What should I look for picking up my repaired vehicle?
 

Back in January 2013, a nice granny in a white 90s Buick caused a front-end collision ... she pulled in front of me ... I was doing 30ish at the time.

4 months, 2 donor cars later ...

I got the call that my car, a 1979 300SD is ready to go.

New radiator, AC, hood & hardware, grill, bumper, etc ...

The one thing that they missed was a cracked driver side door handle.

They're fixing that now ...

When I went for a test drive, the brakes were shuddering a bit, and the steering seemed slushier than I remember ...

Anything else that I should look for or ask about?

..an alignment?

Get the report from the shop, they'll point out any replacement parts that you'll need under there... and/or replace them (given the command) before doing the alignment.

If it's all on granny's bill, get 'er done.

Omg you actually got an insurance company to pay for the repair on a 1979....let alone a body shop to work on it....that is a first in my book....

Remember that the car is old, certain parts may have been over due for replacement and gave way in the fender bender....not necessary the accidents fault...

Was the door handle damage done in the crash?

For brake shudder, look for rust on the rotors.

For soft steering look at tire pressure.

Based on what was changed, your impact speed was not likely to be 30 MPH.

Were any wheels bent / tires flattened in the crash? Was the frame pulled?

Having been in / around the car business for many years, it is amazing what a customer claims is a new problem when they have been out of the car for a period of time.

Worn parts are not part of a insurance repair, only parts that were physically damaged.

all good points:
i will check on the alignment & since Costco supplied 4 new Michelins ... and it's been a while ... probably time for a rotation. My mechanic will change the fluids and make sure the rest of the work was done right.

Many new parts on this vehicle that i've put in over the years ... the list is long and for the curious, i've placed the list on Google Drive: https://docs.google.com/spreadsheet/ccc?key=0As3-0weSlvJvdEtZa1MzTklBdTVzakZQMDlTenlfUnc&usp=sharing


max i was doing was 35 ... just came out of a blinking yellow light for the school zone, with my little one strapped in the kids' seat. Granny went thru a red light and turned right in front of me ... about 10 feet before I entered the intersection. The factors not helping: pavement being wet from a light snow ... had a second if that to slam on the brakes ... skidded & bamm ;-(

I think what SL 320 is getting at is that the impact speed was considerably below 30 mph. I was the front car in a four car accident about a month ago. The truck that rear ended me was down to about 10 mph when he hit me. It bent the decklid and pretty thoroughly crushed a quarter panel and the rear body panel. He was in turn rear ended by another truck going considerably faster. Based on some rough calculations I just did based on the length of the skid marks his rear tires left, I believe the third vehicle would have scrubbed off about 24 mph from brake application to impact. Just before the incident, traffic was flowing at about 45 mph, so it's reasonable to assume the impact speed was about 21 mph. This mangled everything forward of the B-pillar on the third vehicle and caused considerable damage to the rear of the second vehicle.

How did you get insurance to pay that much on such an old car? My junk is totalled and I'm getting a bit over two grand and keeping the car. With a paint job included, it looks like my bill will be nearly as big as yours.

Yup......bigtime.

I would say he's got his hands full of unknowns at this point. The car is aged, and has been in a major collision to a degree. Without A LOT of forensic and real time analysis, it's hard to know what parts or situations those parts are in at this stage of the game. good luck, guy!

Yep, that's part of it. We have all seen the crash tests in to a fixed frontal barrier. They usually are done at 30 MPH. . . .

Speed relative to the road isn't a consideration when the object one hits is in motion as well, closing speed is what matters.

So to that end, OPs damage might have been cosmetic not structural. This maters as cosmetic damage won't cause the issues you are having. ( That isn't to say it won't need an alignment as driving over a curb can tweak steering arms. )

Were you trying to burn rubber for the school kids? Around here school speed limit is 15mph and in California it was 25mph and almost all residential areas are 25mph.....

You will really want to make sure the car is aligned properly, before you take possession of it. Most shops can do a print out of the camber caster, and toe specs. You want to make sure they do a four wheel alignment to ensure the car does not crab when going down the road.

Pay close attention to the oil cooler and lines, were they replaced? If so, make sure they used OE cooler lines, the cheap ones can cost you a motor in the near future.

Make sure the headlights are properly aimed, before you leave with the car.

With respect to the a/c, you will want to clarify if the system was recharged with R12 or R134a, and if they put any dye it the system when they charged it.

Pay close attention to the belts and related pulleys, make sure they are not bent or damaged. The insurance can write a supplemental to cover these types of things that are discovered at this point.

Last but not least, ask to see see the car on a lift, and take plenty of pictures, pay particular attention to the bumper shocks to make sure they didn't simply pull out your old ones. Also, check for oil and coolant leaks in the accident area while the car is on the list.

Good luck with it.

here in Kentucky, our urban school speed limit is 25mph ... out in the sticks, it's 45mph ... one particular stretch of US42 also has the most teen fatalities of just about any road in Kentucky.

punch list since getting the car the other day:
1. The repair shop apparently didn't flush the R12 (which had just been recharged and was pumping out ice cubes before the accident) ... so when the repair shop decided it was easier to convert the R12 to R134 ... the systems doesn't blow cold, and the belt-driven-ac unit grinds = sludge in there ...

2. should i bring up that they re-used the oil+ lines ... i can tell because one was partially flattened?

3. the slight shudder when I brake = with my indy, we found play in left front wheel, and traced it to either a clink in the steering coupling or the steering gearbox ... a steering coupling is $150 ... new from the dealership. The gearbox is more.

4. i wish that they didn't use new sheet metal for the replacement left front fender. if anyone has a rust-free example ... with the underbody coating ... my zip is 40206.

... knock on wood, no leaks yet, and the engine seems strong.

I'm glad you took the car to your indy to get it checked out.

It sounds like the people who did the repairs cut a few corners but probably not too many. If I were you I'd cut your losses get a second hand steering coupling / new non dealer part and get your indy to replace the oil cooler line. You could argue the toss and say they were damaged in the crash and that it hasn't been done right but you've already been back and forth - I think it is unlikely that you'll get a 100% fair deal. I'd consider it to be fair enough but I wouldn't be recommending the shop that did the work to anyone.

Sounds like maybe your speed plus theirs?

I'm not sure what ins co policy on this would be, there might not be a shop able to find R12. ( Finding it at a garage sale does not count as a shop isn't going to those lengths.) But, you may be able to swing something if you find the material.

Dinged steel lines are not an issue, but anything over a 25% diameter reduction I'd consider time to change.

Play in the wheel isn't an insurance issue nor would be the steering coupler / box. Did they tighten the bearing and the shudder was cured?

Sounds extreme, are you in a road salt zone? If so you will be better off having real rubber under seal sprayed on, NOT the spray can undercoat as it dries out and flakes off.

If you are in a non road salt zone, paint the back with Rustoleum.