speaking of insurance...

[Tim Mulavey <mulavey@domain.elided>]

My alfa is an '85 spider that I use as a daily driver in Boston. I 
know, insane drivers and all. Until a week or two ago not a problem. 
Then driving home one night I was rear ended. Thank god not by an SUV - 
'89 Toyota Corolla missed seeing the stopped traffic at the light and 
stopped by running into my rear bumper, going maybe 15 miles per hour.

At first I was shocked by how well the car absorbed the impact. The 
bumper was fully compressed, with some moldings cracked, but really did 
not look that bad considering the impact. Then I walked around the side 
of the car - ouch. The body had pivoted downward from the impact and 
the body "pinched" outward over the midpoint of the wheel well. Pretty 
bad on the right side - an area maybe 8" x 12" suffering the worst of 
it. The left side a small dimple appeared - maybe 3" square.

So my question is this - how bad a death blow was dealt to the car? 
Obviously a matter of degree, but the bumper & moldings are surely in 
need of replacement, and the body might be straightened and repaired, 
but the frame? Any thoughts would help as we begin to deal with her 
insurance company. I've learned a lot in the last year or two, but not 
too much on this particular topic!

A final note. For those of you who keep your seat all the way back, 
that little bit of metal abutting the small of the back when the seat 
is slightly reclined can leave a nice little bruise. Very grateful that 
was all. Have cranked the seat up a few rotations since then. At least 
it FEELS safer.

tia,

tim
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