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Fix the hail damage or do ridiculous performance upgrades


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So way back in 2016 I bought a 2008 335i convertible in fabulous condition with only 50k miles on it. As of today it has 81k miles and runs like a top.

However, it incurred $8k in hail damage last month, and after some back and forth the insurance company have decided it’s a total loss. Here are my options:

1) give them the car- I get a check for $13k, go buy something- either an e92 M3 or a newish Tacoma for adventures 

2) keep the car- I get a check for $6K and spend the money on a stage 2 Cobb tune, intercooler, exhaust, brakes, suspension etc. and build a hail damaged drop top speed monster.
 

 

Edited by Bozo_Casanova
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23 minutes ago, Bozo_Casanova said:

So way back in 2016 I bought a 2008 335i convertible in fabulous condition with only 50k miles on it. As of today it has 81k miles and runs like a top.

However, it incurred $8k in hail damage last month, and after some back and forth the insurance company have decided it’s a total loss. Here are my options:

1) give them the car- I get a check for $13k, go buy something- either an e92 M3 or a newish Tacoma for adventures 

2) keep the car- I get a check for $6K and spend the money on a stage 2 Cobb tune, intercooler, exhaust, brakes, suspension etc. and build a hail damaged drop top speed monster.
 

 

Need more data. What year, mileage and condition (general therabouts) would the M3 be?

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1 hour ago, DonkeyCigars said:

Need more data. What year, mileage and condition (general therabouts) would the M3 be?

Austin area, probably in the 120k+ range. A project, certainly. Or I could buy an e36.

but honestly I really like the e90 platform. I would absolutely do a US Spec N54 335i wagon if it was possible to find one in the right condition to do the swaps.

 

Edited by Bozo_Casanova
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Option 2 results in a salvage title, correct?

I'd lean option 2, but not necessarily spend your check on mods for this car. Do some market research, you usually can buy the car back (7k in your case) and sell it yourself for more. Then take that total and go buy another car.

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Is $8k in hail damage pretty bad or is this kind of peculiar to an older bimmer?  What size hail did it?

I have almost no experience with hail damage, even anecdotally through friends and acquaintances.

I did get caught in a hailstorm, but there was no conventional damage from rounded pellets.  However, a nearly football sized (length and width if not volume) chunk of ice came out of the sky and landed on my aluminum hood and made a single large dent in it.  I don't recall what it cost, but I think they replaced the hood.  Couple grand best I can recall.

Edited by TwiceHorn
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7 hours ago, Sam Lin said:

Option 2 results in a salvage title, correct?

I'd lean option 2, but not necessarily spend your check on mods for this car. Do some market research, you usually can buy the car back (7k in your case) and sell it yourself for more. Then take that total and go buy another car.

He is getting to keep the car for $6,000 or give them the car for $13,000. 

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11 hours ago, Sam Lin said:

Option 2 results in a salvage title, correct?

Actually, in Texas it does not, because it's purely cosmetic damage. In fact, I can even keep comprehensive coverage on the vehic.

10 hours ago, TwiceHorn said:

Is $8k in hail damage pretty bad or is this kind of peculiar to an older bimmer?  What size hail did it?

The size of mandarin oranges and spiked like coronavirus

1 hour ago, CooterBrown said:

The current Tacoma sucks IMO. I can’t wait for my Bronco to be delivered so I can get rid of it.

If you want a mid size truck, I’d look at the Ranger or Canyon first.

Really? How much do you want for it? People love the Taco. I do like the Ranger, though. 

Edited by Bozo_Casanova
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They totaled the car when damage reached a little over 60% of the value?  That's rough.  Most insurance companies total between 70-80%.  My daughter's car is right at 75% and I am waiting to see if it gets totaled or not.


My vehicle was totaled at 50%. I bought it back, fixed it, pocketed a few thousand and I have been driving it for several years. No salvage title.
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4 hours ago, Jerry Callo said:

They totaled the car when damage reached a little over 60% of the value?  That's rough.  Most insurance companies total between 70-80%.  My daughter's car is right at 75% and I am waiting to see if it gets totaled or not.

That car needs to total. In Tennessee it’s law they total at 75%. Our company starts totaling them at 60% now as salvage values are high and all vehicles have so many sensors and shit on them now it’s a gamble repairing. 

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Really? How much do you want for it? People love the Taco. I do like the Ranger, though. 

I have to keep until my Bronco is delivered. However, someone will get a mint Taco. 2020 Off-road 4x4 long bed with 6900 miles as of today. I have barely driven for the past year and a half.

It’s my 3rd Tacoma. Had a ‘02 I think and a ‘05 previously. The latest one is really under powered. Just a complete dog. It’d probably last forever though.
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1 hour ago, CooterBrown said:


I have to keep until my Bronco is delivered. However, someone will get a mint Taco. 2020 Off-road 4x4 long bed with 6900 miles as of today. I have barely driven for the past year and a half.

It’s my 3rd Tacoma. Had a ‘02 I think and a ‘05 previously. The latest one is really under powered. Just a complete dog. It’d probably last forever though.

Honestly keep me posted. 

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With a clean title I'd repeat my rec #2 above. Take the buyback and then sell it private party to someone. Take the total money you pocket and buy whatever you want.

Hard to say without seeing the damage, but you might also be able to come to a deal with a good PDR guy to do the whole car for 3k or something. Might remove 90% the damage and come out ahead in private party resale value.

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On 4/29/2021 at 9:00 PM, Bozo_Casanova said:

So way back in 2016 I bought a 2008 335i convertible in fabulous condition with only 50k miles on it. As of today it has 81k miles and runs like a top.

However, it incurred $8k in hail damage last month, and after some back and forth the insurance company have decided it’s a total loss. Here are my options:

1) give them the car- I get a check for $13k, go buy something- either an e92 M3 or a newish Tacoma for adventures 

2) keep the car- I get a check for $6K and spend the money on a stage 2 Cobb tune, intercooler, exhaust, brakes, suspension etc. and build a hail damaged drop top speed monster.
 

 

You still have the Mustang?  I don't visit the classic car thread much except to check out TexasEd's progress so wasn't sure.

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23 minutes ago, Judge Roybeanbag said:

You still have the Mustang?  I don't visit the classic car thread much except to check out TexasEd's progress so wasn't sure.

I don't. I woke up one morning and realized that after over 30 years of ownership I had gotten what I needed from it. So I donated it for the benefit of homeless outreach programs. 

Edited by Bozo_Casanova
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If you keep the car will the VIN then be listed as salvage?

I had a situation years back where a truck was damaged, declared a loss, and I considered buying it back and doing the repairs privately.  I thought the truck was repairable, and the insurance company said it reached a level where they wouldn't or couldn't pay for repairs - thus declaring it a total loss.

What stopped me from doing this was the hassle of insuring the truck after it was tagged as salvage.  I had a buddy who owns a big body shop and he warned me that securing decent insurance would be a hassle and expensive.  After digging into it further, the juice wasn't worth the squeeze for me so I punted.

That said, this had mechanical damage and not cosmetic, so you wouldn't have the risk I had of unknown or unexpected additional repair costs if you were fine driving it with cosmetic flaws.

 

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1 hour ago, Reagan1k said:

If you keep the car will the VIN then be listed as salvage?

In Texas a car declared to be a total loss on the basis of purely cosmetic stuff does not get a salvage title. You can even keep the same comprehensive coverage on it. 

So, here's where we landed:
1) They paid me $6k.
2) I found a place to fix the hail for $4k.
3) So I think I'm repairing the hail and then buying this

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On 4/29/2021 at 11:39 PM, TwiceHorn said:

I did get caught in a hailstorm, but there was no conventional damage from rounded pellets.  However, a nearly football sized (length and width if not volume) chunk of ice came out of the sky and landed on my aluminum hood and made a single large dent in it.  

I had a dumbass friend in high school with an older truck. After a hail storm came through town, he took a hammer to his truck, and tried to file a claim to pocket the insurance money and drive it around with the dents. The adjuster took one look at it, said "hail doesn't leave scratches in the dents dumbass" and walked away. He's probably lucky the insurance company didn't pursue a fraud case against him.  

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On 4/30/2021 at 8:17 AM, Jerry Callo said:

They totaled the car when damage reached a little over 60% of the value?  That's rough.  Most insurance companies total between 70-80%.  My daughter's car is right at 75% and I am waiting to see if it gets totaled or not.

Lol I’m so confused?  If they total it for less that’s a win.  Shitty insurance companies will make it more of a bitch to total a car.  Or did I misunderstand something?  

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2 hours ago, ChiTownDoc said:

Lol I’m so confused?  If they total it for less that’s a win.  Shitty insurance companies will make it more of a bitch to total a car.  Or did I misunderstand something?  

The more the car is worth at auction the more likely they are to total it. 

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26 minutes ago, Bozo_Casanova said:

The more the car is worth at auction the more likely they are to total it. 

Chubb ftmfw.  Their policies are insane.  Anything under a year they give you full value or what the car cost brand new, whatever number is greater.  When my GT3 was totaled at 11 months I got 40k more than what I had paid.  Better to be lucky than good...

edit: wish it happened this year.  Would net 200k.  What a world...

Edited by ChiTownDoc
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