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94SilverSSEi wrote:I would definitely tell them all the work you put into it and break out those receipts and you should be able to get more out of it.

I couldn't agree more. You'd be surprised what some receipts could get you. My father had a Chevrolet Corsica LT. Fully loaded every option in perfect condition with only 75,000 miles on it. He put so much work into that car. It was rear-ended doing 50 while sitting at a stop light. They wanted to give him $750 because of the age. After breaking out the receipts and taking the other guy's insurance company to court explaining the work that was done and how it was his daily driver. The judge realized how stupid the person was for doing 50 in a 35 and the fact he had PROOF of the work that was done he was given about $3500.

99BonnevilleSE wrote:

94SilverSSEi wrote:I would definitely tell them all the work you put into it and break out those receipts and you should be able to get more out of it.

I couldn't agree more. You'd be surprised what some receipts could get you. My father had a Chevrolet Corsica LT. Fully loaded every option in perfect condition with only 75,000 miles on it. He put so much work into that car. It was rear-ended doing 50 while sitting at a stop light. They wanted to give him $750 because of the age. After breaking out the receipts and taking the other guy's insurance company to court explaining the work that was done and how it was his daily driver. The judge realized how stupid the person was for doing 50 in a 35 and the fact he had PROOF of the work that was done he was given about $3500.

Similar story here....about 4/5 yrs ago, a friend bought a '99 Cirrus LXi w/ 120k from another mutual friend for $1500 and only got to drive it for about 6 months, before hitting a deer at 70mph, totalling the car. The car was probably worth around $3500 at the time, but she had put probably close to $1500 in repairs into it, between the time she bought it and wrecked it. By showing the insurance company receipts, and haggling with the company, she ended up getting just over $5000 in the end.

She went and found a deal on a mint 2001 Monte Carlo LS w/ 110k (only about 5yrs old at the time) for $5000. She was floored with how the whole situation ended up and how she actually came out ahead! She then recommended I consider totalling the Saturn I had at the time, lol

I'm with the rest - give it a shot - I'm interested to see how this all works out!

Update: I purchased a 2000 SSEi, bronzemist metallic, 153K miles, for $3995 as a replacement. Will discuss this car separately in the 2000-2005 section of the board.

Have not responded to insurance company's offer yet. The busy holiday season and being sick has left me with no energy to argue. I'll wait another week and then decide if I want to fight for more, or just sign their paperwork and be done with it.

Ken_W

Congrats on the purchase!! Hopefully the insurance company will balance things out a little more for you!

Just don't let them know you already replaced it. They will probably just try to pay you for the replacement.

Just thought I should post a wrap-up on this, and not leave it hanging.

I decided to go ahead and accept their offer. I just didn't feel right about arguing after (get this):

IDIOT WIFE WRECKED MY VAN!!!

No joke! 29 days after my Bonne got totalled, my wife runs into a parked car at night, doing about $4K in damage. Surprisingly, the insurance company decided to fix this one, and it has been in the shop ever since (almost a month now). To make matters worse, since the parked car was unoccupied, my insurance company had to pay that claim also -- and that one was totalled. (Some japanese econo-box that folded up like an accordion.) Apparently even in a no-fault state like Michigan, you still pay for the other guy's claim if his car is parked.

So; in less than ten weeks after I switched auto insurance companies, they have had to pay three major claims. I just didn't have the heart to nit-pick for a few more bucks. Especially considering that I'm all set with a new SSEi with the money they offered.

Now I'd just like to get my van back and forget about how much my premiums are going to increase...

Ken_W

Dang that sucks.

However, she did hit the other car, so it is the responsibility of the party at fault to pay.

Wow Ken that does suck..

Dude, those are harsh odds. I suppose on the plus side, the offer they gave you was apparently fair if it covered getting you into another Bonnie.

I hope that's the end of this saga for you....

You need to hire a family driving coach!

Glad to see things with the bonneville worked out. I always dread what might happen with mine in an accident. Values seem to have plummeted since I got mine(in other words I mustve payed too much even after talking $3,500 off the asking price). Seems like just about anything could total a pristine example.

Removed

I edited my original post to say "japanese." No offense intended.

Ken_W

Hopefully everything works out for you Ken.