Rear end collission! Repair advice needed.

[erikv11]

Insurance companies don't give "book value" they use comparable sales. Will be tough to find comparables though for a 2000. They'll give you more than a thousand, heck two years ago they gave me $3k for a 96 850 wagon. I said good buy and bought it back for $250.

[abscate]

The one thing I don’t like is the right side of the hitch is bent. Hopefully that just slid on the frame member and didn’t deflect it. If NH will let you drive with new bumper, tailgate , lights she will live again



Coincidentally , 6 ads for the rare 1999-2000 V70 standard shift wagon in Nautical Blue Pearl /$6000 were posted to FB this morning

[erikv11]

Coincidentally , 6 ads for the rare 1999-2000 V70 standard shift wagon in Nautical Blue Pearl /$6000 were posted to FB this morning

Progress!

[ZionXIX]

While the majority of people here are more practical thinkers suggesting you total her out and get another one, I come from the other perspective where my sentimental value is much higher than monetary. I would definitely look into repairing with a parts car. But I have the luxury of a second vehicle to daily drive while that happens. It's probably going to cost a lost unless you can do some of the work yourself. If you find a source of new quarter panels I would love to know!

[cn90]

I am practical.

- Unless the P.O. has "nothing to do".
- Has a lot of body work skills.
- Has access to a donor car.
I'd not do it. Not worth it.

I am a DIYer fixing all kinds of stuff, but this is not one of them.

If you ever do it, you do it for the challenge, like climbing mount Everest to get the challenge.
Is it worth it? Up to you to decide...

[Rattnalle]

A much more practical option would be to get another one just like and but it back for spares. Move everything that's in better condition as you have time.

That or get a newer model altogether.

[abscate]

If I crunched Elizabeth like that I would be doing the repair just to repay her for all the trouble free miles she has given me.

Its not always about the money.

[FireFox31]

Thanks for all of the input. This will help me deal with insurance and the body shop. Thanks erikv11 for the buyback data and abscate for the body panel info.

How can I determine if the car is safe to drive (30 mins to the body shop on a spare tire)? The tire is unobstructed because I removed the wheel well cover which was touching it.

The donor piece comes as the entire side of the car including the door frames, front and back. That’s a huge job to do that , 20-25 hour welding time ! Then $500 to paint.

Thanks. This means that replacing the entire quarter panel is out of the question. It should be cheaper to weld in just a section and repaint, or try to bend it out and repaint. I'll ask the body shop for options.

Coincidentally , 6 ads for the rare 1999-2000 V70 standard shift wagon in Nautical Blue Pearl /$6000 were posted to FB this morning

Where can I find these listings? How do I search Facebook nation wide for cars? I would love to show these to the insurance companies.

Here are some pictures after I got it home and cleaned everything up. The right bumper bracket looks like the only frame component that's damaged. I'm hoping something could be fabricated and welded into place. The tailgate doesn't seem like it was pushed in to the body and the hitch bar seems entirely unaffected. However, from the inside, the cloth trim pieces on both sides of the door appear to have moved. That suggests that something large shifted. But the spare tire well looks perfect and inside the wheel well looks unaffected.

[raivis_rsn]

Public service announcement: I recommend people in rust-prone states check their bumper brackets and replace them if they are rusty.

Been there, done that.

[FireFox31]

Other 2000 V70 owners, could you please post the following two pictures of your wagons so I can compare to mine? I'd like to see the inside bottom of the trunk door where it meets the floor, and the right rear frame rail behind the wheel. My frame rail may be more crumpled than it should be, and the gap at the base of the trunk door looks wrong.

Also, is it safe to drive with my 115/70 R15 compact spare in combination with three 205/55 R16 tires? The spare is 3.6" shorter in height and 11" smaller in diameter, causing that side to sag and rotating that wheel much faster than the others. This is a front wheel drive car and the spare is on the back, so is that safe for the car? Thanks.