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s2zeller

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Discussion starter · #1 ·
My trusty '91 Jetta (German-made, CA emissions package, AT, a few minor goodies) that I had since new was rear-ended yesterday at a stoplight (by an SUV that suffered no apparent damage):



The bumper is sort of clipped/hanging on (didn't want to take it off as the Mrs. was going to do a short trip to work today) so I don't know what it looks like underneath.

Having been fortunate to date wrt collisions, I have no idea how much it would be to get this back to working order (i.e. so the trunk opens, the driver's tail light seats properly, and it doesn't leak water in).

Or even if it is worth doing (the rear driver's side door seems a little sticky) given the age of the car.

Thoughts?
 
#2 ·
s2zeller said:
My trusty '91 Jetta (German-made, CA emissions package, AT, a few minor goodies) that I had since new was rear-ended yesterday at a stoplight (by an SUV that suffered no apparent damage):



The bumper is sort of clipped/hanging on (didn't want to take it off as the Mrs. was going to do a short trip to work today) so I don't know what it looks like underneath.

Having been fortunate to date wrt collisions, I have no idea how much it would be to get this back to working order (i.e. so the trunk opens, the driver's tail light seats properly, and it doesn't leak water in).

Or even if it is worth doing (the rear driver's side door seems a little sticky) given the age of the car.

Thoughts?
Click to expand...
1. clean the car thoroughly before going to see the other drivers insurance adjuster. make it look spotless. This is important to show that you werent driving around in a junked car, but a car youve owned and loved since new.

2. tell them you want it fixed, and fixed properly. If they want to write it off, dont accept their offer right away, go home and think about it. if they want to write it off, get the most money you can. Bring all receipts you have for it to show youve cared for it.

3. decide if you want to buy it back from them, or do you just want to walk away.

good luck and keep us posted, this should be interesting...
 
Discussion starter · #3 ·
Interesting indeed, as the other party is uninsured... and I'm not really wanting to make their life difficult as well.

So, it is one of those situations where the car is worth a lot more to me (something I can maintain myself for the most part and lower insurance rates, for example) than any book value (the online books don't even go back to 1991).

On the other hand, body work is beyond me so I'm just wondering - on an outside chance - if this isn't as bad as it looks.

I know money can work magic (or so I'm told), but it seems - as much as I hate to say it in some ways - that the amount I'd need to spend would go a decent way toward something newer and safer and that - at 180k - it is just time.
 
#4 ·
If they were driving around uninsured I'd be going after them even harder, but that's just me.

That looks fixable, assuming the quarter panel isn't kinked elsewhere. Without patching in a new piece of metal that will be very difficult to get perfect again, which makes it expensive to fix.
 
Discussion starter · #6 ·
Yeah, I was none too happy to find out about the uninsured part.

Our thinking was that the car has a book value of ~$1k. With our deductible (I think it is $500 but I can't lay hands on the paperwork right now), then we could at most get $500 under the assumption that the insurance company would just total the car out (rather than commit to multi-thousands to fix it).
 
#7 ·
s2zeller said:
Interesting indeed, as the other party is uninsured... and I'm not really wanting to make their life difficult as well.
Click to expand...
Not sure where you're located, but in most states it's against the law to drive uninsured. You must be much more zen-like than most, since I'd be inclined (as DocWalt said) to go after them harder since they're driving illegally.

Hopefully you at least got a police report? Do you have uninsured/underinsured motorist coverage on your insurance policy?

Good luck!

-Brett.
 
#8 ·
www.nadaguides.com/classic-cars

you don't want to make life hard for somebody who was driving uninsured, and rear-ended you, but they had no problem making life hard for you by making the decision to drive without insurance, and obviously following you too closely? you're being too nice.

I hate to say it, but the fact that you say the rear door is hard to open tells me that it's more than just cosmetic sheetmetal damage....
 
Discussion starter · #9 ·
Thanks for the classic car guide link. It still looks like the cost of repair is still going to exceed the value of the car (if - as I and others suspect - there is more than just cosmetic damage).

The police weren't interested in writing a report since there were no injuries, so we don't have one. He didn't even bother running license plates as far as we can tell (I wasn't there and my wife was a little under the weather at the time).

Like I said, I was mainly trying to see if this is something that could reasonably repaired and it seems (as I first suspected) that the answer is 'No'.
 
#10 ·
The fact that the door doesn't open right might not mean anything, mk2 doors require constant adjustment, and that's when everything is operating normally. Does it still line up with the frame? It might need adjustment.

Body shops are used to dealing with insurance companies (deep pockets), dealerships ($$$) and an increasing barrage of government regulations so they're expensive. If you can find a place that doesn't deal with insurance work and is willing to use junkyard parts, it can be a lot cheaper than somewhere higher up on the food chain. The trick is to find somewhere that isn't totally ghetto. It's kind of a fine line, as to whether it's worth fixing for the amount that you get out of it which is probably going to be a few grand, tops.
 
Discussion starter · #12 ·
I and the car are currently in Wisconsin. After talking it over with a local independent VW mechanic, we're thinking that the money is probably better spent on replacement than repair.

Thanks to everyone for their input.
 
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s2zeller
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