I think that because at first glance it looked mainly cosmetic, and because the Honda was so trashed, the police quite reasonably didn't pay too much attention to mine - they advised that I checked brake pressure etc before driving off but were happy for me to drive it away (it's only 1/4 mile from home).

My car repairer friend reckons that as the B pillar has taken a good knock, it's only likely to survive if the repair firm are looking to cut costs to retain business. It's been booked with an independent, but LR approved bodyshop.

We'll see. The payout won't buy me Antoniasdad's car but could put me in a nice VSE or SC.

I'd also take it to a full LR bodyshop as that price will really scare you compared to the indy price, speaking from experience here Labour rates seem to change a lot! Maybe drive into london a bit and find one as the prices in there should be inflated enough!!  FFRR MY06 facelift With TDV8 Alloys Zeros/ATR's
Mantec Sump Guard, Rigid Load liner, MY10 BT upgrade.

Cappo wrote:

The payout won't buy me Antoniasdad's car....

Boo.  Graham

____
Gone: 10MY L320 RR Sport HSE, Ipanema Sand
Gone: 20MY Jaguar iPace HSE, Silicon Silver
Gone: 17MY RR Evoque SE Tech, Loire Blue
Gone: 08MY Discovery 3 XS, Stornoway Grey
Gone: 07MY FFRR TDV8 Vogue, Stornoway Grey

Did the side air bags fire off ?

Maybe not, these jap chaps use some pretty thing calibre poop in their stuff so a teg weighing stuff all against the sill and b pillar of an FF hmm....

How far under did it go cappo? did your rear wheel get stuck on their front end?? that would have been sweet, smashed front end and tyre tracks across it to mark its real demise yeah i know its evil but if they are color blind they pays the price! FFRR MY06 facelift With TDV8 Alloys Zeros/ATR's
Mantec Sump Guard, Rigid Load liner, MY10 BT upgrade.

Johnte wrote:

Did the side air bags fire off ?

Sorry to hear about it, just thinking though, if the side steps been pushed in or taken the brunt of the knock, surely that would have bent the underside a fair bit where the steps attach? 2006 Mercedes CLS
1991 Retro-style Mini
But really finding it hard to fight the urge for a S/C...

Quite possibly. Just been having another look at it. the base of the B pillar is pushed in, perhaps not by TOO much, 10mm or so, but there is also a kink in the top of the sill running towards the front of the car from the B pillar. Haven't had a look inside the rear door as I've had to gaffer that up to stop moisture getting in.

And the other fun that starts here - car hire place came to collect me, they had/have an ML320 to put me in for the duration/ However, when I got there and we checked it, there was a large chunk/split out of the front tyre, so I rejected it on the grounds of safety. They would have waved me off with it like that - "it's only cosmetic sir". Er, nope, it isn't. So they've gone off to get the tyre changed (and I know what's coming next: "oh, they haven't got the correct tyre available ). In the meantime, they've put me in an 11-plate E320......

Now I'm sorry, especially to anyone who has a Merc in their signature (ahem) but what an unpleasant place to be that is! I've only done 10 miles in it - and I hate it! If the ML turns out to be similar I'm going to be hassling the bodyhop hourly for as long as it takes to get the FF back. I just hope it's better and nicer; I fear that it will be the same, just higher off the ground. The E-class is soulless, boring, at 6'4" I can see the rear 1/3 of the bonnet, and it has that awful bloody stop-start system. Turns the engine off as soon as you're stationary, and there's a slight, but noticeable, delay restarting it. That needs programming out, that's for sure!

Anyway, just to let you all know, be prepared for daily whinges from me until I'm back in an FFRR (preferably mine!). It's being collected tomorrow, it's going all the way to Chichester (2 hours from me) to a RR/LR approved bodyshop - I can only hope that's a good thing.

Right, now I've got to go and empty everything out of it. Including the Venturecam, methinks.

I feel for you fella
My FIL got rid of his Merc E320 as the repair bills were getting silly and rust was already eating bits of the underside away after 6years!!!

I still think if its taken that kind of hit it may be classed as a Cat C maybe, although there is part of a shell that pops up in manchester on ebay every now and again so if you bought it back you could maybe repair it, BUT would you want to?
if it were me i'd buy it back and then just stick it on the bay for a healthy return and move onto a newer model  FFRR MY06 facelift With TDV8 Alloys Zeros/ATR's
Mantec Sump Guard, Rigid Load liner, MY10 BT upgrade.

Cappo wrote:

Quite possibly. Just been having another look at it. the base of the B pillar is pushed in, perhaps not by TOO much, 10mm or so, but there is also a kink in the top of the sill running towards the front of the car from the B pillar. Haven't had a look inside the rear door as I've had to gaffer that up to stop moisture getting in.

Sorry Cappo but i think they may write it off... Thats done alot of monies worth of damage... That said, some insurance companies repair them when they are worse than yours... Guess you#ll just have to wait and see... Good luck...




Craig

It'll be a real ache if they do. The car is (was!) in great condition, and alongside that, I have:

- had all the little gremlins sorted, bythe dealer I bought it from
- just fitted a new battery (£135)
- just fitted Wiggs' BT upgrade (£100)
- just fitted a detachable towbar (£350)
- just fitted an MP3 connection (cheap but a fag to fit!)

Plus it was converted to SC spec (cosmetically) before I bought it, and I know that polarises opinion on here but I like it!

There will be others out there but I just know this will end up costing me money one way or another if it gets totalled.

Do you think they would let me take the towbar (hmm, and the BT upgrade...) off if they do??

Actually I think I'm going to go and remove the BT module now!!

Very sorry to hear your news Cappo, your car was lovely!

Where was the accident so I can avoid the area  Quis custodiet ipsos custodes?

15 MY 110 XS USW

54 FFRR Vogue TD6 Touchscreen - Gone!
56 FFRR TDV8 VSE - Gone!

Hi Ivor, it was in Leybourne, right near home, at the junction of Castle Way (the "old" main road through Leybourne) and the new bypass. It's a terrible, ridiculous junction at the best of times which looks like it was designed by the Highways Officer's 3-year old twins with wax crayons. That said, given the point of impact, the other driver didn't just amber-gamble, he must have had a red light for 7 or 8 seconds before the moment of impact (which is a long time in traffic light terms!).

Just popped the BT module out as per my post above but it kills the entire in-car function (radio, tv, nav etc) so I'll have to leave it in; not sure whether there would be long-term issues if I left it out while they have the car.

I know the junction well, you're right about it! Quis custodiet ipsos custodes?

15 MY 110 XS USW

54 FFRR Vogue TD6 Touchscreen - Gone!
56 FFRR TDV8 VSE - Gone!