hi , parked outside my parents house in my lovely shiney mi16x4 this afternoon , celebrating my dads 70 th birthday and a bin man driving his dust cart took a fancy to the bonnet of my car ...ruined the bonnet .( backed into it )..got the details of the local council s insurance ...im very pi##ed off ...so the options are

1. let their insurance pay ( may write it off ??) 2. buy a second hand bonnet and give their insurance the bill 3. sell the car !! the car will sell for the engine alone ..just serviced and runs like a peach ( cam belt changed tensioners changed and water pump ) ....questions questions ...love the car but may sell and buy a 2wd

Let their insurance pay for it, if they try to write it off counteract with the fact its a rare car with sentimental value.

just looked at autotrader, there is a mi16x4 for sale at £995, i will print it off and then i can send it to their insurance to show the worth of the car !

Is it just the bonnet thats damaged? Can't imagine they'd write it off for just a new bonnet

just think about the cost of a new bonnet £65 +vat, sprayed and fitted = at least half the value of the car , remember to them its just a k reg 405 thats worth £500

It might be worth giving your insurance company a call and asking them if it would be written off?

My mate's J reg 205 GTi was hit up the ass and did a lot of damage (boot, bumper and boot floor damaged), repairable though, and the insurance company didn't write it off. So there is some hope.

If the insurance company would write it off, then might be worth just getting a 2nd hand bonnet yourself and fill the dustbin up with cowsh!t or something to get your revenge

Definately dont sell it as the engine will more than likely get pinched and the car slung on the scrap heap

Indeed and if it's just the bonnet alone that's damaged you'd be best off waiting to find one of same colour somewhere.

yeah , will probably buy a second hand bonnet in the correct colour and give the ins. company a miss ...am going away this weekend ,so i will see how i feel when i get back

latest on the bonnet/wing...insurance company have admitted its their fault ( no choice really ) ..had to take it down to their approved repair centre today , the assesor recognised the car for what it was ..a rare mi16x4 in A1 ish condition with leather interior...says the insurance company will probably write it off...and if i still want the car to tell them that i want cash in lieu !! meaning they will write it off , i get paid , keep the car less the salvage price ...anyone any experience with this kind of thing ????? cheers les

It depends on what type of write off it is. In Oz, you can have a write off but still repair it and re-register. Meaning the insurance company think it's too expensive to repair However, if it's a statutory write off, it can never be re-registered.

If possible, take the option that gives you the cash and the car, then fix it yourself.

Yeah it's the same here.

got an offer for the mi16x4 today from the insurance ..£255 less £10 scrap value ..taking the pi** ......they have even had the cheek to send out the cheque without me agreeing a value ...so im sending the cheque back and a photocopy of a 4bie from autotrader with a price of £750( see for sale section) ...basically when i parked the car up it was in v.good condition , when the bin man hit it , it wasnt ...so i will tell them that if they dont give me a decent price i just want it fixing to the condition it was before ...fair enough?? ......it needs a new bonnet and a new n/s wing

all they do is look at the bottom book price and offer that minus a bit more.as they say never accept the first offer as they just try it on.out of interest how much did you put for the value of it. it worries me if anything like that happened to mine as it has cost me well over 6k to get to my spec and i very much doubt i would find one in the same condition even though its done over 140,000 mls it does help having been a paintsprayer/panel beater for 6 yrs though
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still waiting for the insurance company to make a sensible offer , in the mean time ive bought a 309 gti goodwood , and i can say that , even though the goodwood is nice , its a step backwards in terms of quality ...the goodwood has more torque low down and is lighter and more "chuckable" but has more rattles and the engine sounds a bit tinney compared to the 4bie ...however , the goodwood was bought for a reason , sprinting/hillclimbing, as an alternative to the common 205 gti in standard production class , am sprinting it on 7th oct at curborough .

been offered £900 off insurance today and i keep car , although they will write it off , cat c , so will be putting up for sale , either as a project or for spares , dunno yet