Would you repair a 2011 Toyota Avalon with $5000 damage & 190,000 miles??

[Teacher Terry]

Years ago this happened to us and we cashed the check from the insurance company and drove the car until it died.

 

[RetMD21]

State Farm offered us less than half the repair cost if we wanted a check. I would get if fixed but that's just me. . It doesn't have timing belt and Avalons can last a long time.

 

[JoeWras]

Because it is a Toyota, I'd keep it and "buff out" the damage.

If it were a Dodge, I'd take the money and run.

It also depends on your tolerance for messing with cars. Even a Toyota is going to need a lot of care and feeding at 190k.

Being retired, I have time to mess with our cars that are all 13+ yrs old and have 100k, 150k, 205k miles. I also enjoy the challenge of troubleshooting. Most people have no tolerance for it.

The new safety stuff is a good point. My new to me 2011 Honda was top of the line loaded, and has blind spot warning, which was rare back then. What an incredibly useful safety feature!

 

[freedomatlast]

We really need to see a picture to offer any good advice. If it's just paint work and the metal isn't dented, if it won't buff out, just have someone wet sand with 400 grit and shoot the base and clear coat. If the metal is dented to a great degree, get on www.car-parts.com , find a fender and doors in the same color and bolt them on. Very minimal expense with either option.

 

[JoeWras]

We really need to see a picture to offer any good advice. If it's just paint work and the metal isn't dented, if it won't buff out, just have someone wet sand with 400 grit and shoot the base and clear coat. If the metal is dented to a great degree, get on www.car-parts.com , find a fender and doors in the same color and bolt them on. Very minimal expense with either option.

Totally agree!

I was joking a bit with the "buff it out" comment. One of the best scenes of "Planes, Trains and Automobiles" addresses OP's situation well.

 

[ncbill]

Take the money, don't fix cosmetic damage, & keep driving it.

 

[Out of Steam]

I would see if https://www.car-part.com/ had doors/fender in correct color nearby and contact a local body shop or independant to do the legwork and swaps... and remainder of work. Well .. actually i would DIY most of it.

I would at least look into this, working with an independent shop, though paint matches on an older car are sometimes not that good. The shop might also make an offer on it as-is.

 

[JBTX]

Actually had a couple Avalons and also Lexus es350s. I’ve always found with just about any car they become less reliable between 150k and 200k miles. You will start having to sink more and more into it. You may sink $2000 into it, then 6 months later sink another $2500. Or maybe you’ll get another year or two. Rarely, but occasionally they will break down and leave you stranded.

 

[badatmath]

I didn't read all this but I had good luck with a place that "paintless dent repair". I pocketed some money and they pulled out some dents. It has been probably 20 years ago.

 

[JoeWras]

I didn't read all this but I had good luck with a place that "paintless dent repair". I pocketed some money and they pulled out some dents. It has been probably 20 years ago.

OP ghosted us so we have no idea of the damage type.

A picture would be worth a thousand.

 

[freetodream]

Here is the photo of the damage:

I'm hoping the photo of the damage appears; I found it difficult to figure out how to attach a photo.
The rear door has minor scuffing and well as the front bumper cover which the estimate shows it would be replaced. The door opens and closes OK and that is where the most bent metal damage was. The wheel would be replaced, has minor scuffing from his tire.

Thanks for all of your helpful advice. Still thinking, but have plans to call insurance agent next to determine if they are willing to give us a check for the repair costs or if they require us to have it repaired.

 

[REWahoo]

I'm hoping the photo of the damage appears; I found it difficult to figure out how to attach a photo.

Step by step instructions for attaching a photo:

Click reply and scroll down to bottom of text box.
Click "go advanced" add text to message window and then scroll down.
Click "Manage attachments" or the paperclip icon on the editor tool bar. A separate window will pop up.
Click "browse" Then select the file to be uploaded. Be sure that the photo is appropriately sized. 1600 x 1600 pixels (or smaller) and no more than 2 megs. Forums software will automatically reduce the size, but smaller size photos will upload much faster. You may select several photos to upload at the same time by repeating the last step.
Click "Upload" After pics have loaded close the pop-up window
Click "submit reply" to mount the text of your message - photos will automatically appear at the bottom of your post.

 

[freetodream]

Second attempt, that was a challenge!

 

[Andre1969]

Wow, that actually looks pretty minor. As long as nothing safety/inspection-related was affected, I'd be tempted to just take the insurance payout, if they'll just give you money, and not force you to get it fixed.

 

[JoeWras]

Thank you freetodream. Sorry for accusing you of leaving us earlier. This picture helps a lot. And now you have picture posting in your skill set here.

If that is the extent of the damage, I agree to take the payout that allows you to keep the car and have someone or yourself do something minimal to spruce it up a bit and protect from rust.

One thing I've learned about living with vehicles over 150k miles and 10 years is you have to come to accept something less than optimal for various issues. For many people, this is not acceptable. And I understand! They either don't want to drive around in a car with scars, or they don't want to have to deal with problems like check engine lights or sudden failures. Totally understandable.

It is a decision you have to make. If you think it is the time to move to something new, warrantied, with newer safety features, this may be an opportunity. Yet at the same time, this may be an opportunity to save a few dollars, put it in a T-bill at over 5%, but with the understanding you are driving a non-optimal vehicle that doesn't look perfect, and may be causing you a repair bill due to age related issues.

My garage:
- 2009 Pontiac Vibe, 100k miles (same car as Toyota Matrix)
- 2010 Subaru Legacy, 151k
- 2011 Honda Odyssey, 204k

 

[COcheesehead]

Take the cash, drive it until you no longer want it, trade it and take what you can get.

My wife’s car had $9500 in hail damage. Value of the car was maybe $10,000. Insurance paid us $9500. She turned around and took it to a dealer and traded it for an additional $4000 - the trade reducing taxes on the new car as well because you pay on the difference. We feel we made out better than if it did not have damage.

 

[Jerry1]

Let us know if you can get a payment from the insurance company without fixing that. I doubt it. I thought, from your description, that the car was totaled and that the insurance company might let you have the car.

Now that I see the damage, I’d go ahead and get it fixed if they won’t let you have a check.

 

[COcheesehead]

Let us know if you can get a payment from the insurance company without fixing that. I doubt it. I thought, from your description, that the car was totaled and that the insurance company might let you have the car.

Now that I see the damage, I’d go ahead and get it fixed if they won’t let you have a check.

As long as the car does not have a lien, you should be able to be paid directly from your insurance carrier.

 

[Aerides]

Let us know if you can get a payment from the insurance company without fixing that. I doubt it. I thought, from your description, that the car was totaled and that the insurance company might let you have the car.

Now that I see the damage, I’d go ahead and get it fixed if they won’t let you have a check.

Exactly, if you can get paid, do so. That sort of damage might be mostly resolved with one of those mobile-dent-removal places for a fraction of the reimbursement. If you can get $4k, spend $500 on making it look better, and drive it for another year or two while you start slow shopping, great.

 

[COcheesehead]

My wife just had an unfortunate incident. The garage door hit the GPS shark fin on the roof of her Bronco and pushed the roof in about a 12” wide circle. We took it to a PDR place and a regular body shop. The body shop was exactly double. The paintless dent repair did it in less than a day and you would never know the dent was there.

 

[cj1717]

it sounds like it served you well but it is time to let it go. Get something newer with far better safety features.

agree

 

[kingkarmann]

I see many a car cruising around with collision damage.
If it runs and drives fine then I’d roll it.

 

[waynezo]

I would take the money from insurance and what you can get for the car. At 190k a major repair could pop up anytime. I love the new safety features on new cars. Adaptive cruise and blind spot alert are excellent. Lane guidance is annoying, but I leave it on. Front collision alert saved me from hitting a car stopped on the freeway last year. These safety features do work or Insurance companies wouldn't give a discount. I used to be in the car business and we had a saying "They don't last forever"

 

[badatmath]

I'd keep it, PDR it to spiff it up, it is not nearly as bad as I imagined. But it would not be a bad idea to look around a little for what you might want to get next time.

 

[JoeWras]

It all depends on OP's willingness to tinker and accept a non-perfect looking car.

There's no one answer. I like to tinker with cars in my retirement. It would be good for me.

If I lived in Rochester, I'd PM the OP and consider an offer. Alas, I'm far away and not in the rust belt, so no-go.