A sad day.

[drnittler]

A sad day.. my 61 Lark, I had for 25 years, was wrecked this morning. I was on the way to a show and a young brainless girl was texting and rear ended me. Nobody was hurt but I am not sure isfthe car is totaled. There is frame damage, but I am going to hold out to try to make them repair the car. That is 25 years of my life shot to hell. Anyway any suggestions would be appreciated.
Thanks.

[Mark L]

Glad to hear no one was hurt.

[studeclunker]

Sorry to hear of your loss David.

[Stunt]

I'm really sorry to hear that. Back in February, a drunk driver plowed into the back of my 63 Dart that I'd been driving for 15 years at about 40 mph at a stoplight, so I feel your hurt. The other driver took off and no one got a license plate, and it's still KILLING me that they're getting away with it. So my insurance - Farmer's - was stuck with the bill.

They called it a total but didn't have much of an idea of the car's value. The person who came out to look at it admitted he knew next to nothing about older cars, so he took photos and sent them to an outside company who specializes in appraising classic car values for insurance. The guy from that business called me for info, we talked for a while and I was extra nice and asked him what kinds of classic cars he's into and was sure to get on his good side. He asked me what I thought the car was worth, I gave him a high figure based on other Darts for sale, and being sure to point out that the hardtops - like mine - are getting really difficult to find, and when my insurance co. got back to me, that was the figure they went with! AND it turns out it's enough for a local body shop to fix the damage. And honestly, more than the car is worth.

So my advice would be first to get all buddy-buddy with whoever is appraising your car - he/she holds the fate of your Lark in their hands. And secondly, find Larks in comparable condition for sale to show them what they go for - but of course aim high. If you get on the good side of the appraiser, talk about how much your car means to you and how long it's been part of your life. And if you have some receipts for higher-bill work that's been done on your car, have those at the ready as well.

Good luck! I thought all was lost at first too, but things are looking up. I'll keep my fingers crossed for you!

Dave

[Deaf Mute]

Hopefully your insurance agent will tangle with her agent (I hope she has insurance) to get a proper settlement.

[70Avanti2]

If the car can't be repaired. Up grade to a more desirable 61 Lark. Then swap as much from the old Lark to the new. That way some of the old car lives on.

[StudeRich]

Very sorry for your loss, it irritates me a lot to know that such people are allowed to Drive, just like people who actually KNOW how to drive.


Dave, what Model/Body Style '61 Lark do you have?

[reichsrundfunk]

I feel your pain and sympathize with you. Back in 2008 another stupid assed brainless high school girl also texting rear ended my all original and near pristine 63 GT Hawk. She totaled mommy and daddy's Toyota Land Cruiser and when I told them they'd better be prepared to pay stated appraised value they had the balls to lambast me. I finally had my attorney hardball them and they paid, along with all legal costs but it was a very ugly experience and the car was eventually sold for parts.

George

[Corvanti]

David, sorry for your loss!

don't ass-u-me you are ok - there could be problems that show up in a few days. my wife (at the time), was rear ended hard enough to be pushed into the car stopped at a stoplight in front of her. about a week later her neck started hurting and long story short - she had cervical surgery the next month.

i hope you're ok, but don't tell the other person's insurance that you are fine at this point. the car can be fixed/replaced, but you can't...

[SN-60]

Hopefully, she'll lose her drivers license for several years.

[Jerry Forrester]

a young brainless girl was texting and rear ended me.

Sounds like it was your fault. You should have been checking your rearview mirror for brainless young girls when you came to a stop. And if there was a car in front of you, it was still your fault. You should have left enough space between you and the car in front of you to pull around it when you saw her coming.
Let's get the lawyers involved. They need the money. The above is exactly what her lawyer is going to tell you.

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[ivorydan]

Well,
hope you are ok. Dan

[unclemiltie]

Bob Peterson recently parted out a 61 lark, he may have a frame for you

This is everyones worse nightmare with an old car, but on the positive side apparently no one was injured.

Please post some pictures

[Bob Andrews]

Keep in mind, loss and the definition of 'total' are different in the collector car world. Cars that by modern standards are classified as totaled get fixed all the time. The usual approach is to negotiate a price based on your keeping the salvage (the car). That way you can at least control the disposition of it. From there you can look at what you can get it fixed for and then make your decision on whether to save it or not.

The good news is, being a Lark, there are plenty of donor cars available for relatively cheap prices. Others will know for sure, but I believe you can use rear pan, quarters, bumper, frame rails, etc. from '59 up. The trunk lid is '61 only, but since the difference is in the outer skin you could get by with a '59 or '60. Also, the rear construction of the body and frame is pretty basic, which means the repairs could be relatively cheap, especially compared to modern unitized cars.
Lots of unloved Larks out there that can supply a whole rear clip if necessary.

Look at what the insurance company is giving. Negotiate hard- use the 'rarity' argument. Then go to work finding parts cars. Have somebody figure out what big parts you need, and start gathering. Your statement of 25 years with the same car, in my opinion, makes it worth the effort. And moneywise, you should come out with not too big a loss.

One more thing. The degree of difficulty will depend on exactly how hard it was hit. Post a few pictures of the damage. I will be glad to give you an educated guess what you're in for. But just remember, anything can be saved if you want it. Being the sentimental type, I say, fix it if at all possible.

[raoul5788]

Sounds like it was your fault. You should have been checking your rearview mirror for brainless young girls when you came to a stop. And if there was a car in front of you, it was still your fault. You should have left enough space between you and the car in front of you to pull around it when you saw her coming.
Let's get the lawyers involved. They need the money. The above is exactly what her lawyer is going to tell you.

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Believe it or not, that's what the bosses at the post office told us. If we were rear ended and hit the car in front of us we would be disciplined since we didn't leave enough room between the cars!