer.

Well, you would still disclose that the car had an accident, no? I mean that shit is pretty severe... If you are thinking of selling, I would definitely try to get a diminished value settlement out of this. That way, you can look up on cars.com or what not the prices these things go for in your area. Subtract the diminished value claim from that and post it up.

And Tokay, these turbos are oil and coolant cooled, so the dealership prb wasn't THAT retarded... though I still wouldn't be surprised if they were, hahaha.

Oil lubricated. Water cooled. Retarded.

Yeah I would definitely disclose that it has been in an accident. And as for diminished value the insurance would not budge on it. They said they are not responsible for that and only to get the car back to the condition it was before. I also spoke with a couple of attorneys and they say in PA I have no case with diminished value.

The only advantage of going with Geico is I don't have to pay the deductible. But most likely I would get it back from my insurance company since Geico took 100% responsibility. Also, I didn't want to restart the entire process going with Geico. They would have to send an adjuster out who knows when that will be since I live in the middle of PA. And they will only fix it if I take it to their body shop. Right now I have a choice of wherever and I think taking it to Mazda will be alright. And from reading online Allstate and Geico are both number 1 and 2 in bad service after auto accident. So I didn't want their adjuster to take short cuts and fight for every little part that might be needed. I have Liberty Mutual now and I hope they can take everything honestly and then present that to Geico.

I am still debating on whether to sell it afterwards or not, you guys are right it is going to be a long listing, but I am in no rush. So far I have a corksport SRI/TIP, Jbarone stage 2 SSP, HIDS, cp-e RMM. Would these mods put off sellers?

I will keep you guys updated, I still have not given the ok for the body shop to start work. I want to see the estimate from my insurance adjuster first to verify all parts are OEM. Man this is such a long process and I gotta study for finals :o

John

Get it fixed, buy something to dd, strip and cage that bitch and make it a time attack car.