Paint & Body Work - POLL: Car was totaled, what to do next?

Ok so i need some help making a decison. Created a new thread so I could add a poll. My car 95 TA got rear ended, and pictures of it are in my other thread here:

http://http://www.ls1tech.com/forums/paint-body-work/1423939-95-got-rear-ended-totaled.html (http://www.ls1tech.com/forums/paint-body-work/1423939-95-got-rear-ended-totaled.html)

Right rear quarter hit with an insurance estimated $5800 in damage. Car is deemed totaled. They are offering ~$6400 for it or ~$5800 if I keep the car. I have had quotes from four different mobile body guys that range from $550-900 to fix it. I also have about $1500 of mods I can remove and sell if I gave them the car.

I just graduated college and im thinking about getting a more practical car. I'm located in nj and have access to a small suv and minivan if I need to move large stuff. The truth is I kinda want to eventually get into a more upscale car but I really love my lt1 and have a lot of time invested in it but it's bad on gas and is kinda a money pit. I do like ls1 cars and thought about getting a c5 or a GTO. Eventually want to get into an i30 which costs $4k or so, or a G35 which is about $11k. Keep in mind that I don't need to have a car right now since my family has two cars and my father is retired.

So here are my options:

1: return car to stock, give insurance the car and sell my mods and get out of the lt1 game. Total net would be $6400+ $1500= $7900

2: keep the car for a while and take the $5800. Fix it and end up with around $5000. Still have the car and can sell in the future.

3: Part out the car. Would end up with $5800+$1500+partout value. How much would I expect to get from parting out the car? Most time but likely highest payout.

4: Keep, fix, return to stock and sell. $7300 - 800 to repair + sale value =?

UPDATE:

So I actually chose mysterious option 5 thats a mix of everything:

-Bought back car & got $5800 from insurance
-Took out my GTO seats and WS6 hood to sell later
-Sold rest of the car as is for $2300

I also bought a 2002 Infiniti I35 to tide me over for a while. Only cost me $2750 and its a great car. I'm going to bolster my bank account for right now since I just graduated college and am looking for a job. I'll get into the LS1 game soon enough. Probably with a C5 vette at a later date.

I got much more out of this than i thought: Over $8100 + about 800 in parts I took out. I will miss my LT1 but it went to great owner who has owned an 80s TA and will keep in touch.

Whoopee!

Option 5: Give it to me.

Haha. Gonna give anything to me?

Option #1!

We all know LT1's suck. lolz








j/k but yeah..... I would go with the first option and buy a more practical car like a Geo Metro or Ford Festiva. lolwut

I think it all depends on what you WILL do with the money if you sell/part out/give insurance the vehicle. If you can and will save the money towards your more "upscale" car then I would say go option one without a doubt.

It is the most money you are guaranteed to get in concert with the littlest amount of work provided on your part. As you get older you will realize that your time is very valuable and the amount of money that you stand to gain on option one SEEMS like the best bang for your buck.

Second, you need to be realistic with how much "sentimental" value your car has and what its actual value is worth. Honestly, if you are already having thoughts of getting out of the car and you have another car that you have just as much of a passion for, I do not think that you would regret the decision too much. You will regret it at times (we all do) but I dont think it would be enough to make you second guess your decision.

Even if you buy back the car and fix it you are going to try and sell it down the road and you will only get less and less for it. Which makes no sense. I would just cut your losses and get another vehicle.

I vote for the GTO! Or a nice G8 GT!

Thats a lot of valuable insight I didnt think about before braveplayer. Thank you.

I do think however that the car is worth more than $600 which is the difference between if I keep the car and if I dont. However it would be actually $1500 or so since I have to spend to fix the car. As far as time goes, I have a good amount of time during this summer. I really enjoy my car but theres just a lot of little things that need to be fixed. A/C, alignment, lots of little interior bits. Cut my losses could be a good idea. I'm torn between keeping it and getting a second car like an i30 or maxima later or getting rid of it and getting a nicer car like a G35 or GTO.

Can anyone tell me about how much I would get from parting out a stock 95 TA? or how much I could sell a stock salvage car for? I had a stock rebuild of the auto trans about 10k ago if that makes much of a difference. I figured the engine and trans alone would be 1k in value.

number one is a great option but if they take the car they usually get it the way it sits that means all aftermarket parts included your best option there would be keep the car take the 5800 sell the parts put the car back to stock and then sell the car as a repairable vehicle and if you do keep the car ask the insurance if they will brand the title some older cars if you keep it they will not brand the title as a salvage so then you can sell with a clean title

number one is a great option but if they take the car they usually get it the way it sits that means all aftermarket parts included your best option there would be keep the car take the 5800 sell the parts put the car back to stock and then sell the car as a repairable vehicle and if you do keep the car ask the insurance if they will brand the title some older cars if you keep it they will not brand the title as a salvage so then you can sell with a clean title

I spoke to the insurance inspector in person and the claim rep on the phone and they said I can take the aftermarket stuff off as long as I replace it with stock parts and dont damage the car. They made the estimate assuming it was a stock car since thats what I told the inspector when he came out.

Another option, take 5800, part out car and end up with closer to 9-10k. Then buy LS1 car for 7-8k or save up alittle more for LS1 GTO.

How much do you guys think I could get parting it out? 2k?

How much do you guys think I could get parting it out? 2k?

Probably. Take everything you can off that car thats good, scrape the body(which is a nice chunk of change with metal prices up). It really depends on your area.

Option #1!

We all know LT1's suck. lolz
j/k but yeah..... I would go with the first option and buy a more practical car like a Geo Metro or Ford Festiva. lolwut

lmfao.

Part out IMO.

If you don't care for the car much, part it out. I love my LT1 and will never get rid of it so if it were me I'd take the cash and fix it.

Just be aware parting out can be a royal pain. I tried parting out my V6 Camaro and didn't get a whole lot, granted it was a V6 but there were many parts that are the same with the V8 Camaros. Yet, still very few sales.

I decided I'll never part out another car again after that. Though hopefully, I'll never have to go through losing my car like that again. Not like I planned on losing any in the first place...

take the money and run

Take the money from insurance, buy back car. Part out, keep parts for your next camaro. Ls1 time.:D

So I actually chose mysterious option 5 thats a mix of everything:

-Bought back car & got $5800 from insurance
-Took out my GTO seats and WS6 hood to sell later
-Sold rest of the car as is for $2300

I also bought a 2002 Infiniti I35 to tide me over for a while. Only cost me $2750

Whoopee!

Should of bought a Ls1.

Should of bought a Ls1.

:nod:

if the insurance is giving you that kind of money for a 95 LT1 you should not even think twice about taking the money. You could buy 2 95 LT1s in FL for 6400...