I noticed this is an older post, but I hope you didn't let the insurance company bully you into forcing you to totaling the vehicle then buying it back. I went through that once on a 73 Dart SS that was a no rust car. Sometimes insurance companies need to be reminded that insurance fraud is a 2 way street. The can be prosecuted for it same as we can.
Word of advice, have photos and appraisal on hand. Years ago (early 90s?) a guy had a real nice Plymouth GTX that was involved in an accident. Insurance company tried to total the car offering $2500. as payment. The guy said you can total my car if you want but appraisal says it's worth 25k and that's what you will pay. The now stumped insurance company opted to put it in brothers body shop instead. 😉
Jason from Maryland here. One half of American Cherokees USA. Nice XJ. Lol, available by chance? And no, that front end damage does not warrant a salvage anything....it can be fixed. This what we do.
You had mentioned Canada, in the USA it would be totaled because the cost of repairs equal more than the vehicles worth. Its not just some pencil pushers opinion it's just math. Here they you can get it totaled, get your check, buy back the vehicle for less than they paid you, take it to inspection and have the title rebuilt. If you're not planning on reselling it, thats a great option.
I had same issue.......It is the age. Over a certain age, the insurance just writes off due to not wanting a hassle to find old parts to repair older vehicle.
I have a 94 2 door 5 speed. 2 doors are not as rare as you would think in general. They vary in rarity by year. What is rare is one that wasn't beat to hell or rusted out. The earlier xjs were pretty unique in that some had the power windows and locks along with the split windows and vents. That front hit shouldn't have any frame/bumper mount damage based on where it was hit. Radiator support, grill, bumper and radiator should be about it. Good chance to upgrade your rad and bumper. Fix that thing and keep it clean.
The 1991 I-6 4.0L 5 speed manual was probably the best cherokee ever made. But yes, you do need some suspension upgrades; those tires should not be on it with the current suspension and rim set up. I had 2 XJs and I really do miss them.
If they called it TL before even opening it up for addendum claims, it's gonna be an tough battle. Best hope is to find a direct repair facility of USAA and see if they are willing to work with you using junkyard parts so they can keep it under Total Loss threshold to ACV.
Agreed, the quirk here is that called it a TL while using a different vehicle type as the comps. They have acknowledged that but keep using different vehicle types (which even they admit is against the Dept of Ins Codes of Regulations).
An insurance company considers a vehicle a total loss when the repairs needed to fix the damage exceed the value of the vehicle……a lot of older vehicles can have a dent in the fender and an insurance company could call it a total loss…..with a vehicle of that age your better off not having collision or going to an insurance company that specializes in policies that focus on replacement value (you would have an easier time fighting for the true value not the book value)
grill, radiator support, radiator, hood, headlight, bumper, check the bumper support, new paint... probably $4K-$5K of repairs. What's a Jeep XJ 2 Door 5 speed go for these days?
Looks like Hagerty says a Good Condition value is $8640, while an Excellent Condition is $16,080. There's still a Concourse Condition above these. This is per the uniqueness of the 2 door/5 speed/4x4 combo.
It's funny (not funny) you post this video now. I purchased a 98 cherokee three years ago. I decided to Google the vin# and sure enough in 2016, right before I bought it- the PO hit a deer, same corner and damage as yours. From the vin check site insurance totaled it. Salvage. It's very easy to "total" a 20+ year old Jeep when a claim specialist uses OEM parts and $$$ labor. The damage I see there is the same damage that "totaled" mine. My title is clean in NY as we don't re-brand titles on vehicles in NYS. You'll have to find out/I'm sure you know California(?) branding law. It's a real bummer, but asking around... more of these Cherokees have "salvage" titles than I originally figured. For anything you consider minor, it's never worth filing a claim...for this reason. Good luck. Fix her up. Gorgeous Jeep!
@@ReviewYourOwnCar I just had another rare-ish jeep hit me up for service, he was on smoking tire a couple years ago, maybe I will see if he can submit a review to you guys too!
It's totaled in part because government wants all the old cars off the road, that what the cash for clunkers was all about. Alot o them were in great condition that were destroyed.
