Vent post. I bought a really nice convertible recently: a Saturn Sky Red Line. 260 horsepower manual roadster, $5600. I already spent $700 and eight hours or so improving the interior and had plans to do a lot of other work. Spent like $800 on brand new winter tires (a commitment to own the thing for 4-5 years at least). Planned to race it in the spring. This was really my biggest source of joy the last few months.
Two weeks ago someone in a 2017 F-150 sideswiped me on the highway and drove away. I chased him for a while but he lost me. I got his plate but no footage of who was actually inside. Pigs said they wouldn't criminally charge him (hit-and-run, reckless driving) because I don't have evidence that the car wasn't stolen. My car runs and drives just fine, but he damaged a bunch of panels. Body shops quoted $5.5 and $6k because parts are really rare. This is so much that insurance is probably going to try to total it. They'll offer me the difference between the cash value of the car (approx what I paid for it) and the salvage value ($3k? who knows), which will not be enough to fix the damage. Effectively they're going to force me to sell the car after I really got attached to it.
Just feeling really upset and powerless. I already had a lot of shit to do and now I need to haggle with his insurance, my insurance, show up at his house (4+ hour drive) and bluff that I'll get his license taken away, and haul him into small claims if nothing works. It's unlikely any of that will give me enough to fix the damage. To reduce cost I can wait around for a parts car, which may take years. There's not a single Sky in any Illinois junkyard, and there's not a wreck in the same color with the panels I need literally anywhere in the continental US. I can do some of the installation (not painting) myself but at the very least I'm out a couple thousand dollars and many hours. Even if I had comprehensive insurance I'd be in the same situation, struggling for the insurance company not to total my car.
I can show up and pour brake fluid on his shitty truck, but that won't fix my car. Fuck this guy and people like him, fuck insurance, fuck pigs.
Sorry bud, I know how heartbreaking it can be when an enthusiast vehicle you've poured your money and time into gets into an accident and you're left in limbo hoping the insurance will act favorably on your behalf. BTW, how'd you get a manual Sky for only 5600? A coworker of mine got the much less desirable auto Sky for 8k last year. Even with the inflated prices at the time, manuals are much more in demand so you got a hell of a deal.
It's got 170k miles with all the usual problems: oil leak somewhere, dinged front bumper, cracked fenders, etc. One of the first owners put on like 70k miles in 5 years so I don't feel too bad about daily driving. But the water pump, timing chain, head gasket were already done recently.
I also bought it once it was cold enough for convertibles to be a little cheaper.