Last week my husband’s ’91 red/black NSX was hit from behind at a red light (while a potential buyer was driving…go figure!). The damage, although to the average Joe it might look minimum, to us is devastating. The insurance adjuster believes that it is repairable but both quarter panels are bent and will definitely need replacement. I wanted to put a message out to see if I can get some technical “help”. We are hoping to have the insurance declare it a total loss, but I need to make sure the repair cost would exceed at least 70% of the value. If you have any suggestions I would appreciate it (i.e. the baked paint process, the aluminum body, etc.).
Help! Wrecked NSX repair vs. total
- Thread starter RenaWool
- Start date
In general, if the frame (unibody) is not bent, the repairs should not be that big of a deal, however emotionally devistating they are to the owner. If the frame is seriously bent, it is really hard to get it perfect again on an NSX, even with modern laser frame straightening technology.
Yea,I agree that if the frame is not damaged the car will not total.I believe the quarters run about 1800.00 each.It would be hard to total from there.
Joe
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97 NSX-T
93 RX7 Touring
Joe
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97 NSX-T
93 RX7 Touring
That really stinks. I see you are in Texas. You might try getting the insurance company to pay you guys the differance between what is worth now, and what it was worth before. Sometimes the Texas insurance laws will help out.
The parts are going to be expensive, but the labor is going to be high too. Plus, if your body shop is not trained for working on aluminum you will not be happy. Trust me, I know.
Good luck! I hope it all works out for you guys.
- Bill
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For your daily dose of NSX content, visit www.nsxsc.com . Win a $250 Dali Racing Gift Certficate! www.nsxsc.com/contest.html
The parts are going to be expensive, but the labor is going to be high too. Plus, if your body shop is not trained for working on aluminum you will not be happy. Trust me, I know.
Good luck! I hope it all works out for you guys.
- Bill
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For your daily dose of NSX content, visit www.nsxsc.com . Win a $250 Dali Racing Gift Certficate! www.nsxsc.com/contest.html
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I'm sorry to hear about your car. I hope your husband is OK. Could you describe the damage in more detail (or ideally provide photos)? Approximately was was the speed of the impact?
Does the trunk still line up properly? Do you see anything misaligned inside the trunk? Are the rear quarter panels misaligned at the front (near the doors)? If nothing else is damaged other than the bumper, two quarter panels and maybe some of the brackets behind the quarter panels, it will not be totalled by the insurance company.
The factory paint is baked at the factory. The baking actually finishes hardening the aluminum panels. Body shops cannot duplicate this process (it is simply not an option) but a good body shop can do an excellent job. Replacement panels are baked (with no paint) before being shipped so they are as hard as the originals.
The rear quarter panels and bumper simply bolt on. This means it is easy for a shop to simply paint and bolt on the replacement parts. They do not need to have any particular skill other than being able to paint aluminum correctly to handle this type of repair. The quality of their paint work is probably the most critical thing here.
Does the trunk still line up properly? Do you see anything misaligned inside the trunk? Are the rear quarter panels misaligned at the front (near the doors)? If nothing else is damaged other than the bumper, two quarter panels and maybe some of the brackets behind the quarter panels, it will not be totalled by the insurance company.
The factory paint is baked at the factory. The baking actually finishes hardening the aluminum panels. Body shops cannot duplicate this process (it is simply not an option) but a good body shop can do an excellent job. Replacement panels are baked (with no paint) before being shipped so they are as hard as the originals.
The rear quarter panels and bumper simply bolt on. This means it is easy for a shop to simply paint and bolt on the replacement parts. They do not need to have any particular skill other than being able to paint aluminum correctly to handle this type of repair. The quality of their paint work is probably the most critical thing here.
I was hit in a similar fashion at a red light last fall.
Total repar cost was right about $6,000.
I would expect your cost to be increased if the quarter panels show damage.
Luckily (?) I was hit square in the tail lights and the repair was straight forward and the guys out here did a pretty decent job (still working on fine tuning the deck lid).
Good luck.
Total repar cost was right about $6,000.
I would expect your cost to be increased if the quarter panels show damage.
Luckily (?) I was hit square in the tail lights and the repair was straight forward and the guys out here did a pretty decent job (still working on fine tuning the deck lid).
Good luck.
The back bumper was completely crushed. The trunk is greatly out of line. You can’t even open it, it also has wedged up against the engine cover to keep the cover ajar. You can’t physically see any aluminum deformities in the front parts of the quarter panels, but again the trunk has been severely pushed forward. The impact was pretty severe, I don’t have an actual MPH but the driver of the gravel truck that hit them said that he didn’t even see the car in front of him. We are in a relatively small town but only 2 hours from Atlanta. If repair is the answer we are hoping to have it shipped down there. The sad part of the story is that at the gentleman driving the car at the time had planned on buying it. If the insurance company plans on repair we will definitely have to seek a diminished value claim. Then that brings up the whole topic of how much is a wrecked/repaired NSX worth compared to a non-wrecked/repaired NSX???
Then that brings up the whole topic of how much is a wrecked/repaired NSX worth compared to a non-wrecked/repaired NSX???
I don't think there's a set answer to that question ($X,000). Of course, the insurance company will say that they are worth the same. Fact is, a wrecked/repaired NSX will be more difficult to sell because some buyers will not want to look at it. But if it's repaired properly, the decrease in market value will be relatively small, particularly for an older model.
My advice would be to concentrate on dealing with the insurance company, find a QUALIFIED body shop with lots of NSX experience and training (Acura HQ's customer service number can direct you to one in your area that has gone through their training), get an estimate on the damage, and if it's not going to be totaled, you're going to have to get it fixed. If it's fixed properly, you shouldn't be able to easily see any difference.
I don't think there's a set answer to that question ($X,000). Of course, the insurance company will say that they are worth the same. Fact is, a wrecked/repaired NSX will be more difficult to sell because some buyers will not want to look at it. But if it's repaired properly, the decrease in market value will be relatively small, particularly for an older model.
My advice would be to concentrate on dealing with the insurance company, find a QUALIFIED body shop with lots of NSX experience and training (Acura HQ's customer service number can direct you to one in your area that has gone through their training), get an estimate on the damage, and if it's not going to be totaled, you're going to have to get it fixed. If it's fixed properly, you shouldn't be able to easily see any difference.
I don't know how much it would cost to fix the car, but these are the numbers I got from edmunds.com for a 1992(didn't have 1991 on file):
-67000miles(assuming 7500mi per year times 9 years)
-Excellent condition
-Manual
TradeIn: 28,859
PrivateSell: 31,226
Dealer's sale price: 35,425
Assuming the car is worth $32,000, 70% of the price is $22,400. Which means that the damage would have to be more than $22,000 for it to be considered a total loss.
Any thoughts?
-67000miles(assuming 7500mi per year times 9 years)
-Excellent condition
-Manual
TradeIn: 28,859
PrivateSell: 31,226
Dealer's sale price: 35,425
Assuming the car is worth $32,000, 70% of the price is $22,400. Which means that the damage would have to be more than $22,000 for it to be considered a total loss.
Any thoughts?
What a drag!! even if the car is repaired perfectly, with todays discriminating buyers you will ultimately lose equity. Just look at the want ad's in the market place. "no paint work", "no accidents", "never in rain", "no smoking", "never driven with windows down and stereo louder than 10db with TC off". Ok well now I'm getting carried away but you get the point.
Hope everyones OK.
Hope everyones OK.
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