Should I unload this trouble magnet?

I'd just keep driving it. If they fix it like they should, it is just as safe as before. It looks like you would have to pay alot to get out of this car, is that worth the piece of mind for you? What if you eat 6k and then get a new car again and something else happens? I bet you would be really pissed then. It sounds more like a personal choice you have to make. But if it is repaired right it shouldn't cause problems down the line. And if your worried about a breakdown later down the road(from the current body repairs) considder buying the 125k warranty from Troy. It around 1,200 to 1,300 and if your car was fixed at a Toyota dealer I don't see how the warranty/Toyota dealer that did the body work would try to weasel out of doing any needed repairs. Good luck to you, and hopefully the accidents are over.

 

Probably not a "death trap," but there is no doubt the vehicle will experience extreme "diminished value" from all this. I'd unload it if possible, but that may not be, at least without taking a big loss.
Too bad the first accident didn't total it out. Do you have replacement cost insurance? I'm thinking that's something that might be worthwhile having for these complex machines.
We have a lot of deer here in the mountains of VA, and my family has hit five in less than two years. This kind of incidence was unheard of a generation ago, but the states have learned they can make a lot of revenue from licenses, tags, etc., and are putting their profit-making on the backs of the insurance companies (read: US). We really need to do something about this, but, unfortunately, it's gridlock with the bambiists on one side saying "don't shoot," and the states on the other preserving huge and out-of-control herds.
It used to be newsworthy when a deer was photographed inside city limits. Just ponder that....

 

Does it have accident avoidance and lane keeping?

The newer Prius apparently will be announced at the Detroit auto show and you should have an opportunity in the spring to replace and upgrade. My thinking is target May/June of 2011 as Prius replacement window and using your 'lessons learned,' make the change then.

As for taking a bath with a new car, our experience:

• $12,950 -> $1,200 - 1991 Camry, lost in accident and insurance declared total loss in 2005. Service life, 14 years and 180k miles. Unadjusted for inflation, ~$0.065 per mile.
• $14,250 -> $3,000 - 2001 Echo, sold to help finance new 2010 Prius. service life, 8 years and 30k miles. Unadjusted for inflation, ~$0.375 per mile.

Take your time and plan your next car. The current one is perfectly fine and who know, winter is coming and you might have a 'golden accident' that finally takes the car . . . although I'm not sure insurance payment for a car ever makes up the difference.

Bob Wilson

 

Keep car. I know how it is but when you are pissed off at something and make a financial decision it is absolutely the wrong time to do it. At the very least promise yourself you'll keep it for one month once you get it back. By then the emotion will be mostly out of this decision and you can act more reasonably.

 

Mine has accident avoidance and it has saved me 3 times, all from mindless animals:

1st - A dog dashed across in front of my car;
2nd - A beefy pickup truck driver running the red light;
3rd - A beefy city cop with his cruiser stopped at the right most lane before a red light, suddenly decided to swerve in front of 2 other stopped cars to u-turn, unawared that the left turn signal light had turned green and I was approaching the left turn green light from 20 yards behind. No he didn't sound the siren.

Did I mentioned they were all MINDLESS ANIMALS?

This accident avoidance feature is TOTALLY AWESOME and TOTALLY WORTH the money! I don't know how much it'll help in avoiding collision with a deer on a highway at highway speed, though.

 

For me it would come down to just how confident I was in the repair shop - if they did the repairs properly the car should be just fine.

If you do go to sell it you really are going to need to disclose both accidents if you sell privately. There is a good chance that a potential buyer will get a carfax, but regardless it is the right thing to do. Your best bet in terms of keeping a clear conscience would be to trade it in.

 

Let me get this straight...you start a thread entitled, and I quote: "Should I unload this trouble magnet?" because a deer hit your car, and you're worried about possible structural and other possible issues that possibly could pop up because of the deer hitting your car? Is that about right?

Good God.

Why not re-title the thread: "Does the Prius attract deer because of it's magnetic field, and I'm lucky to be alive in this death trap"?

 

I don't know too much about the insurance process... but can't the adjuster ... when getting the estimate, have a toyota dealer give the adjuster an estimate? I'm sure they'd know how much the parts cost!

Sounds like this adjuster is trying to save the insurance company money by giving you a bum estimate...

 

I knew repairs would be pricey, but did not know that much. That is a hidden cost of owning Prius. No wonder my insurance on this car is 50% more that on the other cars I have.

 

Are you saying the PCS detected the dog and pressed the brake for you (or even beeped at you)?!!??
That would be news worthy of a new separate thread in my book :rockon:

 

It kind of comes down to what can you afford to do?

Trading it in? You probably would take a huge loss. Can you afford that? Is that "loss" something you are willing to spend in order to hit the reset button?

Nobody outside of yourself can answer that for you. Since you've obviously suffered cumilative damage that makes you nervous it's actually too bad the vehicle wasn't just totaled...that would of been the answer handed to you...

You say you tend to keep your vehicles a long time? Well then as long as you are happy with the vehicles operation and reasonably secure in it's apparent repair you should soon be driving a vehicle that is basicly brand new.

Have you ever seen the movie "The World According to Garp"? In the movie, a family is looking to buy a house, and while they are touring it with the real estate agent, a small plane crashes into the roof. T.S. Garp proudly proclaims to that they'll take the house, as it has been "Pre-Disasterized"....you could look at it that way...

 

My wife just called me up... she was heading into town with the Prius and a moose darted from on side of the highway (6 lanes divided) and stopped just short of her lane. She was quite shaken.
Suspect there would have been a lot less of our Prius if it hit a moose.

 

Keep the car until the wheels fall off, I don't see no problem keeping the vehicle since you would lose your shirt trading the car in to the STEALERSHIP for another one.

 

Have you had a modern technologically advanced car repaired lately?

 

Mine is comparably very low; it's well known that this is a cheap car to insure, despite any anecdotal or fringe experiences to the contrary.

Repairs may be expensive but if they are not needed often (they aren't) one must keep that in mind.

 

Timbo -

Since you want to go there....

#1 - My comment was hardly "inappropriate".

#2 - But you're title was, and remains, completely misleading, to say the least. "unload your "trouble magnet" . How do you know you have a "trouble magnet"? Can you predict the future? Do you expect people here to predict the future?

#3 If you are, in fact, looking for "informed advice" about structural integrity issues...do you honestly expect people on an internet chat board to be able to give you "informed advice" without actually inspecting your car? That is, even if there are folks on here that do, or see this type of damage all the time. While you're at it, why don't you ask the board about whether the pain in your back is serioius enough to see a specialists. Good liuck with the advice.

#4 - If you want an "informed" opinion, see the dealership, or an indpendent garage...or both. You know, get the "informed" opinion from people that can actually INSPECT the damage, and take the time to thoroughly look over your car before giving you advice.

#5 - Anybody that would value the advice handed out over the internet, from people that have not seen your car, nor inspected your car, and know exactly what the undercarriage, and structural damage there might be...well, will get exactly what they deserve.

#6 - It's one thing to ask folks here what they like, or don't like about their car, or how something should work...but it's quite another to expect anybody to provide "informed" advice about something as critical as structural damage...without inspecting the damage. Geez, even my kids know this...wow.

Are you for real?

Oh, and to quote you: "I apologize for speaking in an angry tone..."

 

Seriously, the BEST advice you can get, is to seek the advice of those who can actually inspect the vehicle, and who deal with issues of structural integrity - all the time.

I was rear-ended a few years ago in my Jeep. To me, and other than the rear bumper and one of the doors not cxlosing right, the car seemed fine. it drove fine, and I had no issues. When the insurance came to inspect, they determined i had a "slightly bent" frame. I was told they can "straighten" the frame, but that it would never "drive true". They totaled the car and gave me a nice check.

Trust the people that do this for a living...and if in doubt, get multiple opinions from those that can inspect. This is definitley NOT an area that I would trust the advice handed out over the internet. Even if you had provided pictures of the damage 9which you did not), that still would not be enough to provide an "informed" opinion.

That's my "informed" opinion.