BRENT in 10-uh-C
Well-known member
A couple of things I see. If this thing took a hard enough shot to break a front bumper arm, I would expect to see the frame tweaked some. If that wheel took that hard of an impact, I would want to inspect everything from spring hangers, perches, spring, and even the crank bearing mount along with the clips and clip bar. Since the 28/29 Front Fender is out of production at the moment, that one is going to need to be repaired. R&I, stripping, straightening, and paint & refinish time alone will be in excess of 50 hrs.
Putting it this way, if the estimate was only written for 100 hours to completely repair, -the prevailing wage from most professional collector repair facilities (not a modern collision center) will likely be $75.00 or more per hour. That puts the estimate for labor alone at $7,500.00 minimum ...and 80% of an appraisal of $9,500 puts the car being a total loss. This does not allow for any labor, parts, or materials that we cannot see. Again, most collector car shops have a very long wait time right now with present workload, and most underwriters know this which is why they will consider it a total loss and pay a claim. Only David can answer if it is worth collecting the insurance company's check and receive the damaged vehicle as part of the settlement, -or whether to find a suitable replacement and put this one behind him.
