It's a sad sad day
 

My mini is totaled :sad:. I got in an accident about a week ago and the insurance claim adjuster just came by today and said it is just about totaled. When my parents first got me this car I was kind of ashamed of it cause everyone made fun of me, but after a week I was in love. I have treated this thing like my baby for the past 3 years and I wouldn't trade it for any other car. Ever since hearing the insurance guy say it's totaled I've just been crushed, I cried, knowing I'm gonna lose my baby. I am going to miss driving her around everywhere and blasting my music. This is the worst I've felt in a long time. Final farewell to my mini, I will sure miss her. This is the last picture i took of her .
http://i83.photobucket.com/albums/j2...3/IMG_0203.jpg
I drove all the way out to Joshua Tree National Park on last minute notice to photograph the recent meteor shower, and after i set up camp and set up the camera I didn't see a single meteor for close to two hours. So I decided i didn't it to be a waste so I thought i'd take a few of my car. There isn't any editing done in that picture. 30 second exposure.

I just realized while typing this that that was the last time I got to drive through some hills on an amazing beautiful and dangerous road and have fun doing it in my mini.


I never got to do an actual photo shoot in a sweet spot. I was planning on driving to Big Sur, California over winter break and getting some amazing shots but I can't anymore. I don't know what I'm going to do without her.


After I get out of college and get a steady job I will find a 2005 MC chili red with a white top and buy it. I am going to miss her. RIP. You will be missed.

I'm really sorry to hear that =( I would be so crushed as well if this happened. I really wish you the best in the future and home you will be able to find another sooner and not later.

That's a real shame. But hey you can always buy another. That's what I would do.

Motor on.

Hard for students =/

Yeah right now I have like 1500 in my bank account. I can't afford a car. :[. I will work my butt off and try to save for a used mini.

I blew most of mine on the classic. Working you butt of is key, especially with maintaining the cars.

Would expect the insurance to pay enough to get another car if that one's totaled...? Maybe it's an opportunity in disguise - a chance to get one with an option you didn't have, or maybe something a little different...

I have no idea how insurance works. They give us a check of what the car is worth right? Explain please :]. Maybe i have a chance

http://i83.photobucket.com/albums/j2...IAIMAG0234.jpg

that is the damage. it doesn't look bad at all. i thought for sure it wasn't totaled. but i was wrong :[

It depends on your policy and location, but generally speaking, when they "total" it, they decide to cut you a check for the replacement value, and that gives them the right to take the car and wholesale what's left of it.

However, you may be able to work out a deal with your adjuster if your car has sentimental value, where they cut you a slightly smaller check and you keep the wreck to do with what you wish. This probably won't be the best financial decision, since you won't get enough to repair the car fully and the car (if it was totaled by the adjuster) probably has frame damage and will never have its full resale value again. Given your financial situation, that's probably not the right route for you.

You can take the check and buy another used MINI, though. As long as you weren't somehow underinsured, the check you get from the insurance company should be enough for a used MINI. Make sure you know the Edmonds value of your car when you talk to the adjuster, and make sure you get something close to it (minus your deductible, of course). Being insured means getting the car replaced.

Looking at the photos, I'm going to assume you were ruled at fault. That means that you'll lose your deductible, but you shouldn't have a problem getting the rest of your car's value.

Make sure that you get fair market value for the car. Don's take the first offer from the insurance company as it will probably be quite low. I went through this about three months ago and used the Kelly Blue Book as my reference. The insurance company used local comps combined with the KBB. It took a week of negotiating. They started at $17500 and after numerous phone calls, I ended up at $20500. They should also pay back some of the taxes that were paid on the car. I also had rental coverage but as I had a second car, i did not use it and gained another $1000.

Good Luck!

Thank you tippykayak and miniparker. I think my parents are planning on taking the money we get for it and using that to buy my mom a new car who will then give her old car to my sister who will give me her old truck to me. So I doubt it will work out in my favor. but i will definitely get the kbb value and make sure they give me the right amount. thank you for the tips. i hope to one day own a mini again.

Just reading your first post made me so sad :( I'm really sorry for your loss, I know if I ever totaled my mini I would be just as devastated. You will get that new mini sooner than you think and you will have lots of good times with it! Good luck!

make me sad too

Sorry about your loss. I totalled my beloved Saturn Ion Redline almost last year and I loved that car. I replaced that car with my 08 Cooper, and as much as I loved that car, I completely love my Mini. No doubt. I have a Cadillac CTS-V in my garage, and I love my Mini. Go treat yourself with the insurance check to a new sibling to yours, and soon the hurt will dwindle to a new love and all will be good again. I actually got contacted by the person that bought my car from a salvage yard a few months ago. It left NJ and wound up in West Virginia. The new owner fixed it himself and sent me some pictures of it rebuilt. Make me feel good that it lives again. Go shopping, bring a newer one home. You'll be smiling again.

Thank you all for your kind words. My parents have informed me that I won't be getting another mini. My mom has had her car for 11 years and she is due for a new one. so theyre taking the insurance check and putting that towards a new car for her. My sister, 25, is getting her old car and I am getting my sisters 2002 toyota tacoma. Oh hand me downs. The sad thing is, my sisters truck is bright red, just like my mini. So every time i see it or get in it i will always think of my first car love. I'm thinking after a little while maybe i can sell my sisters truck and use that money + whatever i make in the next year and use that to once again buy a mini. but that is me just dreaming. thank you all again for saying your kind words. i will try to stay active on these forums and hopefully be a proud mini owner in the near, yet so far, future.

The good news there is that those taco's hold their value very well so you would be able to get a nice sum for it to put towards another mini :thumbsup:

Is the truck manual? 4wd? Depending on the truck, they can be their own kind of fun... Even absent any off-road capabilities, they have a bed... Use your imagination. :wink:

When I was your age (am I really saying this?) I was driving a '79 Ford Ranchero (Google it) that I'd bought with the money I got for my first car (an '85 Chevy Cavalier that was all I could afford to buy and insure on grocery-sacker money at 16). 3 years with a free MINI and then moving to a Tacoma doesn't sound like a bad deal at all. :nod:

By 20 I'd worked my way up to a '65 Mustang that I proceeded to total (it didn't respond favorably to a blow out on the freeway while doing 85-90) coming home from college for a visit. Liability only. Fortunately, no other cars involved (only the concrete center divider). That one hurt.

That sucks. I assume your parents paid for the insurance on the car to make these decisions for you? I hope so.

Lower the truck to the ground and have a little fun in it.

Food for thought, you could probably break even selling or trading in the Tacoma for a Chilli Red Justa like tomorrow. They hold value and probably is worth more than a MC.

He might be right. 2002 Tacomas on autotrader average about $10,000. (Anywhere between 5k - 20k depending on the model and condition)
You can find a Cooper for anywhere between 7k and 16k.

I'd at least take a look at what the tacoma is worth and how much justas are going for in your area.

Well the tacoma was 11k when my parents got it for my sister so im sure it isn't worth nearly that much. its in "good" to "fair" condition. I have no idea what you mean by a justa. haha. I will talk to my parents and see what they say. Thanks for the help guys

So sorry about your MINI. The picture of it with the Joshua trees is really beautiful and I sure feel your sadness.
The truck you'll be getting will help and just know there's a little Cooper out there waiting for you, when the time comes.

"Justa" = Non MCS. Which are cheap these days

"Cheap" being a relative term!