theskillzdatklls

Hello -

I'm 25 and I recently purchased my first car nearly two months ago... a black 2001 Porsche 911 (no financing). I talked it over with some friends and they suggested that I get higher liability insurance and not get any personal coverage for the car (I was going to get personal insurance previous to this).

Anyway, a few days ago it rained in Las Vegas for the first time in several months and I accelerated onto an onramp, going about 30 MPH in 2nd gear when the car fishtails on me. Not knowing what to do I took my foot off of the gas and brake and tried to steer my way out of it. The problem exacerbated and it eventually swung around clockwise and hit the outside divider having me facing traffic - damaging the driver side rear corner, suspension and bending the car slightly in the appropriate direction. It looked fairly minor to me at the time, I figured a few thousand and I I'd try to learn from my mistake.

The repair estimate came a couple days ago at $16.6k which blew me back. I put about $23k into getting this car up and running after everything was said and done. I'm planning on getting a third estimate soon.

It seems like I have a few options (that I have think of)
A: Pay the repair bill out of pocket
B: Sell the car for parts and figure something out later.
C: Buy a busted Porsche and merge them into one functional Porsche.
D: Buy the parts myself and supply them to an autobody shop to reduce the cost of the repair bill (it looks like this route could be confusing to an amateur but could save me a few thousand).

E. Anything else?


Recommendations? I'm completely confused and I've tried to do as much research and thinking about this as I possibly could to arrive at those above options, all of which seem reasonable lines at the moment.

Pictures provided below of car and repair estimate


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The car was bent slightly from the impact - hard to see in this picture


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Pac996

Looking at what they want I'd figure buying another car would be easier. Could turn that one into a track car. If police showed up you'll probably get a bill in the mail for the guard rail repair. I'm thinking you might have a bent rear axle besides the rim.

Sorry to hear you lost it.

Divot

I just glanced at the estimate and noticed leather armrest for $589? I think this shop is padding a bit, no?

spiderv6

An estimate is exactly that. You can guarantee there will be surprises along the way.

In the end you will spend the best part of the price of an unbroken one.

Sell it for what you can get and move on. Tough to swallow but that's what I would do.

gota911

Sorry about the mishap.

Didn't insure the car??? I am speechless...........

rpm's S2

Did any door airbags deploy? The shop seems to want to replace some expensive interior parts that cover them.

You could save a lot of money sourcing some of the major assemblies used. The prices quoted seem to be full price. Check with 20th St or dCAuto... But you are going to have to translate the estimate into part numbers.

Also note repairs to the roof. Does the damage extend that far? Another estimate is a good idea.

theGekko

I would ask those friends to help pay for the damage! JK...
Sorry to hear of your accident. At least no one was hurt.
The question I always ask myself when it comes to collision insurance is "Do I have the cash on hand to replace the car tomorrow?" If the answer is no, I get collision insurance!
Case in point: I bought a Mazda Miata for 2k to fix up, I didn't buy collision on that one, But when I get my 996. I will certainly get it!

Joe

kr3678

First, it is written as an insurance estimate and not a customer pay estimate. In your situation, you need to make sure they know that you would be paying the bill.

Second, I don't understand why they need to repair the Right Rear Quarter panel (6 hours worth) or why they need to replace the roof covering ($1500 in parts and 8 hour labor). Those 2 items alone add up to over $2K.

Third, over $1000 for one wheel? There are plenty of lower cost options to consider here.

Just out of curiosity, did the body shop offer to buy your car if you decide not to get it fixed?

TerpsRED

I don't think the car is "Bent" the rear engine cover might be pushed off to the side and need to be re-aligned, but I did not see any frame damage estimated in the quote. I agree with the above poster that the shop seems to be putting a lot of extra parts on the list. I can see suspension, wheel, quarter panel, bumper repair and engine cover repairs. But some of that stuff seems excessive.

SWK6Cup

Everybody here has given you great advice. Now that the shock is wearing off, I would strngly suggest that you get at least two more estimates from reputable places, then compare note. Either way the "lesson" will be expensive, but when you can compare the estimates, you will better be able to determine what needs to be replaced. Informed decisions will make the fixing process easier, should you choose to go that route. Since you might be paying for the repairs, find a decent shop that you can trust and talk with....then you can determine what is really needed to get the car back on the road, even if it is not cosmetically perfect, it will be safe and enjoyable to drive. As you get more money, you can fix the cosmetic issues, later. It seems right now, the shop that gave you the estimate sees you as a gulible (sp) you guy who might be trying to bend you over a bit...don't let them do that to you. Sorry for the mishap, glad you're not hurt.....good luck with moving forward.
r\
scott

mglobe

It's difficult to tell for sure from the photos, but I'm very doubtful that you could have done as much damage as the estimate suggests. And there are some VERY inflated costs listed there. The $1000 wheel for one really jumps out at me. As others have suggested, find a couple of reputable shops, and work with them on making the repairs affordable. I'd check out Oklahoma Foreign as a source for parts at a discount. When I wrecked my race car a few years ago, they were very helpful, and saved me a little dough.

Dharn55

By shopping around and using some used parts I think you could cut the parts cost by 50%. Shoot, for the price they quote for one wheel you can get a complete set, particularly 17" wheels. There are lots of bumper covers floating around, look on eBay. Most if not all of the suspension parts could be sourced on a used basis, check Oklahoma Foreign and some of the other Porsche breakers. You could put on the suspension parts yourself and then have an alignment done. Rear taillight for $523+, buy a used one on eBay for a coupe of hundred, or get a set of LED's on Amazon for about $300. The biggest challenge will be the quarter panel.

With a little creativity and some of your own work you should be able to get the repair down to the $8,000-$10,000 range, maybe less.

Take some of the savings and buy some collusion insurance!!!

Chaos

1 Utterly amazing,own a 996 with liability only.
2 Find a private bodyshop,work a deal for cash with owner
3 Get new friends

LVDell

Sorry to hear about your mishap. However, I hope you have learned that insurance is NOT something you pass on unless you can walk away from the car if it's wrecked. If it's a <5K beater, then sure, but a Porsche? Baffled on that one.

leftlane

Seems like your user name is accurate.........

Where are you located?