Posted on 06/02/2024 7:27:35 PM PDT by where's_the_Outrage?
More than one fifth of all crashed cars are now totaled by insurance assessors.
Proportion of new vehicles written off has increased due to high repair costs.
The cost of fixing ADAS systems designed to prevent accidents is often deemed not worth it.
The rocketing cost of repairing crashed cars means 21 percent of wrecks now result in a vehicle being totaled by insurance firms, a five-fold increase versus 1980. And some experts think that number could jump to a staggering 30 percent as cars become even more complex.
Ironically, it’s the same ADAS driver aids designed to save us from having an accident in the first place that are being blamed for the rise in write-offs when we do crash. The tech that goes into those systems is so expensive that insurers are finding that it’s not worth sanctioning a repair.
(Excerpt) Read more at msn.com ...
The same thing happened to my husband, who needed the air conditioning fixed in his truck.
The Ford dealership said $165 service fee, so he went to a local mechanic. The bill was minimum. It needed a fuse.
$165 must be the going rate.
This just happened to me. Frankly it’s nothing more than ’legal’ theft. My car was paid off, I owned it. I just put new tires on it. Older Honda- I planned to drive until until one of us died. Got into an accident. Insurance sent someone out to assess it at tow yard (if they even sent anyone- I am not convinced)-never even had it assessed at collision center. They totaled my car because they said fixing it would cost 1200$ more than blue book value (not sure how can tell without taking it to collision center). SO? Give me the money and I’ll pay difference but that’s not even an option. ( yes, yes-I KNOW it doesn’t work that way but it’s absolute BS). So I’ve paid $$$ over the years for the car itself, maintenance, new tires, and thousands of dollars over years to insurance company yet THEY take my car, sell it and make even more money off me. Basically I’ve paid all this money to auto insurance so they can own my car!! They wouldn’t even let me take the tires so I could sell them. Of course couldn’t buy shit with money they gave me for car and I can’t afford another car used or new. I couldn’t even take the car- then they would give me NOTHING toward the repairs AND not an option (but should be). AND since car was totaled- they only provided a rental for a week!! During which time I hadn’t yet even received the money from them!! Insurance is a total rip off.
My car didn’t have ADAS systems. Everything is just one more excuse to TAKE TAKE TAKE MORE MORE MORE from honest hardworking people
“Since 1980 already had a bunch of electronics, it would be interesting to go back even further to see what the stats are....”
Be more interesting to find the stats for Cuba.
It’s scam to prevent people from being able to maintain and fix their own cars like used too. No money in that for them
The ADAS that ’warns’ you if other vehicles are too close is incredibly stressful and nerve wracking- I already know crazy people are driving too close- I don’t need an alarm to add to stress!! All this automated self driving crap just creating more zombies who can’t think for themselves and don’t know how to pay attention when driving and have decreased reflexes and response time because of it.
The marketing genius kids at the car makers dream this shit up to compete with the next company. I don’t think they ever ask
1) Does the consumer WANT it?
2) Is it really useful to anybody?
3) Is it easy to use and does not require the driver taking his or her eyes off the road?
4) Can you hit the soft key on the screen in a moving car?
5) Will drivers remember how to use a feature that they don’t use very often?
I think the answer to all of these is “No!”
The only question they ask is “Can we make obscene profits on it?” and the answer is “Yes!”
My wife’s ten year old Mercedes makes it impossible to remember how to turn the dash lights up or down. You have to navigate five levels deep in arcane menus. It’s horrendous. And that was TEN years ago!
The user interface on our 1966 Pontiac Bonneville had the best user interface ever. Five radio preset buttons and a volume and tuning knob. Mash the floor button for brights. One switch for heater air speed, one for where the air goes, and one for air temperature. Pull the dash switch to turn on the headlights and rotate it to dim the dash lights. Pull it out a wee bit for parking lights. Turn a knob to get the wipers going.
It was beautiful simplicity and not one of those functions distracted you.
“I like chrome and tail fins. Electronic crap? Not so much.”
I really love the 1965 Buick Riviera that I inherited from my dad. You have to pay attention to your driving when you’re in it. It has plenty of room inside to make a long drive very comfortable. There are no beeps from the sound system to distract you when you are driving. If you want the car to do something, you do it yourself. Mid 60’s cars were the pinnacle of reliability, style and comfort.
I like cheap, flimsy unreliable cars that are so complicated to operate that you have a 7 inch thick manual you must read and memorize.
Totally agree. I still daily drive cars like that. Unless I hit the Powerball (do you have to play to win?) I won’t be owning any new cars. I keep my old junk running myself. I don’t need some canbus operated crap where if the audio system goes on the fritz the car won’t start, or an Audi where the fob sensor goes bad in the passenger door handle it bricks the car. No thanks. I’ll run junk.
Insurance drives the cost of everything up, starting with healthcare...
From May 23, 2024:
https://www.caranddriver.com/news/a60882953/average-age-us-cars-trucks-suvs-rises/
Older cars have less value and are harder to get parts for, both of which increase the likelihood they'll get written off.
Older vehicles 5-20 years old are easier to get parts for. Body and repair shops are waiting months for new car parts (especially driver assist) whereas old stuff is readily available.
The loaner I drove last winter was a HUGE hazard on snow covered roads. It was constantly “correcting” my path, vibrating the wheel when IT lost sight of the lane, applied the brakes randomly, told me I was showing signs of fatigue, and all kinds of stupidity.
In other words, the “safety systems” WERE the biggest hazard.
This was a $70K car!
That's true for used body parts and drivetrain components but not for accessories and electrical components, especially computer components.
As for used parts, keep in mind that this article is about insurance companies totaling cars, not owners willingly taking them off the road due to parts availabilty. Many insurance companies will not authorize used parts for repairs as they don't want the liability if they fail and contribute to or worsen and injurious crash.
Since 12.6 years of age is the average, parts for cars from brands such as Saab (d. 2016), Scion (d. 2016), Pontiac (d. 2010), Mercury (d. 2010), and Saturn (d. 2009) become not only harder to find, but an insurance company that authorizes used parts for replacement has no recourse to go after a manufacturer that's no longer in business in the event that replacement part is at fault.
“vibrating the wheel when IT lost sight of the lane”
LOL...I had a rental car a couple weeks ago and I felt this vague buzzing sensation in the steering wheel now and then. I had no idea what it was. I thought maybe CalTrans had put grooves next to the lane stripes to warn drivers they were too close. I tried slowing moving the car toward the lane stripes and...nothing. I moved the car slowly toward the right lane marker and...nothing. But then a couple minutes later this random wheel vibration happened again.
My son drove the car and got the same sensation. We figured it was some lane warning tech, but neither of us could intentionally activate it. It just seemed to think it had to randomly buzz the wheel for no reason at all.
Ugh. Useless junk!
If it makes financial sense and you have paid off a car- consider switching to liability only. The difference in premiums on an older car can make it worth it.
These systems are not the cause.
The cause is that vehicles are mostly made out of aluminum (to save weight due to strict CAFE standards) now, and the costs of the bodywork skyrockets due to how hard it is to weld aluminum.
Aluminium is less forgiving to errors (such as too much heat) while welding especially on thin body panels.
Then there are the crumple zones that are designed to absorb the force of a crash. And the increased use of unibody designs as opposed to body on frame.
I hit a deer a few years ago on the interstate in my 2001 truck. After realizing we were okay the next thing I realized was that my air bags went off. “Why did the air bags go off! It was a deer!! The air bags didn’t need to go off!!!” (I knew that just the cost of the air bags would total the truck).
The insurance company did give me an extra $17 for the $150 battery that was only a few months old. If I hadn’t been traveling out of town I would have swapped an old one at the house into it.
I was hoping to drive that until I died as well. Instead I got almost 1/3 of the amount for a 10 year old truck in the same model but with some upgrades. Upgrades I didn’t want, but in the used vehicle market I couldn’t be picky.
I saw a youtube video on sunday from a former mechanic in Ontario, Canada who he said was making $150,000 a year at a dealership. He could do 10 alignments in a day and said he did them right.
He quit his job because the dealership lowered the rate they pay the mechanics and raised the price of an alignment to the customer.
He figured that he would lose $5,000 a year with the new prices and the dealership would make $100,000 from him and the other mechanics on just this.
He now fixes mining equipment.
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