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All that damage to your car just means it makes little sense to buy a new car to get damaged further. The car is a POS, fix any body issues that cause mechanical problems and keep driving it.
You've got a pre-disastered car there! There are advantages to having a car that looks like that but runs great, especially if you have to drive in or park in the rougher areas of LA. It's less likely to get stolen or broken into. You don't have to worry about any new dents or dings that you would worry about with a newer car. You look poor, so you're less likely to be held up or car jacked in a poor area. And it's paid for. And you can drop your comprehensive coverage since it wouldn't take much more damage if any to be considered totaled by an insurance company. So really, it's smarter to keep it and drive it until it needs pricy mechanical repairs or becomes unsafe. IMO.
However, if you really want to fix it so it doesn't look so bad, and don't want to mess around with any DIY suggestions already made, maybe you can befriend a bi-lingual Hispanic guy who knows something about cars to go with you down to Tijuana and help you negotiate with the body shops down there to get it fixed up cheap. Body work is much less expensive there and it may not be quite as good of a job as you'd get here, but it'd be a helluva lot better than it is now.
I've been driving my Toyota Yaris since 2009, bought it as a 1-year old car with 2,000 miles on it. It now has 69,000 miles on it and runs perfectly and has been taken care of. The issue is, after 7 years of parking on the streets in LA, it has major body damage. It's getting to the point that my passenger side door won't open all the way, and makes a large seeking noise when I try to open the door or go over speed bumps because it is rubbing again the fender.
In addition, it was parked on the street and a drunk driver slammed into the car in 2013. The insurance company gave me a check for $2800 to get it repaired and I just never did it. That is one of the rear wheels in the photos below.
Per KBB, the car in fair condition is worth $4,965. I really do like my car, but I had a hard time justifying paying for the expense of getting the body work fixed. Replacing the one-accident along, per the insurance company will cost me $2800.
If the damage is more than the car is worth (which I might be?) I had a hard time justifying spending the money on getting this fixed.
See photos attached and let me know what you experts think:
Drunk driver slammed into my driver side back wheel. Insurance company told me the entire fender and back bumper would need to be replaced.
Front bumper starting to fall off, gap between the hood. Notice the dent near the passenger side door (won't let me open all the way)
Passenger side door with a minor dent in it and rear wheel scratches.
Scratched up driver side front fender.
Bumps and bruises from parking on the street (I now have offtreet parking)
That's why I'm trying to avoid LA and staying in OC but I might have to go up there soon :[
do you own any basic tools? I would take out the door or panel...then get a hammer & bang it back to shape. I help my buddy once with a similar damage....door wouldn't open fully.....hammering it out...its all good
Thanks for the good advice. I took my car into a shop for a quote. The front bumper / grille and passenger side fender damage was the part I was most concerned about. The total for that + front lamps, wheel alignment, hood, and passenger side door replacement is about $2350.
The part I was secondarily concerned about is the driver side back bumper / dent over the back wheel where the drunk driver hit me. That is about $1100 to repair.
Total to fix both is $3450.
I'm leaning toward fixing it, as the car still has a lot of life left. However, sometimes I wonder if no repairing, taking $2k from a craigslist sale, would give me $5450 to put toward another car. Let's face it, the Yaris won't be worth $5450, even with these repairs made.
I have enough cash saved to buy another car, but I do want to be financially smart with whatever I decide...
Last edited by iama30something; 06-16-2016 at 04:28 PM..
I've been driving my Toyota Yaris since 2009, bought it as a 1-year old car with 2,000 miles on it. It now has 69,000 miles on it and runs perfectly and has been taken care of. The issue is, after 7 years of parking on the streets in LA, it has major body damage. It's getting to the point that my passenger side door won't open all the way, and makes a large seeking noise when I try to open the door or go over speed bumps because it is rubbing again the fender.
In addition, it was parked on the street and a drunk driver slammed into the car in 2013. The insurance company gave me a check for $2800 to get it repaired and I just never did it. That is one of the rear wheels in the photos below.
Per KBB, the car in fair condition is worth $4,965. I really do like my car, but I had a hard time justifying paying for the expense of getting the body work fixed. Replacing the one-accident along, per the insurance company will cost me $2800.
If the damage is more than the car is worth (which I might be?) I had a hard time justifying spending the money on getting this fixed.
See photos attached and let me know what you experts think:
Drunk driver slammed into my driver side back wheel. Insurance company told me the entire fender and back bumper would need to be replaced.
Front bumper starting to fall off, gap between the hood. Notice the dent near the passenger side door (won't let me open all the way)
Passenger side door with a minor dent in it and rear wheel scratches.
Scratched up driver side front fender.
Bumps and bruises from parking on the street (I now have offtreet parking)
When it looks that bad, why bother fixing it. Keep it like that, for sure no one in LA will ever car jack you. If I see you rolling down the street. Rest assure, I ll stay clear of you.You already pocketed 2800, it's gonna get worse. You may get another check.
Good thing is you'll never have to lock it as no one is going to steal the car or rummage inside for valuables.
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