How much damage totals on '01 S ?

[gnetwerker]

An idiot ran a red light and t-boned me a couple of days ago, center-punching the passenger side door pretty good. My wife was on the shotgun side, but the airbag deployed and I guess these things are built pretty well. The damage appears to be mostly contained to the door, with a little involvement on the sill underneath, and on the right rear quarter-panel.

It is/was a 2001 Boxster S, 42k mi, grey/black, with a hardtop that wasn't on at the time. Any opinion on whether this is totaled? Would any of you buy it after repair? Drive it?

Anyone been through this before? They other guy's insurance is with Allstate, which I'm told is unfortunate for me.

I'd love to trade up to a late-model Carrera 4s Cabrio, but I'm thinking that's not in the cards.

Edited October 18, 2010 by gnetwerker

[Dr.Strangepork]

Hmm...that's either totalled or close. Depends on what your insurance considers "totalled" in terms of percentage of the car's value. Your car is probably worth about $14-$15k fair market value...and that looks like $6000-$7000 of damage or more. Really tough call, but sad to see that :(

I guess it depends how much you trust the shop to fix it back to original condition/whether it will bother you knowing what's happened to it.

Edited October 18, 2010 by Dr.Strangepork

[harryrcb]

Looks like toast to me. Sorry this happened to you and your wife, just be glad everyone is OK, as for the car It's fixable , would make a good track car. I am sure the ins co will total this but make sure you hold out for replacement costs . Find a few cars in similar condition and milage and get the price quote from the dealer then negotiate

Good luck

[pk2]

Mine was hit almost identically but with more damage to the sill and less behind the door technically totaled and it was repaired.... It cost about 7k to repair about 8 yrs. ago (goes to value). I had a good relation with the shop and paid cash) did some lightweight lifting my self to. Mine required pretty much what yours would,.

What can tip the scales is the little stuff under the surface, It really adds up. There alot of stuff behind your rear 1/4. It also depends on the insurance company. If you love your car (like I did...well, I knew it well) you can let them total it and buy it back pretty cheap, then find a shop that can work with you (sob story...no insurance...etc).

Your frame is bent even though you can't see it . Tolerances are tight so you need to make your shop know that you know.

Regard, PK

Edited October 18, 2010 by pk2

[Cassiebox]

OUCH! Sorry to hear of your misfortune but very glad to hear your wife and you are ok. FWIW, based on the impact location and amount of damage shown, make sure you both or at least she gets a thorough medical exam ASAP. You need to identify any down the road potential medical issues ASAP...

Based on just the amount of surface damage I can see there plus airbag detonation, and knowing the wholesale and retail values of older Boxsters, I think you can count on it being totaled. Sorry :( . Allstate, as I've read/heard, has a very poor reputation when it comes to auto policies (not sure about anything else they may offer...). So, aside from you and your wife getting physically checked out ASAP, I'd recommend getting your insurance company involved ASAP too! I'm sure there will be many fights down the road about valuation of vehicle, etc. You appear to not be at fault but even if you have no-fault ins in your state, get this put on their lap ASAP. They'll have much more experience in dealing w/ Allstate (as they most likely do on a daily basis) and will be fighting for their best interest in the property. This benefits you as opposed to A/S who just want to settle it for the least amount possible ASAP.

Good luck :)

[mikefocke]

Yes Totaled.

If the airbag deployment didn't trigger it the potential for frame damage would. Or the 80% or so of car's value of the initial estimate to fix.

Visit it and pull any valuables you have out of it. Also any mods that you can supply original parts for so the salvage yard gets a whole car but you get any mods that are resellable. For example, my taillight and sidelights were in the trunk when they towed it away but the good stuff was in my garage.

https://sites.google.com/site/mikefocke2/abadaccident

[gnetwerker]

Thank you guys for your good wishes and info. You can understand that I can't post anything about the human side other than to say that everyone walked (limped?) away.

I will definitely let everyone know how it shakes out.

[secretagent214]

My gut reaction is totaled. However...it's possible they'll repair it. I had a deer run into the side of my car (yes, the deer ran into a stopped car, not the other way around) and damage was very similar, though not quite as severe. The shop was able to totally smooth out the body near the intake and the door (impressively without any bondo). Total cost to the insurance company was about $1300. In your case, I expect they would just replace the door. Assuming there's no frame damage and the door isn't amazingly expensive, it might be a repair job.

[Pinarelloman]

OH the values of P cars in Aussie is so different to the USA.

I have a Boxster 01S that was hit front right corner & the total repair bill was $27000.

The vehicle was insured for $46500.

Regds.

Dave

[gnetwerker]

I said I would post here with what transpired. Attached are some photos with the door off and part of the rear quarter panel cut away. It turns out there was some damage to the internal rear bulkhead, and that pushed it over to being totaled. Allstate is offering just under $20k for it, but I'm going to lobby for just a little more. To refresh, "it" was my beloved 2001 Seal grey 'S' with 44k gentle miles, a hardtop, and a sport package. If you are in the Portland, OR area and are interested in the wreck or the hardtop, I'll be posting in the appropriate areas. I've purchased a 2004 C4S, so I'll see you in the 996 forums!

[mikefocke]

Arrange to take off any mod'ing parts you have added that would have value, replacing them with the original parts. The insurance company is entitled to all the original parts, not any value you added.

Love that color and hate to see a good Boxster go.

That said, I value my 58k '01S well equipped at $16.5k so your $20k is a nice settlement. You may also be pleasantly surprised at what they add to the "value of the car", things like registration fees and taxes. (I was...got more for my car after 3 months of ownership than I paid for it and they had records of how much I had paid!)