Discussion and Agreement 1996 Taurus Gl

Guys,

I need your counsel on this. My daughter was hit from behind at a stoplight. The 1996 Taurus GL is in perfect mechanical condition, 90,000 miles, new radiator, new tires, new battery and fresh oil and transmission fluid and new oil filter and trans filter. AAA insurance said the car is a total because the blue book on it is lower than the cost to bring it back but the guy at the AAA collision center says the car can be repaired. My question is this if I should choose to spend a couple of thousand to bring it back will it still have the crash resistance that the original Ford engineers put into the car? After all it did sustain a hit from the back that took out the trunk, tail lights, bumper and jammed one of the rear doors and my daughter was not injured. The insurance from the other driver will participate financially on the repair. Also in case I want to purchase her a new car I just looked at crash test ratings and the Ford Five Hundred is excellent --- why did Ford Motor Company announce that the Taurus was being discontinued and to be replaced with the Five Hundred only to reverse itself and cancel the Five Hundred and bring the Taurus line back?

If you get it repaired, it may be perfect but the odds are that you will have some future problems.

The Ford 500 was not selling as well as Ford predicted so they retrieved the Taurus name to boost sales.

It's never a good idea to keep a car with that much damage. It will most likely to give you trouble in the future. But make sure you get more than blue book for the value. First, you're supposed to get RETAIL price, not wholesale--since you're going to be paying retail for the next car. Second, the blue book price must be adjusted for the actual condition of the car, so you should get added value for all the new parts you put in. You won't get the full amount, but they should adjust the price upwards.

I agree with RickNM. Go to edmonds.com nada.com and kbb.com and price your vehicle retail and if they won't give you that say the magic word all insurance companies hate to hear, L A W Y E R. Tell them you will hire a lawyer and let him take care of it and then they have to pay the attorneys fees in addition to giving you more for your car and they won't tell you so, but YOU are holding the marbles and they should be negotiating with you. Not you negoating with them. Surely with all that damage your daughters neck hurts or she sees spots before her eyes and if a lawyer gets hold of that you will be buying a new Lincoln Town Car. :grinyes: Remember one word, NO and use it.

Listen up, insurance companies are rip offs and we pay hard earned money for protection, then when they have to settle they cheat you as much as they possibly can, they CHEAT you, remember that. I would give them ONE chance to settle at YOUR price and if not go get a lawyer and it won't cost you a dime and you'll end up with a lot more money. Be nice and say something like, "You know, this is all very confusing to me and I feel it would be best if I retain a lawyer to explain it to me and look out for my best interest." Now they start squealing and you excuse yourself and say, "my attorney will be in touch," and you're out'a there.

If you have any trouble with the auto pricing websites let us know and we'll help you.
Give full details on your car and we'll get the fair market value price for you.

Gary1234, RickMN, Huney1,

I took all of your advice. It turned out well and my daughter is driving a new 2008 Taurus now. Wow the crash test statistics on the 2008 Taurus are excellent. Thanks.