100 series roll over, is it fixable? (1 Viewer)

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What were you trying to send me to Spike555?

I loaded photos by hitting the orange button that says "Upload file"

I was just going to show you pictures of cars that were totaled and then repaired is all.
If you can get enough insurance money I'd let it go.
 
Thanks Spike-
it's going to be a numbers game. sigh...
can you send me a link on the pix?

I was just going to show you pictures of cars that were totaled and then repaired is all.
If you can get enough insurance money I'd let it go.
 
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Thanks Spike-
it's going to be a numbers game. sigh...
can you send me a link on the pix?
 
As for the algae bloom in the fuel tank of your Mercedes...there is no need to replace the tank, just add a quart of Diesel911, top off the tank and drive it until empty.
Refill the tank, change the fuel filter and go.
Then the next time you're going to park it for a long time (more than a few months) add some Diesel911, top off the tank and park it.
The fuller the fuel tank the less room for condensation to form the less the odds are for algae.
Same for petrol fuel tanks, store them full. Algae won't form in a petrol tank but the water will collect on the bottom of the fuel tank and the engine won't run because the fuel pump always draws from the bottom of the tank, water is heavier than petroleum and sinks to the bottom.
Now add to that ethanol, which is attracted to water and you have a huge receipe for problems.
So with a gasoline car that you're storing for more than a few months add a can of Seafoam, top off the tank and park it.
 
LOL- Thanks Spike-

Yes, we are VERY familiar with the diesel 911- and have gone through a good deal of the stuff. So we're at the next step, which is to pull the tank off, pressure wash it, dry it out, add the algaecide and start all over. The diesel911 by itself just wasn't working. We could only drive about a mile before the MB would die- I got to the point I was keeping tow straps in the Land Cruiser and Truck to tow my son home...

Thanks for the advice- I'm collecting ideas, hoping to hear from the alternative body shop with ideas, looking into a salvaged vehicle to plop my mechanical stuff into (basically a shell), looking at used vehicles, etc. Kinda wishing I had a fairy godmother who would just do it all :)

Oh- we have the ability to buy PurGas, which is ethanol free- I run that in my MINI, because it has a engine not designed for ethanol- I also run it in my antique car... but I'll go order some Seafoam - I think NAPA has something similar, K100, which is what my nephew (a diesel mechanic by trade, but works on a variety of engines on the side) recommended be put in all my diesel (they have a diesel version) and smaller engines in Maine for storage over winter. He told me it was easier and better than draining the tanks...

As for the algae bloom in the fuel tank of your Mercedes...there is no need to replace the tank, just add a quart of Diesel911, top off the tank and drive it until empty.
Refill the tank, change the fuel filter and go.
Then the next time you're going to park it for a long time (more than a few months) add some Diesel911, top off the tank and park it.
The fuller the fuel tank the less room for condensation to form the less the odds are for algae.
Same for petrol fuel tanks, store them full. Algae won't form in a petrol tank but the water will collect on the bottom of the fuel tank and the engine won't run because the fuel pump always draws from the bottom of the tank, water is heavier than petroleum and sinks to the bottom.
Now add to that ethanol, which is attracted to water and you have a huge receipe for problems.
So with a gasoline car that you're storing for more than a few months add a can of Seafoam, top off the tank and park it.
 
I use e-free fuel in all of my small engines, it makes no difference in anything else and costs more than premium.
NAPA, AutoZone, etc. all carry Seafoam.
It's a fuel stabilizer as well as injector/carb cleaner.
Best of luck to you, keep us posted.
 
I have to get insurance up to $8k. They're at $6 right now, less my $2k deductible, so $4 take home... which is why I'm upset. I've got $5+ in it since last September (new transmission and 4 new tires.)


BAM!! There you go, theyre asking $10,900, insurance pays you $8000, you drive that one home for $1000, done.
 
Thank you- will call them this morning.

Good luck - let us know how it works out? Too bad you couldn't find a buyer for that new tranny and see if insurance would let you sell that on the side?

Maine is a beautiful state, especially if you'll be near the coast. So, a warm welcome to New England. When you arrive, book an appointment with a fluid film under coater to keep your southern rig rust free. My family was just in Ogunquit this weekend and it was gorgeous.
 
If its a kids car, why not keep it and keep driving it? I would need more pics, but if the frame is straight, why not rattle can it black and keep rolling?
 
Thanks 2001LC, I'm glad our son is ok as well- if he hadn't had his seatbelt on this would have been a fatality.

Have you any experience with salvage vehicles? I ask because I was wondering if I couldn't just find a salvage vehicle with damage to the opposite doors/fenders and between mine and the salvage, create a new vehicle...

Just a crazy idea, but...

As for the $7-9 k to restore- you're good- I have a copy of the independent appraiser estimate and they stopped at $8300.

That said, I've been pricing replacement vehicles and the prices are much steeper- can't even find one owner, personal use, clean car fax (no accidents reported) with service records for ANY mileage within 250 miles of me, and within 500 miles of me Carfax shows a 2 owner with 321k miles for about $8k... so I'm looking at repairing the devil I know, instead of buying the devil I don't know.

I have to keep reminding myself to breathe and chant the mantra: our son's ok, our son's ok...
I've looked into bidding at Copar (insurance totals) lots. The prices are to high to buy IMHO. Finding front end parts can be difficult but salvage yards have, it may be some distance from you. You can find a junker/parts 100 series in your color then buy it for $1K or $2K, is best way to go. You can make $$ off parts you don't need. But it's very likely the damage is beyond bolt on parts. That means body shop & paint $$$. It can be done, just takes time (lots of time), skill and $.

Easy way is to just let it go.

BTW: I'll have (June 1st) a one owner 06 loaded, rust & accident free I'll be restoring. I'll pre sell it to you, and do all work it needs to your specification & satisfaction to make it show room fresh and baseline if that's what you'd like. If your interested PM!

I'm also looking at and 01 LC & 02 LX.
 
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I would also let the LC go and take the insurance payout.

You could come out ahead if you get deals on body/paint work and do all other work yourself, but it will not be worth the labour involved. And I know that I'd always have a nagging "what did I miss" thought on the back of my head after all was said and done. Every little quirk from that moment forward would always bring that thought back and send me on endless goose chases. Not worth it IMO.

Save your sanity, time and energy, start with a new, clean slate.
 
Why is your insurance deductible so high? I know is reduces your premium but it cant reduce it by that much can it?
If I raise mine from $500 to $1000 I save a whopping $50/yr.
I save more money by not having roadside assistance and multi policies.
 
Hmmm... there is no short answer to this one, so pull up the popcorn, grab a drink and your readers and read away!

We have a farm, on which I have many horses, potbellied pigs, goats, chickens, farm dogs, cats- it's been a fun place to live and work and raise kids. Because of the animals, the acreage, the equipment, we have a farm policy.

We also have multiple vehicles- The Landcruiser was our family car and also pulled my stock trailer, the hay wagon, and took us fishing out in Wyoming, Montana, Colorado, Utah, and North Carolina and Maine. My F350 that pulls my 4 horse gooseneck with full LQ - which when all rigged up is 53' long. When I'm not playing Mom and farmer, I'm involved with Technical Large Animal Emergency Rescue, which is part of Emergency Management and Homeland Security- Gotta have my 4wds that haul stuff... anywhere!

My MINI Clubman S, which was my "mom mobile" as I was putting 160 miles a day on the LC getting kids to/from schools, my MB300TD, which I purchased originally as the "Mom Mobile" but then McD's wouldn't give/sell me grease so I never converted it, and then it started leaving me places (which when you have 7 & 8 yr olds and a dog, doesn't make me happy); a MINI Convertible S (that was my "kids can drive" present to myself)- and I didn't give up the Clubbie because it was the only vehicle our 7 year old Great Pyr/Akbash (160#s of large dog) can get into, and ... my grandmother's 1968 MB 280SL which she bought new.

My husband has a 2006 Lexus GX 470 (the Prado) which he bought used a couple of years ago, and does his business travel in- I can't stand it, too many buttons, doodads and it rides horribly unless I tighten up the suspension and then the mileage drops!

We also have two tractors, golf carts, farm 4 wheelers, 5 trailers (maybe 6) of different ilks. I can get 6 square bales in and on a MINI Cooper Clubman S (and regularly "4 wheel" in it out in the pasture- that front wheel drive rocks).

We have farm fleet insurance on all the things with wheels other than bicycles. Or we HAD fleet insurance on all the cars until the kids got their drivers' licenses (about a year ago)- and our fleet insurance won't cover anyone under 19... By this time, I'd pulled the 280 off and onto an antique policy, the 300 was giving us fits and wasn't being reliable (we fired the mechanic and have started with another one), and the least expensive vehicle to insure for the kids was the Landcruiser... but that was supposed to be temporary, AND with a $500 deductible it alone was more expensive than fleet insurance. $1k didn't do much to drop that premium, but $2k dropped it a lot more.

My general rule of thumb is that I'm not going to claim anything under $5k anyway (parts are expensive- it adds up quickly) and I have only been in accidents (myself) that were caused by other people, in which case we were able to get our deductible back. My son is a very careful driver (we call him "Granny" as he didn't inherit his mother's lead foot, his sister did!).

So that's the story of our insurance woes.

Oh- and our new mechanic just earned his stripes- called to tell us the 300TD's tank was out, had been pressure washed and dried and still didn't look clean, so he put a brush in it and it came back rusty- so he took the inline fuel filter out and cut it open- and it was FILLED with rust- He got costs on a new tank and refurb the one we have (sand blast then put some sort of sealant on it)- the latter came with a lifetime warranty, as well as being over 1/2 the cost of a new one.

And with that, my tale is told! Ciao Spike!

Why is your insurance deductible so high? I know is reduces your premium but it cant reduce it by that much can it?
If I raise mine from $500 to $1000 I save a whopping $50/yr.
I save more money by not having roadside assistance and multi policies.
 
It's actually MY car, and I use it for a variety of things: Farm work, feed runs, vet runs, pulling trailers, cross country trips (I drive Nashville to Maine at least once a year- out west used to be once a year), fly fishing in very out of the way places.

And my kids use it when the "kid car" is down. I'm still waiting to hear if it's fixable, but even so, it may not be insurable. Don't know if the frame is bent yet.



If its a kids car, why not keep it and keep driving it? I would need more pics, but if the frame is straight, why not rattle can it black and keep rolling?
 
Unless it could be done quickly, efficiently and SAFELY by a body shop or chop shop, then I don't have the skill set, wherewithall or time to do it myself.

I was hoping the salvage one I had found in CA would work for me to put my engine and tranny into (it claimed mechanical total).


I've looked into bidding at Copar (insurance totals) lots. The prices are to high to buy IMHO. Finding front end parts can be difficult but salvage yards have, it may be some distance from you. You can find a junker/parts 100 series in your color then buy it for $1K or $2K, is best way to go. You can make $$ off parts you don't need. But it's very likely the damage is beyond bolt on parts. That means body shop & paint $$$. It can be done, just takes time (lots of time), skill and $.

Easy way is to just let it go.

BTW: I'll have (June 1st) a one owner 06 loaded, rust & accident free I'll be restoring. I'll pre sell it to you, and do all work it needs to your specification & satisfaction to make it show room fresh and baseline if that's what you'd like. If your interested PM!

I'm also looking at and 01 LC & 02 LX.
 
Thank you for that direct to the point answer. Lol
 

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