Write off??

[R2D2]

Hmm. My dad has just had his Avensis hit by a lorry. The wing and door have had it but there is a 4 inch dent/gash in the front of the A pillar. Is the A pillar covered by bodywork or is that damage not repairable??? Your thoughts welcome.

 

[Dieselman]

Everything is repairable, the only issue is how much?

 

[renault12ts]

And if it's too much, they may well WRITE it off.

 

[John]

Depends on the value of the car and the extent of the damage. It's hard to describe accurately (need pic really).

From what you've said, and if the value of the car is not a lot, it probably will be written off.

If the car is nearly new or is new, I would imagine it would be repaired.

Depending on where it sits in that sliding scale will be determined by the insurance company...

 

[R2D2]

hmmm 08 Avensis, it will need a new wing, new door , back door and rear bumper painted. So that 4 panels needing paintedplus anything we can't see and the A pillar issue....

 

[grober]

Any of the airbags go off? The A pillar is a pretty important structural element in the body shell so any substantial damage there would possibly write off the shell= car . I assume the windscreen is bonded in as a structural element so that's another thing to take into account in a repair. really depends what impact the A pillar took. The fact the Avensis is made in the UK may be a factor in determining the repair cost

 

[R2D2]

The glass didn't break and no airbags were deployed but the bottom of the A pillar definately has a 4 inch dent in a line accross it. I guess we'll have to wait and see

 

[Mike Walker]

Sorry to hear that R2 - prognosis doesn't sound good from here.

 

[wemorgan]

The A-pillar is a load path in a front crash. The pillar is a box section which typically has the outer panel made from the largest and most expensive single steel pressing in the vehicle (bodyside pressing). This pressing goes from the A pillar to the back of the vehicle.

If it's been damaged then a local repair would be very difficult and expensive. It usually results in writing off the vehicle.

Having said that, some cars have plastic trim covering the A-pillar. If it is this that's cracked then obviously that would be a different matter.,

 

[R2D2]

Visually it looks like the A pillar goes all the way into the rear wing in one piece If that is indeed the case then I'm not hopeful.

 

[timskemp]

[opens can of worms]

Bear in mind that if it's third party at fault and you want it reshelling you can push for that.

[closes can of worms, opens popcorn]

 

[flango]

I've seen A Pillars sliced clean through and the Engineer authorised a repair, my daughters car being another in question the engineer gave me the choice economic write off or repair, A pillar damage was too great for me so took the write off option.

The deciding factor will be the economics cost of repair Vs Payout, just try and steer it in the direction you want like I did

 

[crockers]

When I bought my W210 - we went to Stuttgart and on the factory tour we were told that Mercedes were the only company to press the whole side of the car as one panel. So that was in 1998 and things may have changed. But from that statement I can only assume most manufacturer weld along somewhere from A pillar to rear.

 

[219]

Visually it looks like the A pillar goes all the way into the rear wing in one piece If that is indeed the case then I'm not hopeful.

The A pillar is the front one ; the C pillar is adjacent to the rear wing .

If the impact has been substantial , the shell may be distorted . Although re-jigging is possible , cars may never be quite the same again .

I would push for a write-off under the circumstances .