these guys cant stop hitting my vehicles

[joe doe]

plow truck backing down the driveway hit some ice and slid into the back of my beloved explorer ,crushing the hatch,smashing the back glass,breaking both tails and who knows what lies underneath?

same company hit our pickup truck 5-6 years back .what a start to my new year .i have this truck 11 years and sunk a ton of money in it in the last 2 years.

any body guys here wanna guestimate the repair?

kbb says the trucks only worth about 3,300.00 but to me its worth much more .

 

[joe doe]

so i get the appraisal and its under 1500.00...............i dont think so but going out monday to get 2 estimates.

 

[FIND]

They are going to total it for that much damage probably. BUT... if everything is straight but the tailgate, and you really love the truck, and don't plan on selling it anytime in the near future, I say just let them total it out and buy it back with a salvage title. You will never be able to sell it for much with the salvage title, but who cares if it is a vehicle you want to keep until it is not worth keeping anymore.

 

[XLT99]

Id say just hit a local pick n pull, grab a new hatch and some tails, and swap it yourself. Shouldnt be hard with a couple friends helpin, and youd spend maybe a couple hundred bucks, instead of 1500

 

[joe doe]

i dont do the junk yards anymore ,havent for some time .let them fix it .thats my motto. i dont think under 1500.00 will cover this repair .i plan on going to the ford dealer repair shop and 1 other place ,then submit those.

 

[4rd Xplora]

Id say just hit a local pick n pull, grab a new hatch and some tails, and swap it yourself. Shouldnt be hard with a couple friends helpin, and youd spend maybe a couple hundred bucks, instead of 1500

Yep, my thinking too. And pocket the rest.

 

[joe doe]

local shop says 1963.43 .........thats where i am going .i have no love for doing it myself .its winter,its cold out ,no garage ,let a shop do it .gotta support local small business.

 

[SoNic67]

That last price sounds about right. Helping local business is noble, but still... they are business so they expect competition. Cold weather is the worse, I can't stand it either.
If they cut you a check and you can wait for a warm day, probably would cost you $300 from pick-and-pull and use the rest of the money for future repairs.
That's why I keep an extra older vehicle - to be able to "wait" for different repairs.

 

[joe doe]

i got 3 vehicles but no desire to fix it myself .having raised 4 kids and working on all their cars when they were home burned me out .
i still do most things myself like oil changes,brakes,rotors, water pumps,alts,rad`s,hoses,darn near most everything, but i dont go to junk yards anymore or tear to heavy into an engine . last year i had my mechanice do all the gaskets in this motor .
head gaskets
uppers,lowers,intake,valve covers, front timing cover .new timing chain n gears ,plugs,wires,you name it .the motor is tight and leak free .
when someone hits my vehicle i always get it repaired by a shop .just not into fixing things i didnt break.

 

[SoNic67]

At least you will get a new windshield wiper assembly
Mine has the ominous worn bearings and is not wiping the center of rear glass.

 

[joe doe]

actually doesnt sound like anything will be new persay .this is a 13 year old ex so i doubt they will even source a new part .most likely a used liftgate with new paint .i will get new tails .

the insurance lady mentioned they source their parts from "keystone" whatever that is .a used yard maybe??in any case the stuff better work and look good and not be full of bondo as my hatch was/is rust free .

can they use used parts??or must they provide you new oem parts?guess i`m not too good at this stuff.

 

[SoNic67]

Ford dealership won't give you junk yard used parts. That's why there are more expensive.

 

[joe doe]

none of the dealerships have a collision repair facility now ,i called 2 places .they outsource now too.
on the estimate the tailgate clearly says salvage part .
tailights say replace oem
refinish tailgate
clean interior

 

[delexploder]

Keystone is one of the larger parts company's in the area but they do sell salvage parts. Seems like alot of money to spend for four screws and four bolts IMO your getting screwed over.

 

[joe doe]

i`m not out anything but time so i`m not getting screwed .this needs a whole liftgate with heated privacy glass and 2 new tails plus paint to match .
how am i getting screwed?

 

[delexploder]

Because a new used hatch is about 250 /300 bucks and taillights maybe 40 and if you get another black one which should be easy to find all it takes is 4 screws 4 bolts a wiring plug and about a half hour. Most yards will pull big parts for you or have doors and hatches in a rack for sale I would get the parts that way and then see how much a shop would charge to install them if i was in your shoes.

 

[joe doe]

nah . i have no desire to do the work myself .

 

[Joe Dirt]

It's just a matter in what to do with the difference- to me, I can find a black hatch and a couple of used tails, that would be about $80 around here from one of the yards. I'd be more than stoked to pay $80 to the boneyard, spend a couple of hours max swapping it over, and pocketing almost $1,800 in that scenario. I guess to some it may come as confusing only because you said that you're cool with doing most things yourself like oil changes, brakes, rotors, water pumps, alts, rad`s, hoses, darn near most everything- why not do 4 bolts, an electrical connector, and 4 taillight screws for $1,500+ in your pocket?

I mean- it's your rig and nobody but knows how much your time is worth, but I think that's why some are confused by the "not interested in wrenching" on this one since it's so simple...

Good luck getting 'er fixed up,glad it wasn't more serious than that!

 

[joe doe]

its just not about the money for me .its about the time ,the hassle ,the driving to n from parts yards ,the searching for this the searching for that .the driving back n forth ,the headache of lining it up ,finding a black hatch could be a issue in itself .i dont shop junk yards anymore ,havent in a long long time .
for me personally .....letting someone else deal with those headaches is fine with me .
the whole how much money can i pocket deal just isnt me .i guess i am outside the norm .always have been .

 

[FIND]

You could also post and see if there is a local member who wants to do the work for cheap... I am not gonna tell you not to spend your money with a local business, nothing wrong with not doing the work yourself. These days I'm happy to see people who will even pop the hood to see if the little hamster on the wheel is still alive and has water. I know too many people who don't know how to change a flat tire or check their oil. If you don't want to do the work yourself and don't mind spending the money, you are doing a good thing for your local community by spending money in it, so it isn't like it is a bad thing.