So this past week I spun out of control on wet pavement and ended up in the median. I was changing lanes and started to brake when I saw a light change to red. I did a 360 and spun out some more which is odd because when I started to lose control, I pressed the accelerator instead of the brake to gain control. I ended up in the median and nobody was hit. I had a brake light, and DSC light, and an overall failure light? that came on when I restarted the car. The tires are nearly brand new from 3 months ago.
I bumped my head against the headboard but I'm fine.

Since there was no body damage, I had it towed to my MINI dealership. The damages were estimated at $3850 before repairs with extensive damage to the suspension and axel. the driver's front wheel also cracked and the tire partially unmounted from impact to the curb.

Insurance has yet to send an adjuster to look at the vehicle. What are the chances that it is totaled out? Its bittersweet, but I'm trying to think realistically since 4-5 thousand dollars is a quarter of the cars value. Any thoughts about this?

 

If there's only $4K in damage, it's not even close for a total loss in terms of insurance standards go.
Mechanically, you're replacing over-the-counter suspension components.

Rule of thumb on totaling a vehicle: damage must be equal to or more than 70% of the Actual Cash Value (ACV) to be considered a total loss.

- Erik

 

Sometimes they will total out a car at a lower percentage, due to the fact that the salvage value on the car is alot of money,(insurance companies are looking to get out of the claim for the cheapest amount of money) but its not going to happen anywhere lower than 70%. Generally 80% is a good rule of thumb, but if you complain enough, you can get it lower, especially for a car that has a good salvage value, Im not really sure if the salvage parts on a MINI are in high demand as of yet