Motoring Discussion > Toyota - Car Written Off Tax / Insurance / Warranties
Thread Author: zippy Replies: 13

 Toyota - Car Written Off - zippy
Miss Z hit a post in a carpark.

She was leaving the parking space and as the one in front was clear, not seeing the small post in the corner of 4 bays, she drove straight forward.

I've seen the carpark and it's easily done, the post was basically in her blind spot between the front wing and rear view mirror.

She moved forward less than 3 feet at walking pace. (Confirmed by a witness)

The car is a Toyota, low mileage and 4 1/2 years old. I suspect it's a new wing, door skin and wing mirror (electric) from photos that I have seen.

The insurance company wants to write it off after seeing the same photos.

I'll have a look at it in the flesh in daylight tomorrow. I can't believe that they want to write an £8k car off for a wing mirror, door skin and wing so it is either worse than I can tell from the photos or they are going to offer a ridiculously low value for the car.
 Toyota - Car Written Off - zippy
Managed to look at the photos on a laptop rather than the phone.

Looks like she has damaged about a foot of the sill and where the wing and door meet it looks like the "A" pillar is twisted.

 Toyota - Car Written Off - Bobby
I follow Copart on Facebook.
I realise not all their business comes from insurance but there is a helluva lot of cars you see that you think, that must have been effectively a write off for it to be on sale here but the damage looks minimal.
 Toyota - Car Written Off - smokie
I've no idea what yours is like but I just paid good money (£700) to a panel company for an extraordinarily good job in repairing where I'd revered into a telegraph pole at 2 mph, literally. He said insurance would have been a new panel at many times the cost (rear wing).

I didn't want to claim as I am a named driver on wife and daughters' policies and increased premiums all round would have probably exceeded the cost to repair.

Might be worth getting recommendation for a local company then going for a quote. I got a few indicative quotes just based on pics. Then see what you can buy it for from the insurers.
 Toyota - Car Written Off - Falkirk Bairn
My neighbour has a "tarted up builder's van" - it looks immaculate.

He bought a write-off A3 with 3.2 V6 for just under £800.
The car had been struck on the rear side panel - beaten out and finished the car would have had many miles in it.

My neighbour took the engine & gearbox and transplanted it into the VW Caddy.

He sold the leather seats, door cards etc for £300 - his caddy already had leather A3 seats.
He sold bits and pieces for £200, A3 wheels went on to the Caddy and the old alloys went on to the A3 . He sold the A3 body shell for £300. He also sold the diesel VW engine & gearbox, alternator etc etc but he did not say what he made on that.


NO cost of the V6 engine & gearbox in fact he made a profit - he had to pay a "mate" for help & use of a ramp to get the engine installed. No 4WD as the welding job was deemed too difficult due to the precision needed for welding etc etc
 Toyota - Car Written Off - zippy
I had a look and she has bent the door post / frame, the part of the chassis that makes the passenger cell, so it looks structural.
 Toyota - Car Written Off - Bobby
Mother in law did something similar in Lidl.

Parked up at lamppost at front offside corner. Came back to car. Pouring with rain. Windows steamed up. Got into car. No cat in space in front of her so decided just to drive straight forward.

Thankfully she was going slow enough that when it hit the mirror she stopped dead so just front wing damage.

I noticed later that Lidl then put up barriers around the lamppost.
 Toyota - Car Written Off - zippy
She has a full tank of petrol. Premium!!!

Any way to recover that?
 Toyota - Car Written Off - VxFan
>> She has a full tank of petrol. Premium!!!
>> Any way to recover that?

When I wrote off my Vectra-C a few years ago, it had a full tank of fuel. I had only filled up 10 miles before the accident. I had to take out the rear seat base, then lift up the carpet and remove the electric fuel pump from the tank far enough to slide a hosepipe into the gap to syphon the petrol out.
 Toyota - Car Written Off - Kevin
Why the heck do GM make their fuel pumps so damn difficult to get to?

I've just had the fuel pump and level sensor replaced on my Chevy and it's an 'in-tank' assembly that fits between the top of the tank and the boot floor. The tank can't be removed without dropping both exhausts and the complete rear suspension to get the differential out of the way. To make matters worse, the tank and filler neck are a single unit so you need to twist and turn the thing to get it around everthing.

(The mechanic will also swearing at me when he tries to fit the new sparkplugs I've given him.)
 Toyota - Car Written Off - Boxsterboy
>> Parked up at lamppost at front offside corner. Came back to car. Pouring with rain.
>> Windows steamed up. Got into car. No cat in space in front of her so
>> decided just to drive straight forward.
>>

Lucky cat!
 Toyota - Car Written Off - Ateca chris
Zippy
On the latest episode of UK DASH CAMERAS on you tube it's possible your
Daughters prang is on there ? 4.34 into video.
 Toyota - Car Written Off - smokie
The one at 7:34.... nearly causes one accident then when he stops to gesture at the driver he cut up he nearly causes another. Idiot.

I didn't watch the whole thing but 1) some drivers were going a little too quickly for the conditions and 2) some drivers show a quite spectacular lack of anticipation, even though the "other driver" was usually at fault.
Last edited by: smokie on Sun 25 Sep 22 at 22:42
 Toyota - Car Written Off - zippy
>> Zippy
>> On the latest episode of UK DASH CAMERAS on you tube it's possible your
>> Daughters prang is on there ? 4.34 into video.
>>

Lol - no but very similar!

To be fair, I have been a passenger with many drivers and I felt very worried sitting in the passenger seat. Miss Z is generally a good driver and I feel very safe as a passenger with her driving.
Last edited by: zippy on Mon 26 Sep 22 at 09:05
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