Bad news.

[romanred62]

Hey guys I just got some bad news today. So I had a wreck last month where I ran off the road and hit a rock and the major damage was the strut mount mushrooming. Well it turns out there's a good possibility my car might be totalled. I call bullshit but the 2 adjusters they brought in are saying it's much worse than I think it really is. The collision department at my local BMW dealership wrote a rough estimate between $2600 and $3000. The adjuster told my dad that we would know by Friday what they're final decision is.

[Mtnman]

Ouch. Wonder where the other 5k is coming from? I thought totalled had to be at minimum 60 percent damage.....

[jjcools]

Sucks man, good luck.

[romanred62]

Actually I believe its 75% of the replacement value. But yeah I have no idea where the extra 10k is coming from.

[Marcus-SanDiego]

Sorry to hear, RR. If it's totaled will you get another ZHP?

[romanred62]

Sorry to hear, RR. If it's totaled will you get another ZHP?

Most definitely. The hardest part will be finding another one that suits me. I'm pretty picky when it comes to picking out a car.

[danewilson77]

80% for USAA.....

[Marcus-SanDiego]

Most definitely. The hardest part will be finding another one that suits me. I'm pretty picky when it comes to picking out a car.

Glad to hear. We can all be part of your search if you do end up having to buy another one.

[romanred62]

Thank you. I should know by Friday but I'll update the thread if I hear of anything between now and then.

[billschusteriv]

Thanks for keeping us updated! Here's to hoping for the best!

[nk_zhp]

There are two ways to look at it. If the damage is structural... you don't really want that car... as much as you love it, ZHPs are not gold dust and you should be able to find another one.

[Marcus-SanDiego]

ZHPs are not gold dust

Blasphemy! :biggrin

[Smilez]

damn sorry to hear :(

[danewilson77]

ZHPs are not gold dust

Sacrilege!!!!!!

[Marcus-SanDiego]

damn sorry to hear :(

Agree. I thought they were made of gold dust.

[nk_zhp]

Blasphemy! :biggrin


Sacrilege!!!!!!

Guys... the sky just turned dark... and lightning struck my co-worker... a scary face made out of clouds stared at me and vanished... Any idea what's going on???

[Marcus-SanDiego]

We couldn't tell you.

:innocent :whistle

[adb1028]

Damn, that really sucks. Hope it all works out

[Linh]

If i'ts totalled, would it be worth it to buy it back and part out?

[danewilson77]

If i'ts totalled, would it be worth it to buy it back and part out?

No.....

[pyreguy]

Its rarely ever worth buying back for parts. That is a huge bummer.

[romanred62]

No.....

I agree. I wouldn't part it out. I'm just anxious to find out what they have to say. I've already started looking for a replacement because I can't be left stranded without a car again. Right now I'm sporting a 2010 Chevy Cobalt. Its the best Enterprise Retal Car could do since i'm only 20.

[romanred62]

Well I just got the phone call from my dad informing me that the car wasn't totaled. I do have some questions to ask them though about it. They're saying since the door and curtain airbag deployed they have to replace the seat belt. I dont know about collision stuff but is this true or are they just going after all the money they can get in parts/labor?

[Marcus-SanDiego]

Well I just got the phone call from my dad informing me that the car wasn't totaled. I do have some questions to ask them though about it. They're saying since the door and curtain airbag deployed they have to replace the seat belt. I dont know about collision stuff but is this true or are they just going after all the money they can get in parts/labor?

I will make sure that Dave (2M Auto Body) sees this message. I am curious about this, too.

[kayger12]

Well I just got the phone call from my dad informing me that the car wasn't totaled. I do have some questions to ask them though about it. They're saying since the door and curtain airbag deployed they have to replace the seat belt. I dont know about collision stuff but is this true or are they just going after all the money they can get in parts/labor?

Seat belts, like airbags, are designed to work once during a collision. They should always be replaced after an accident.

If I'm not mistaken, the pretensioners in the e46 are pyrotechnic, which would mean that they would definitely need to be replaced.

[az3579]

If I'm not mistaken, the pretensioners in the e46 are pyrotechnic, which would mean that they would definitely need to be replaced.

This.

To my knowledge, in an accident, the seatbelt tensioners, airbags, and the positive battery cable need to be replaced. The seatbelt tensioners and battery cable are pyrotechnic, meaning they both explode (seat belts so that they hold you extra tight and battery to cut power to certain things to prevent a fire). In some cars, hours of programming is needed.

In my friend's 335i, he had a veeeeeeeery minor bumper tap with someone that slightly backed into him while at a light, and it hit just the right spot where the crash sensor is. Airbag went off, battery cable exploded, and so did the seatbelt tensioner. He couldn't drive the car, despite just a small nick in his front bumper, and had to get it towed.

The safety equipment in these cars really add up cost-wise in replacement.

[romanred62]

Seat belts, like airbags, are designed to work once during a collision. They should always be replaced after an accident.

If I'm not mistaken, the pretensioners in the e46 are pyrotechnic, which would mean that they would definitely need to be replaced.

Well then I know for a fact mine didn't deploy because I drove the car 1,200 miles before it made it to the dealership with completely operational seat belts.

Oh well... I went to the collision center to get a copy of the parts/labor list. Turns out the adjuster disagreed with the BMW estimator's original $2600 quote and up'd it to $7044. That being said I'll finally have my ZHP back in 2 weeks. This is going to be a realllly long 2 weeks.

[romanred62]

This.

To my knowledge, in an accident, the seatbelt tensioners, airbags, and the positive battery cable need to be replaced. The seatbelt tensioners and battery cable are pyrotechnic, meaning they both explode (seat belts so that they hold you extra tight and battery to cut power to certain things to prevent a fire). In some cars, hours of programming is needed.

In my friend's 335i, he had a veeeeeeeery minor bumper tap with someone that slightly backed into him while at a light, and it hit just the right spot where the crash sensor is. Airbag went off, battery cable exploded, and so did the seatbelt tensioner. He couldn't drive the car, despite just a small nick in his front bumper, and had to get it towed.

The safety equipment in these cars really add up cost-wise in replacement.

See my car didn't feel a front end accident. I hit the rock about 2 inches up on my bumper so it was lower than the sensor that trigger the airbags for a front end collision. For some reason it only felt a driver side impact which.

That is some cool information though about the pyrotechnic battery cable and seat belt pretensioner. Gotta love the safety of an E46. I love that commercial about one of the 2011 cars that talks about unlocking the car, cutting the fuel, and hitting the hazard lights when in a wreck. I always think to myself... "Yep. My 2004 BMW already has those features."

[Marcus-SanDiego]

See my car didn't feel a front end accident. I hit the rock about 2 inches up on my bumper so it was lower than the sensor that trigger the airbags for a front end collision. For some reason it only felt a driver side impact which.

That is some cool information though about the pyrotechnic battery cable and seat belt pretensioner. Gotta love the safety of an E46. I love that commercial about one of the 2011 cars that talks about unlocking the car, cutting the fuel, and hitting the hazard lights when in a wreck. I always think to myself... "Yep. My 2004 BMW already has those features."

Ben, glad to hear that the car won't be totaled. When you get the car back it should be good as new.

[kayger12]

See my car didn't feel a front end accident. I hit the rock about 2 inches up on my bumper so it was lower than the sensor that trigger the airbags for a front end collision. For some reason it only felt a driver side impact which.

"

Makes sense that the rock wouldn't set off your bags/pretensioners. Airbags aren't activated by something, "hitting" the sensor. They are triggered by force (typically rapid deceleration). The sensor is basically an accelerometer. I'm sure the force values vary from manufacturer to manufacturer, but when I went through a school where they covered this it took a force roughly equivalent to driving into an immovable object (i.e. brick wall, big tree) at 10 mph, or into a movable object (i.e. parked car) at about 25 mph to trigger the sensor that inflates the airbags/fires the pretensioners.

Side airbags work the same way, but are triggered by lateral force.