advice on accident repair

I recently put my '94 SL2 (145K mi) into a ditch off a highway ramp (high speed + wet road). The bumper cover is smashed up, but otherwise the suspension and bottom of the front chassis bore the brunt of the damage.

I put new (used) rims and one new tire on it to limp to a shop, but it was pretty clear that the damage was bad. The alignment was serverely off--to go straight, I had to put 90 degrees of left steering lock on it, and the suspension had almost no ability to cope with bumps in the road. Additionally, the engine sounded rough (though no apparent loss in power delivery), and the car vibrated when it was stopped at a light.

Otherwise, there are no leaks and electrics are fine.

The shop checked it out, and once they put it up on a lift, the picture was clearer. I'm looking at:

- crumpled K-member

- bent anti-sway bar (and crushed sway bar mounts/bushings)

- both lower control arms bent

The shop quoted me ~2 grand to repair--$1000 for labor, $1000 for parts (all used, except the sway bar links, brackets, and bushings). After some poking around online, I believe I can get the parts for somewhere in the 600-900 range shipped, but it'd be much easier dealing with someone local--and time is a key factor since we are down to two cars between four people.

Given that the bluebook on the car (in good condition) is just about $2000, I have the difficult decision of whether to go ahead with the repairs or declare it a loss cause.

If I do repair it, there is chance of more problems--specifically the engine roughness worries me--and perhaps some latent problems that manifest only after some time. I could very very easily be spending much more than 2 grand.

If I don't, I only need to pick up enough 'new' car to last me less than a year--but I run the risk of problems with the new car.

On both other hands, the saturn could run great--as it has been--for many more years if i repair it, and if i buy a new car, I might end up with something quite good that is also solid for many more years.

Any suggestions?

Reply to
Edwin Liu
Loading thread data ...

I think you can find a better deal. But I could not tell you how to find it. The parts from a you-pull junkyard would be one hell of a lot less (probably get the whole of your parts for $100 or less). A couple of people have been selling off their mid 90s SC models on Ebay - piece by piece - you might check there!

-WaV

Edw> I recently put my '94 SL2 (145K mi) into a ditch off a highway ramp

Reply to
wavy

With respect to the rough running engine -- you might want to check/recheck all the motor mounts. If you hit as hard as it appears, they may have failed, allowing the engine to torque/twist/flop around inside the engine compartment. Damn things aren't that expensive, but they can be a pain in the posterior to replace. Good luck ....

Reply to
Ocean Archer

MotorsForum website is not affiliated with any of the manufacturers or service providers discussed here. All logos and trade names are the property of their respective owners.