xpl0sive

we don't have any details regarding his insurance coverage or the value of his car. It possible he may have a replacement cost clause in his policy, which means his insurance company has to pay whatever it would cost him to buy the same car, new. That would make their payout $100k+. Also, his car may have a higher ACV than yours did. Sometimes it takes a bit longer to get to the bottom line, but in the end I'm sure the car will be totaled and the OP will be shopping for a new S550 (or maybe a Tesla since the Model S is taking away the S class market share ).

MTrauman

Agreed! I believe OP said his insurance company is Geico.


I am chuckling on the Tesla front--are you sure you are not WEBSRFR?

cheatham25

The delay was at the body shop. They didn't start tearing the car apart till last Friday. Once they started that they realized there was a ton more damage which has them reassessing the claim

WEBSRFR

Certainly not. I try to keep my Tesla posts on the appropriate thread created for that purpose

My only interest here is in making sure the OP is made whole. His insurance company fixing up a car with that much damage certainly should not be accepted as then the OP will have to absorb massive Diminished Value while waiting around weeks for the car to get fixed up.

From what I gather another party caused this accident and the OP has witnesses. I would have made a reasonable offer to the at fault party's insurance company for replacement of the car and if they fail to step up, lawyer up and go after not just a replacement car but pain and suffering as well.

cheatham25

I would have made a reasonable offer to the at fault party's insurance company for replacement of the car and if they fail to step up, lawyer up and go after not just a replacement car but pain and suffering as well.[/QUOTE]

That's my plan!! Thanks for all the help and support. I will keep you posted on my progress

Corey140

Any update?

cheatham25

Sorry I have been traveling this week. The insurance company gave me the final word this week, almost a month after the accident, that the car will be totaled. I guess I was borderline on wether or not it should be totaled based on their valuations. So that's the good news. The bad news is I want a car configured exactly the way my car was but it doesn't exist in the US and would have to be ordered. Earliest I could get the car would be late August and I can't wait that long so I went and test drove the new 7 series and I think I am going to go that route. I have had several 7's in the past and while they do not compare to the S550 this latest edition is pretty close and the fun factor to drive is off the charts.
I was able to find a few cars in the US configured the way I want so there is no wait which is big considering a lot of my travel is driving.

Hate to leave the MB family though. Hopefully I won't regret the decision.

hyperion667

aww that sux!!

MTrauman

That is good news they will total the car as you would not want the car back after the accident.


I understand your decision you have to make regarding replacing your car quickly. When my '14 S Class was totaled, I quickly thought of other brands since I too could not find a replacement in the entire US (however I am a long standing S Class owner with over 20 years of ownership of an S Class in the household). I did order my replacement '16 S550 4matic the way I wanted with every option except the 3D sound system and the refrigerator. Thankfully I had another car to drive while waiting the 2.5 months for my car to arrive from the order date to delivery date. In my case since the insurance company was quick (accident on a Wednesday, totaled on Thursday and a check on Friday) I had my new car about 2.5 months after the accident date.


If you do buy the 7 Series I would encourage you to start a new thread on this site comparing the 7 Series to the S Class since you would have owned both. I would be interested to hear your perspective on the differences in the two coming from someone who has owned both cars.


By the way, what are they going to give you for the car? When my '14 S with 16000 miles was totaled at the end of June 2015, they gave me about $88K for the car and about $5k for sales tax for a total of about $93k.

Streamliner

Great idea! Many of us would just love a back to back review!

On the other hand, if it were me, I'd try to make a deal with the dealer to pick up a CPO S550, drive it until your new car arrives and then trade the CPO back to them. I believe MB would do just about anything to retain you as an S Class customer. Maybe they could do an ultra short term lease on a CPO. It's worth a try, as they must come upon circumstances such as yours from time to time. Good luck!

Wolfman

I personally still can't get excited over the 7 series exterior. They do have pretty good discounts on the car so you should get a great deal.

That said, be sure to check out the bimmer forums on issues that these cars have. It's the first year of production and i remember seeing a fair amount of items listed...

cheatham25

Since I have owned a few 7s in the past I have been a long time member of bimmerfest. Feedback has actually been pretty good with the exception of some software update issues. The discounts are pretty strong so in comparison for a fully loaded 7 vs fully loaded S550 the savings are significant.

cheatham25

They gave me 89k plus tax. The dealer I bought the car from said that was a fair offer. Mine was a '15 and fairly loaded but I was over 20k miles

cheatham25

I will definitely do that. If I pull the trigger it will take a week to get it in. I will write a review after I have had a little time in the car.

Jason B

But if he get it repaired, and sells it later, no one is going to know the extent of the damages. They will just see what the carfax shows, an accident. No one is going to know how bad it was and saying he's going to lookse 10-15k isn't a fact. People buy cars all the time and not everyone is going to care, because they could think it was minor accident.

hyperion667

as long as you're happy I'm happy brother


looking forward to reading your impressions of a BMW......what color?!

cheatham25

Thanks Hyperion. Looking at Magellan Grey with Ivory interior. That will probably be the choice. I will keep you posted.

ChuckinTucson

Only problem with that is that the Carfax will show "Airbag Deployed." That is a major hit.

MTrauman

Jason B stated "no one is going to know how bad it was" when referring to the type of accident/damage. I disagree.


I copy and pasted the language from my Carfax from my accident that totaled my '14 S550 4matic.


Would you buy the car with the following Carfax Info?:





06/24/2015 Pennsylvania

Damage Report

Accident reported

Vehicle involved in a sideswipe collision

Involving left front impact

It hit a tree / shrubbery

with another motor vehicle

Moderate damage reported

Vehicle towed

Airbag deployed


CARFAX Airbag Tips

Jason B

The above doesn't look and sound that bad, considering we know it was totalled. BUt I see what you mean.

My other question is, doesn't it take months for an accident to show up on a carfax after it's fixed?

MTrauman

It may not sound bad to you. That is why I would not buy a car that has an accident reported on a Carfax since you cannot tell how bad the damage to the car actually was. And in my case the car hit a tree at 60 mph. I would not want to buy a car that hit a tree at 60 mph.


In PA, atleast from the PA State Police in my accident, this information showed up within a couple of weeks of the accident directly from the accident report completed by the state police. I was tracking this information from Carfax since I was very curious.

e55phil

Sorry to hear about the accident glad you're safe! You can always get another car