MDs1

Got myself rear ended this morning on 395 North in the DC area on my way to work. It was a stop and go traffic but this lady on a Toyota 4 Runner came at about 40-45 mile speed. The rear end is pretty bad. . I must say the RL saved me big time today! Except for sore body and back - I came out okay. Was taken to the hospital on a stretcher because I was complaining of the back pain but the X-rays came out okay.

I don't know if I will keep the car if it is repaired by the insurance. It will never be the same. I am with Nationwide and they will be handling the case. My adjuster is going to call tomorrow - they haven't seen the car yet. I feel sorry for the car - I bought it new and has only 15,600 miles on it - didn't have a single ding or scratch. What do you guys think - it is a repair or total?

Best.



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poppintec

I don't think they will total it unless their is frame damage, it looks like the bumper absorbed it but who knows body work is expensive these days haha........hey at least your alright thats all that matters

DandyG23

It is tough to say by the pictures. The adjuster will know more when they will see the car in person. If the frame is damaged in any way, then it will be totaled. At least you came out okay. But in my best opinion, it will be totaled.

DurgyNess

TOTAL IT and get another 08 with the same millage

Mr.Tea

That looks like a total loss to me. My TL was rear ended in March in the same way It was total. Too much to repair. It was a 1999 with 299,000 miles. I got $5000.00 for the car. And decided to by an Rl so i would say you stand a very good chance of this being a loss. You have an 08 so wow They will get scared of the repair bills. My car never sustained Back glass damage.

1islandparadise

I dont know if the insurance will total it. KBB.com has private party value in excellent condition for your car to be worth over $35K. Glad to hear you are ok though!

Professor

Damn! I'm glad you are o.k. but I hate to see the endangered species, aka RL, take a hit like that. I would insist on being totaled. If not you'll end up with small "unexplained" things like a drive shaft rattle, rattles in the interior, etc. Damn only 15K miles... sad.

BTW, did any airbags deploy from a rear hit?

Professor

From the pics, it looks like the 4runner came out in pretty good shape.

stever500

I would never want that car back after this... I hope they let you get a new one. Too many possible problems.

What a hit! You're lucky to be ok. You'll be hurting for a while though is my guess. Muscular pain.

037

looks like a pretty crazy hit, definitely check out every Dr they got for you as no way you're walking out with just muscle pain. Better be safe than sorry and GOOO RL.

I dunno of any other car that can take a hit that strong and have you walk around taking photos.

MDs1

Thanks guys for your comments. From the side I could take the picture it doesn't look so bad but if you look on the right side - you would see that the part of the main body rolled inside the trunk. I didn't have a chance to go to the other side to look at the car because of the oncoming traffic.

I must say - the RL is heck of a car! The airbag didn't deploy but the seat belt did save me from hitting the steering.

Will keep you guys posted as to how it goes with the insurance. My insurance is going to handle it. I know, I will not keep this car one way or the other and I will probably get another RL.

037

I know this isn't the best time for you...but did the Toyota deplay airbags?

phishfood

That'll pop right out.

OLD_HATCH

Glad to hear your ok, but make sure you go to your docs just in case.


Not for nothing, but to repair that car correctly a decent body shop would probably be working on it for like 2 months. Not to mention such a hard hit does more damage than what you can see in the rear. Things will probably need replacing in other parts of the car as well because of this hit.

If they do decide to fix make sure they use new genuine Acura parts.

037

if you're with Geico, use their authorized shop as the repairs are guaranteed for life. If it's not totalled you can't afford not to have it done right the first time.

vinodc

hey I'm glad your ok, i'll offer a story from last summer.

My parents barely 1yr old Jeep commander Limited was totalled(lost control, went into woods running parallel to highway at 75mph....miracle they are alive) it was about 45k new. yeah jeeps have somewhat poor reliability and poor resale, but in all seriousness, it saved there lives and i'm quite positive any other crossover suv we contemplated buying instead would have not survived.

I can only suggest...PLEASE DO NOT let that bodyshop insist on begining work right away. They priased our car, about 1yr old, with 15k miles.....worth 35k. The initial repairs they said came out to 21k. they said, well its less than 75% of car value, we MUST repair. I had my concerns, no way did I think that car would be fixed.

This was a lucrative fix for them, and they started right away, it seemed state-farm adjuster did a poor job as well. Two weeks go by, now they state the roof also went bad(obvious in the first place to me)...another 3k. The rear axle was replaced........rear window.....rear panels..... here's what blew my mind. the body shop and state-farm......did a VISUAL inspection of engine.....and assumed it was fine. my common sense tells me, front end destroyed.....engine can't be fine. They had to replace engine hoses, brakes rebuilt....get the picture.

my 21k estime, now jumped up to a whopping 29k!! I pleaded with state farm, to total it, no way in hell I wanted it back now. they insisted once they said yes to repair.....no going back. well 6 weeks later, i get call......Sir your jeep is done!!

take it for a spin..........No AC......No washer fluid pump.....sunroof wouldn't open.....passenger windows would not go all the way up......trunk wouldn't close right.

another 3k addon....... SIR....your car is done!! awesome.....go for spin......LOUD noise from windshield....air leak.....sunroof not put on center.....paint just wasn't the same.

I called my state farm agent, great guy.....shared my furstrations....after spending now $34k.......state farm Totalled it. and 8 weeks without a car. So i urge you......if they show ANY hesitation......ask for multiple estimates/estimators.........thats not a car id want rebuilt.....they just aren't the same. But regardless, i'm glad your ok. As a medical intern, I suggest you get checked out if you have any lingering pains.

neuronbob

Sorry to read of your misfortune. ACE body structure FTW!

abusive

It may not be totaled. As many have said. My 03 TL-S got nailed and the damage looked similar - I thought it would be a complete total. But it was repaired. It "looks" bad because the components are designed to do what they did - collapse and absorb shock.

Also with the rear end there aren't as many non-structural things to be damaged during repair, unlike the front end.

Glad to hear you're safe. That's all that matters.

Ballinger

Glad to hear you're okay. A little body putty and that car will be...well still really messed up. I think you should replace it with a 2011 RL, the one with the V8 and 22's stock.

JPSMAN

I think I drove by you (and that mess) the other morning....sorry to hear about the accident.

95/395 is always crazy....people going way too fast for the traffic conditions.

I hope you end up with a new RL out of it all.

tmnhs81

That sucks. Glad you walked away from that crazy crash. I hope that it'll work out for you.

MDs1

Thanks guys for your comments. I went to take a look at the car this morning and to release it to the insurance company. Here are some photos of the car from the other side. My insurance is handling it now - I think it is going to be a total.

MDs1



http://img202.imageshack.us/img202/922/accident5.jpg
http://img203.imageshack.us/img203/7854/accident4.jpg
http://img227.imageshack.us/img227/3275/accident3.jpg
http://img684.imageshack.us/img684/1984/accident2a.jpg

037

I'm amazed how all the damage got absorbed in the back and none of it went past the trunk besides the broken window.

Thumbs up to the safest car on the road!

abusive

Ignore my previous post. It's toast.

compewterbleu

Whoa, nice to see you are ok. I know how that DMV traffic can be use to work for the District. That RL was built solid.

robarsan

It's good to hear the car took the brunt of the damage and no major personal injury.
I'm curious as to what excuse the lady had for plowing into you.

getakey

this is an interesting vid on how crash safety has improved
not an RL, but you get the picture
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=joMK1WZjP7g

TampaRLX-SH

Sorry to hear but so glad you are OK. It pains me to see damage like that...especially when it results from another driver.

The ACE structure that give's all Acura's a 5 star crash rating is was implemented with our generation RL.

It is demonstrated in an MDX commercial which an MDX uni-body is crashed into a barrier. In the slow motion film, you can actually see the front structure absorbing the crash and then the energy ripple over the mostly unaffected passenger compartment. But we rarely see it demo'd in rear impacts.

It looks like your passenger compartment was unaffected aside from the rear window breaking? Indeed it did the job well.

Most people do not appreciate details like this. A half second of 0-60 speed is usually more critical to most buyers when in fact this feature is what they really need and it is much more important in the big picture.

Start shopping for a replacement RL. Maybe a cherry used to hold you over until we see if a next generation is produced.

MDs1

Dear Fellow RL'ers,

Thanks for your comments. After taking a look at the car this morning from the other side I couldn't believe myself that the car took such a hit. My RL gave its own life to save mine! I know why I will be looking into buying another RL! The insurance is still handling the case. I will keep you guys posted.

Best.

MDs1

tmnhs81

Good luck with insurance and new car shopping.

crazyasiantl

iTrader: (7)

wow, thats some hit. glad you are ok. good luck in finding another nice RL

plastikman

Most important thing is that you are ok, a car can be replaced. Glad you don't have any serious injuries, let us know what the insurance says.

MDs1

Hi Robertsan,

The lady on the Toyota 4 Runner didn't speak to anyone - she was resting her head on the seat with her eyes closed (unconscious may be?) - didn't talk to the officer or to the medics.

MDs1

MDs1

No - the Toyota didn't deploy airbags - I was kind of surprised.

princelybug

iTrader: (16)

Sorry...

037

yea...I'll stay with Honda, thanks

RL Chi-town

whats the outcome of the car...

cars4boys

Looks like the Toyota driver did not even touch the brakes.
Get a new car. That one is done.

abusive

If you get a chance to take off some parts, I'll buy the radio. Need a donor radio for cheap to work on a project. :P

(Figured enough time has passed to make the insensitive request for parts..)

MDs1

Insurance is still investigating the case. An appraiser was assigned to assess the damage of my car. As of this morning, my insurance was not able to get insurance information for the lady hit me. That portion of the information was left blank in the police information exchange form. In the mean time, my insurance is going to take care of it and go after the other party. After looking at the photos the agent thinks that the car is going to be totaled.