My beautiful '84 300TD is dead, rear-ended by some kid fooling with his iPod (literally). The car did what it was supposed to do: protect my pregnant wife. Sig at MBI says that the frame is bent halfway through the car, and the driveshaft pushed forward. It won't drive over 10MPH, and the rear doors don't open (the front doors barely do).

So now I get to argue with an insurance adjuster, which I've never done before, and I need some advice. I'm afraid this guy's going to try to lowball me, and all I want is enough money to go and buy another car just like Das Boot.

I bought the car from the original owner, so have all the service records. I've been trolling Craigslist the last week, finding every 300TD for sale in a dozen cities and printing the ads. I'm in Portland, and prices are higher here on the left coast.

For this who've done this before: any words of wisdom? Don't skimp on advice just because it seems obvious to you.

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2003 E320 wagon, ~80k, "Sputnik"
1987 300 SDL, ~160k, "The Pimp Daddy" (sold April 2010)
1984 300 TD, ~200k, "Das Boot" (Demised March 2008)