Hi this is my first time using and posting on a forum just got some questions that I'm hoping to get some sort of answer to. On November 8th my Honda Fit (Bought on the 4th) was hit into on the front end by someone and its looking like insurance isn't going to cover. Long story about that but from what I can see it doesn't look impossible to fix, just not sure. The radiator support is pushed into the engine and it has some tension on the mounts but looks to be fine. Looks like it probably pulled in the fender mounts a bit and this is my main concern. I believe the rails and the bumper supports to be savable but hard to say with my knowledge. Was hit dead in the middle between the rails so I'm wondering if the bumper mounts could be pulled in or bent and what the procedure of repairing those is. Really hoping to be able to fix it as I love the car and with no insurance payout a lot of money down the drain.

Just wondering if anyone else has heard of anything similar or what you guys think repairs like this would cost? I only want to pay a collision shop to sort out the frame stuff and I will do the body work and other repairs myself to save money.

Some more background on the car just because I love it. It is a 2011 silver base fit with a manual, the cars got a lot of meaning to me as my dad was the original owner and I remember playing in the car when I was a little kid. He added to the car Honda Civic Si accessory wheels, Billstein coilovers(still rode amazing 114k miles later), a carbon fiber spoiler, and he had a Recaro seat in it when he owned it. Really bummed about it getting hit as I had plans to autocross it next summer and make it mine. Planned to join forums to show it off too! Unfortunate I've joined for another reason.

Let me know if you have any questions for me or any more details and if I posted this wrong or anything else. I'll probably put some photos of the car up but don't know if I should post accident photos as we are still dealing with insurance. Thank you all in advance!

 

I get that insurance companies can be a real pain. I've dealt with them many times before. Assuming the accident is not your fault: Be relentless. Call a lawyer. Call the insurance company and stick it to them over and over. Tell them that you never give up and that you will get every penny you deserve. That's what's worked for me.

As for the car, I can't really say if the damage is repairable without a picture or two. Radiator mounts you might be able to bend them back. Same with the fender mounts. A new crash bar is bolt-in for the most part. If you're talking about bent frame rails as well it's really hard to say. There could be other hidden damage as well. Frame may never be straight again.

My best advice is to crawl up the ass of the insurance company responsible and set up camp. Good luck man I hope the accident wasn't your fault either.

 

I am assuming from your description that your car was hit by "someone" that the perpetrator in unknown and you have no way to get help from their insurance. Correct? Any security cameras or cars with dash cameras in the area? Neighbors who might have seen something? It's worth asking around.

You didn't mention what type of insurance you carry. If you have a more comprehensive package then you are definitely entitled to help from your insurance company. If you have a very basic insurance package like many folks carry on older/less valuable vehicles, which basically only covers damages you may inflict on someone else's health or property, you may be out of luck.

Still, it can't hurt to be a pain in their butt. Call daily. Get the names of the people you speak to and reference those conversations when you're talking with someone else. If you raise a big enough stink it may eventually become easier for them to help you than to keep talking to you.

 

Yep pretty much what happened except we didn't want to have no coverage. When my Mom called she wanted them to put the same coverage as the other two cars on the policy but the agent put everything on except collision and didn't tell my mom just passed her off to a home insurance salesman. Received the letter yesterday telling us about our coverage. I was not at fault for the accident and the police report states that. Other driver got out of the car and ran away and the owner of the car was uninsured. Police know who the driver was because his mail was in the car but they can't place him as the driver unfortunately and they're not going to look into it. My dads been bugging the insurance and trying to get them to do something but not making much progress. They did tell us though that they are supposed to repeat back coverage which the agent did not do but I'm not sure thats enough to really go anywhere, so it looks like I might be out of luck will definitely keep trying though.

 

Explained what happened in more depth to the other reply but pretty much assumed they added everything that the other cars on the policy had. Turns out the agent had taken off collision probably because it was an older car but she didn't say anything about taking that off. I'll attach some images so I can get your opinion on the damage.









Hopefully these photos are helpful. Mainly worried about the frame. Body work and other repairs should be cheap enough although I think the oil filter got punctured and probably the alternator and ac compressor got some good contact too. I wouldn't bother replacing the fenders as the rest of the car is plenty dinged up.

Photo of it before the crash too

 

Looks like the driver side fender needs replaced. Obviously the hood and front bumper replaced. Probably need to replace the front crash bar. You can probably salvage the driver side door and passenger side fender if you wanted.

As far as internal damage I can't really tell but I would definitely check the radiator, A/C, engine mounts and suspension components. You may need a new subframe but I can't confirm that. There could be lots of things I cant see. Those crumple zones put in some good work.

As for the frame rails they don't appear to be damaged from the outside but you need to get under the car and under the hood to confirm or deny frame rail damage. At first glace this seems fixable just depending what was damaged under the hood, frame rails and suspension components.

It could get expensive fast.

My advice is to light a fire under the ass of the police who are responsible for investigating the crime. If you can find out who did it then you and your insurance company and lawyers can go after this person in a civil suit assuming they have any assets you can either seize or wages you can garnish.

I'm sorry that happened man. That really sucks.

 

Because of the age of your Fit and the severe damage, you're better off junking it and getting a new car.

A new gen 3 can be had for under 15,000 dollars.

 

If you do get the insurance to help you out, it wouldn't surprise me if they consider your Fit a total loss. I've seen newer cars with less damage be written off.
That's not to say that you can't take a payout and repair the car yourself, but you might find that the amount they're willing to hand over might not be enough for the necessary repairs. It will all depend on the condition of the frame and how nice you want it to be. You've indicated that you don't need perfection, so assuming no frame damage you might be able to find a junkyard Fit and get front fenders, hood, bumper, core support, radiator, cosmetic trim pieces, etc. for relatively cheap.

As mentioned above, I would bug the police as well, but it has always been my understanding that the owner of the vehicle is responsible in the case of an accident (e.g., if my brother wrecks my car, it's on my insurance, not his). I just checked and it seems like in OH uninsured motorist coverage is mandatory as part of your auto insurance unless you reject it in writing, so again your insurance should be helping you here since you know who the owner of the other vehicle was. It's sort of confusing that they're giving you such a hard time. If you get them on the phone try to escalate your claim to someone higher up in the chain of command and perhaps mention that you're more than happy to find new insurance that will actually help you when you need it.

Good luck.

 

yep, thinking suspension is alright and hoping the frame would be good. As long as that stuff is good then I'm confident I can get the rest of it done for pretty cheap. Had to push it around the other day in the parking lot its sitting in and it rolled fine and steering seemed good. Hoping to get lucky with it. I'd really love to fix it just have to wait and see. Thanks for the help I'll add to this thread with any updates if it goes anywhere.

 

Unfortunately the other vehicle had no insurance of course. The car had uninsured motorist bodily injury but did not have collision and thats why they're giving us a hard time about it. The thing is we never told them to not put collision on and we were never aware it didn't have collision until going to report it as a claim. We've been talking to insurance people and trying to argue with them about it just uncertain if we'll get anything at this point so I was just wondering what all this will cost me. Unfortunate situation but lucky I was surrounded by good people and had a witness. Also a kind woman at the auto repair shop is letting me keep the car there for the time being along with 3 other cars that were hit at the same intersection ). Thanks for the advice abt the insurance still gonna try to squeeze some coverage out of them if I can.

 

You're going through alot of trouble and drama for this Fit. It's not worth fixing. I hope you come to that realization soon.

Junk it and get another Honda Fit.

 

You seem to visit many damaged Fit posts to recommend that folks junk their current car and buy a new one, which they will supposedly find for under $15K. If that's financially possible for you, great, but it's not an option for everyone (and I'm not sure where you're finding a new Fit for $15K).

For most of us, it is worth a bit of time and effort to investigate the costs to repair a damaged car. In this case, the original poster is also trying to get seemingly deserved help from their auto insurance and the police. Again, it's worth a bit of time and effort to follow up on that before moving on. Finally, this car has sentimental value to the original poster as it was owned by their father, so again worth a bit of time and effort to try to resurrect it.

If the repair costs are too great, then the original poster may be best served by moving on. Or, maybe their insurance will come through and they can fix this car and keep it on the road and in their family.

I'll note that a year or two ago you were here complaining about the repair/maintenance costs of your Fit. Why didn't you just junk it and buy a new one?

 

I need a "Like" button for Drew21.

 

The sentimental value of this car is gone. Time to junk this car and get a new one.

Cars only have a certain usefulness. In this case this car is not worth repairing. I think dad would agree.

 

That car's totalled. Sorry.

 

Someone that agrees with me.