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Thread: 318ti Accident: Need Assistance

  1. #1
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    318ti Accident: Need Assistance

    Many of you know that I had made a thread a few months ago stating that my wife and I were relocating to So-Cal in April. Well, that time has come and we were on our way this morning, when my wife's DASC'd 318ti was unfortunately hit in a Walmart parking lot.

    She wanted to make a thread, and ask for assistance and some help. She tried making a post but her new username only had 1 post so we decided to just make it under my username.

    Basically, we at our hometown Walmart (always the worst parking on earth) when an old man in a 200 Ram 1500 Van hopped over the curb median between parking rows and smashed the front of her beautiful ti. Pictures are attached below.

    We filed with the man's insurance but we know they will try the total it. We checked the book value which came to ~$1700 for a 96 318ti in excellent condition (exterior and interior) with 97,xxx miles. The hood, radiator, condenser, transmission cooler, electric engine fan, nose panel, both front fenders, and radiator support brackets are all quite damaged.

    She wanted to get opinions on how to fight the insurance company if this occurs (which we believe will happen) because she is very attached to the car and will refuse to take that option. She also wanted to get opinions from the community on what they would pay for the car as it was as additional evidence to show the car's true value so we have more to go on.

    Thanks,
    Tyler and Patience

    Accident Pictures:










    Before Pictures:



    *Don't mind the old stock headlights



  2. #2
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    Not much you can do to fight the insurance company on totaling the car, but you can get them to give you a higher payout, work with the repair shop on this. They will total the car, pay you out what they believe that it is worth. From there you can buy the car back from them and have it fixed on your own. With that amount of damage, they are going to total the car. So get a quote from a shop on how much it will cost to repair the car out of pocket (offer cash to save money). From there decide if you think the investment is worth it.


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    Quote Originally Posted by NFerber View Post
    Not much you can do to fight the insurance company on totaling the car, but you can get them to give you a higher payout, work with the repair shop on this. They will total the car, pay you out what they believe that it is worth. From there you can buy the car back from them and have it fixed on your own. With that amount of damage, they are going to total the car. So get a quote from a shop on how much it will cost to repair the car out of pocket (offer cash to save money). From there decide if you think the investment is worth it.
    Never in my wife's lifetime will she ever let the insurance total her car, and we do not want a salvage title. The car was beautiful and deserves to be fixed exactly the way it was. What would our options be for the non totaling route?

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    Quote Originally Posted by Hodge View Post
    Never in my wife's lifetime will she ever let the insurance total her car, and we do not want a salvage title. The car was beautiful and deserves to be fixed exactly the way it was. What would our options be for the non totaling route?
    Once that call goes to insurance company and the wheels are churning on that, you are likely out of luck. It will be a salvage title. Do you plan on keeping it forever or a long time? If so, who cares about a salvage title, as long as you can license and insure it, there is no difference (unless you plan to sell at some point).
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    Certain states don't give out salvage titles for cars older than a certain year. I know for a fact that my father's E46 325xi (2004) didn't get a salvage title when it was totaled back in 2012. I would just check up on your state's regulations.

  6. #6
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    Good luck. . . . . You might be better off going through your insurance company than the other guys. Use that as leverage if their offer isn't even in the ballpark. (This is where a good insurance agent/company comes in handy. Hope you didn't cheap out!)

    Be ready to prove beyond a shadow of a doubt that your car is work XXXX. They will be offering you NADA private party value (usually lower than KBB) and claim the stuff you have done to it is "standard maintenance". You'll need to try and prove a few things:

    The actual selling price of these cars are not accurately reflected by KBB/NADA. Hopefully a local dealer has one for sale, as this will help.
    That any money spent on the car was an upgrade, not maintenance. While they won't honor your new stock OE shocks, tires, brake job etc from the dealership, they will sometimes take aftermarket stuff into account. Hopefully you have a few receipts like that, if not try and convince them it's upgrades, not standard maintenance.
    You'll also need to prove condition (which it looks like you have) and find other cars for sale in equal condition. Bring those ads to the negotiating table, because this is very much a negotiating table.

    Use a few other factors such as loss of vehicle (rental car fees) and whatever else is in your favor to try and speed the process up.

    If they want to total it, let them do it. . . . it's likely unavoidable. Negotiate the highest possible value for the car you can get. Once you do that, claim you want to buy it back. Negotiate again on the lowest possible value for that. The car is only worth scrap value to them, but us enthusiasts know we can part it out and get very good money for them. Example, I sold my totaled M3 as is for 2500 after I bought it back for 500. Had them tow it to my garage, posted an ad, and it was gone a few weeks later by another tow truck. Didn't even do anything. May be a little different with a TI vs an M3, but the money is still there. Especially if you have the ambition to take a few things off and sell it yourself.

    I've had some good luck in the past with them trying to screw me over on the initial value and ended up coming out even (last M3) or ahead when my motorcycle was totaled*. Since motorcycles are a little different, breaking even or even down 500-1000 may be your best case scenario.

    *Back story - I had just bought it 2-3 months prior by checking CL everyday for a month Cash in Hand ready to move. Found the best possible deal I could and negotiated a little better. Their offer was 800 less than I paid on a 1800 motorcycle. . . not counting tax and other fees. Pissed I ended up taking them to the cleaners by getting reimbursement for a vehicle during the 2-3 weeks they screwed around, made them buy a new 400 helmet that was slightly scratched, but could have sustained structural damage, and got a more reasonable offer on the bike itself (still lower than what I could have replaced it with, but better than the initial). Ended up buying the bike back, fixing it up to rideable condition and selling it as is for cheap. After it was all over a few months later I ended up with more than my initial investment in the bike which let me go out and buy a replacement.

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    They will total the car, pay you out what they believe that it is worth.
    Last edited by blegroswro; 04-15-2014 at 03:39 AM.

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    It's very fixable but will exceed market value for sure. This would have been relatively minor when the car was young.
    Since you are the "innocent" party here you simply need to stand your ground and demand they make you whole by repairing your car. You are NOT interested in a cash settlement. If you need to lawyer up, do so.
    Sorry about the car but remember it's only a car.

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    Just thought...

    Search eBay for completed listings and see what 318ti's are selling there for. I vaguely recall seeing some with the bidding already up to $2.5-3K. And if I recall correctly those cars were pushing 200k on the odometer.

    Maybe you can use that info as "comparable sales" data?

    I don't know...just thinking out loud.

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    Quote Originally Posted by Hodge View Post
    Never in my wife's lifetime will she ever let the insurance total her car, and we do not want a salvage title. The car was beautiful and deserves to be fixed exactly the way it was. What would our options be for the non totaling route?
    This depends on state laws, but you may not have a choice in the matter. However, if she's that attached to it, what difference does it make what it says on the title? That only affects what you'd get if you sold the car.
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    Quote Originally Posted by Hodge View Post
    Never in my wife's lifetime will she ever let the insurance total her car, and we do not want a salvage title. The car was beautiful and deserves to be fixed exactly the way it was. What would our options be for the non totaling route?
    Best of luck but I would think that $1700 for an 18 year old car is generous.

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    Quote Originally Posted by beshannon View Post
    Best of luck but I would think that $1700 for an 18 year old car is generous.
    This. Take the 1700, buy the car back, fix that damage for 3-4 hundred with junkyard parts, apply for a rebuilt title and keep driving it just like you used to with an extra thousand in your pocket.

  13. #13
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    Might be worth it to let insurance total it for a few grand, buy it back on the cheap then swap everything over to a different ti. There's a possibility of shock tower damage and or frame damage even at that slow of a speed. 99% chance they total that car, that's plenty of damage to total a car that books for 5k.

  14. #14
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    Quote Originally Posted by Hodge View Post
    Never in my wife's lifetime will she ever let the insurance total her car, and we do not want a salvage title. The car was beautiful and deserves to be fixed exactly the way it was. What would our options be for the non totaling route?
    YOU dont always have control over when a car was totalled. If everyone who who totalled their car had a clean title, then nobody would trust any used cars because any one of them could be a wreck underneath. Salvage titles are there for a reason, and you are trying to go against that reason.

    Whether or not you ever plan on selling the car is irrelevant. If you want to keep it a salvage title should NOT matter to you, the car is the same either way - its just a word on a piece of paper. If you want to sell it, then obviously fighting for a clean title is a legal issue and THIS is why there is no way to guarantee (and IMO there should be no possibility at all) of a clean title on that car.

    If you did not talk to your insurance before hand and agree upon a value for the car then there is no guarantee they will be doing anything for you. There are steps you can take with your insurance BEFORE the accident happens to ensure you will get coverage as you want it should something happen. If you were just paying normal insurance without anything special, I am not sure why you expect to be able to get more than the car is worth or keep the title clean or make insurance repair it when its not cost effective for them to do so.

    $1700 is generous for that car. You want to know what we would pay for that car? In that condition - $300.

    It almost sounds to me like you want the car properly repaired with a clean title... do you really not realize how ridiculous that is? Unless you talked to insurance beforehand to tell them this is what you wanted your only real option here is tell insurance the car had tons of recent maintenance and was in good condition, ask for as big a check you can and buy the car back and repair it


    ITT: OP wants to keep a clean title on a salvage car for "legit" reasons

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    Quote Originally Posted by Hodge View Post
    She wanted to get opinions on how to fight the insurance company ...
    You should call your insurance company, not the other guys'. You pay your insurance to act on your behalf, and they'll get any money they need from the other party's insurance company.

    As to getting the most from a total, wash the car, make it look nice, and like others here have said, buy it back.
    Not so much a signature as a cry for help.

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  16. #16
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    Quote Originally Posted by Hodge View Post
    Never in my wife's lifetime will she ever let the insurance total her car, and we do not want a salvage title. The car was beautiful and deserves to be fixed exactly the way it was. What would our options be for the non totaling route?
    You can always go through insurance, and if you can't negotiate your way out of them totaling the car, the only other option to keep the car and not have it totaled is to pay out of pocket.


  17. #17
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    Replied to the other thread -- unfortunately the decision whether they'll total it or repair the car is not yours to make. Once it's totalled the only way you're getting it back is with a salvage title.
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  18. #18
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    the car will almost certainly be totaled. Much newer cars worth significantly more get totaled out every day because of damage like that. Get the most you can out of the insurance company, and buy another one. You will very likely be able to come out ahead financially.

    Unless you have experience in body repair, and frame work i would not attempt to repair the car yourself. There is very likely frame damage, and unless properly fixed not only will the car be unsafe, but its handling will be severely compromised. If you have special parts on the car you want back consider buying it back for parts. Also, many insurance companies have policies regarding aftermarket parts. For example up here you are allowed to remove any aftermarket parts from your vehicle without having to buy it back. If the parts are critical to the vehicles function(IE wheels, suspension, seats, etc) then they need to be replaced with factory or equivalent parts.
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