nearly totaled car supposedly repaired

A friend of mine has an '04 or '05 Volvo convertible that spun out on the
highway hitting the jersey wall. I don't know any details yet regarding the
damage. She said the dealer had to use a special machine to unbend the
frame. The car is ready to be picked up now.

Anything special she should look for to make sure the job was done right?

Thanks
--Art

 

spend $100 or so for a shop to give a 2nd
opinion when completed and picked up...

sounds weird...did she hit hard enough to
wipe off a lot of body work, or pannles?...

air bags went off, etc?.....

 

The air bags went off and roll bars went up. A car had cut her off to cause
the wreck. She only got a minor cut (probably from the air bags) and walked
away from it. From what I heard many of the panels were damaged. I think
that if the car was more than a couple of years old it would have been
considered totaled by the insurance company.

I assume that the computerized(?) frame bender can get things right with
alignment restored.
I suppose she'll have to watch for fluid leaks and listen for unusual noises
in the days to come.

--Art

 

There's not much a person can do other than inspect it very closely,
especially things like trim pieces and other bits that might not fit
correctly. Personally I'd unload the car as soon as possible though,
once a car has been hit hard enough to bend the frame it's never quite
the same again. You might not ever notice, but the fact is it's been in
an accident, there will be evidence hidden somewhere, and the car's
value will never be as high as it was before.

 

Frame or Sub-frame repair is like trying to reform a paper clip when it
has been straightened out.
Ditch the car. It's not worth keeping. Believe me...I've been through
it. No way is the car ever going to handle like it once did. Push it
over a cliff.

 

Our '85 765T was rear-ended exactly two months after we bought it (used.)
Witnesses said the car didn't brake and hit at about 25 mph. The unibody was
pretty seriously bent in an inverted "V" shape, with doors not fitting and
creases in the rear quarter panels. After a session on the frame
straightener, a new rear bumper assembly and little else it was perfect,
with barely $1000 US from the insurance company to pay for it. I looked hard
for evidence of the repair (since there wasn't even any mention of paint in
the invoice, and no panels at all) and couldn't find any. It has racked up
nearly 200K miles since then with no aftereffects.

Separate frame/body arrangements may not fare as well, but unibodies
straighten beautifully.

Mike

 

I bet if you remove any of the interior panels you'll find plenty of
evidence, also if the car were in a harsh climate you'd probably
discover it rusting in unusual places. Also if you look closely you'll
probably find that welds don't match perfectly or other hidden damage,
but with the mileage you've put on it obviously you've gotten your
money's worth anyway.

 

Pay an expert it might work out cheap .One of my employees met a lady who
thought the red light was pretty and looked at the green light further on
..So the insurance company AAMI Hobart repaired my car with cheap Asian parts
..I wondered why my head lights were so dim ,the globes melted in the head
light and were facing down .I know AMMI insurance wont mind me saying this
after what they tried another time which involved white out, two copies of
the repairers quote and fraud they got caught .Never trust an insurance
company get an independent expert from an auto club or such .
After years of liars and insurance criminals as well as try ons , believe
me, play it straight it pays every time .Make sure you keep names times and
paper work ,phone calls and all costs .Please take photos from every angle
as well .

 

I've had the rear interior panels apart several times for gas tank access
and never saw anything. The rest of it I can't tell you, because I haven't
looked. It was also a Phoenix car most of its life. The last 4 years have
been in Flagstaff, but we use cinders here instead of salt so I can't speak
to that. (The area is volcanic and dotted with enormous cinder hills.)

Mike