Robothobo

Hello A quick update. I now have a replacement door, from eBay. The seller said it was silver, and even though mine is Twilight Grey I was happy as it seemed from the photos (and confirmed now that I have it) to be in good condition. However when I got it, it looked...grey. When I looked at it held up against the car, it was obvious that the door is Gunmetal Grey. Haha I've had a couple of quotes. I will probably go with the more expensive one as I got a better vibe from there (and they're closer). I'm getting there.

I didn't know you could do that. Thanks 👍

Sorry for the radio silence. The only offer was £5681 and I keep the car. I tried haggling but they did not budge. The car is obviously still driveable and I plunged out some of the bigger dents so it looks slightly less @*!#. I did buy the panel that GranTurismoEra linked to but when I went to get a quote the chap pointed out that the door was a bit damaged internally at the bottom and would probably not look very good if I went down that route. Sent it back and got a refund. So, I'm still looking for a replacement door, the colour is twilight grey and I guess not as many of those were sold as I haven't seen any on the usual places. Some breakers on eBay seem to have cars that might fit the bill but the photos aren't great and they don't always specify the colour. Plenty of silver doors, so I'll probably end up with one of those. I got a quote for - fixing the rear quarter panel, changing the doors (incuding the workings, lock etc) and respray for £900. Seems okay to me but I'll get a few more quotes. Assuming the door will be about £200, I'm looking at £1100 to get back to where I was. That gives me £4581 cash to cover the loss of value as it is a CAT N. I've done some soul searching and realised that I bloody love this car, so I'm keeping it.

Thanks for that link. The seller made me an offer so I got it for £161.

Thanks everyone. I asked for more money and the claims handler came back with a firm NO. I've done some searching Parker's etc and don't really think I will be able to get much more. Worth a try but I'll take the money. It would be a terrible shame to scrap it. This will sound strange coming from someone who drives a 3.5L V6, but I do care about the environment. I think we should keep cars on the road for as long as they are safe. I can certainly make the numbers work so will see if I can keep it or at the very least, get it sellable. Since the incident I have been looking at the new Civic Type R, wow what a machine (in reality probably too expensive for me), and out of left field, Ford Rangers (second hand). Pick-up truck is a scratch I've been wanting to itch. Does anyone have expeirence taking off the outer panel of the door? I might just buy a (new) panel, fit that and then get it resprayed.

Thanks for the replies. I appreciate them. I like your idea of haggling on price at £6500, ZAMANALEX. I do think the cost of actually buying a real world replacement should be argued. It is the other party's insurance company that is paying out so I don't think my policy comes into it in that case. I might speak to mine and see what's what but I don't want to pay any excess.

Their email says - As our client has no legal or financial interest in your vehicle, this remains your property to deal with as you see fit.

Hello I'm after a bit of advice please. My HR was hit on the driver's side, on a roundabout. The other driver has admited fault. However, their insurance company has written it off as a CAT N. They are offering me £5681 (Value of the vehicle less the value of the salvage £1794.00) valuing it at £7475. Does that seem like a fair price? It's done 80,000 miles. Does anyone have experience haggling in these cases? I won't be able to buy another one like mine for £5681. Apart from the money, I'm not sure what to do. I keep the car and take the money. So I have two options - 1) Repair it - I am pretty sure I can buy a second hand door for a hundred quid or so, the rear panel obviously needs work, and a respray will be required across that side. If I repair it, this does mean I have a CAT N car which will affect re-sale. Or 2) Say goodbye to the car and have fun with something else. I've had it for ten years and it has been brilliant but I now have a family and although we have a family car I think I will need four seats in my next one. Just wondering if anyone else has had a similar thing happen to them and what they did. Thanks

These look brilliant. Nice work. I'll take some black ones please. Let me know how you want payment etc.

Good idea. I'd be interested in this mod.

Thanks for the replies. I decided to go for the Cobra resonated from Tarmac, thanks Chris. I was initially annoyed at the MOT failure but decided to turn a bad thing into a good thing by treating myself.

Hi It looks like I need a new exhaust due to a corroded mid/rear box joint resulting in a failed MOT. I'd like new but I'm looking to keep the costs (and noise) down so was looking at stock or maybe Cobra resonated. Open to other suggestions though.. Traders - Can you please give me some prices please. Thanks Mark

Mario Kart 8 for me. It looks utterly gorgeous and is still as fun as ever.

I'd be up for this too.

A bit of an over-reaction from me then! Just didn't like how quickly defensive he got. You live and learn.