[Nazaar25]

Like other BHPians on this thread, I'll say the same thing, let Kate rest in peace.
She saved you and your friends from a horrific accident which was a gift from her and a memory which will stay with you forever.
I can understand how difficult it would be for you to let go of a car which you love so much but it's better for both of you. A cheap mechanic jugaad work or even an authorized service center job cannot bring back the original soul of the car and she's never going to drive the same again and on top of this, she will spend most of it's time in the garage which will be painful for you as well as Kate.
I can absolutely relate with your feelings as I have experienced the very same machine (a very close friend of mine owns one) a million times and I know how quickly one can connect with the car and feel completely at home!
If you only want a Civic again then get a manual one this time and fall in love again!
Welcome to TeamBHP and good luck with your future companions

[pgsagar]

Fixing a totaled car is not a good idea, when extent of damage is as sever as this. It's a unibody car, not a body on frame car. Suspension geometry must have gone for a toss. Its not a base model hatchback which would only see innercity runs. This is a car which is driven spiritedly. The taut planted feel you had before would never return. So, say good bye to it and look for another Civic. There are plenty many available in used market.

[avinash_m]

Welcome to Team-bhp @aroop!

While the opening pics of your post pretty much summed it up for me, I was just hoping that all the passengers in that car came out safe. Felt really glad, to read it later in your post.

As much as you loved your Kate, please walk away! As most team-bhpians have said already, the car's structural integrity is compromised now, with the extent of damage. While the body panels can sure be banged back to shape by a skilled guy, the fact is they would never be as strong as before. Even spending 10L at a Honda workshop, and replacing all panels, won't bring it back to its original condition, as the monocoque chassis itself is damaged.

If you love the Civic that much, you can try looking for a clean pre-owned one, get it cheap and just get it entirely restored from ground up.

All the best!

[Storm2.0]

Simple, ask your friend to make up for the huge loss.
Maybe she can find you another Civic or a brand new car.
Please don't drive this totalled car around to avoid other mishaps due part failure in future. And make sure to get it scrapped, ie RC cancelled or at least transfer it to the scrap dealers name to avoid hassles in future.

[aroopdas93]

Thank you so much for this. I got similar advice from people around me, but it just feels better to hear the same from enthusiasts and experts like you. I think I'd be able to decide better now (decide against getting my car back).

[Ashutosh]

Dear aroopdas93,

Tears rolling as I see pictures of this beauty in such a state. If I were in your place I would have done the same to think about rebuilding it again from literally 'scratch'.

BUT

I feel it is better to keep Kate in your memories as she would be safe there. This would be a reconstruction of the entire body, which even if done at the original factory where it was manufactured, would not be the same.

Let it go.

You can have pieces of it as a memorial in your Odisa home, a loving memory and an homage to all the driving experiences you had.

It is time for Kate - II, not Kate Reborn.

RIP

[aroopdas93]

Thank you for this. I had a hunch that I'd always keep complaining of the body noise and ride quality after getting Kate back to life. Arya Honda's (Authorised Honda showroom and service centre in Mumbai) service managers already hate to see me becuase I
apparently make everyone's life difficult after picking up the slightest of noise from my car. That said your kind words delfinitely help me decide with reason. Thank you

Originally Posted by Reinhard

Welcome to TBHP Aroop. And - really glad to see that all the occupants of the car came out uninjured & are doing fine. Sad to know about the accident of course. For a car that has flipped at high speed at least thrice - she still looks remarkably okay. Almost all items are properly in place except perhaps the ORVMs that would have been lost during the flips.That was a nicely maintained Civic you had.

I'd go with hserus' advice here too. Don't try to restore the car. Let it rest in peace & let her donate some organs to other needy cars instead. The car can be visually fully recovered to old glory by skilled craftsmen at the bodyshops in all probabilities but the structural integrity is lost.

1. Look at the A pillars & the arch from A pillars to the boot for example. They have deformed & the tubular metal parts have been punched in.
2. Similar things would have happened in other structural components of the monocoque as well.
3. These are indeed the components that ensured all of you survived without injury in the accident.
4. God forbid if the car faces another such incident (its our roads afterall) - the structural strength will not be same as it was right now. These key parts might crumple where they aren't supposed to be, thus compromising the cabin shell's stability. Outcome in another accident may not be as happy like this one I'm afraid for the occupants. At least there will always be a doubt.
5. The transmission, engine & drive-train in general also take a severe beating in such accidents and won't exactly drive like original no matter how much the mechanics try to restore with precision.
6. And then - more than INR 1 Million + taxes on it doesn't seem justifiable mathematically for a decade old car now. I know your heart and emotions are deeply attached with the car. But logical thinking says you should move on. As a lawyer I'm sure you'll be able to don the logical hat sooner rather than later.

Recover fully from this emotional trauma, move on & perhaps get another nice ride to fall in love with. That's what I'd do.

Hi thank you for your detailed response on this. I think this helps me clear my head around this. Post the crash, I do understand how important a monocoque's stability and integrity can be, as a matter of fact I think the reason why I am still alive with all my limbs intact is entirely attributable to the strong monocoque that my car had. That said I agree with you entirely that driving the same car will compromise the safety (apart from the general refinement issues) and post the accident I have started appreciating safety features a lot more than what I used to, I mean my friend is a really good driver, I never would’ve imagined she could ever cause an accident of this scale.

But thanks for noticing that I had a well maintained Civic, I have invested a lot of time and money on it, Arya Honda people (Authorised dealer and service centre in Mumbai) borderline hate me for being so critical about the car.

Originally Posted by SS-Traveller

3 points come to mind:
1. Cheap repair = jugaad repair = not roadworthy for high speeds.
2. The government won't let you drive your car for an eternity. It's only 15 years. Scrap it now, and be paid for it by the insurance company. Have your cake and eat it too!
3. You have drawn up & signed a legal document with this salvage repairer, and expect him to honour it? Good luck.

Thank you for this, I think I'd decide against getting the car back as suggested by most of the experts here and yourself. I also your advice on taking the settlement as financially this entire crash turned out to be good financial proposition for me as I made more money than what I had originallly spent on procuring the car (my IDV was higher). But it just hurts to have my car depart in such a manner.

Originally Posted by camitesh

Wow, what a tragic first post. Let me start by saying it is so very good to know that all of you came out safe from the accident.
Coming to the questions, in summary I would sadly advice you to let her go and avoid yourselves a heap of potential troubles in future for the reasons listed below in no particular order:

Thank you for your kind words, I really appreciate your insight on the same. My aunt had a similar issue when a tractor’s trailer rammed into her stationary Chevrolet Spark, that car could never recover from that (even after spending 1.5 lakhs on a 4.5 lakh rupees car) the car consumed the front left types in every 5000 kms. They ultimately had to trade their car in with a Maruti as no one would buy their car. I was just hoping things might have changed since this was about 10 years ago (it at least seems like it from the facebook sponsored videos that I keep getting on my feed). That said all of the experts here have unanimously suggested to not get the car back so I will probably go with their judgement.

Note from Support: Merged. Please use the edit / multiquote functionality instead of back to back posts within 30 mins on the same thread.

[Mynameis]

Given the backdrop and my intent to preserve the car for an eternity, I really wanted to get the car back to working, but, spending Rs.10.75 lakhs would be a financial suicide

You are so right here. However attached you are to the car, spending a million plus on repairs on 9 year old Civic just does not make sense.

Fortunately, I have got a second (and a substantially cheaper) shot at retrieving my car as a salvage car dealer has agreed to retrieve the car as he can source most of the spare...

Since you told you have an emotional connect to the car, wanted to preserve till eternity, and also will cost substantially cheaper, I would say you can go for this option. But, use the car only within city and do not take it on the highway. Apart from the fact that pillars strength might not be same as before, i am also assuming that airbags cannot be fitted back by the salvage dealer. Even if fitted back, you will always doubt whether the sensors would work.

Being an automatic, it will be easy to use on a daily basis. Also, seeing the pictures if the car and as your mechanic mentioned, the roof/pillars do not look as if it is beyond repair. But as I said, still better to use the car only inside city and not highways.

All this, only due to your emotional connect and because you wanted to preserve the car forever, otherwise head always says to settle with the insurance amount!

If anyone has had an experience of buying a salvage car or repairing a totalled car, please let me have your experience so I could fairly gauge what I may be signing up to

Neither personal experience nor I know someone who went through this. So cannot comment on this. Experts can chip in.

What are the things I should specifically check while taking delivery of my car?

Again will leave it to experts.
But I think just drive the car with an expert (even a paid expert) as we normally do. If nothing unusual, then you are good to go. Have a thorough inspection of underside, engine bay, whole body shell, etc.

I have always heard about the pre-judice people have against accidental cars (in the second-hand market), is it because of the superstitions or there’s a legit reason to it?

I think its both.
Once a car gets into an accident, its human mentality to doubt if the car will start giving me problems within a few months. In which they are not wrong to an extent. But I believe everything can be brought back to shape if quality work is done. But its very tough for the next buyer to believe if quality work was done. So yes, resale does take a hit if it is an accidental car.

I changed 4 shock absorbers, engine mounts, alternator, 4 tyres, ball bearings for all four wheels, steering pump, steering hydraulics pipes and the AC Compressor (both the units) all within the last 6 months (so may car did feel pretty new actually)

This again can be a reason to go by your emotional connect towards the car.

[aroopdas93]

Originally Posted by nirmaljusdoit

Glad to hear that you and your friends are safe !

As far as your civic is concerned, it can be repaired, few body panels, bumper and glass would need to be replaced, maybe with some internal parts too.

However the damage is quite bad and will not drive like a new car once repaired I would suggest letting it go and getting another car.

Thank you for your insight on this. The experts have spoken and I think I should go with their judgement.

Originally Posted by ajmat

Walk away, I repeat, walk away!

Be emotional about your car experience but do not be emotional about cars. Your car is not safe, the A and B pillars will be distorted from the roll, the chassis main beams will be distorted from the high speed impact with the divider. If you must, get the car on the jig to assess this, there is normally a tolerance level of distortion beyond which any pulling machine cannot help.

The disappointment that you will experience when the juggad repairs have completed as well as the irritants like leaky windscreens, doors that do not shut properly, car pulling, will totally turnaround your emotions.

I think this is what I needed to hear. Your reply has got me thinking, if the experience with my car would be frustrating from now on, I might not be very emotional about it. I should cherish the experiences I had with Kate.

Originally Posted by coolkurt

I've owned the Honda Civic for 13 years. Driven it for almost 2,50,000 Kms. And even with the excitement of getting a brand new car, it was still extremely hard to let go. So I understand your predicament.

But it's time to say goodbye. It'll never be the same. It'll never drive that well. Nor bring that old smile on your face again as you step on the pedal. So it's better to let go, and remember it for the perfect memories.

It's time to move on to another set of wheels. And if you're really hell bent, there are plenty of well maintained 8th gen Civics available for sale.

Thank you for your kind words, I shall remember Kate for the good memories. As rightly pointed by you (and given how critical I am about how a car drives) I would always end-up worrying more than being happy about the experience.

[Neur0t0xin]

Hi Aroop,
Your thread reminds me of an amazing old thread by a lawyer who was into repair and resurrection of insurance write offs as a hobby.

https://www.team-bhp.com/forum/india...rite-offs.html (My experience with luxury cars that were salvage / insurance write-offs)

Just go through the thread and you will agree that it's not an easy task. Unless you have the time, money and energy you should just let her go, as everyone else here has advised.

[aroopdas93]

Originally Posted by utkarshshukla92

Take this as an opportunity and upgrade to a better car. Neighborhood garage will never be able to match factory level benchmarks and there would be some issue cropping up every now and then. As a memory take some part of kate with you like I have number plates and odo meter of my rx100 which is now sold.

Thank you I have taken your advice. I managed to save one of the orvm. Will frame it.

[james]

Please do not make the mistake of restoring this car. The structural integrity has been compromised and will never be the same again. It will never drive straight, will have suspension alignment issues and will be plagued with rattles.

The garage fixing it will try its best to fix the car in the least amount possible.

How much is a drivers side airbag? Are you aware that the airbag can be cut out and the wheel repaired to look like it was new? Seal belt pre-tensioners are repaired as well and Diodes are used to fool the Airbag control Module into thinking the SRS is working perfectly!

Don't get into this. Cut your losses, take the insurance payout, sell the car as scrap, surrender the registration and claim a refund of balance road tax from the RTO. Move on to something else.

P.S. I manage a garage that fixes cars like this- So trust me when I say you need to let go of this car!

[IshaanIan]

I imagine whatever advise you were seeking has been answered by all the members in their respective posts, and that you will make the right decision.

Can we take things back to the very accident itself? How did this friend of yours "lose control"? I am struggling to understand since this is not a WagonR or a 1st gen fluidic Hyundai so how exactly does one loose control over a planted 1500 kilo D-segment sedan on a smooth highway?

Here's a list of high speed incidents I have experience at the wheel of a car on highways will not mention the unit of speeds as they might have been illegal -

1. A tyre blowout at triple digit near top speeds (120) in an F10D WagonR, that too on a curved section of highway.
2. Highspeed hard left turn and subsequent corrective input, while the car had just settled into a long right bend when some village bumpkins decided to ride their motorcycle on the wrong side next to the divider on the fast lane of a national highway on a blind right curve. This took place in a Diesel Ford Fiesta cruising at 120
3. Hard braking with a little extra steering input to ensure shorter braking distances when a herd of buffaloes were crossing the highway. Kizashi.
4. Hard left turn from the right most fast lane to the slow lane jumping across 5 lanes on the Hyderabad ORR after sundown when the GHMC decided to do some road works on 4 lanes of the highway and instead of gradually cordoning those 4 lanes off, they just dropped a perpendicular ribbon across the road to scare the heck out of people. Old 1.5 diesel Verna.

I cannot understand how your friend could have lost control by just a little extra steering input.

[TaurusSHO]

Originally Posted by aroopdas93

Arya Honda's (Authorised Honda showroom and service centre in Mumbai) service managers already hate to see me becuase I
apparently make everyone's life difficult after picking up the slightest of noise from my car.

Then you'll never love the car again like you did, after you've rebuild it. It's doable but like every Bhpian here said, it'll never be the same car again, despite how good of a work the bodyshop does (keeping in mind Indian jugaad bodyshops). I'm glad everyone is safe and got out with no major injuries.
Slightly but the Goonzquad brothers did rebuild a rolled over Jeep Cherokee to (almost?) perfection, but then again..
https://www.youtube.com/playlist?lis...UZXwTDyW9BN_lL

[SmartCat]

Originally Posted by IshaanIan

I cannot understand how your friend could have lost control by just a little extra steering input.

It is very likely that the car flipped because it hit the road divider at speed. It can happen to low CG sedans too, not just top heavy cars or SUVs.