Should you repair a 2004 Toyota Prius with 9000 damage including replacement of the side pillar between the front and rear right-side windows? __________________ You win some, you lose some, you wreck some.
Well, you'll need to figure out the market value of the car when repaired; use kbb.com and look for the private party value or dealer trade-in value, depending upon whether you can sell the car yourself or must rely upon a trade-in. Then call a local salvage yard to determine the value of the unrepaired car if towed to the salvage yard. If the difference between those two numbers is more than $9K then it would be potentially worthwhile to repair.
A better question to ask is whether the frame is still within spec. I wouldn't go through the trouble of fixing a car whose unibody had been seriously distorted because the car will never drive the same. That said, it isn't hard to put $9k of damage on a Prius - State Farm had a little booth at the auto show a couple years back with a picture of a Prius which someone had rear ended and asked people to guess how much damage there was. The whole back of the car had been crumpled in and the glass shattered - apparently it was $12k in damage.
But that is true of all cars today, they are all built to crumple. The modern car is design to sacrifice itself for the passengers inside.
No. A 2004 Prius is likely only worth $9000 without accident damage. After such major repairs this will show up on a carfax making it difficult to sell for anything close to this.
I bought my daughter's 2004 Pkg 6 for less than $9K. So I think you are underwater or nearly so based on mileage.
To find out what your car will be worth after the repair, get the "trade-in value" from Kelley's and Edmund. Take the lower number and subtract at least $2000. Then, remember that the $9000 is an estimate, subject to increase after more damage is discovered. Then factor in that Carfax will show an extensive damage accident, making the car harder to sell. Then remember that little things like the radio may not work right and require specialized repair. Then remember that an accident can cause occult damage. Another chatter bought a damaged Prius. 20,000 later he broke a piston. A piece of the intake manifold was found in the engine. It was theorized that the manifold was cracked in the accident and that the piece broke off after 20,000 miles. Enjoy!
