Any idea on if I'm totaled or not?

[S-JC]

I have an '00 GTS, bone stock with 62K miles. Long story short, I was sitting still when two other cars collided with each other. The ricochet effect sent one of them slowly sliding into my Viper. My front driver's wheel seemed to take most of the impact, but here are the damages so far:

1. Fascia was slightly bent inwards, wedging it under the headlight and popping out the fog light. It’s not bent to a huge degree but I’m not sure it could ever be bent back to normal.
2. Hood has a couple of cracks/chips on the order of an inch.
3. Hood was pushed into the passenger side door, cracking the corner by the mirror.
4. Upper control arm bracket weld was popped off the frame.
5. Shock was destroyed.
6. Tie rod bent.
7. Wheel and tire are a loss.
8. I can’t tell if the frame is bent or not.
9. The headlight itself isn’t broken, but the black housing behind it is cracked (it was impeding the hood’s ability to open).

The adjuster comes out Thursday but I wanted to be prepared in case they try to low-ball estimates. Are they going to try to repair the hood chips/cracks? How about the fascia? Or are those replace only? Any and all advice is appreciated. Thanks!

 

[Paul Scharf]

If they right estimate for new hood, new fascia, the car will be totaled. If they write the estimate to repair, or replace with used factory Dodge Viper parts, you may be able to have the car repaired and keep it. Of course what your personal preference is counts. Do you want the car? Or do you want it to be totaled. On a 13 year old car, the case could be make to replace with used, or repair those items.

 

[terminator02]

Likely totaled if the hood needs replacement. Isn't a new hood painted about 25K? I am sorry you got hit. Fortunately you are walking away from this healthy and that is what counts first. Be aggressive and make sure you get what you want. A settlement and the ability to purchase another GTS would probably be in your best interest. These cars are getting rarer and rarer by the day. Again, glad you are OK physically as that is most important.

 

[ROCKET62]

Upper Control Arm Bracket Weld Popped off of frame = frame damage. Get ready to fight the battle for what you believe your Viper is worth.

Good Luck.

 

[dru282]

Good luck. Glad to hear you are okay. Sorry for the car though. Good luck and let us know how you make out. We can probably all relate. Best of luck and god bless your okay.

 

[denniskgb]

Does not matter what we think it will be totally between you and your insurance company. However, my farther in law fought a full war with insurance company over his t-boned 94 750 il BMW that he bought brand new back in 1994.(ouch). they declared it totaled but he draged it it for a year to have it fixed. he won, because he would not settle with them. best of luck.

 

[BlackSnake99]

Isn't a new hood painted about 25K?

Only if there are dolphins painted on it.

 

[Detlef]

I'd venture to say to be ready for the it needs to be totaled phrase.
9 years ago, my '02 was totaled when the repairs hit the $30K mark. Note that my frame was bent front and back. It also took several days in a shop for the repair team and adjuster to reach that conclusion. They were taken body panels off to see what the damage was underneath. The insurance money allowed me to get another GTS. With the bent frame they just weren't sure it would ever be the same. If the frame isn't bent then you may be close to the threshold.

And while I miss that car, I enjoy my current GTS. Oh and last time I checked a hood in primer was $21K.

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[gutterworks129]

Totaled, get the money and move on.

 

[Fatboy 18]

Very sorry to hear this news

At least your Ok. Have to agree with others here, sounds likley they will total the car

 

[DrTaco]

Sorry to hear, ***** when there's nothing you can do to avoid it either. I'd be surprised if there wasnt a huge push to total the car. Everything happens for a reason though, so good luck with future decisions.

 

[Darth Menace]

i guess if insurance would be putting new parts on then I would guess it is a write-off, but there are used hoods out there (and the diamondback hood for $6000) that maybe you can do some shopping around for them if you want to save it

 

[S-JC]

Wow, thanks for the quick replies! As they say, come for the car, stay for the people. That's probably the main reason that I plan on getting another Viper to replace this one. We've made so many friends in the last 9 years of being in the VCA and there's no way we'd want those relationships to end!

I think I'd prefer to go down the route of having it totaled; it's probably a win-win that way. Like was mentioned above, the real battle will be for the value. I was super anal with this car; it never saw redline. I babied it with my Porter Cable orbital polisher. Hopefully I can convince the insurance company of how well it was cared for. I have all maintenance logs so that will help. I'll update with results, hopefully this week. Thanks again.

Oh, and hi Detlef. Jen and Kaitlyn and Aubrey say hi!

 

[Detlef]

Hi John. Comparables is what the insurance company will use to start the appraisal process, so do yourself a favor and find as many 2000 Red GTS's in pristine condition for sale as possible as data for yourself in case they lowball you. There is a Red 2000 GTS for sale right here in Fort Collins.

 

[DrumrBoy]

Have them total it, buy it back and have 2!

 

[Fuoss484]

Have them total it, buy it back and have 2!

Agree with him ^. Totaled, buy it back for pennies on the dollar, part it out and sell me the stock wheels, gas cap, struts, center console.

 

[AviP]

Totalled 100%. Sorry!

 

[Dom426h]

The core support was likely cracked. That is the part that holds eveything together on the front end.
https://www.viperpartsofamerica.com...hroud-and-radiator-closure-support-04709352ac

Keep us up to date on the details. A Lot of us wander what will happen to us if we ever get into a situation like yours. Who is your insurance company and the details on your policy?

IMO If the insurance co had to repair it, I would like them to use all new OEM parts.
I'f they totaled it and offered enough cash i would like to buy it back depending on the price and repair with used or aftermarket parts. Viper Red is easy to match cause there is no metalic in it. Would look like new. It would have to leave enough cash in my pocket for a few nice upgrades like coilovers and wheels or something. I drive though... Sounds like you would be more interested in findnig another perfect car to baby. To each his own

FYI, the insurance company prob dosnt care how often you changed your oil or polished or waxed your car. I could have the same year/color car with same mileage and take the car to the track every weekend and never clean it and would have the ability to get the same offer as you.


best of luck with the entire situation.

 

[eucharistos]

.....FYI, the insurance company prob dosnt care how often you changed your oil or polished or waxed your car. I could have the same year/color car with same mileage and take the car to the track every weekend and never clean it and would have the ability to get the same offer as you.....

unfortunately this is so true

.....best of luck with the entire situation.

+1

 

[Glen97]

I went through the same thing two years ago. Like was said before get quotes together from other cars like yours. The high one's! I used Maurice's book Viper Buyer's Guide to give the Insurance Company information like how many were built. I talked to Marv Rose and even told the insurance co. to call them. The first offer they gave me was 28K. The second offer was 36K that is when I gave them a number of 46,500 and they called the next day and offered 45K and I said okay. Don't give in early.

Wow, thanks for the quick replies! As they say, come for the car, stay for the people. That's probably the main reason that I plan on getting another Viper to replace this one. We've made so many friends in the last 9 years of being in the VCA and there's no way we'd want those relationships to end!

I think I'd prefer to go down the route of having it totaled; it's probably a win-win that way. Like was mentioned above, the real battle will be for the value. I was super anal with this car; it never saw redline. I babied it with my Porter Cable orbital polisher. Hopefully I can convince the insurance company of how well it was cared for. I have all maintenance logs so that will help. I'll update with results, hopefully this week. Thanks again.

Oh, and hi Detlef. Jen and Kaitlyn and Aubrey say hi!

 

[S-JC]

Well, I got under it today and looked at the frame. The upper and lower control arm brackets did push it in. The backside of the frame (the opposite side of where the brackets are mounted) is still straight. I still can't believe it's gonna be two days before an adjuster even looks at it. I'm not the patient type!

The at-fault insurance company is Progressive.

 

[AZTVR]

The at-fault insurance company is Progressive.

I have to say that when a Progressive customer hit my truck parked in front of my house, they settled pretty quickly and fairly. Your results may vary.

 

[plumcrazy]

if it were mine, id prefer it was totaled. sounds like it will be.

 

[Nitro187]

Keep us up to date!

 

[ViperSmith]

I'd read over this guys site a bit: http://www.theautoappraiser.com/#!__my-website. While he mainly does high end cars (Ferraris, Lambos, etc) - it is a good resource. I had no idea you could actually get value back from your vehicle for simply not having access to it.

For as much as we pay insurance companies, get your money back! It really depends what you want out of it.

 

[Detlef]

And if they total it, then this is your next Viper. Completely suits your style ;-)

 

[Torquemonster06]

And if they total it, then this is your next Viper. Completely suits your style ;-)

This viper looks like an insurance claim all by itself.

 

[DanH]

And if they total it, then this is your next Viper. Completely suits your style ;-)

hmmmm, I think I'm (totaled)lly blind

 

[S-JC]

Here's the result: adjuster came out, started punching in each damaged item into the computer. She had gotten the fascia, tire, wheel, and then when she clicked "hood", the screen flashed "TOTALED". She did a double take and said, "Whoa! This hood is $20K!" She hadn't even gotten around to the suspension stuff. She didn't try to convince me to use cheap aftermarket parts or anything, and I appreciated not having to get into an argument for OEM parts.

We ended up settling on $36K, which I thought was fair. Not excellent, but not insulting.

Oh, and if you're ever in a similar situation, be sure to give JonB at PartsRack a call before you settle. He helped me get a little more out of it.

Now on to the next task...finding another Viper! I'm gonna start hunting for either:
1. Snakeskin Green SRT10 Coupe, with or without stripes
2. '01 or '02 Bumblebee GTS

 

[Catwood]

man...that's sad and good I guess. Jon B has always been helpful. I bought a wrecked viper once and he helped me determine if it was worthwhile while trying to decide to get it or not. Turned out it was.

Here's the result: adjuster came out, started punching in each damaged item into the computer. She had gotten the fascia, tire, wheel, and then when she clicked "hood", the screen flashed "TOTALED". She did a double take and said, "Whoa! This hood is $20K!" She hadn't even gotten around to the suspension stuff. She didn't try to convince me to use cheap aftermarket parts or anything, and I appreciated not having to get into an argument for OEM parts.

We ended up settling on $36K, which I thought was fair. Not excellent, but not insulting.

Oh, and if you're ever in a similar situation, be sure to give JonB at PartsRack a call before you settle. He helped me get a little more out of it.

Now on to the next task...finding another Viper! I'm gonna start hunting for either:
1. Snakeskin Green SRT10 Coupe, with or without stripes
2. '01 or '02 Bumblebee GTS