Wrecked my 07, Now What?

[Dynamo303]

My 2007 Vibe was my daily driver and work vehicle. Last December I crashed into someone trying to avoid a herd of deer. I need all of the front end parts or maybe I need to part it out since it is high mileage. But this car has been my best friend since I bought it with 27,000 miles in 07. What to do, what to do?

[GOF]

I once owned a 1975 Chevy Suburban. Had just short of 200k on the clock when I acquired it. At 425k miles I had to let go. The rot had gotten to the point where hitting a pothole opened the back door. I loved that truck! But there comes a point where you just have to say goodbye. It is sad, but true. But only you can make that call.

[Dynamo303]

I loved the Vibe for the great gas mileage and front fold down seat. So many times I carried big loads of 12' lumber with the ends sticking out of the back window. My poor car is scuffed and scratched with a rough interior but it was OK because I bought it to use as my pick up and it served me well. Now I have a 2000 Nissan Quest which is great because it is 4' wide inside but it only gets 20 mpg. I had a trailer hitch on the Vibe and actually hauled a 500 lb load over the Continental divide from the Ozarks. Unfortunately the little car only got 13 mpg on that trip

[vibrologist]

Can you post some pictures of the car and the damage? Did you get a repair estimate by a body shop or two? Maybe you can get it fixed good enough for not too much. If you kept up with the fluid changes the drive train should last for a looooong time. It begs the question: what exactly do you call high mileage?

[Dynamo303]

Body shop prices are way out of my league. I can do any of that work myself if I find the parts cheap. The mileage is around 280,000 on the car so if I found a Vibe wrecked in the back at a reasonable price that might work. I tried loading a picture here twice and it failed to upload. Th color is the greenish gray and the damage is to the entire front clip and windshield. The radiator was pushed in but I can get one of those locally. The car will start and drive. There is no frame damage and the airbags did not deploy since it was all upper sheet metal damage

[vibrologist]

Thanks for the reply.
With that information I think you would be better off buying another Vibe. Even one with high miles and possibly some minor damage or a mechanical issue. Be patient and keep looking. I understand your attachment to this Vibe but but economically it is not a good idea to hang on to it.

To upload pictures you need to make the file small enough. Unfortunately the "upload failed" message does not tell why it failed. But usually the file is too large. You could also post your pictures at a photo sharing site and put a link into your post.

I wish you all the best!

[Dynamo303]

I am not going into debt to buy a car again. I have the Quest and if I find parts for the Vibe I will repair it but if not I have considered building a fiberglass body for it in the shape of a razorback hog. It would be a fun parade vehicle. Or maybe I could make a carved wood body for it and make a cool pick up. I may seem crazy but I used to work at Six Flags and odd things are very common for me to do or make

[vibrologist]

Yessss! Go for the razorback look and post pictures!!!!!!

[Dynamo303]

I do lots of work for Razorback Pizza franchise and the vibe body has the basic contours conducive to the UofA Razorback Mascot shape

[vibenvy]

I once owned a 1975 Chevy Suburban. Had just short of 200k on the clock when I acquired it. At 425k miles I had to let go. The rot had gotten to the point where hitting a pothole opened the back door. I loved that truck! But there comes a point where you just have to say goodbye. It is sad, but true. But only you can make that call.

I agree...

My parents bought a 1994 Pontiac Sunbird LE Sedan brand new in January of 1994. First my mom drove it, than my dad, than me and finally it was our extra car. Unfortunately, it was rusted so bad we ended up making the tough decision of selling it to a local junkyard for $275.00 in January of 2013. It was a very tough decision, especially since it still ran great and only had 264,010 miles on it, but it was so badly rusted and was in need of some repairs. I'm pretty sure if we tried to put it up on a lift, the frame probably would have broken in half, that's how bad the rust was. It was a tough decision, but as GOF said, ultimately only you can decide what is the right decision for you. Best of luck with whatever you decide.

Here's a thread on how to post pictures.