Estimating Loss of Value (1 Viewer)

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After a promising email from the insurance company a couple of weeks ago, they have again reversed position. They now suggest I reference statute, or case law. They further state that dealerships or potential buyers would be biased, and therefore are not a good reference.

I received a check for loss of use, now pursuing the statute or case law part.
 
I'd be concerned whether the engine components came directly from Japan like OEM or whether from a U.S. Factory such as the tundras...I can see a dealer skimp on this. Last I checked a Japan long block, by the time you had all parts to assemble was 28k versus 23 k for US sourced parts. There's a reason the Japs won't let us mess with the Crusher!
 
Once the Dodge dealer forgot to refill transmission oil but it was a company car so just watched it die and screech on the road and towed it.
The other was a new Peugeot company car and when I drove away it was leaking from the roof (full glass of water at least), the other new car was home delivered by two idiots that had destroyed the 4x4 transmission.
Another new Toyota with 8 km had a little rock to the windshield when we drove up the highway so new cars is always a "take a deep breath and hope for the best"

I dont trust a rebuild compared to the factory in Japan (just read the threads how many people have trouble after rebuilds)

And the other parts that supposed to lubricate with oil are ignored (maybe make a list of that to know what had lack of oil but did not have damage, or has damage within tolerances?)

That rebuild must have been a first time as they only die when idiots forget oil, how many idiots are there?
I dont get it why they dont use these yellow or orange safety straps like some use on the disk-lock on the motorcycle.

Good luck anyway, I suppose there is not much fun in a years to go lawsuit.
 
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I am going through a Diminished Value claim right now myself. I purchased an 08 with 70k, perfect history, no paintwork, all dealer serviced on May 31st. Then in July, my wife was on her way to work when she was rear-ended by a douche in a Dodge......

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Just got it back Friday from the repair shop. They did a pretty good job. Had to replace the hatch, tailgate and bumper cover, etc....about $5700 in damage. The paint actually looks really good, and Im picky. But there is a rattle in the tailgate, sounds like a broken piece of something loose in there; the V8 badge is positioned improperly; there were stickers on the new muffler that they didnt remove, so now it stinks when it gets hot; there was dust in the interior from the painting process I guess, and there is still a little squeak I hear every now and then when driving, that wasnt there before the accident. This kind of stuff falls under Repair-Related Diminished Value. Then there is the issue of Inherent Diminished Value which refers to the fact that it will have an accident listed on the history reports now, it no longer has 100% original paint, etc...

I am myself a licensed auto dealer and the first thing I do on every vehicle I'm interested in buying is run a history report to see if it has any accidents listed. If it does, I either don't buy it, or am willing to spend less depending on if it states the severity of the accident because I know buyers take this into account. If its a trade-in, I have to offer less; if its an auction vehicle, I bid less.

I searched for a clean white 200 for months, all over the country, at all the auctions, retail, private party, everywhere and was so pumped when I found this one. Its such a bummer. I turned down others because of things like accident history and paid a pretty penny for this one because it was so mint. I just want to be reimbursed for what was taken from us through no fault of our own.

Wish me luck.
 
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By the way, the Cruiser was totally drivable, the tailgate and hatch worked fine; rear wiper, lock, rearview camera, taillights, and everything all worked and we continued to drive it while the repair shop ordered parts. One parking sensor was a little out of whack but thats it. On the other hand, the dodge had to be towed from the scene....

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:lol:
 
I am myself a licensed auto dealer and the first thing I do on every vehicle I'm interested in buying is run a history report to see if it has any accidents listed. If it does, I either don't buy it, or am willing to spend less depending on if it states the severity of the accident because I know buyers take this into account. If its a trade-in, I have to offer less; if its an auction vehicle, I bid less.

89cruiserfj62, since your a dealer, how would you feel about my 09 with an engine replacement? Sorry about your accident, it just seems to be the cost of doing business today, the whole thing is just a huge time suck. Good luck.
 
As soon as I found out that the engine had been replaced, I would lose all interest and wouldn't even pursue it. The only way I would entertain it is if the owner approached me and said "Here is this car, Ill sell it to you for $XXXXX" and that figure would have to be thousands less than a comparable unit with the original engine. (I don't want to risk my reputation as a dealer on the work of some unknown mechanic at a dealership. Ive had many, many bad experiences with mechanics at repair shops and dealership service departments. I trust the workers in Japan that assembled them, and thats about it.)

The hard part about establishing a value on these is that there were so few of them built, and so there aren't many on the market; it can be hard to find comps.
 
So Nationwide gave me $2200 for DV. I had estimated $3200 in DV and that was my original demand. Their guy came back with "about $500", I laughed and said thats ridiculous, I reject your offer. They then paid to have an independent appraiser come take a look and then do a report on what he thought. He came back with $2200. I chose to take that because at that point I would have had to pay for my own independent appraisal, which would have cost $300-$500. Assuming that was higher, Nationwide would have probably then said, "ok we will average the two DV appraisals and give you that." That logic would probably hold up in court so I may not have ended up with much more than $2200 in the end anyway and it would have cost a lot more time. I don't ever plan on selling the vehicle anyway, so I guess any amount of $$$ was kind of just icing on the cake.
 
Sorry to hear. Not sure you will ever be able to sell. I think you got really a bad deal.
 
Sorry to hear. Not sure you will ever be able to sell. I think you got really a bad deal.

??? I have no doubt I would be able to sell this thing down the road. Its a rust-free Super White 200; not many of those. Besides, people buy cars with accident history all the time. Im pretty happy with the result. Most people have no clue about Diminished Value and get nothing.
 
That's my opinion. It will stand out on any report and I know I would just move on to the next one. However, there are plenty of people who don't know how to research and would be in the market.

If you want to see how it looks to everyone in the future- go to the Toyota owners database website and add the vehicle to your name. You then can view the comments that are forever public on the repair.

My opinion is that having your local dealership put an engine in would not be as high a quality as the assembly in Japan and the risk of could be future bugs, rattles, electrical or mechanical issues are higher. Again, this sucks for you- but like you said- if you plan to keep it no worries other than the potential issues in the future.
 
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You have me confused with the OP. I just got rear ended. I agree with you on the replacement engine deal.
 
@BTUMAN, I think your confusing 89cruiserfj62's own DV claim and mine. My DV claim is an ongoing issue, not to be resolved anytime soon I'm sure.

If you want to see how it looks to everyone in the future- go to the Toyota owners database website and add the vehicle to your name. You then can view the comments that are forever public on the repair.

Would you please expand on this more.

I do appreciate your positive input though, this really does suck, but I'm not going to let it consume me.
 
Yeah sorry didnt want to hijack your thread, just wanted to give you some info on a DV claim, how it went and how it ended up.

The kicker for a DV claim as it relates to a collision or accident, is that the incident goes on the Carfax/Autocheck and is there for all to see for eternity. I guess it is comparable to a branded title in a way. When a police report is made, it eventually shows up the history report.

BTUMAN is referring to the service history that comes up when you enter your VIN on the Toyota Owners website. People in the know will use this to search a vehicles history before they buy it. In your particular case, there is probably not any public record of the engine work except on the vehicle's service history provided by Toyota.

EDIT: Since Carfax shows service history sometimes, it may show up on there. Have you seen a recent Carfax on it? If it shows up on the Carfax, thats another way to pursue DV.
 
No worries, the more information the better. Maybe this will help someone else on Mud down the road.

The kicker for a DV claim as it relates to a collision or accident, is that the incident goes on the Carfax/Autocheck and is there for all to see for eternity.

This is the sticking point. How to convince them of a DV loss in this circumstance.
 
Vehicles that have had the engine replaced discourage buyers. Your case is a little different, but just look at the values for all original FJ40s compared to those with V8 swaps. Another thing is matching numbers, the serial number on this new engine does not match the vehicle. That doesn't help value.

I contacted Collision Claims Associates and spoke to them on the phone and filled out an online form. They gave me a range of what the estimated the DV was, but if I wanted them to do the formal appraisal/report, it would cost a few hundred dollars. I informed the insurance company that I was conferring with a third party outside agency and would have to use them if we couldn't come to an agreement. I would suggest getting some preliminary estimates and notifying Toyotas insurance company and that you intend to pursue.

Be patient, its a huge PITA. But like you said, don't let it consume you, there are worse problems to have.
 
@BTUMAN, I think your confusing 89cruiserfj62's own DV claim and mine. My DV claim is an ongoing issue, not to be resolved anytime soon I'm sure.



Would you please expand on this more.

I do appreciate your positive input though, this really does suck, but I'm not going to let it consume me.
Yes. I was confusing the two- both were Diminished value and I thought I was on the engine thread. Sorry. But I agree with the comments made by others. If re-ended - not as much a big deal as engine swap.
 

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