After getting rear ended on 10/2, I got a chance to get a closer look at the back and front of my '05 MCS today. I've got a number of photos that I took up at Facebook, but wanted to also get some more eyes on just what I have going on, and just what I may have to deal with. I've got no worries about the shop it's at, based on the recommendation of a very level headed local member who's taken his wife's MCS there three times. Background story: while stepping out to lunch Friday, I was slowing for traffic in front of me when I was hit by a 2002 VW Passat. This pushed me into a 2005 Honda Accord. I am guessing that the VW was traveling at ~30 mph, but this is only a guess. Speed limit at this location is 35. The Honda was at a full stop. Ask me questions, I'll answer as best I can.
Well, you might need a new rear bumper cover... Just kidding. Ya gotta laugh, right? Anyway, I'm no expert so I'll leave the assessments to others, but I'm sorry to see yet another MINI get the sandwich treatment. At least it looks like the sort of thing you probably got away from uninjured.....yes?
Sorry about the accident. Glad you're ok. Doesn't look totalled. That rear subframe is where the MINI Fini SportLink fits into. I had a friend who got rear ended in his '03 Cooper, and I think the Sportlink actually helped prevent more damage from happening. Obviously you need a new rear hatch and probably would be a good time to purchase an Aerokit for replacement bumpers and grills if you wanted to go that route. As long as the frame is straight, the damage seems mostly limited to replaceable parts. I tore up the lower trim off my front bumper cover and also replaced that front lower plastic grill, it cost me around $100 in parts for both pieces from my local dealer. Turns out that R53 prices are lower than R56 prices! Did the bonnet get squished too? Richard
I'm mostly OK. Classic whiplash injury. Feeling it a bit more today, but today is also the first day I'm not taking Advil or Vicodin so far. As for the MCS, the bonnet appears to be just fine. Minimal damage to the front end, other than the radiator mount being cracked on the driver side, and things just looking a little more compressed than the usual tight spaces. The custom APD that my friend made may or may not survive this, depending on how well the body shop can bend it back into shape. If not, I can see if he can put out another one. I do have upper and middle grill pieces that I was going to put on anyway to complete the black out look, so maybe this is the time to get that done. As for the rear, I'm not so sure, Steve. Do you really think they can't repair the damage to the bumper cover? I didn't realize that's where the Sportlink connects, but that makes complete sense. That far back on the vehicle, if they can't get it 100% straight, I'm not going to stress overly much about it. Other than the fact that my beloved MINI is injured, of course. I hadn't considered replacing with Aerokit front and back. I'll have to give that some thought. I have considered the Alta anti-sway bar and rear end links that i have in the garage, as well as the lowering springs, if that can be worked into the "parts replacement". A replacement of the OEM header is something that I have also considered, but don't have that in hand like the other parts, so I'm not sure how we can work that into the deal, if at all. I don't want to be fraudulent in all this, but I also want to take advantage of the fact that I have some things that I just haven't had the time to do yet.
The exhaust is obviously tweaked a bit. I guess the thing that would worry me most is the way the rear is obviously pushed in enough to affect the shape of the battery box.
Make sure the bodyshop is R&I'ing (remove and install) the glass, trim, handles, mouldings, etc. Many insurance companies leave off stuff like that for a few reasons.... one of them being that some shops don't R&I but rather mask off the parts. Therefore, the insurance company will leave it off the estimate initially. If a shop is truly going to R&I, then the insurance will pay for it. NEVER let them mask the stuff off. The right qtr is obviously damaged (just below the taillight), because the paint is basecoat/clearcoat, they will base the damaged area and carry the clear all the way to the next edge (in this case, door) Having said that, make sure they don't leave a clear edge line at the edge of the door. Much of that stuff in the rear (floor,etc) can be straightened. A competent bodyman can pull the floor on the frame machine and straighten it. A few thoughts about straightening the floor/rear body panel. Nothing wrong with it if done correctly. I would rather have the structural integrity left intact that replace a rear panel unneccesarily. Last but not least, the difference in labor and parts should net you some money in your pocket. Though repairing it takes more time, it still should be less than the parts and labor to replace it. My suggestion is to let the other insurance company pay for it unless you having to fight them. In your case, there won't be any aftermarket parts so it shouldn't be an issue. Going through your insurance company will end up making you pay your deductible and possibly raise your rates. (though your insurance company will subrogate the other insurance company and you'll get your money back) The other thing is you can get depreciation. The rule of thumb is 20% of the damage. However, wait until the car is completely done so you can get the 20% of the gross total. Last but not least, THIS IS THE TIME TO DO UPGRADES. Typically if you replace your stock exhaust for example, the OEM price is way more than aftermarket. For instance, if your stock exhaust is 450 bucks, you can use that money to purchase an aftermarket exhaust. Your bodyshop shouldn't have any issues with that. Same with bumper covers.... there are a set of JCW aero kits for sale in the for sale section. For what bumpers cost, it will help pay most of the kit if you choose. However, looking at your pics, the covers look repairable. HTH's, Mark PS. Make sure the bodyshop offers a lifetime warranty. PSS. Don't EVER go to a "pro" shop for the insurance company.... after being in this business for 26 years, I'm here to tell you the odds of you being unhappy are very high.
Mark, thanks for the wealth of information. We're already finding that the aftermarket market (man, that sounds redundant) is coming up a little less than OEM. The exhaust you see there is a MINI Madness, and I'd love to go with that again. Love the tone it produces. I am starting to lean toward Aerokit, since I have always liked that look. Rest assured, the shop my MINI is at is not part of the insurance company's "circle of excellence", or whatever they call it. I went in stead to a shop that a buddy has used three times for his wife's MCS, and he will swear by their work til the day he dies. Heck, he even went the extra mile and called the shop for me, asking the owner to call me. Which happened within 10 minutes. It's nice to not have to worry about stuff like that when you are standing on the side of the road, trying to figure out what happens next. The shop and I have already been discussing various options for upgrades, some of which I already have in hand, but haven't had garage time to install myself. Yes, I'd sacrifice a bit of me time in the garage, tools in hand, but let's face it, they have the lift, and all I'd have here is a floor jack. Plus, these guys apparently started building hotrods, so they are very familiar with the desire to upgrade. I'm definitely letting their insurance company pay, rather than my own. I didn't get hit by choice, and I see no reason to have my insurance company pick up any of this tab. And if I can avoid paying that deductible, I'm all for that. Could you elaborate on the depreciation? I'm not sure I follow what you mentioned there. Probably the Vicodin taking over. I'll look over at the for sale threads and see what the JCW set looks like. Again, thanks for the info, Mark.
The wife just had a similar accident back in April. The damage came to 18k and was fixed. Of course that included an entire driver's seat which was broken, aero kit which I am sure added some and almost a $1,000 worth of graphics.
Yeah, I have to deal with a busted driver seat, too. Knew that it was reclining a bit more than I usually have it after the impact, but saw just how loose it was today. Damn... it moves a LOT now. I'm fortunate that I don't have to deal with a lot of custom graphics, and those that might be in danger of not making it after the repairs (the WWHRD on the back is about the only one) were done by a member of the local club. I'm only looking at a little less than $10K, according to the insurance estimate.
No problem.... I wasn't trying to stick my nose in your business but I own 2 bodyshops, one which does customs and restorations and the other collision. Out of the 26 years I've been in the bodyshop business, my main shop (collision shop) has been word of mouth and referalls only for 13 years. Point is, I'd be more than happy to answer questions for a fellow member. Depreciation.... double edged sword. Here's the deal. If I were to fix your car and the color didn't match, the texture is too peely, there's trash in the paint, the gaps are not the same and you went to trade the car in, then obviously the car is not worth the same as the guy that's trading in the exact same car with zero damage, right? Sooooo, because your car isn't in as good condition as the guy's car next to you, his is worth 10000 and your car is worth 7000. That's 3000 in depreciation. That would be fair but the problem is many times a dealership (especially) will inflate that number, here's an example. We do all of Hendrick Acura's bodywork in town (well, 99%) We fixed an Acura RSX that had 400 miles on it. The customer paid 28K for the car. It had 15K worth of damage on it. When we fixed the car, I went with the customer to the dealership. They pronounced the car PERFECT!!! They couldn't find where ANY work had been done (we basically did the entire BACK HALF of the car...from the seats back) Everything was great. So the customer went back and said "how much will you give me to trade this car in?" I bought a brand new car and would like a brand new car. They offered him 15K.. :eek6: That's 13K in depreciation!!! WTF, you just said it was PERFECT, you couldn't tell. Enter STIGMA. The fact that it's been wrecked keeps a stigma about it and therefore the dealerships use that to their advantage. You know as well as I do that they would still sell that car for 25K So, my point of all this??? Depreciation should be based on the condition of the car. The double edged sword comment refers to the fact that even if the car is perfect, you still get depreciation. And though a dealership will try to hammer you with it, the rule of thumb is 20% of the damages. Sorry for the long post.... HTH's, Mark
With the broken driver's seat, move the seat back one notch either direction, and slide the seat forward or backward one notch. My seat was messed up after I was rear ended once, but I just moved the seat to new notches and it is fine now.
Ours started off at $12k. By the time it was done it was $18k. That is a preliminary estimate until the shop takes the car apart more thoroughly and finds an almost certain additional damage. I recommend checking with the shop often on the progress. That will let them know that you are a hands on owner and should make them more diligent. Not a solution I would ever accept when someone else is responsible for the damage. My driving position is very precise and a notch forward, or back makes a difference. Also, it wasn't the reclining, but the fact that when you set in the seat the back would sag about 2 inches and the back of the seat would move freely by about 3 inches. Not only uncomfortable, but I would say that in case of future impacts it would not provide the same degree of protection.
EXACTLY!!! I go after the insurance company for every penny due regardless whether you want to repair it or not. Mu logic is insurance is there to allow the customer to put the vehicle back to PREaccident condition. Now, should you choose not to repair something, that's your perogative but you should be compensated for damages done. Mark
Mark, post as long as you feel it takes to explain. Your example of the RSX was great. I'm thinking that the seat should definitely be fixed. Maybe (and only maybe) I could get by with a forward or back position, but I may not always be the only driver, so the "dead spot", for lack of a better term, may be desired by someone else, at which point I may become liable. Don't want that.
Several thoughts.... First, safety! Just because the seat latches now at a certain point doesn't mean the teeth haven't been sheared or rounded. The problem is, you may never know until you have to lock up the brakes or get rear-ended. Second, even if you decide to live with it, GET THE MONEY FROM THE INSURANCE COMPANY. I can't stress this enough. It's not a matter of ripping off the insurance company, it's a matter of having them reimburse you for damages done to bring your car back to pre-accident condition. Should you decide to not fix the car, fix it partially or fix it all the way is your business but in any case, you should collect all the money to bring it back to the way it was. Last but not least, make sure the bodyshop or you check the back part of the seat. In my experience, if you got hit hard enough to mess up the track, then odds are the back of the seat is crooked or bent. HTH's, Mark
I will echo what Mark said based on my body shop experience, although I am a dozen years removed from it. I knew it served me well last time.