My 93 took a hit :-(

I guess just another rant but I can now feel how some of you feel when someone doing something careless causes you to lose a car you love. I was heading north on a 2 lane road yesterday afternoon and I had the right of way (just going through) at an intersection, was going 35-40 mph and a 16 year old kid in a newer model tahoe heading southbound took a left hand turn (his left) before my eyes. Didnt have time to even take my foot off the gas. Heres what it used to look like and what it looks like now He was given a citation for failure to yeild. It was a 93, 6 speed manual, my DD, loved it and cherished it. It died with 161k on the clock, was completely stock except for the wheels and a muffler, drove like a top and got 26 mpg on 87 octane. I had the chrome Zr1's and the regular nittos with 18k miles on them and had never done a burnout, tires still looked new. The dash thats been so well known to crack on these cars was in Perfect and I mean perfect shape but was shattered with the impact and the airbags, my console and original radio were also in perfect condition. Its the 1st vehicle Ive ever had this to happen to so I guess thats why Im pretty sad about it. But life will go on.

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im sorry to hear that. i feel you pain. i cant see the pics but is there anyway to get it fixed? if not i hope you can find another one in as good of shape as yours was. good luck and im glad you are okay. your not hurt are you? you didnt say so i assumed you were fine except for heart break :(

I think it can be fixed. Ill sure try anyways. The interior IMO is going to be the hardest part. My dash was completely shattered and I know as good as anyone else how hard it is to find a dash in good condition.

Well you're ok so that's what's important. Also the damage doesn't look too bad. What's the extent of the damage besides the bumper, hood, fender and obviously the interior?? Or is that enough for your insurance company to declare it a total loss?

What a shame it was such a clean car...

I am ok, perfectly fine, I know I should be more grateful than I am about it but its easy to take for granted and I shouldnt I know. They told me over the phone even before looking at it that it was going to be a total loss, and I told them I could not accept that, and she said well with the age of the vehicle and the extensive damage and the air bag deployment would simply mean that its probably totalled. I had to get off the phone not long after that before I got angry. The feild adjuster was supposed to come and look at it today, I had it towed to my home. Of course he never showed up and never called :rolleyes: Going to be a big hassle Im afraid. Good thing is I found one just like it, same year, paint, m6 with around 100k less miles, I will probably pick it up and use that in the meantime until I can get this one peiced back together for normal DD duties. Hands down the 93 Z is my favorite car, dont really have any desire for expensive exotic cars. I tell ya though its starting to get hard to find these older LT1's in good shape, they are few and far between and uncommonly seen around these parts.

Heres a few better pics of the damage. It doesnt appear to be as bad as I first thought. Got the hood open today. I know Im looking at a new front clip, radiator and supports. Front right fender and inner fender. Tie rod and spindle for right front, new wheel and tire, power steering resivoir*sp and lines. I know there will be alot of other unforseen things though.

Imo It doesnt look as bad as I first thought. I know there will be alot of unforseen things though. Any opinions?

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I had just about the same amount of damage on mine except it was the driver's side. That was 1 1/2 yrs ago and I am still tweaking things here and there but it is finally back to driving good again. Of course, I did a lot of work myself and salvaged as many parts off of here and locally so I wound up only spending around $2500 to get it fixed. Insurance claimed it a total loss so I have a salvage title now but I'm not too worried about it. Mine was in excellent shape before the wreck but these cars are not worth a whole lot nowadays so any type of frame damage pretty much makes it a total loss. Just be patient and look for used body parts, they will be cheaper and fit much better than cheap aftermarket ones. I even had some insurance money left over when I was done. Good Luck!

Good to hear you're ok, and I feel your pain. My 96 Camaro was just hit recently. And I know you don't want to hear it, but it's probably going to be a total loss. You can salvage it and fix it yourself though so you can keep it, but the insurance company just totaled mine. They only valued it at $4700.

It died with 161k on the clock, was completely stock except for the wheels and a muffler, drove like a top and got 26 mpg on 87 octane. I had the chrome Zr1's and the regular nittos with 18k miles on them and had never done a burnout, tires still looked new.

Why make the engine deal with cheap 87 octane? To me it sounds like you should of bought a v6, no burns outs(this shows more than just that), low octane fuel.

If I was you I would try to fix it, the damage does not look that bad.

Also, thanks for the good detail on the story I hate when they lack details.

THe fender support and the rad support are going to be the biggest ordeal. The whole front end is going to have to be taken down, cut off and re stitched. I have a 93 Z just like yours, red/ tux top, but mine is an auto. Young/ older drivers worry me the most. I hope it works out for you man and glad your ok.

Why make the engine deal with cheap 87 octane? To me it sounds like you should of bought a v6, no burns outs(this shows more than just that), low octane fuel.

If I was you I would try to fix it, the damage does not look that bad.

Also, thanks for the good detail on the story I hate when they lack details.

I ran 93 ocatane for a good 6 months and yeilded the same MPG and could tell no difference in performance. I actually switched to 87 by accident, hit the wrong button at the gas station and it made absolutely no difference. I tried to treat this car as nicely as I could, it was my DD and I do not like to rag on it especially when it gets me to work everyday. I do understand when your saying though I know its a "hot rod" or pony car but Im long past those days of burning out and shredding my tires and/or glazing my clutch and wondering why it cost so much to fix and keep up and why I cant get anymore than 10k miles out of a tire that should last 3 or 4 times longer.

Spartan7: I dont mean to pry into your business but did they outright offer you that cash amount or did you have to fight for it? Ive got all my pictures, receipts and records ready to fight the insurance company, its a job just getting those clowns to do what they are supposed to do.

thanks for the support I definately want to peice it back together.

I ran 93 ocatane for a good 6 months and yeilded the same MPG and could tell no difference in performance. I actually switched to 87 by accident, hit the wrong button at the gas station and it made absolutely no difference. I tried to treat this car as nicely as I could, it was my DD and I do not like to rag on it especially when it gets me to work everyday. I do understand when your saying though I know its a "hot rod" or pony car but Im long past those days of burning out and shredding my tires and/or glazing my clutch and wondering why it cost so much to fix and keep up and why I cant get anymore than 10k miles out of a tire that should last 3 or 4 times longer.

thanks for the support I definately want to peice it back together.
So why do you have a v8 I am highly confused, why not buy a buick century and have a nice ride to work instead of a v8 muscle car with no comfort compared to an 'old persons car'.

Have you began pricing things yet? I know with cars of our age they get totaled really easy by the insurance company.

Glad you're okay! That's what counts because the car can easily be replaced or repaired if you choose to do so. To me that looks like a total. The cost to repair and the age/value of the car will put it in the total zone. It is amazing how much and how quickly the body repair adds up. Good luck with the rebuild!

Well I can tell you there is no way insurance will fix it:mad:

I had similar damage on mine about 1 1/2 years ago, and it was $6000 worth of work in a shop. But my airbags didn't go off, and they are typically about $1000 each, so right there you are at 1/2 value:( Insurance will only fix it if the damage is <= to about 75% value.

So that means you'll have to buy it back and fix it yourself. That will mean a new front clip, and I would make sure the frame is straight, cause if not that's a big fix, which you can't do yourself:no: As stated start scouring salvage yards, you may even be able to find airbags there as well.

Good Luck with the re-build if you go forward with it;)

Where your parts priced new? just wondering. Found steering wheel centerpeice with airbag for $50 on ebay, same price for the passenger side. Guy locally has a good dash (very hard to find im finding out) he wants $50 for it. He also has a spindle but its a v6 car, are the v6 spindles the same?

I doubt they all were, as I specifically requested that they try not to total it... I even offered to let them forgo the hood and I ponied up the money for my Harwood, plus $300 in other little things just to keep the cost under the total limit.

So I wouldn't doubt that they told the shop to go the cheaper route where possible.

wow that car is pretty for the age..... my biggest fear is getting clocked. Sorry to hear, good luck with parts search

Insurance folks called yesterday and offered me $3100 and said I could buy it back for $379. I simply said, thats not going to be enough, theres no way I can replace it or fix it for that amount of money. She basicly told me that insurance wasnt there to replace it or fix it, but to give me kelly bluebook value or NADA, I didnt tell her this, but quite frankly I could care less about kelly or NADA. I was nice and polite but held my ground. My main argument was stated before, theres no way I can fix or replace it for $3100. I said your going to have to come up with more, that car also had $1500 worth of wheels and tires and then she said well send me in all your receipts and pictures of the car and Ill see what I can do. She asked me how much I was looking to get and I told her atleast $5000 which she said was ridiculous and there was no way she would be able to get that. I know that $5k is out of reach but if she is going to lowball me then in order to meet in the middle I needed to throw out a high figure.


Today I faxed her around 15 pictures of the car before the accident, receipts from wheels and tires, headlights and a receipt of where I got the power window track and nearly everything but the actual motor replaced in the drivers side door which was $350. If she doesnt come up with more do I have any more of an argument? Is it even worth taking to court? I know they are offering my bluebook/nada but would I have any legs to stand on if I were to take it to court? An unmolested, stock 93Z with a 6 speed is nearly impossible to find. Autos can be found all day long but its not like I can take my money and turn around and buy another one just like I had. It just angers me that the insurance company is not doing what they are there to do, which I thought was to repair or replace something that one of their faulty customers damaged.

Insurance folks called yesterday and offered me $3100 and said I could buy it back for $379. I simply said, thats not going to be enough, theres no way I can replace it or fix it for that amount of money. She basicly told me that insurance wasnt there to replace it or fix it, but to give me kelly bluebook value or NADA, I didnt tell her this, but quite frankly I could care less about kelly or NADA. I was nice and polite but held my ground. My main argument was stated before, theres no way I can fix or replace it for $3100. I said your going to have to come up with more, that car also had $1500 worth of wheels and tires and then she said well send me in all your receipts and pictures of the car and Ill see what I can do. She asked me how much I was looking to get and I told her atleast $5000 which she said was ridiculous and there was no way she would be able to get that. I know that $5k is out of reach but if she is going to lowball me then in order to meet in the middle I needed to throw out a high figure.


Today I faxed her around 15 pictures of the car before the accident, receipts from wheels and tires, headlights and a receipt of where I got the power window track and nearly everything but the actual motor replaced in the drivers side door which was $350. If she doesnt come up with more do I have any more of an argument? Is it even worth taking to court? I know they are offering my bluebook/nada but would I have any legs to stand on if I were to take it to court? An unmolested, stock 93Z with a 6 speed is nearly impossible to find. Autos can be found all day long but its not like I can take my money and turn around and buy another one just like I had. It just angers me that the insurance company is not doing what they are there to do, which I thought was to repair or replace something that one of their faulty customers damaged.
That's just how the game of insurance works, they go on blue book. And sorry to say but our cars are not worth as much as one might think. I would not pay more than $3100 for an lt1 of our year. Also, mods do not add equal value to the car, I have upwards of 12k in my car. I bet if I totaled it they would not give me 7k. Not worth taking to court IMO.

You are doing the right thing by handing over any receipts for $$ you've spent on the car recently, and questioning the value they are stating. Also note that if you can prove that the car is really rare, and highly valued in your local area, they will up the value.

But at the end of the day they go by what the car is worth in the market, not to you, so expect that you'll get a few hundred out of them by arguing, but I doubt you'll get the $5000 you're thinking. And they're not breaking any laws, so legal action would be pointless.

Yea, when it comes to car insurance you might as well bend over :mad: The only thing I would try if you haven't already is threaten to drop your policy with them and get some other insurance. When they see the idea of not collecting money from you anymore, they start talkin.

Even if you took them to court, they have a lot more money to spend on lawyers than you do, actually, they have a lot of YOUR money to spend on lawyers since they have been collecting it from you since you were 16 years old.

Insurance sucks, that is why I just keep the bare minimum because you won't get anything near what you have given them when it comes time for them to pay up.

Its the other guys insurance so I cant really threaten them with anything. She says with all the receipts the best they can do is $3400. Should I bend over and take that?

$3400 sounds about right for a 93 z. :shrug:

For $3400 you could more than likely get it put back together IF you are resourceful. There is no way that you will be able to use new pieces but if you look around for used body panels and what not the majority of your budget can be reserved for frame straightening/body shop work. A used front end, fenders, bumper cover, bumper, headlight panel, hood, can be had pretty cheap < $400

Good Luck

$3400 sounds about right for a 93 z. :shrug:That is way too damn low!The 93 w/6spd had a backorder/and were hard to find that first yr.As well the production # were low of the 93-97 cars&even though the later ones had updates/upgrades the first yr. always seem to be high values.The 70 &1/2 is a classic example.Also every time one gets destroyed the value on the few remaining goes up.Also,pretty soon it will be time to start restoring these,and maybe even going back to stock and the fact that his was unmolested that is definitely a keeper/fixer,etc.:)

That is way too damn low!The 93 w/6spd had a backorder/and were hard to find that first yr.As well the production # were low of the 93-97 cars&even though the later ones had updates/upgrades the first yr. always seem to be high values.The 70 &1/2 is a classic example.Also every time one gets destroyed the value on the few remaining goes up.Also,pretty soon it will be time to start restoring these,and maybe even going back to stock and the fact that his was unmolested that is definitely a keeper/fixer,etc.:)


Finally someone that thinks the car is worth as much as I do, that means alot I appreciate it.

My 1994 green v6 Camaro with 160K in December had a tree fall on it... they gave me $3450 for it and I had to buy it back for $800.00. Wow.

If that is what I got for my car... then don't take it. I would even offer you paperwork for my accident to prove to them that I got more than that on a car that was worth much less then yours. That is absolute crap.

Of course when they offered me what they did, I took it and ran! I still have my green '94 (the damage wasn't that bad)... and I used the money to pay off my Z and buy the GTO.

Hmm yea I think they should come up with a little more. Today I talked with them yet again. I told them I wanted $3500 and keep the car (not pay them for the buy back) and I couldnt settle for any less, the best they could do was around the $3000 mark with me keeping the car. I said I absolutely cannot afford to go any less but she wouldnt budge and didnt care. So I told her that we were going to have to take this one step farther (as in court) and she said "ok, well thank you have a nice day" and hung up. My plan now is to represent myself, I really dont want to have money tied up in a lawyer. If I win, the extra money would go to the lawyer and if I lose when representing myself I would just take the loss the have to settle for their measly settlement I guess. I think I could do a pretty good job, or is it really all about the lawyers paying the judges in most cases?

Good luck but I think you are getting into a HUGE mess. I know it sucks but it is best to just swallow your pride and take the $3400. It will be months before you get to go to court and more than likely they will just drag it on as long as they can and then wind up winning anyway. If you really want the extra hundred bucks or so go for it but I wouldn't waste my time. You are looking at using a vacation day at work for everyday in court, which could be several if it gets continued or they don't show, is that really worth it?

Yea youve got a point there, this thing could go on and on. Id like to get it back on the road as soon as I can.

Realistically, you won't have a case in court.

Despite emotional attachment to a vehicle, the vehicle is only worth in real life what it is bluebooked at. A 93 Z28 is going to be worth $3000-3500 at the MOST, especially when you can get a 98-2000 LS1 Z28 with 100,000+ miles on it the same miles on it for $4000-5500.

If you felt that the vehicle is worth more than bluebook, then you should have asked your insurance company to add additional insurance to it for mods, etc...Which is why in most cases the insurance company asks you to make them aware of any modifications done to the vehicle... Sort of like homeowners insurance -- when you upgrade your house, the value goes up and it would be intelligent to add more protection to your policy.

Lesson learned.