Salvage?

[Kangaroo]

So i posted a bit ago about how a Tornado managed to total out my celi i was about to pay off. lots of hail and debris damage to the tune of about $7,600

after interest i have payed about $12,000 for my 02' GT-S 6speed; currently 77,500 miles... babied with mobil 1 and FREQUENT car baths, in great shape before the disaster

insurance wants to give me $9,650 to take my car
and 4,500-5,500 (cant recall if it was before or after deduct) if i keep the car to repair on my own... but with a salvaged title. the roof is the only part i need repaired by a body shop(or carbon-fiber capped, if anyone knows of a place) i can replace the hood and hatch with carbon fiber, and i have professionally restored classic mustangs, and currently custom paint for harley davidson so i am more then capable of working the quarters of the body to a show car straight with the doors and front fenders, then cover in the highest end jet black paint.... but it is going to take hundreds of hours in labor on my part... (not to mention materials cost >.<)


... However, on the other hand...


$9,000 is a very aggressive downpayment on a 6-speed 400horsepower 6.0 liter 2005 Pontiac GTO (my payments would be less then 200 a month)


so i need some help, keep in mind i would no longer have a car payment with my celica.... cause the celi is WAY more practical... but 400 asphalt melting horsepower is very VERY tempting...


im calling my credit union tomorrow to see about a loan, and insurance company about a more accurate monthly cost, to see about how feasible it really is... but thoughts from fellow celi owners would be VERY helpful. ...and im 22 in case people are wondering for insurance and such.

[edg3h_91]

Take the GTO.

A salvaged titled celica has an even lower resale value. Plus the actual repairs done it will cost to make it look all better.

400HP is icing on the cake.

Have you driven the gto?

[celica2000gt]

^Agreed......i would take a GTO over a celica anyday......dont get me wrong i likes celica's but i would want the power...

[edg3h_91]

yes power is a big thing but besides that its a overall newer car, don't know how reliable they are but never heard any bad things from Pontiac and better resale value.. as long as you hide it form the next tornado..

[03GTSTRD]

take the money and get the GTO.

[johnnyGTA]

Go for the GTO. Id imagine gtos will have a pretty high resale value in a couple years. Limited production run, huge motor, and good lucks.

[Speck102]

Your insurance is asking too much for the Celica. If they let it go for about $2-2.5k then you can buy it back from them, otherwise just take the cash.

[broderp]

My vote is to take the cash and find the newest Celica GTS you can get your hands on.

GTO or 400HP...it's still a GM car. You get what you pay for.

9K can net you a sharp GTS (2004 at least) and if its abit more, the payment would be less than $200 a month!

[WakeRider]

^^^
x2

I would just like to remind you that Pontiac, Saab and dodge are all going buh bye :wave:
I would say look for a new GTS because that 9k can get you a decently newer celica.

[Kangaroo]

well, there are only about a dozen GTOs for sale in my state autotrader, cars.com, and craigslist combined

so today, after talking to insurance and my credit union, i called up a dealer on the GTO i wanted... asked if it was still for sale, guy said "yep, im looking right at it" So... totally managed to get stuck in traffic for 2 hours, called about 15 minutes away *close to closing time* and he was like "oh... the GTO right? well, someone put down a deposit yesterday"


...yea, not so happy at this point. so i remembered there was one not far away from where i was, so i blackberried the classified add, and drove to the other dealer, maybe 14 minutes away. pulled into the lot... "oh, well we just sent that car to our sister dealership in Pueblo" ...another hour further away from home, and the place was going to close in 10 minutes.

so several hours on the road, and almost 300 miles of driving all for absolutely no reason.




luckily a 6speed 2003 GT-S with action package popped up on craigslist... and i could have that baby payed for in 2 months tops.... and no car payment!

less miles, an upgraded interior, sound system, glass sunroof, and higher rev limit.... tasty!

so i emailed the seller, and im going to schedule a time to look at the car soon, and see how nice it is. *crosses fingers*

[Geist]

^you'll love the jbl sound system, good luck with the purchase

[Klint]

take the money, and best of luck hope its a catch!

[Anger Red GT-S]

Kangaroo - Hoping for the best dude.Yeah,the GTO has the power,but IMO they are fugly.Looks like a 2 door Grand Am to me.If they'd get rid of the dorky corporate front end (which Hyundai has also been accused of doing) and do something different then they might have something.

Going back to the point,yeah i've been screwed over like that before in terms of rides.Dealers are f**kin sh*tty like that.

[WakeRider]

Glad to hear your looking at the other celi ;)

[edg3h_91]

Good luck on whatever you decide to do.

But my opinion i would steer clear of another celi.

Just because 180Hp is pathetic.

Just my 2cents..

[Toonie]

take the money and buy my car :gap: j/k

if it was me, i'll take the money and down payment a more powerful car like an S2k or 350Z

[lamboceliGTS]

Take the money. Upgrade.

[roaf85]

Take the money and get a used 08 Civic Si or Acura RSX or a used 06-08 TSX. All these cars have better residual.