Cupcar#12

hey that is not #1008 is it?

i had a worse shunt than that in 03 - just now got the car back on the road (no coverage from my co) - 25K+ to bring it back for the body alone (+/- 1mm)

mooty

chance, i was there at LS the day you had the shunt at T4.
sorry about what happened.
hopefully you get it sorted out quickly and be back on track soon.

RedlineMan

Indeed. Here I agree. However, another part of my strategy was to let the car go intact to someone who lusts for such a car, and has the skills to make it shine again. Almost like an organ donor, you offer someone the chance to live a dream. Good Karma stuff.

Hmmm...

I recall a recent thread where the qualifications for my contribution were questioned. What size is your foot, my friend?

sjanes

Chance,

In 2003, I was in the same position you are now when I decided to take my 1987 Targa for a hop in the ditch (it wasn't my fault you understand, I was asleep at the time) and did a fair bit of damage. Logic suggested that I just part out the car and go get something else, but it was my 911 and I wanted it back.

If it were just about logic, I would be using an old Jetta as a track car.

38D

Absolutely. If you can sell the whole car to someone that can save it, that is certainly a good thing to do.


Valid point, as you clearly have real first hand experience here, where mine is limited to paying the bill.

Based on what I could see, I though it was $12k-15k in parts. My rule of thumb is to double the parts cost to get the total bill. The real wildcard for me is the whole frame repair stuff. That's voodoo to me, as I have zero clue how to do it or how much it costs.

Larry Herman

Just give your car and your wallet to Rick DeMan. He seems to be able to fix anything. You should have seen some of the tortured stuff Bill Walczak brought to him.

Cory M

Glad you are okay.

The car looks hammered though. If you plan on going racing you would be much better off finding a 964 straight coupe tub and swapping all of the parts. That will be the cheapest and best route to take. Frame straightening labor is really expensive, and you'd still have a cab which is less than ideal on a racetrack. We are in the process of swapping all of the parts from a rolled 911 Targa to a non-sunroof coupe right now, most of the parts are there so it isn't too expensive - just a lot of labor.

I used to work at an auto body shop when I was younger, we would spend months fixing cars that looked like crushed tin cans. One of the best bodymen who worked there and was helping me out with a hot rod restoration project once told me,"I can fix anything, anything at all. Just give me enough time and money and I can do it."

Just because you can repair something doesn't always mean you should - I say it's time for a heart transplant, your car can live on in a new body.

4 Kurves

I've noticed that as well. I went off (straight) in 9 at Willow Springs around 100mph in my Cup which has ABS.

I had a devil of a time getting slowed down and in fact I was sure I was going to drive straight into the ditch that is about 100 yards out there by the fence but finally I slowed enough to turn and head towards the pit lane road.

The first 150 feet almost nothing happened no matter what I did to the brake pedal as the ABS kept trying to modulate the pressure due to the loose gravel/sand/rocky surface.

It was interesting - felt like I was watching a movie with no control.

RedlineMan

A very reasoned response. And I agree.

For the record, it IS totaled. That is a monetary matter. It is also repairable, which is an emotional matter. I tend to have much more emotional attachment - in conjunction with the financial - than most people.

I'm a believer. Having the Magic Touch does help.

38D

Hey John, can you shed some light on the whole "high strength steel" thing. I've always heard that if you bend those areas that the tub is junk. But then again, some people seem to be able to fix that stuff too (I'm just not sure if it's a good idea or not).

951M471 CarreraM491

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"T4. Went 2 off in T3, and like a dummy did not back off but hit T4 full blast, and my left rear tire had no grip. By the way, ABS really kind of F's you when you are sliding on a gravel pit. I'm not saying it's the car's fault, I'm just saying, ABS isn't always your friend. I'll be looking into one of those "lock up" devices if I take the ABS racing. I'll also try not to be on the gravel in the first place

I'll know more about what direction I take with the car once the claim is settled. The good news is that I finally heard from them today and they have agreed (as they should) it will be covered, and we will hammer out the details next week. I can tell you that if they're salvage value is reasonable, I WILL buy the car and part it out myself, either partially for my own racing purposes or completely to recoup some of the money I've dumped into this thing over the past year and a half."


What insurance carrier do you have that covered on track damage?

chancecasey

The shocks, springs, wheels are intact - and just from eyeballing the rear wheels, looks like they haven't moved at all. I actually drove the car after impact about a 100 yards before the flagger said "no no, it's f*cked up man, shut it off!" Drove fine other than the rear qp rubbing the tire. Engine ran fine, no weird noises from the drivetrain.

The straightening work is one of the few things I can't do myself and know the least about. If I completely gut the car myself, leaving only the wheels on, and make it "easier" for them to just go to work and pull it, how much time are we really talking about? Is this a pandora's box of "ok it's a little closer now, now let's push/pull this other area"? I don't need anything assembled or disassembled - I can do that - I just need them to put it on the rack and do their magic. I had $1,000 for budgeted for this. Way too low? Possibly a lot more?

Cory M

The shop I worked at had Car-O-Liner laser frame alignment racks and charged about $150 to set up and $95/hr to pull - but that was 10 years ago so I'm sure it is a lot more expensive now. It is kind of a crude operation, chains are attached to hard points on the frame and they are pulled back into place with hydraulic or pneumatic rams. The bodyman determines where to pull, attach, etc. The precision part is using a computerized rack to measure the points and matching that to the factory specs, we used to pull to within 2mm of the factory points. Beware though, it is very easy to cheat the system and get the computer printout to say a bent car is good, so make sure the shop is trustworthy. If it isn't done right the car won't drive straight, will be hard to align/corner balance, tire wear, panels won't fit, etc, so you don't want to cut corners. I would just buy a tub and be done with it...

gbaker

Metal that has been stretched (undergone "plastic deformation") can be patched--for lack of a better term--by a skilled fabricator such a John. Insurance companies, being in the risk minimizing business, are not going to trust the street driver to find a skilled fabricator, so they will write it off.

You are asking for trouble if you just push those structural pieces back to where they used to be.

kgorman

Sorry to hear about the damage, but I am glad you are ok. Who were you running with at LS? I am very suprised your insurance carrier is covering it, I was just told in no uncertain terms from State Farm (my carrier for 10+ years) there is no F*&%ing way they would cover anything on track. So at least you have that going for you! What carrier are you using if you don't mind?

I 2nd getting a salvage coupe and rebuilding dude with your parts from the cab.