mikehr

Hello All
Perhaps someone can help.... 951 total loss according to State Farm
I am a proud longtime owner of a 86 944 Turbo. On Christmas eve it was hit in the rear. I am ok. It is currently at a specialized Porsche restoration shop. My insurance company(State Farm) is calling it a total loss. The shop says it is repairable for around 7k and should be brought back to life to to the condition of the rest of the car. They also told me not to give in and that I should send as much data as I can backing up my claim that is is worth more! SF put a $6350.00 value on the 951! I am insulted!! I have had this car for almost 30 years and I am very particular in its up keep. I have done 95% of all maintenance/repairs and have kept the car in really great shape. It has 301,000 miles and is in perfect running order! I know this is high mileage but it does not reflect the condition or the way it still passes inspection and drives. In hindsight I know know that I should have had a more specialized insurance cover my 33 year old baby. Any advice, data and suggestions are appreciated and welcome. I have already sent over some documents but their policy is not to consider added value engine work outside of 12k miles and other work and upgrades out side of 90 days. This is TOTAL CRAP!!
Thanks in Advance,

Mike Kehr
mike.kehr1@gmail.com
86 951

MAGK944

V2Rocket

remember totaling happens when the repair cost exceeds a certain % of the cars value.
a $7k repair bill would likely require the car to be valued at $25k or better, which no 951 with over 10k miles will get.

whats their buyback price?

mrgreenjeans

Buy the car back at a negotiated ( very low ) buy. Retaining the title and fixing it up out of pocket. The difference between what they payout and what you pay them to keep it and fix PLUS what the cost of repairs will be, may well be lower in cost, than the anxiety, pressure, and trouble of finding a similar replacement.

Insurance companies are in it for one reason: making lots of money. They care nothing for you other than viewing you as a source, not a loss, of money.
So they can pay it out by the millions on their hourly television commercials ..... which I promptly mute or channel surf out of my existence.

I respectfully disagree with the above mentioned thought on placing evaluations of good 951s ( to say nothing of GREAT cars ) at 25,000 or less.
A search of sold cars on eBay, Bring-A-Trailer sites, and viewing current values using Hagerty's evaluation guide, show much higher values. There once was a time when they fell that low, but no longer.

To buy a pristine, low mileage turbo 944, especially if searching for the Best of the BEST of an '88.2 or an '89 will be twice that figure. Or more.

mikehr

I am not sure what the buy back price is? SF only said the TOTAL loss price was $6305.00. This has never happened to me so it as all new to me. Perhaps you can provide some information as to the process and my options. The shop suggested I try to get more $$$ and do a salvaged title. I then can get a new title once the car is repaired/inspected.

mike

mrgreenjeans

I would want nothing to do with a salvage title. You have a clean title now. Why surrender it ?

Ask the ins. co. to sell you the car back and give you a check for the balance of the total-out. You will have to get tough. Tell them something like you will give them 350 bucks for the remains. If they balk, go to 450. Don't let them rush you.... talk them down; let them know you are pissed. Whatever value you settle at, the car and title remains yours and you fix it at your leisure and to your satisfaction.

Many folks let go of the car, take the hit and move on. You want it. You own it. You were violated by the guy that hit you; ruined your day, your car, and made the mess you're in now. Don't settle for being bullied if you want it to remain yours. Get tough and demand to be made right by the person who hit you .... their insurance co. No laws say you have to settle on a lowball offer or make you lose your car.

Otto Mechanic

A long time ago I had to go through this with a 931 I'd just begun work on. The best course for me was to negotiate as low a buy back price as I could, take whatever cash the insurance company would offer (also SF) and decide whether I'd just bought a parts car or a fixer upper. In my case, I bought a parts car. Later, after removing the parts I wanted to keep, I sold the carcass to a local yard form more that I paid SF.

I agree that stressing over it costs more than its worth. I learned from the experience and now I insure all of my collectible cars with a company that offers an agreed value policy. Whenever I renew the policy I also review the "agreed value" based on my own understanding of the car's replacement cost.

Tom R.

I did that with my 540i 6M three years ago. My buddy bought the car from me (sideswiped, 6k damage, 58k car, 78k miles, records including gas fills from friend/PO) and had it repaired. He went to trade it in, and Carfax showed the accident and something about it being more damage than worth. When he totaled it a few months later, his insurance gave him a few grand. He had to show it wasn't a totaled car with a few pictures etc. bottom line, even though it wasn't totaled, the Carfax said something to the effect that it was one step from a salvage title.

Van

Too bad you didn't have it insured with Hagarty (or another specialized classic car insurer) with an agreed upon value. That's the only way to do it - the agreed upon value of my 944 S is $12k.

944Fest (aka Dan P)

We've seen this on RL several times, and unfortunately the bottom line is if you think your car is worth XXX, you need to insure it for XXX. State Farm will sell you a stated value policy, I have several. Can you imagine if every car that gets totaled they pay what the owner thinks it was worth? Even replacement value is not a fair gauge. They will indemnify you. Make you whole, give you a very market real number for the car. I'm sure she was gorgeous but with 300k miles, (IMO) nobody is going to value it much higher than mentioned. Presenting comparable cars and arguing will get you frustrated and maybe move the needle $500, but that mileage is a tough sell.
Here's how it will work, they will cut you a check for their value of the car minus your deductible. Tell them you want to buy back the car. The call center will probably tell you they need to get back with you on that. They will call you back, in my experience, their price will vary between 500 and 850 for the remains. They will take that amount out of your payment. You may be able to negotiate this number a bit, along with having them tow it to where you want it as part of your buy. Wherever it is stored right now, make sure the shop knows you and keeps the car covered and indoors if able.
Here is one other thought. In the 944, unlike most other cars, the drive train is one long heavy piece. from the back of the trans to the front of the engine covers is one long solid assembly. Any hit to the rear, if it goes as far as to push the trans forward, is going to do a lot of damage. If the damage is aft of that, you have an extremely good race car kit on your hands, priced right!
If there is a bright side, cheers on 300K!!! We should all be so lucky.

Otto Mechanic

FWIW, I insure mine through Leland West via a broker named Select Auto Insurance. I've held a policy through Leland West for over 30 years. I've only made one claim, but it was served promptly, with no hassle at all. Have they made money off me? Yes, they have. Did they provide the service I paid for when I needed them? Without a doubt.

PS: I insure the 944 S2 with an agreed value of $17,000. The 928 S3 is insured for $20,000.

Michaels951

Hagerty is the way to go, they go off agreed value. If my NA is total loss i get a check for 15 grand.

bkrantz

Just to clarify: are you in a no-fault state? Was the other driver uninsured? Why are you fighting with your insurance company?

And for the legal experts, what can be done to recover more from the driver who caused the damage? Civil suit?

944Fest (aka Dan P)

MGJ, I respect you a lot but I really have to take the counter point here. How valuable is a clean title vs a salvage on a 300k mile car? Do you really want to hire a lawyer, spend hours and hours gathering data and preparing for a court battle just to prove you loved your car so much that it is worth 2x what every one else thinks it is? How much anger, frustration and rage can you build up inside you waiting for postponed court dates? To me, you learn the lesson, move forward at let it go. As much as you hate insurance companies, I will tell you this. They have a huge team of expensive lawyers working for you if needed, waiting to go to work to protect you and your assets. Forget the settlement, do you know how much lawyers cost if you want to try to sue somebody? WAY more than those insurance premiums you paid. The guy who hit him did not create the 'underinsured' mess he is in now, that was of his own doing, albeit not on purpose. I fear your advice will only bring our OP a lot of grief and expense for not much change in the result. Your results may vary. I avoid any lawyer/lawsuit like the plague.

Turbodan

I live in Canada and if the repair is more than 70% of value they will write it off here. We also can get them to increase the ACV (actual cash value) by showing them comparable cars for sale. I would show them some cars advertised (PCA mart, etc) of good condition 951 which should easily be over 10k. use this to get them to pay 7k to fix the car or give you 10k minus 500 to payout car and sell it back to you. good luck. sounds like it was a nice car and you have enjoyed a long ownership with it.