There's a non s with 140k miles on here for sale for 12k. I'm trying really hard to resist.

Agree with the others, that looks totalled from the pictures and your comment about other damage. It's actually for the better, you would lose value on a seriously repaired car. Hopefully they make you a fair offer and you can go grab another. At least the Cayman isn't a rare car. Definitely get all of the modifications off of it ASAP though, they won't give you more money for them.

Yes, the early-model Caymans are currently hovering between $25-35, with same-gen Boxsters a little cheaper and 997s a little more expensive (but not much!).

Thank you all for your advice and insights; I will let you know what happens. I'm already considering various different options.

Right now, assuming that the car is totaled, I am leaning toward a classic 911. It's something I've wanted to jump into for, what, 15 years now... the difference is that I will actually have a decent-sized garage in a month or so!

Personally I wouldn't bother buying it back - it's money out of your pocket that you'll probably need to get into something new and if you're like me, you've got more important things to do than turn your yard into a junkyard for partially disassembled heaps. Up to you but personally I wouldn't bother. Get a good settlement, don't let them dick you (they will definitely try) and get something good out of it.

Best of luck!

The only company worse than an insurance company is a towing company and tow yard. To get it out you will likely have to pay all the towing and storage fees which will be highly inflated unless there are set prices which may be the case if police are involved. When I wrecked my 997, the tow yard wouldn't allow my friend into the yard to take pictures of it. They let me take pictures because I had the title in my hand. I was in a wheel chair and had to wheel myself across their gravel lot to take pictures from the chair.

Sorry for the poor luck.

My experience is that they will lowball you on the value of your car and you will have to fight tooth and nails to get it paid. Once you settle, they will offer it as a buy-back to you and suddenly it is worth a lot of money, even wrecked. :rolleyes:

My only advice on the "go fast goodies" is to not mess with it. You need to document that they are in there, go to the yard to take pictures - they will let you look at it and get in it to "retrieve personal belongings". That can be floor mats and other easily removed stuff. But that's how far I'd take it. I would not wrench on the car.

Just my two cents. Unfortunately I once lost a car to a total that I was not able to replace with a similar vehicle for the same price. On the Cayman it should be fairly easy, but be prepared to lose money, even after fighting the insurance company with comps etc.

G

UPDATE:

If there's any real irony in the world, it's that the Fabspeed Maxflo exhaust that I ordered for my Cayman S before the accident arrived at my door on the day that I found out that my car is totaled.

There was a delay in the process because the tow yard wouldn't release the car to Auto Associates without an in-person signature from yours truly. The problem with this is that as a high school teacher and fall sports head coach, my work hours are 7am until 6pm (after which I'm usually grading papers... don't listen to the FOX News pundits who tell you that teaching is a part-time job; sure, we get Summers off, which is great, but I put in at least 70 hours every week). Happily, the woman who manages the yard agreed to stay a little bit later on Wednesday night so that I could sign the release.

You guys were right about the insurance company wanting to total pretty much anything; the estimate from Auto Associates is that the repair would cost, using new parts, 12-15k (about 7k of which is parts). There is no mechanical damage, and the car is in much better shape than I'd first anticipated. It turns out that I was wrong about the engine compartment/floor mat issue. The engine compartment is fine. The floor pan is fine. All shut lines are as they should be: everything opens and closes with the appropriate gaps between panels, including in the rear trunk. There are some creases in the internal body work, but it's easily repairable. Moreover, that troubling-looking gap between the spoiler and the trunk lid is because the spoiler strut came loose and the spoiler itself is off-kilter. The shut-line is as it should be.

In other words, the car is repairable and should drive as it was. And yet the other party's insurance company wants to total the car. I was told that this insurance company has a tendency to be quick to total; Auto Associates had a very repairable GT3 RS in the shop recently, and the same insurance company wanted to junk it even though the repair bill was only a fraction of the car's value.

I'm going to speak to my insurance adjustor once business hours resume on Monday to see if totaling is really necessary. Failing that, I'm heavily leaning toward taking the payout from the total, paying off the remaining balance that I owe on the car, buying it back from the insurance company with a salvage title (I was given a ballpark figure of $8k), and repairing it "on my dime." The way CT's salvage title rebuild process works is that we would have to document every step of the repair and keep all receipts, and then submit the car to a DMV inspection -- a big pain in the ass, to be sure -- and then the title would be changed from "Salvage" to "Rebuilt". It's probably not as a good a scenario as getting the "totaled" verdict reversed, but it's better than not having a P-car at all. Moreover, it might be nice to go into my first months of home ownership without a car payment! (home inspections are on Wednesday!)

As a side note, Ken at Automotive Associates -- who is a member on this forum and knew about my situation before my car even went into the shop -- has been fantastic at walking me through the process and breaking down my options for me. This shop really has the personal touch that we're all looking for from a specialty shop, and their work is top notch. Moreover, whenever I drive up into their parking lot, it's like entering a Porsche wonderland: I saw an early long-hood Targa, a couple of SCs and 3.2s, an IROC-style race car, a 993, 996, a very nicely preserved 928, a slant-nose 930, not to mention numerous goodies underneath car covers. I'm wishing now that I snapped a photo for all of you :)

The ball is rolling. I'll keep you posted. Thanks again for all your input; I've said it many times, ever since my first 944 15 years ago: I probably wouldn't be able to afford Porsche ownership without PP :)

OT: I was admiring your eloquence, and saw your profile info on the left as Writer/Teacher. No wonder.

Good luck. Personally, I'd take the money and get another one. But you will have to evaluate your own situation, both financially and emotionally.

Why can't you just get the total payout and buy yourself another Cayman?
For example, if book value is $30k, can you get paid $30k, and buy another one for $30k ?
Seems much simpler. How much would you save by rebuilding?

Agree. Own one that hasn't been seriously repaired. Even if the car gets fixed, you'll likely have an accident on the Carfax, which will diminish the value of the car. If they total it, don't you get the market value of the car (as if you were going to sell it) plus tax and pro-rated license? Enough for you to replace what you had?

Hmm, by what you say about the shop and the damage evaluation, I'd lean towards the "repair route".
Trying to have a perfect, or nearly perfect Porsche as a daily driver is an exercise in futlity, IMHO.
This way, you'd have a sweet, paid for Porsche that functions as designed. Hell, I bet your grin while driving will be even bigger afterwards. Having a healthier retirement fund and no car payments is the way to go. That car will depreciate regardless of title type. In 20 years, only perfectly maintained time capsules might bring premium $$. That was never going to be your car. I know you'll care for it properly either way.

Prior to this, you were planning on modest mods, sooo...
Time to make some awesome lemonade!
.02

Looks like the choice is clear!

Yeah, I sort of agree with Don; I could just buy another one, but this is my car. Besides being somewhat attached, I also have already put so much time into it... plus, I don't want to junk a perfectly good Cayman. No sense in taking a nice car off the road.

Thanks, Wildthing :)

Considering your comments about the moderate damage, I would consider repairing it as well. The only real consideration is resale, but if you plan to just buy another Cayman, why not?

I find after an accident I must admit I am not that rational. I experience a mixture of anger, frustration and a WTF mentality. Of course what you do with the situation is your choice. But if it was me I would want a good replacement. Get the ins. co. to give you the best settlement possible and get another one. Put this cr-p behind you and move on.
Cheers, Guy
PS. I agree with the above you are a good writer.

[QUOTE=CJFusco;8791668]Yeah, I sort of agree with Don; I could just buy another one, but this is my car. Besides being somewhat attached, I also have already put so much time into it... plus, I don't want to junk a perfectly good Cayman. No sense in taking a nice car off the road.[/QUOTE]

When I was run off the road and wrecked my 964 Targa I should have rescued the car. I did not. I am not really sure why I did not, but I regret not doing so.

It was indeed my car. It fit me.

I seldom get attached to inanimate objects, but the 964 was different. If you feel the same way about the Cayman, and it makes sense, keep it. I really wish I had.

I have yet to find another.

Something to consider, if the car is repaired, even with all new factory replacement panels and parts, it will forever be tagged as a repair job even there is not a scratch anywhere. Auto dealers, resellers and others that do this sort of stuff know what to look for and how to find things. For example, our 2003 Mini-S had the front bumper replaced at the shipping depot due to another car backing into it. We knew about the work when we bought the car and promptly forgot about it until we went to sell it. I took it to Carmax to see what they would say and the lady that inspected it noted right away the front had been worked on? All she would say was "I can tell easily the bumper cover was replaced"!

Considering it will have a rebuilt title, I think Carfax will be the least of his resale concerns.

I would take the cash and get another car. Just like when you buy a car, I think you should be dispassionate about making choices in situations like this. Your car might never be the same, and when you go to sell the car you going to take a big hit.

Just my 2 pence.