Should I fix this car (accident vehicle)?

[tookien]

Hi everyone,

I am looking at at 2016 subaru outback with a side fender accident.

I am DIY guy with lots of mechanical experience I would like to challenge myself a little bit and I'm looking at the car in the attached picture.

The apron/fender support frame is my worry here.

In cases like this is a parts/donor car required?

Or can I try and straighten it out?

I don't really care if it looks perfectly, I just want to make sure it's aligned and drive-able. I will not be selling it.


Thanks

 

[Jimzz]

Strip the damaged parts off and then have a body shop pull it out for you to factory numbers. After that the rest is not to bad. make sure to check the suspension and front drivetrain. many miss things like that.

High risk but if up to it and you get it cheap enough it might be ok.

 

[Kira]

You'll need to pull on the body pan a bit in order to get things straight. The steering rack might be damaged.

 

[spasm3]

Damage looks awful close the to the drivers side strut mount.

 

[ragtoplvr]

remember, a car that has been pulled will never crumple as designed in an accident. This one may not need much pulling.

did air bags deploy? That usually totals cars nowadays

Rod

 

[Delta]

Does the car have a salvaged title now? Not sure how Canadian provinces work, but here in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania we have to go through a rigorous inspection to get a title/tag/insurance if the car was deemed total loss. I say that because if you "straiten" something good ol' boy style it might not be 100% and not pass a check. My personal recommendation is to get a "donor" that has been smashed in the rear, get all the front end parts you need, and scrap the rest. If the frame rail is bent you'll need a body shop to pull it back to spec. The rest is cosmetic bolt on (or should be?).

 

[Imp4]

Nope.

Too many unknowns and variables here.
Are you planning to put your wife and kids in that thing?

 

[zzyzzx]

We really need pictures with the hood popped open...
Having written that, I've fixed damage equal or worse than that by pulling it out and replacing the hood, fender, bumper, headlight. That was in ~2007, and I am still driving the car today.

 

[tookien]

Thanks everyone for the feedback, appreciated very much.

To answer everyones questions.

- the car is salvage
- no air bags were deployed
- it won't be that cheap, but will still hopefully save enough money after repair to make the deal worth it, even for an accident vehicle
- it's otherwise in running and driving condition
- has less than 90k on the odometer

 

[tookien]

engine pic attached

 

[Linctex]

Originally Posted by Delta
Does the car have a salvaged title now? Not sure how Canadian provinces work, but here in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania we have to go through a rigorous inspection to get a title/tag/insurance if the car was deemed total loss. I say that because if you "straiten" something good ol' boy style it might not be 100% and not pass a check. My personal recommendation is to get a "donor" that has been smashed in the rear, get all the front end parts you need, and scrap the rest. If the frame rail is bent you'll need a body shop to pull it back to spec. The rest is cosmetic bolt on (or should be?).



This is good advice. Any car can be fixed - - just a "what cost"?

 

[nthach]

I'm no body guy, it does look like the strut tower/apron aren't majorly affected and the lower extension/crumple zone is still intact. A body shop will need to put this on the rack and measure the major structural points against Subaru specs to see if there's more hidden damage. You can't pull high-strength steel. Anything crumpled needs to be replaced per OEM procedures.

To fix it up, a new upper extension needs to be sectioned and welded in(something the automakers discourage, unless a clean cut can be made at the A-pillar and a new OEM piece is properly prepped/welded/corrosion protected per I-CAR guidelines) and replace all the damaged front end stuff.

 

[diyjake]

That damage isn't bad at all but unless you get it dirt cheap or have friends that can help you with the framework and paint it isn't worth it.

 

[Chris142]

Expect to pay a couple grand to have a body shop straighten it. Once they do it will be straighter than new and your new parts wont fit LOL

 

[Trav]

As someone posted Its going to need a pull in a few places and a fender rail replaced at a minimum, this one is getting expensive fast so you need to use used undamaged parts to keep the cost down, they may not be that common or cheap for a 2016 scubi.
Figure a grand may be less to pull it after its been stripped off then get it aligned enough to insure its going to track properly before you even begin the cosmetic repairs. The rest is easy, you have to figure a price of 8-10 grand (guess) less than wholesale nada (do not add any options, dealers don't) to make this worth the effort.

If the price is right I would make sure I could get the parts and body shop lined up before putting my money down.

 

[StevieC]

My brother bought a written off car when he was going to University and he had it fixed and drove it for 5 years before selling it. It's possible. I would get an estimate before you pull the trigger though because depending on the structural damage it might not be worth it.

 

[dishdude]

That left rail looks like it took most of the impact and probably shifted the right rail as well. That car is a structural mess. A picture from 10 feet away would show how shifted the front end is.

 

[SatinSilver]

These guys may give you some motivation to take on the project. Lots of videos on the rebuild. Probably each car has 20 some videos of the restoration.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XTFIk8y-INY

 

[Donald]

There is estimated cost and then risk. Each has a $$ figure.

Unless it was really dirt cheap I would avoid?

What will the resale be if/when you want to sell it?

 

[LeakySeals]

My backup car was like that when i got it for free. $2500 later it runs (most of the time). Looks like it may have hit the tire on impact as mine did. When that happens, it gets pushed back. And a bunch of things can get damaged that are not immediately noticeable and costly to repair. Like the frame rail and supporting mounts and brackets for the control arms, etc. Did it pull on the axle? Is the steering rack bent? Strut tower cracked? radiator support messed up? You need to inspect all that, look at the tire and suspension area real close.