I need sympathy (car accident)
 

On wednesday 5/13 i was on my way to work and my 03 350z got rear ended by a durango. No injuries thank goodness but the worst part is that on 5/15 i was to trade it in to get a 370z !!! i was at the dealer last weekend working out numbers and i was able to get them to agree to give me 13k for my Z which is a little high, its more in the 11K, 11,5K. I didnt tell the dealer i was in an accident i called them and said i wanted time to save a little more cash. im 24 years old and this was my first accident i just wish it didnt happen 2 days before i would be the happiest coolest 24yr old on the block !!!! I dont know if this link will work but heres some pics.... Her vehicle was already a bust but she blew here radiator.

Kodakgallery.com: Slideshow

aww dude! sorry to hear! :shakes head:

go get a lapdance it will make you feel better.

Sorry for the bad news, atleast your ok? The car can be repaired. How long are you going to put off the new z? Does she have insurance? Good luck.

Atleast you hadn't picked up the new Z and had her run over it!! Spared you the pain of seeing your new one all dented!!!

Yeah she had insurance, the lady was very nice who hit me she was honest with the police and offered me a ride or anything if i needed it. Her insurance company is a little slow but there getting me a rental car and i get to bring it to a repair shop that i know does good work (not one of there places). it seems it wont cost me anything. It hasnt gone into the shop but id say its gonna take a week or 2 to repair. i dont know if itll effect my trade in value or not, i kinda wanna hide it from the dealer. is that wrong ??

Hopefully in another month ill have the new Z !! HOPEFULLY !

I bet it will show up on a carfacts report.

You're posting photos on a public Nissan forum with the plates shown, and you want to hide it? You might want to think this through again.

The last time I traded in a car I had to sign a form saying that to the best of my knowledge the car had never been wrecked, recalled, smoked in, mileage changed, etc. I would think someone could press charges or make you pay back some of the money if they find out that you withheld info about something like that. I think it is a discloser form or something like that.

I don't think it's wrong, the car is being fixed by pros, shouldn't be a problem. I'm not for sure how it works exactly but what about Car Fax and insurance companies, thats what i would wandering about. How they have to report certain damages to the car. That sucks you have to wait longer now for your new z. ****%y way to start out the spring.

Well the first time i got it appraised they never asked me any questions about it being in a wreck or anything... If they asked or wanted me to sign something i would let them know... I was just saying im not gonna walk back into the dealer ship and say he heres my trade in and look its a got a a new bumper from a car accident.

carfax reports lag a few weeks and it really depends on which state you live in if you have to disclose damage to the dealer. I wouldn't say anything if it isn't the law. If the dealer does pick up on it and offers you less, then you have the perfect evidence to prove a loss and file a diminished value claim. I would actually consider filing a diminished value claim regardless.

The only thing worse is to have your new, 5 day old 370 whacked in the back and pushed into the car in front as well... $5500 damage..:(

I intend to press for a diminished value claim as my car will now be worth thousands less even if fixed to perfection (all plastic and bolt on parts)

You have my sympathys. I'm sure there is some lag time in Carfax reporting.

Thats a real drag buddy. I luckily was far enough back from the big lexus infront of me that i didnt hit it.

Does anybody think its worth me doing the diminished value claim ?? I tried to read what it was online but cant find any good info. it kinda seems like im just suiing the other party for a couple thousand ??

The appraiser from the partys insurance company estimated my vehicle damage at just about $3000. and i got a print out of everything he wants fixed and so on

Dont ask...dont tell
 

From the pics it doesnt look like there was enough force to do frame damage. I would have it fixed and go back to the dealer.

Did they ask you before if it was ever in an accident? As long as it gets fixed properly the only repairs will be to the rear bumper and associated electrical parts. Doesnt matter if it was a scratch on the rear bumper and it was removed to be repaired or if your bumper was slightly imploded from a durango front end.........the bumper had to come off for sanding and painting. Thats it. If they didnt ask the first time, than I wouldnt sweat it all that much. You need to be at the shop when they take your bumper off though. If there is any damage to metal behind the bumper, than you need to let the dealership know when you trade it in. If there is no visible damage to any parts behind the bumper, than its no biggie. If you have ever taken any part off of your car to do some sort of audio installation, its no different. As long as there is no structural damge, no harm no foul.

Sympathy isnt what you need right now, its patience that you need to have. Z or no Z, you can still be the coolest 24 y/o on the block......just have to wait two weeks or so to be the coolest with a phat azz 370Z.

what happened to you really blows, and i can empathize with your frustration. what can i say... s!%t happens and sometimes people get screwed!

you should, however, be honest with the dealer. it may decrease you trade-in value by $500-$1000, but your integrity will remain intact. there are far too many people out there already who think that $$ is more important than attributes like character, integrity, and doing the right thing... don't join that club man!!!!!

Z owners are the good guys!!! :twocents::twocents:

At least the guy that hit you did the correct thing and stop. Much better than a hit-n-run.

Yea ill do the right thing IF they ask ill besure to let them know... I do enjoy being honest because these days that is a rare thing and a good trate to have... I dont think im going to do a diminished value claim either it seems like thats going the extra mile... as said, $h!t happens.

If it were a private party sale for 13K then I would say go ahead and tell them about the accident, but it's a dealer trade. I wouldn't say a word if you are not required to by law. When you trade a car in the dealer is making money on both ends of the deal. If they put your car on their lot they're going to try and get 15K for it, or they may just wholesale it and only make a couple hundred bucks. If the damage is found out then the worst they will do is break even on your trade. The car doesn't look like it has structural damage, but the stigma of it being hit will make someone pay less. Regardless the dealer still made money on selling you the new Z.

As far as a diminished value claim, I would definitely do it. The insurance company will probably give you a thousand bucks without a fight. You can decide if you want to go for more.

:iagree:

When you trade in your car they are giong to make you sign paperwork and ask you a specific question and i think the question was "have you done any repair to the car that resulted in over 1,000" in damages? i think thats what they told me or maybe they just asked "have you done any repairs to the car" i cant remember.

I believe thats in the paperwork. I didnt read it cuz the car i traded in never was in any accident.

Every state is different. In Maryland all we have to sign and attest to is that the odometer hasn't been tampered with. I think dealers have to disclose if a new car has received damage over 2K, or what they call lot damage. Dealerships have lifts and mechanics that they can really go over a car with a fine tooth comb if they choose to. No matter how good a body shop is there will be some tell tale signs if there has been major structural or frame damage to a trained eye. Dealers consistently have excuses on why they lowball you on your trade. There is no way I would give them one more, If there is no law, then it's on them to figure it out. It does not appear that the OP has any frame or structural damage. I'm sure he could slip it through. I would just make sure to polish and wax the entire car so the bumper doesn't appear any brighter and the paint isn't any smoother to the touch where the new paint is. Of course he seems like a very honest guy, which is admiriable, but he shouldn't be punished by losing 3-4K on his trade because he has some cosmetic damage, and if he is honest and loses trade value I would get the dealer to document it and submit it to the other party's insurance company for a diminished value claim. He wasn't at fault here and deserves to at the very least get the same deal he had before the accident.

The car dealer i am working with my family has done buisness with him for over 10 yrs and baught 10 or so cars... My dad is the guy when he wants to buy a car he goes to 10 dealer ships and sits there all day for the best price then walks out and waits for them to call him with a better price. lol. So my dealer will be very honest with me as i will be with him... if it affects my trade i will do the diminished value claim and get all that i can...

Yes, there's similar language on the form you sign in NJ. Along with altering the odometer, etc.

The most important thing (aside from nobody being hurt) is that right before the accident, the written professional trade-in appraisal valued the car at 13K. The $3,000 the insurance adjuster wants to pay does NOT cover the loss in value from the accident, because there IS a Carfax history (and car dealerships can't re-certify a used car over a very small threshhold.).

But you can clearly establish: It was worth 13, got hit, got repaired, now your dealer says it's only worth 7 or 8. There's an extra 2-3 K that's owed from the diminishment in value. If you have to hire a lawyer, do so, because his fee will come from the insurance company on TOP of the payment they'll make for the car. (Lawyers like these kinds of situations... if you want to start wearing a neck brace, that could help spook the insurer even more. :)

wowsers...... that totally sucks, you gotta be honest with the car.

Karma does bite back !...but man, what a crappy way to get a Z....lol

I still say if you bought a car from a used car dealer and later found out it had been wrecked, you wouldn't be happy! And if that buyer joined this site how impressed would they be to know you held back the truth or were advised to follow the "dont ask dont tell" rule, they will, after all be part of the Z family.

Even if you tell the dealer....i seriously doubt the dealer would pass on the info to the consumer. Especially if they do a good job on the repairs and its not noticeable.

No i wouldnt be happy. However, when buying a used car i know im kinda walking into a shady deal cause who knows what has happened to that car inside or out good bad nasty or weird. lol. i do always ask for somekind of warranty though even if its for 24 hours. ill beat it up make sure it runs to my standards and live on.

And i know when my car goes back on the lot the dealers not gonna write on the window in front of there parking lot... NEW REAR BUMPER FReSH PAINT !. lol.

To shade...or not to shade
 

If your plan is to fix it, and let the dealer know.......just take it to the dealer and get it fixed. If Nissan fixes it, it can be resold by them for a higher price if its a Certified Nissan Pre-Owned. If you fix it somewhere else, they will not be able to sell it Certified. Hence they wont give you that much on a trade......since they cant sell it for more money.
Like I said in an earlier post, if there is no structural damage, get it fixed and trade it in. Bumper crease, and new paint isnt something to lose sleep over if you dont tell them. Trading in a wrecked car with frame damage and not reporting it is B.S. Most grown men only want to be, and be treated 3 ways: Dont lie, dont cheat, dont steal. If you put a carbon hood on the car, that means you have to remove the stock one...then put the stock one back on before you trade it in. If the bumper needs to be replaced and painted, I dont see that as being shady. In the end with all the input....do what makes you feel comfortable, without compromising your own personal integrity.

1 thing i forgot to mention. I purchased GAP insurance with my car (not really sure why) but will that help me in anyway ???

EDIT. just did some research on GAP seems i needed to total the car... now i need to wonder how i got suckered into that.

Thats not really considered to be suckered in. If you only have your ride for 2 months.....still owe 30K if you financed......and you total it. Gap eliminates your remaining money owed. Not only that, your regular insurance doesnt get involved, so your primiums wont go up on your next vehicle purchase.

:iagree: Good Karma

Ugh, that sucks man. <3 your Z's color so much!

Everything will work out, don't worry!


Also, good thing you didn't have the new Z already. That would be even worse.

They didn't ask me when I traded mine in. I also had it appraised at Carmax prior to going to the dealer(they asked though), and I told them the truth, its been in 2 accidents(drivers side rear corner panel replaced, and front bumper cover replaced) so I could get an idea of what it's worth. Carmax also gave me a free Carfax, but that came back with a clean title, no accidents or repairs recorded.

I assume the dealer will do the same, they'll run a Carfax or something similar with or without your consent. Honestly, if they don't ask, I wouldn't tell.

By looking at the picture, it looks like there could be some frame damage based on how your right tail light is bulging out of its socket. As an FYI, Carmax told me that when my rear corner panel was replaced, that is considered frame damage. I don't know if there is any truth in that, but I hope it helps. Hopefully that's not the case for you.
Sorry about your accident, I hope things workout for you. Keep us posted.

So guys when you are in an accident that isnt your fault fight for that deminished value from the other persons ins company.

It will only show up on car fax if there was a police report and they turn it in to the carfax people. I had a similar thing happen on my Audi, but I claimed deminished value as part of the repair and got got 10% of the original purchase value, just to find out it was never reported to carfax so I made $3500 and got a clean bill of health on the trade in.