Is my car repairable?

Hi guys.

My car has been off the road now for a year as i couldnt afford to have it looked at yet, Its been in a friends yard, and now is the time to repair or scrap her. Unfortunetly a van ploughed into the rear side of my car at a roundabout (100% their fault). I had a few problems makin payments to my insurance and it had lapsed by about 3 days, therefor no repair (even though the guys insurance company sent me a letter admitting full liability and that i was just to take the car to their approved centre to be looked at and repaired if possible). Is their any point in keeping her?

lol, i know am gonna hear the answer i dont want but need to be put out my misery :-(

At the time the car drove away from the accident with no problems apart from the arch was rubing off the tyre on full lock. There was no damage to the wheel or anything mechanical that im aware of, all seems cosmetic. The passenger door is jammed shut at the minute. The central locking still works but only when the passenger door is locked and unlocked manually with the key. Also the brakes seem seized at the min as its been lying for a bit.

Thanks for any information guys

Paul

(1994 non turbo automatic .... Glasgow)

How many miles has it done? You'd probably be better off scrapping it then buying a new one as the price for an automatic N/A wouldn't be that high dependant upon mileage. It does seem to have sustained a decent amount of damage.

It's repairable, but the question is if it's worth it price-wise...

That looks like a fair whack. I would scrap it personally, but we'd need more photos or details to make a better assessment. You mention rubbing on the tyre at full lock, so it must have sustained some frontal damage as well as the rear damage the photo showed. Maybe the chassis has been bent out of true?

I would strip it sell what you can and buy a new one. Like above said Auto N/A's are cheap.

door pillar looks very bent to me not repairable, strip it and sell the bits

Other than doing a total bodge it's not economically repairable, sorry.

Its a goner, as has been said, strip it and sell the parts.

no i agree that would easily be written off and not a nice area to repair

you should deal with the other guys insurance company directly they should pay you out, tell them to send someone to evaluate the damage and make a call on if it should be repaired or wrote off

Its done around 90k. The rubbing on the tyre was due to the wheel arch dented (the black plastic bit). I dont have anywhere to keep it to strip it ..... no idea wot to do. I know a breakers will give me next to nothing for it. Is it stupid to think the quarter panel could be beaten out, replace the door and put new skirts on it? gutted :-(

to be honest take anything out of the car that you have put in like stereo etc and tell them to take it away it was the other guy that hit you, you could end up with a better, new car with lower mileage out of this

Supra stevo, if my insurance was lapped would the company still do the work? as technically i was driving without insurance. It was just over a year ago now so dont think i'd have much success going down that route. Any breakers in scotland that would take it for what its worth? Im tempted to get a 2.5tt soarer but my hearts with the supra.

just re-read the comment about rubbing on full lock, maybe it was just the rear of the sill that rubbed the tyre while turning, my mistake. There was no other damage on the car apart from whats in the picture.

you should deal with the other guys insurance company directly they should pay you out, tell them to send someone to evaluate the damage and make a call on if it should be repaired or wrote off

Tricky one. The OP wasn't insured so I genuinely don't know if that has a bearing on it. It shouldn't do (they're 2 separate things) but who knows? I think it's lucky that the OP wasn't involved in an accident that was partly or wholly his fault, but that's another issue so let's leave that there.

Its done around 90k. The rubbing on the tyre was due to the wheel arch dented (the black plastic bit). I dont have anywhere to keep it to strip it ..... no idea wot to do. I know a breakers will give me next to nothing for it. Is it stupid to think the quarter panel could be beaten out, replace the door and put new skirts on it? gutted :-(

I think it'll need a lot more work than that. You could put a new door on it, but would it line up with the rest of the bodywork? Probably not. Panel repair is one thing, but if the chassis or sub-frame is bent then that's something else.

To put you in the picture, i approached a roundabout, one with clear visibility all round. I was going straight through, passing one exit, where a hitop company van was stationary (giving-way). As the first half of my car passed by him, the guy (for what reason i do not know) accelerated into the back of me spinning me in a circle. He says he didnt see me coming as my car was greyish and it was after work. Was angry at the time but when i contacted my insurance and realised i had a problem. I left it at that worried i might recieve points and fine for driving uninsured. :-(

You could put a new door on it, but would it line up with the rest of the bodywork? Probably not..

I wouldnt be fussy if everything on it never lined up perfect, i dont take the car to shows, or plan on ever selling it. Just want it back (im driving a 1.5 nissan almera, and its killing me). Im prepared on spending money on it over time. Just wondered if theres even a chance it could be sorted. thanks for all the comments so far guys.

anything can be sorted for pounds, just depends how much your willing to spend at the end of the day

get in touch with his insurance company, i dont think it matters if your insured or not even tho i am not saying its a good idea to drive without insurance but if you were non the wiser to not be insured then deal with his insurance its there mess, you just havent done your part to get your car sorted out it costs nothing to get a quote done ,

i will PM you see what can be done if you need any help

I wouldnt be fussy if everything on it never lined up perfect, i dont take the car to shows, or plan on ever selling it. Just want it back (im driving a 1.5 nissan almera, and its killing me). Im prepared on spending money on it over time. Just wondered if theres even a chance it could be sorted. thanks for all the comments so far guys.

I don't think we're talking about cosmetic panel gaps here. Some gaps you *have* to get sorted otherwise the car is unsafe. For example, will the lock on a new door even meet up with the catch on the door shut? If not, that's something that would need addressing. If the chassis is significantly bent, it might be unsafe, and you would get through tyres like JamieP gets through petrol.

Whether the chassis is in sufficiently good nick and sufficiently straight might decide on whether the car is salvageable. I can't see how it will be economic to fix, but it might be worth getting someone's opinion who's actually seen it in the flesh.

ah i see, makes sense. ive contacted a few bodyshops but still awaiting replies.

Pitty you are the other end of the country as i would of seen that as a challange.

It looks as thought the b pillar is lying in a good bit looking at the gaps. You would need that pulled out to see how the quarter panel sits when it is back in align, before attempting a panel repair.

The quarter looks past it to be honest and you will definately need a door and maybe do a 4 wheel alignment to check the suspension before attempting the panel work, no point fixing a car that doesn't run straight.

As said before might be worth buying another one as i probably be cheaper in the long run. Where in Glasgow are you? I could maybe pop along and have a look at it more closely.

im in kirkintilloch but car is in Shotts motor auctions.

I would have thought the insurance company would check to see if your insurance was valid first before paying out.?