That's nothing compared to that huge black smear over your license plate. What are you going to do about THAT!? (a little "black" humor
).Ha ha ha well you have to watch what you post out there...non identifiable information and all that!! Yes I wasn’t too rattled after the accident, except whenever there is a sudden slow down in traffic I’m anxiously checking my rearview!That's nothing compared to that huge black smear over your license plate. What are you going to do about THAT!? (a little "black" humor
That's good advice, to go back and make sure everything is fixed. And may you recover enough from the PTS of the accident to enjoy driving again!
So the other driver is at fault, right? Not sure where you live but most rear-ending accidents pits the fault at the driver who did the rear-ending. My brother got rear-ended three times in his old Optima in a no-fault state and never had to pay a dime for repairs. He even got compensated when the last rear-end accident totaled his car. It sucks to have your baby smashed up like that and even if everything "looks" okay, I understand the feeling of not feeling as confident in the car.
Heh! I check out my rearviews religiously/neurotically and I haven't even been rearended! So, I can imagine! I have composed six rules for defensive driving. Dropbox - DDD's rules for defensive driving.docx - Simplify your life And since getting the Stinger, I've moved "check your mirrors often" from number Six to number Four.
(they are listed in obvious or at least subjective order of priority)
Merlin, that's a great list. I've started to stay back a lot more -especially with Radar cruise- and usually, drive like a grandma since I don't need to race people on my commute. I've definitely become more aware of idiots on the road since I got my Stinger.Heh! I check out my rearviews religiously/neurotically and I haven't even been rearended! So, I can imagine! I have composed six rules for defensive driving. Dropbox - DDD's rules for defensive driving.docx - Simplify your life And since getting the Stinger, I've moved "check your mirrors often" from number Six to number Four.
Oh no, his insurance co paid for everything, towed my car 200 miles to my town, rental car for 2 months, and all the repairs. It was definitely his fault. I’m just concerned about the significant value decrease in the car now, and that everything is fixed properly. This was so upsetting, I love my stinger and had planned on keeping it PRISTINE, but it’s definitely severely blemished now.
The longer you keep her, the less impact the accident has on resale value. So, if/when eventually you do sell her, it will be miles/years that depreciates, and the accident will be a much smaller hit that you take.
That's good that they paid for it and I certainly feel your frustration. It sucks that the guy's shitbox damaged your pristine car but at least you weren't hurt and the car wasn't totaled. I'd definitely bring the car back to the shop and point out the steering wheel issue and any other issues with it. You deserve the get the car repaired back to as close to 100% as possible.
Unfortunately it did have frame damage. A section of the rear frame was cut out and new piece was welded in.A pristine repair with no frame damage, is as good as if nothing ever happened. Unless you sell, of course. But if you keep her, you'll never be able to tell, once everything is made right. Which I hope is what happens for you.
But what I said still applies, just not as much; how much, "the future is unwritten".
Why didn't you file a diminished value claim against him/his insurance? I was involved in a rear end accident a couple of years ago and got $3500 in diminished value for my truck and there wasn't even any frame damage. They actually replaced the whole bed of the truck plus new bumper and exhaust pipe that was damaged ($15k in repairs). What's more, I traded the truck in about 6 months after and the vehicle history report on it was clean.
As long as you haven't signed anything releasing them from damage to the car, you can still file a claim. Once they close out that case, you're SOL. My vehicle was about 2 years old at the time with about 70k miles. Initially, they had determined $0 in diminished value. Then they offered me $500... I found a company online that does diminished value reports. They either send someone out to take pictures or you can submit pictures yourself. These pics are of the current condition of your vehicle "after" repairs. The cost of the report is $295 but you can also claim that cost as well. They determines $5350 in (Inherent Diminished Value) plus the $295 for the cost of the report. His insurance sent their own investigator over to do an assessment and came up with $1250. Basically, we met in the middle for $3500. I had consulted a lawyer prior to all this and they basically stated it's very hard to prove diminished value unless you actually sell the car to prove your case. I chose to handle this portion on my own and it paid off. I did have a lawyer handle the "injury" portion of the case since my medical bills were out of control.
I have something to add that is positive: that "gunk" looks exactly like what I noticed this morning: and this is after I cleaned off my exhaust stubs yesterday afternoon: it was a cursory job, just to clean off the diffuser around the stubs, and the "ledge" between the left and right stubs. I used my new boar's hair brush on the dust; then sprayed ONR solution with my spray bottle, then wiped down the area to spiff it up. We drove last night. And this morning the very same colored "gunk" was along the bottom lip of each exhaust stub, and onto the diffuser below, almost identical to your pic. Spray bottle ONR water got rid of it instantly with a microfiber towel. So, not oil/turbo related at all. See if your mess cleans up with water too.
