Druepy

Got hit while sitting at a stop sign. Lady turned in to me making a left onto the street I was on.

Coolant was leaking on to the ground and I can't get the hood open. pics of damage below. I am already getting anxious having to wait for someone to come out to take a look at the damage. Any guess on what I should expect? I know it's a crap shoot without diving in

gpr8er

sadly I'm going to say it's probably going to be totalled by the insurance co. Both fenders, hood, bumper cover, headlights buckets, radiator and core support. Only replacement parts are going to come from salvage sources. It's going to be a fight with the Ins. Co.

951and944S

If you aren't a member of PCA, join now, it will pay off in spades later.

They offer a valuation service to members that you can use to your advantage.

True values based on major US outlets and media source classifieds that cannot be disputed by insurance companies.

The cross bridge piece above the radiator that has the latch receiver is rolled forward, that's why hood won't open.

Doesn't look like either frame rail is bent by the true gap on each side of hood to fender.

$3-5k damage.

T

rlm328

Get hold of Lart, he can get you all of those parts.

931guru

PCA no longer offers a valuation service.

Druepy

Ha well I am a PCA member now anyway

Droops83

State Farm just totaled my 951 after a seemingly minor accident, but both right side fenders were damaged, and the frame was tweaked a bit at the right front (hood latch panel shifted over, hood gaps uneven). The adjuster was also worried about hidden suspension/chassis damage. I told the claims dept that I am a professional Porsche technician and could take care of the suspension myself, but from a liability standpoint, the insurance company either takes care of all off the repairs or nothing. Because they are so worried about liability and subsequent re-opening of claims due to hidden damage, insurance companies seem to be really quick to total cars these days and wash their hands of the situation. Several of my customer had cars damaged in the awful debris flow/mudslides that happened here in January, and I was shocked at how quick they were to total some newer Porsches with seemingly very little damage . . . .

I doubt your car has any kind of frame or chassis damage, but make sure that you submit receipts of any and all modifications done to the car, because they will add something to the total value (of course not MSRP of each part, but it can add up). State Farm used a 3rd-party appraising company to determine the value of my '86; it seemed like they just scanned local classified ads for similar cars, but after submitting receipts for the major modifications to my car (coilovers, larger turbo, VEMS, exhaust system, etc), they valued the car at $14.8K, which was pretty good.

I suppose that I could have fought the total loss aspect of the deal, but since I am keeping the car forever, the salvage title does not bother me much, and it is still insurable. Now I can have my body guy fix the car the way I want, and pocket the difference for other parts!

But, I would advise you to fight the total loss if you can. Last year, my girlfriend had a relatively minor collision where another car ran her '99 BMW Z3 Coupe into a curb (wheel damage, bent control arm, minor scuffing of the front bumper cover). Her insurance company wanted to total the car (it has about 200K miles, slightly rough cosmetic condition but excellent mechanical condition), but after looking into the relative rarity of Z3 Coupes and the values, they came back to the table and agreed to fix the car and keep the title clean. I think the 944 Turbo is in the same category, so arm yourself with information on their values and the mods done to yours, and hope for the best!

Good luck.

951and944S

That sucks...., since when...?

T

951and944S

So now you get discounts through some vendors, access to PCA officer contacts, the monthly publication, id card, and other perks.

Worth it anyway.

T

931guru

Probably ten years ago.

951and944S

Wow.

Man, I'm getting old.

Appreciate that....

T

Dash01

Your car may have only cosmetic damage to bolt-on parts, as seen in the pics. Might be worth checking into vendors of fiberglass or carbon fiber parts, esp. because your car is black, and black pigment can be added to the resin used in layup of the parts, so the black color goes all the way through if scratched. The support structure (to which the fenders, header, etc. are bolted) almost certainly has only minor distortion, which can be pulled out or straightened using a come-along ratchet wench and Vicegrip pliers.

I'd try and avoid the insurance company totaling the car, since that means a salvage title and associated depreciation consequences. If that works out without salvage title, the insurance check should more than cover the cost of replacement parts, while saving some weight.

Tom M'Guinn

Panorama! I was beginning to think no one here reads it.

I wouldn't let them total that car. I had worse and State Farm had it fixed (nearly 20 years ago).

Druepy

Thanks for the comments. Little update: estimate came back at just over $10k in damages and that's before they can even get a look under the hood. Things are chalking up for them to make a total loss claim. I don't know much about how they are deciding the value of the car but I have heard that any work done in the last 12 months can be added to the value of the car. I think I have spent about $4k in the last year. Maybe this can get the value high enough to avoid the total loss claim. I am a little scared about a $10K total loss claim because I bought the car for $10k and and have put at least $7k in over the last 3 years. I am really torn because I tend to shy away from cars that have been in accidents but I love my 951.

951and944S

Actually, I was talking about Club Racing News.....

My son and I were mentioned in a father/son special article they did once.....

T