EXACTLY!! Their estimate would be like 6-10 grand! "Well, we'll have to order everything from Germany and it will be expensive!!"

 

Ok...update again:

In response to my irrate message I left him, the bodyshop manager called me yesterday and said, "I'm sorry, I've led you down the wrong road by saying your A-pillar was 'crushed' in my last message to you." He went on to say that the A-pillar has an internal structural portion, and then an external "cosmetic" cover that the door hinges attach to. He told me that only the lower door hinge area was pushed in slightly. They took a hydraulic attachement of some sort and pulled that hinge area back to stock location. He assures me it was the proper repair to do on that damage, and that the car will absolutely take a hit the same next time as it did this time, with no weakening. He SOUNDED very trustworthy on the phone, but I sure seem to remember the side of the dash being angled inward towards the center of the car after the wreck. Made me think the WHOLE A-pillar had been shoved over.

Can someone open their door and look at the side of their dash for me? Does the thing seem to angle inward slightly, so that the front of the dash up by the door frame is in slightly more than the rest? I figured this was a result of the wreck, but I honestly cant say I ever looked at it BEFORE the wreck to see if it was flush or angled inward as it went forward.

I guess I'll know if the dash doesn't angle in that way when I go look at it to pick it up. Then I'll KNOW they moved the whole A-pillar over when they did this pulling procedure.

At any rate, this IS the body shop of my choosing. I was recommended specifically one of their employees by a friend. This employee (who I insisted was the one to work on my car) is supposed to do amazingly good work, and can make things look absolutely like stock again. The problem comes in with the decisions being made on HOW and WHAT work to do, by the body shop's adjuster and the allstate adjuster. This employee that is doing the work on my car may be an amazing craftsman, but he doesn't have control over the financial decisions being made regarding HOW to complete the work...his job is just to make it look perfect again.

A car that looks perfect, but doesn't perform as it did "pre-accident" is definitely not good enough.

Oh, and the body shop reported that my car seems to have aquired the mystery "no crank" problem while sitting in their yard for a month. They are unable to get the car to turn over at all. I told them I have no idea what the problem could be, but to let me know when they have it fixed.

 

That sounds like some better news. Have they given you a timeline of when they expect it to be completed?

 

Best of luck with your car! I actually was looking at srt 6 roadsters, and went to see one at a Toyota dealer. The whole front end was involved in an accident, when i asked the salesman if he knew this he said he knows there was a slight accident but didnt know where! I noticed the whole front end was welded right infront of the radiator! I wouldn't even touch that car even if the price was reasonable! Make certain the repair is invisible!

 

Many of the auto body shops rely on Allstate, Geico and State Farm business. They tend not to make too many waves on any one repair job, for fear that when they need a damage appriasal adjustment for a customer in mid-repair it may come back to bite them. That's the reality. If the shop has flip-flopped you do run the risk that they caved as they didn't want to make waves w/ the Allstate field adjuster that works their territory.

If you do want to pursue it, you'd need two apprasals that either meet the dollar amount threshold to total it or that indicate the car cannot be safely repaired. Car repair shops are in the business of fixing, so you'll be hard pressed to come by the later even if it's a bag of parts. Getting the former isn't practical as you'd have to have the car towed to two different shops. I suggest you look into an independent adjuster. They'll visit the current shop and since they have no particular stake in making nice with the Allstate adjuster are in a better position to call it like it is. Even if the answer is the same, that will give you some peace of mind.

 

Quote AtomHeart:
Can someone open their door and look at the side of their dash for me? Does the thing seem to angle inward slightly, so that the front of the dash up by the door frame is in slightly more than the rest? I figured this was a result of the wreck, but I honestly cant say I ever looked at it BEFORE the wreck to see if it was flush or angled inward as it went forward.
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atom,
I took these pics for you....does this help. I am not sure quite what your are describing here. I can take more if you need me to. Click on them for a exploded view after they are opened.