by "Klaus Schmoll" (klausschmoll)
Published 11/13/2017 at 15:02
by "Klaus Schmoll" (klausschmoll)
Published 11/13/2017 at 15:02
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STARS: 1
My stepdad suffered from a little spatial misjudgement when entering an underground car park the other day. Apparently this is after he tried to buff it out. He never buffed out anything himself, always made me do it, so I don’t know which products he used or tried to use. All I know is that at some point a black sharpie was involved!
Anyway, today he sent me a copy of the repair estimate, which totals the car. I read it with a grain of salt because I know that one of his business partner always “knows a guy”, but let’s see how it breaks down:
BMW E61 2010 525d Touring Automatic, high spec (HUD, radar cruise, auxlliary heater “Standheizung”, Nav Professional, pano roof, logic-7 stereo and so on...) w/ 225k kms. The estimate for buying a similar car is € 9.6k which seems a tad generous.
Repair cost including a new door, new rear 3/4 panel/wing, and the usual bits and bops here and there is € 7.5k.
It also states that the unrepaired car is worth € 4.2K. Aaaaand they already have a buyer lined up who’s willing to pay exactly that. His address is somewhere in Eastern Europe. Hmmm...
I’d say, pull out the dents, a little bondo and some paint and it looks like new for 2k tops, but what do I know? So now he wants me to find him a new car while he is skiiing in Austria (with his write-off), but he hasn’t decided on a budget yet. Nope! I’m not Automatch Tom, give me a budget and then we can talk.
"Spanfeller is a twat" (theaspiringengineer)
11/13/2017 at 15:06, STARS: 0
Why is it so expensive? Did any drivetrain components get damaged?
"Tekamul" (tekamulburner)
11/13/2017 at 15:06, STARS: 0
Insurance repair never wants to pull out the dents and add a little bondo.
I have a dent in the roof of my car. I took it in to get the estimate, expecting something similar, since it’s just the sheet metal.
Their solution is to cut the roof off, weld in a new one, and replace all the effected trim. $7k.
"EL_ULY" (uly)
11/13/2017 at 15:08, STARS: 0
that is crazyyy! wow
"Klaus Schmoll" (klausschmoll)
11/13/2017 at 15:09, STARS: 0
Nope. It clearly states that the vehicle is safe to operate as is. He took it on a skiing vacation in Austria just after the estimate was done. New sheetmetalfor both panel and ALL those little trim peices and rubber seals add up fast.
"Spanfeller is a twat" (theaspiringengineer)
11/13/2017 at 15:10, STARS: 0
Are they insane!
"Takuro Spirit" (takurospirit)
11/13/2017 at 15:10, STARS: 0
Well using NEW replacement parts is the first problem. With used parts and some cheaper labor adjustments it should be enough to repair and not total it.
"e36Jeff now drives a ZHP" (e36jeff)
11/13/2017 at 15:10, STARS: 1
because body shops don’t like to pull dents and slap bondo on them, at least not when the insurance is paying them. So they want to replace the door and rear quarter panel.
"Spanfeller is a twat" (theaspiringengineer)
11/13/2017 at 15:12, STARS: 0
I mean, if he wants to buy a new car, by all means. But if he wants it repared i’m sure you can buy used parts from a lot or smt. You could also just fix it yourself. But 7,200 euros is insane, reparing the entire front suspension for my jeep would cost les than half that!
"Party-vi" (party-vi)
11/13/2017 at 15:13, STARS: 0
So let me get this straight...the estimate to purchase another is 9,2k but the car is worth 4,2k? What?
"crowmolly" (crowmolly)
11/13/2017 at 15:17, STARS: 0
New door, new quarter (oof), all the labor, and then basically blend from the rear bumper to the front fender. Ouch.
"duurtlang" (duurtlang)
11/13/2017 at 15:18, STARS: 0
4.2k with this damage, 9.5 without. That’s how I read it and that seems plausible.
"Rusty Vandura - www.tinyurl.com/keepoppo" (rustyvandura)
11/13/2017 at 15:23, STARS: 1
Makes for a great salvage title deal.
"Rust and Dust - Oppositelock Forever" (rustanddust)
11/13/2017 at 15:26, STARS: 0
I’ll agree that it needs a rear door, but I’ll be damned if it needs a quarter panel.
"Party-vi" (party-vi)
11/13/2017 at 15:29, STARS: 0
But he should be getting a value of the car’s worth prior to the accident, unless German insurance practices are all fucked up.
"Tekamul" (tekamulburner)
11/13/2017 at 15:35, STARS: 0
I said no. I’d rather pay for PDR out of pocket.
"E92M3" (E46M3)
11/13/2017 at 15:45, STARS: 0
I would get a used door, have it painted, and keep driving it.
To repair that quarter panel, it has to be cut out, and a new one weld in. A good welder could cut out a section, and weld in a patch taken from a wrecked car. However most body men will find it easier to cut it at the factory seams and put a whole panel in (because those seams are hidden by rubber and trim, so it doesn’t matter how the weld looks).
It could be bondoed, but it will never have perfect lines, and it won’t last long if it’s very thick. Bondo should only really be used in very thin sections, when block sanding to make a panel perfectly flat if it was wavy (or had a small dimple).
"Klaus Schmoll" (klausschmoll)
11/13/2017 at 15:48, STARS: 0
Slightly used F11 530d it is. Helloooo 0-62 in 5.9 seconds. They are paying way over market value for the old one, so it’s a case of not looking the gift horse in the mouth. I just couldn’t believe the insurance company would actually fuck itself with a rusty rake.
"Klaus Schmoll" (klausschmoll)
11/13/2017 at 15:51, STARS: 1
He’s actually getting way more than what the car was worth before he had this mishap. The 9.6k are before VAT (19%) so he’ll get somewhere around 12k which is way over market value given the mileage.
"Chan - Mid-engine with cabin fever" (superchan7)
11/13/2017 at 15:57, STARS: 0
Yeah it’s just the nature of depreciation. Luxury cars depreciate so hard because used buyers are relatively unwilling to take the mainteance/repair risk.
Where I am in California you don’t really need to worry about rust, but in Europe or anywhere with actual winters that is a major concern.
"Klaus Schmoll" (klausschmoll)
11/13/2017 at 16:03, STARS: 0
It would be a fun project to make a little extra buck, if they were local (930 kms away) and/or someone was actually willing to spend the time. That someone definitely isn’t me. Also, older Diesels are hard to sell right now with all the talk of diesel bans in inner cities in the media. The bans won’t happen but they made diesel prices drop like crazy, something this insurance adjuster must have completely missed out on.
"Klaus Schmoll" (klausschmoll)
11/13/2017 at 16:07, STARS: 0
The interesting part here is that the insurance company sent an adjuster (found out after this post) and he offered way OVER market value for the car before the accident. Basically the insurance company is screwing itself and I don’t know why. Usually it’s the other way round.
They will rise his premiums, but only by less than 1K over the next 5 years, so they will never get their money back that way.
"HFV has no HFV. But somehow has 2 motorcycles" (hondasfordsvolvo)
11/13/2017 at 16:15, STARS: 0
Seems like those light scratches don’t require full replacement of anything. Some bonds could do the job, and look good for several years. Yeah it’s not the “right way” but t could be done for 1/5 the price
"Rusty Vandura - www.tinyurl.com/keepoppo" (rustyvandura)
11/13/2017 at 16:17, STARS: 0
Some details that I missed on my original skimming, including, that the car was in
Europe
...
"Klaus Schmoll" (klausschmoll)
11/13/2017 at 16:19, STARS: 1
It could be, but the insurance company is willing to fuck itself with a rusty garden tool, so why not let them. They offer way over market value for the undamaged car, so he’s getting a slightly used F11.
This could be an interesting buyback project if someone was willing and had the time to do it (not me).
"Klaus Schmoll" (klausschmoll)
11/13/2017 at 16:28, STARS: 0
Also: No salvage titles or anything resembling carfax in Germany. A junkyard door, some bondo and a little paint and you could............
By the way, I saw a news report the other day that salvage title US cars are making their way to Germany via Estonia and other former Eastern Block countries. Buy cheap Audi, ship, have it repaired with cheap labour, ship again, sell for big monies to unsuspecting buyer..
"Rusty Vandura - www.tinyurl.com/keepoppo" (rustyvandura)
11/13/2017 at 16:36, STARS: 0
Which leaves me shaking my head. The world is going to Hell in a handbasket and the United States used to seem like a relatively calm sea in the whirlwind, but Donald Trump. Who is worried about Vladimir Putin’s feelings and breaking bread with Rodrigo Duterte while Rome burns and the NSA loses all of its hacking tools to North Korea.
"Klaus Schmoll" (klausschmoll)
11/13/2017 at 16:47, STARS: 0
It was a great Asia trip I tell ya, some say it was the best ever. No other President achieved so much in one single trip. Not a single one, believe me! So many things. It was great. Big talks. Much was done.
"duurtlang" (duurtlang)
11/13/2017 at 16:51, STARS: 0
So, basically, if you have an older diesel you want to sell you should damage it intentionally as insurance will pay way more than what you’d get at trade in?
"Klaus Schmoll" (klausschmoll)
11/13/2017 at 16:52, STARS: 0
You have very good reading comprehension skills, my friend.
"Cé hé sin" (michael-m-mouse)
11/13/2017 at 18:08, STARS: 0
If it’s an insurance job the price always goes up a few times. If there was no claim being made the price would magically become much more reasonable.
"Rusty Vandura - www.tinyurl.com/keepoppo" (rustyvandura)
11/14/2017 at 00:33, STARS: 0
Major, major accomplishments.