1992 Pony Down! Need HELP!! (PLEASE!)

[BtownPony]

Hello all -
I'm hoping I may be able to receive some form of help from anyone who may have ever been in my spot --
Last Thursday I spun my Mustang into a guardrail while avoiding another vehicle on the worst hill/corner in town. (Pretty good job, all things considered) --
Speed was not a factor, but after I had cheated to the right to avoid the car, I had to come hard left to get back on the pavement, in a laft-hand corner, and I had already started to lose the a**-end in the gravel on the side of the road.
Long story short; I was now going down a hill, hard left, now having lost the back-end, and swung (with a whole lotta momentum) intothe guardrail on the opposite side of the road. IOW, the passenger side took the hit. My major question;

My Mustang is a 1992, mint, with 27,000 original miles on it. Body, engine, wheels - everything was flawless until last Thursday. Now, obviously, the passenger side is beat to hell, but I truly believe the car can be "brought back". I don't know how to talk to insurance adjusters, and my worry, and what everyone is telling me, is that my insurance guy is gonna take one look at the car, one look at the fact that the Blue Book on a '92 Stang is less than $4k, and Total it, leaving me screwed with a car loan, and no chance of getting the car repaired.

Also, please excuse my ignorance when it comes to these matters -- I bought the Mustang from my neighbor in March and have kept it as meticulous as he and the original owner did, but am new to the game when it comes to owning a 13+ year old car that has been covered and garaged its whole life and has ridiculously low mileage. And worst of all -- I Love This Mustang.

Anyone oout there have any advice or thoughts they wouldn't mind sharing?
Again - Thank you in advance for any help you may be able to provide!

Much appreciation -
JMS
"jon.shisler@gmail.com"

[USMC302]

Yeah, if it's not too bad, I would just buy it back from the insurance and pull the motor and stuff, with all the things on it having extreme low miles you can reuse most of it. Then again, maybe they will fix it.....Good luck.

[fastfox91]

yah if they do end up totaling it buy it back and salvage any good parts you can.

[Mr 5 0]

First: Do not accept any checks from the insurance company...yet!

If you have proof that your Mustang is worth more than it will cost to repair it, you can probably persuade the insurance company to pay for the repairs.

You need to fight it out with the insurance adjuster as to the actual cash value of the ' 92 Mustang, which is obviously worth way over 'book' value with only 27,000 miles on it and (pre-accident) in flawless condition. Don't let him brush the car off as if it were a normal '92 with faded paint, rust spots and 150,000 miles on the odometer. It isn't.

First, get an honest, realistic repair estimate as to what it will cost to 'bring the car back' to like-new condition. Find a good shop that can actually do this kind of specialized work and cares about the finished product and not just shoving another 'job' out the door to collect a check. Get their signed estimate. This is free...they want the work.

Then, you need to have the Mustang appraised by a licensed dealer/appraiser (this costs money - but is worth it) - ignoring the damage - and use that figure, which will be a lot more than 'book' value - to justify your contention that repairing the car will not cost more than it's actually worth and so, it is not a 'total'.

Of course, if the necessary repair does exceed the actual value of your 'Stang, you are stuck with a 'total' and yes, if that happens, you should definitely offer to buy it back from the insurance company...and then have it repaired.

If all the damage is on the side of the car it is probably repairable as that is mostly just sheet metal and can be replaced with a new door skin, quarter panel, fender, new trim, etc. When you have the repairs done, use new sheet metal, no old stuff and of course, be aware that 'new' squeaks and rattles may occur now and of course, the car is no longer 'mint' and 'all original' if you want to sell it. It's value has been diminished for re-sale (CarFax is watching) but as long as it can be made to look like new and you love the car, by all means try to get the insurance adjuster to see it your way and pay for the repairs. Then, go back to enjoying your Mustang...and stay out of trouble!

I wish you well.

EDIT:

In some states - check your policy carefully - you can request that the insurance company replace your car with a 1992 Mustang in 'like condition', including the ridiculously low mileage. As that won't ever happen, you can then demand that your car be repaired in lieu of the company replacing it. If you are stonewalled, you can always file a complaint with your state Insurance Commissioner. Insurance companies don't like having these complaints on file and if the difference between a total and a repair is not huge, they may just give you the repair cost. I did this - successfully - some years back. Of course, this all takes time and you're in a hurry...forget it.

I also have managed to save another old car I once owned that was wrecked (a then-16 year old Camaro) from the 'total' designation by doing some of the repair work, myself, with the help of a friend who actually knew what he was doing. That helped me hold the final repair cost down to a level that was under the car's 'book' value ('book' was minimal but they allowed a fair price for a full restoration I had recently completed..including a new engine, paint, interior, etc.) I 'saved' the car - it came out fine as there was no mechanical damage...just sheet metal - with no salvage title to deal with and no out-of-pocket cost to me...just some hands-on labor, which I didn't mind a bit. You might consider this approach, too.

I'm not an insurance adjuster but my wife was an insurance claims supervisor (auto and home) at a major insurance company for quite some time and you learn a few things by osmosis, as it were. In addition, I sold auto policies for a few years (for the same company) so I have some knowledge of how the claims process works, plus the benefit of my personal experience. Be warned that each state has it's own, distinct insurance laws and regs and what is O.K. in one state may be forbidden in another. Also, each insurance company has a similar but always slightly different process for adjusting claims. One adjuster may be 'tough' while another is a bit more 'felexible' on some aspects of the claim. Holding down claim costs is always paramount to any insurance company and it's claim adjusters are keenly aware of this fact so you have to be your own advocate and fight for the best settlement or they will gladly pay you the least amount you will accept. It's part of their job. As long as you can deal halfway knowledgably with them (without being a jerk about it) most are not unreasonable (but some can be).

As for used parts: 'HotRoddin' is correct...the company does not have to pay for new sheet metal parts. The reasoning is that your '92 had 13-year-old sheet metal when you had your accident so the insurance company is under no obligation to do more than 'make you whole'...that is, restore your car to what it was pre-accident. That means with 'old' sheet metal. However, while the factory fenders are going to be better quality than repro's, to fit your '92 Fox-bodied Mustang, they are also going to be at least a dozen years old - minimum - and might very well have some rust or small dents on them, which is very common with junkyard (used) body parts. That is an extra expense you will have to restore the old fenders, etc to like-new condition. Some 'New Old Stock' sheet metal parts may still be available for your Mustang - check the catalogs. They won't be bargain priced like the cheaper repro's but you may want to pay the difference to keep your beloved Mustang 'mint'. Something to consider.

I trust you aren't becoming confused with too much information but without being there to personally advise you, step-by-step, this is the best anyone can do. I hope it helps.

[danistanggt]

when you take it to a body shop, even if it is a ford dealer tell them you want it in precrash condition. if the insurance company wants to total it, by all means try to buy it back. you can keep it and fix it or you can part it out ( i culdn't part my baby out it would hurt too much) just find a reputable body shop. check with friends who have had work done.. don't let the insurance company bully you, cause they will try to.

[HotRoddin]

Originally Posted by BtownPony

I don't know how to talk to insurance adjusters, and my worry, and what everyone is telling me, is that my insurance guy is gonna take one look at the car, one look at the fact that the Blue Book on a '92 Stang is less than $4k, and Total it, leaving me screwed with a car loan, and no chance of getting the car repaired.

Very difficult to tell for sure without seeing a picture. One persons idea of beat up may be totally different than another persons. If by beat up, you mean the fender, the door, the quarter is toast then your dead. If by toast you are talking about some deep scratches then you might have a slight chance.

Most insurance co's total at close to 80% of LOW book, some at 70% of retail book. You will get a little adjustment for the low milage, but I won't lie to you it won't be much ... we use the milage adjustment straight out of Kelly BB, as for any special wheels etc. if you didn't have special coverage on them then you will likely only get a small courtsey increase on them, again look up what they give you for premium wheels in Kelly BB, it ain't gonna be much. You will get your car sent through as very good condition, again sorry but just won't be that much.

If the entire right side of that car is buggered up you are looking at 6 or 7 grand to get it back to where it was, and on a 92 Mustang that spells total any way you look at it.

Look your car up on autotrader.com and find as many high comps as you can, at least that way you will get a decent amount of money for it.

One other thing, if by some act of God the appraiser says hes trying to find some used panels, that means hes at least thinking about fixing it. If you tell him you won't accept anything but new parts ... kiss it goodbye on the spot, it pisses them off when they try to help you and you get picky on them. It is perfectly legal for them to put used parts on your car .. if you don't believe that look at your policy. Most won't put aftermarket parts on but used parts they will. As a side note, there is absolutely nothing wrong with a used fender. It still has all the factory sound deadning and factory primer etc. new ones are just raw primed sheet metal. Doors, I'd rather have a used one, they were put together on the jig at the factory, as opposed to being tossed together by the body shop guy.

At any rate, most likely your car is a total loss, because although the insurance company will give you (after deductable etc.) a settlement based on what that car would actually sell for on the open market, where they draw the line at total is based on a value much less than that.

Buy it back if you like, but it will then have a salvage title, which makes it worth considerably less. Then again they will usually let you have it for salvage value and thats dirt cheap, so if you have some good parts on it, go for it.


I'm not totally ignorant of this process, because, I'm that insurance guy that you don't know how to talk to lol