[395er]

Just bought out our Volt lease in December because we LOVE the car + decent deal. Now has 38K miles.
Was parked on street when rear-ended by a drunk driver trying to do a u-turn. He promptly took off but was caught thanks to a witness who followed and phoned police. Was hit so hard it moved 5+ ft, multiple panels damaged, fuse panel "relocated", rear window blown out, trunk bent, and last but not least bent frame. Crazy thing is it drove perfectly fine all the way to the body shop/adjuster inspection. I'm impressed with how well this vehicle held up.

GEICO offering 16K or 13K if we want to keep the vehicle.

Trying to think through this and appreciate anyone's thoughts on what to do.

-16K sound about right? It seems I might be a little short with sales tax on a similar model/mileage.
-Anyone think this can be repaired to a functional/safe state. Don't care about cosmetics. Insurance sponsored body shop of course does not recommend, but I have seen similar damage repaired by insurance companies.
-Loved this car, but curious on thoughts from people that have gone with the Volt Gen 2. Would have to find a used one but seems there are a few out there.
-These parts must be worth more than 3K on E-bay or resold. Probably not worth the hassle but curious what others think. I'm reasonably mechanical and have a place to park it, but wont go anywhere near that battery pack.

Bad day, but could have been worse.

 

[bjrosen]

Take the money and get a 2017. I wouldn't fix it, it will never be right again, take the opportunity to upgrade to the Gen2.

 

[telveer]

Take the money. At a minimum, you should be able to snag a comparable 2014 or even a 2015. Or take the plunge and use it as down payment for a 2017

 

[Qinsp]

Payouts are negotiable. Your insurance company probably didn't tell you that. Their initial offer is an offer.

Find examples in your area of higher prices for the same car or better. Not with a single less option or 1 more mile.

 

[firehawk72]

Offer seems fair. Your car could be repaired, but I am assuming it would be totaled. With a Volt, that is DOA. You will lose all warranty on everything. Kiss this car goodbye. If you don't want a payment or don't have the funds for a 2016 or 17, finding a comparable one with your money would be easy enough. Best wishes

 

[Ladogaboy]

Personally, I'd take the $13k and keep the car, but I have a place to scrap and store the car. Plus, I have projects in mind.

As for what to do next, you have a ton of options. I liked the new interior of the Gen 2 Volt, but as you said, it might be hard to find a used one. Truthfully, though, you might be able to get just as good of a deal on a new 2017 Volt.

 

[llninja]

Man I wish I were you. If someone totaled my volt, I'd be on a plane to NYC to buy another forum member's SAKS ELR with about 1100 miles on it. But as it stands, my volt is still running great, and I hate to throw away or trade in a perfectly great car.

 

[Sean-a-Tron]

Bent frame? Forget it. I'd negotiate with the insurance company to help get you a get a 2015 Gen 1. The 2014's are just fine but the slight upgrade in battery capacity in 2015 is nice (16.5 to 17.1kWh). Maybe you'll be able to find one that has some features your old one didn't have.

You could also shop around for some Gen 2's if you have the money. They have some major improvements in the Voltec system. No more premium gas, better EV range and better REX performance.

 

[Loboc]

I've been through this a couple times. In the long view it is better to not repair a totaled car. The CarFax alone will kill any value.

 

[narstune]

I would recommend taking the 16K and move on. It's highly unlikely that your time is worth whatever you can scrap out of the vehicle if you were to take the 2nd option.

 

[freshcut]

I have to agree with the "take the money" crowd. Keep in mind that it sounds like a financial total in which case mileage isn't the big issue but the fact that now it will have a salvage title which almost certainly voids all of the remaining powertrain/voltec warranty. So that said, you of course will have the final decision on what you do but I wouldn't be too thrilled knowing that a vehicle as complex as the Volt has possibly no remaining warranty on some very pricey to replace components makes it too much of a risk in my opinion.

 

[ampera_jed]

Nice job by the witness! A lot of folks just don't get involved these days, but there are still a few good guys around.

Sell! Move on with your life. It is not the money, but this will turn into a time-sucker if you persist with it.

 

[twright]

If you have the space/time to part it out, you will probably come out ahead with the $13,000. The batteries alone are worth $2000.

 

[Ziv]

I would counter the $16k offer at $19k with some evidence to back your counter and see if they will improve it. But even if I got "just" $16k, I would go that route. Keep it simple.
With a bent frame, parting it out or building a kit car are the only other options and they are time consuming.

 

[bjrosen]

The logic for taking the money and getting a 2017 Volt is compelling. On top of the 16K from the insurance company the $7.5K Federal tax credit and $1.5K California rebate would apply so you have $25K towards a brand new car. If you were happy with the Gen1 you'll love the Gen2, in addition to much better EV mileage it comes with Android Auto, collision avoidance, blind spot detection, lane assist.

 

[ghostgs1]

Personally, I'd take the $13k and keep the car, but I have a place to scrap and store the car. Plus, I have projects in mind.

As for what to do next, you have a ton of options. I liked the new interior of the Gen 2 Volt, but as you said, it might be hard to find a used one. Truthfully, though, you might be able to get just as good of a deal on a new 2017 Volt.

I'm with you, projects are fun!

 

[Cari]

You want a project.. there are many 100K+ mile cheap cars that are great, but engines are scrap. Buy one of those and part them out. You will make money if done right. You love the Volt so much you bought out the lease. So, frame is bent and therefore will never be right. The value is gone other than parting out. As others have said, get info on local replacements and get more from ins. Buy replacement of same or newer. Make the problem go away and move on.

 

[Whatstreet]

Sounds like it would be better to accept the total on the car.

Don't take the money if you want to replace it with a used car. Make them wait until the car is selected and make them buy the car for you.

Take the money if you want to buy a new car, but you still may want to shop the used car market to be sure you are getting at least market rate on you wrecked car.

 

[caskConditionedAle]

Go Gen 2! I just finished the lease on my 2014. My new 2017 feels liking going from Jack Daniels to Laphroaig.

 

[jbakerjonathan]

Go Gen 2! I just finished the lease on my 2014. My new 2017 feels liking going from Jack Daniels to Laphroaig.

Hey! My two favorite whiskies. Love the peaty/iodine taste of the 10 year old Laphroaig! Black label is my fall-back at bars not stocked with Laphroaig.8^)

My suggestion to the OP is to negotiate the payment, let them have the totaled car and either shop for a used late-in-the-year 2014 (May or later build) or a 2015 for the battery size, or use the money for a 2017 Premier, depending on financial circumstances.

I once owned a 1964 Volvo. The car was a tank - as is the Volt. It had already been rear-ended twice and repaired before being T-boned and written off by the insurance company. I bought it back for $600 (that was when money had value 8^), had the body repairs made for that amount, and drove it for another 100,000 miles. But, I would never do that with the Volt because of the potential risk of having an expensive failure of some part of the Voltec system later on. I knew my way around cars of the Volvo's vintage - I even rebuilt the Borg Warner three band automatic transmission (BW-35) myself, but I'm not dumb enough to attempt working on the Voltec system in the Volt.