Storm damage advice

[Speedracer800]

Thanks for taking a look at my post. I'm in a jam and not sure what I should do.

Few weeks back, our area received some pretty horrible weather complete with a tornado that caused damage to my 2018 Gen2.

My wife and I were out that Saturday night when the weather rolled in. The restaurant hurried all of us into the basement and hoped for the best as we heard a freight train (tornado) move by us, maybe 100yards away.

We left as fast as we possibly could, against the wishes of our company still huddled in the basement.

Our 16yo daughter and dogs were home and cutoff, as all power and cell service was down everywhere in the area. It was as if we were 30 seconds behind the tornados path, in its wake. The truck got us home safe while dodging flying trees and power lines (literally). It was INCREDIBLY dark that night which made things so much worse.. Little to know warning before coming upon branches and debris that had some back roads to our house nearly un-passable ("nearly" .

We got home and thankfully everyone was safe, but my Gen2 took some pretty serious punches for us. Beyond that, at some point over night as we waited for power, (which wouldn't be restored for 3 more days) our beautiful Oak in the front yard gave up and added insult to injury by breaking the windshield and adding a few more kisses on the roof and "A" pillars. So.. Here we are.

Long story short.. Insurance company is calling it a total loss after the body shop handed over an estate of nearly 30k!! It feels a bit padded but there's some pretty serious body damage..which brings me to the point of you reading this story (thank you to all who got this far).

The damage is ALL body. The truck runs and drives perfectly. Left side doors and bed side are the most significant but all doors function perfectly. No leaks or air gaps.. You wouldn't even tell there was anything wrong with it from the inside. Somebody could put a left bedside and both doors on the truck and from 30ft away you might not notice much of the other damage beyond the cracked windshield. The cost was so high because nearly every single panel and painted surface is damaged.. So just lots of detail work to get this fixed back to new.

The insurance company has offered 43k (totaled). Which I thought was pretty good.. Really. Can't believe I'm saying that about an insurance company. The truck is 2018 that I bought new and put each of the 94,000 miles on myself. Never beat on and maintained as good as anyone could do. The thing was freaking spotless..its heart breaking. I can retain the truck and they've given me a number but I'd really like to hear what you guys think before revealing so I can get a good assessment without bias of knowing what they offered.

All that being said, what do you think this truck sells for in the condition I've described but with a salvage title? This thing would be perfect for someone who wants to start with a raptor and build a prerunner or Toy. Some photos attached. Thanks for taking a look.

 

[3Dog]

It is worth what a dismantler would pay for it. The insurance company will either give you a check for the full amount and then sell the corpse to a dismantler, or they will give you a lesser check (i.e. deduct what they could have gotten from a dismantler) and let you keep the truck - with a branded title. Rest assured, the insurance company will leave no money on the table.

So the question really is: what is this thing worth in terms of salvageable and resalable parts? Wholesale, I am guessing 10k.

 

[Speedracer800]

That's exact what I'm saying. That is how they find their numbers.

So the question is what's the truck, in the condition described, worth? Insurance would send it to a rebuilder sale in all likelihood due to the damage not effecting the performance of the truck as its "cosmetic" damage (basically).

I'm trying to decide if I should retain and hand them what they're saying it's current value is or just let it go and take the 43k.

What would you ask for this truck if you were trying to sell in the current condition with a branded title?? This is the decision because I could be money ahead by retaining and selling myself.. Which is likely what I'd do. Pretty incredible that I paid 72k for this thing in 2018 and it's got every conceivable option available.. Even the elusive 802A before it became another scam from Ford.

I have been kicking around the idea of just having a shop take care of the major "ugly" to make more presentable and keep it..

I really had no intentions of getting rid of it anytime soon.. before this incident obviously. It's been my daily driver since I bought new in 2018 (for 1k under msrp at the dealer I bought from.) That was this dealers flat rate on any Raptor back then. 1k off sticker.. Take it or leave it. Aaaa, the good-Ole days. No real discounts, even pre-pandemic for Raptors.

 

[Pikser]

Take the full amount and move on !

 

[DaveInMn]

.
Mother Nature can sometimes be a real pi$$er.

I have no advice for you, but wish you best of luck in whatever course you take.......
.

 

[Frank N]

Take the full amount and move on !

I say same, at 94k, 43k is a good number.

Or if financially you don't want to buy another see what the buyback is and hand it to the body shop with a lesser mission

 

[shigman]

Are you finding comparable 2018 raptors in your area with similar miles for 43K?

 

[John813]

Take the 43k and run.

Use that money to buy another one. Gen dos or try out a Gen 3.

It looks like just body damage but that's going to be some work to rebuild properly

 

[Speedracer800]

43k is a GOOD offer. No doubt about it. I'm finding very similar year/miles typically priced between 37-40k.

They are willing to allow me to retain the truck for 17k. Look at these shots I just took today. This thing runs perfectly with a nice ecu tune as well. Interior is SPOTLESS.. Literally the back seat has NEVER been sat on! I'm 50yo..never driven by anyone other than myself since I bought it new.

The driver side is the very worst viable damage but every bit of damage is limited to sheet metal. As I stand here looking at the truck and I think about selling (basically) for 17k (with salvage title in mind) and I think that's crazy talk.. Right?

If you saw this Gen2, fully optioned, which 94000 miles, listed for sale and knew the story of how the damage occurred which could be substantiated with insurance info and photos, are you buying it at 17k? I think someone might pay 25k for it. There are similar trucks with twice the mileage that look pretty rough selling in the mid 20s.

As I said before, this platform as a start towards a prerunner build or other toy is super desirable.. If you're going to do that, the branded title really means nothing to you. IMO.

My initial thought was to just take the dough and be done with it.. Go buy a new one.. But I'm a business man and it's hard to walk away from a deal that may have some meat left on the bone..

I told the adjuster that I would let him know today. I don't know..

 

[HighwaySentinel]

Sounds like a headache. Rebuilding back to new condition or looking for a salvage title buyer could take some time. Maybe you have that time and patience. I don't.