My poor '91 OCC...Advice?

Was heading out of town on a roadtrip this week, and about 260 miles out I got hit by a flying tire from a semi that had a blowout. It was all very exciting and I'm still working out the insurance details, but here are some pictures of all the damage. The engine still runs, albeit with some interesting new noises and fluid leaks, but the driver's door only opens about a foot and the wheel doesn't want to turn - seems to be caught up on the sheet metal, maybe a damaged axle? Right now it's looking like my insurance won't pay for squat, but we're waiting to see what comes from the trucking company's liability coverage, if anything.

Should I pour money into getting this drivable again, or scrap it and start over? I'm emotionally attached to this wagon, but I don't know nearly enough about cars to assess the damage myself. I have actually considered just buying another one and gutting it for parts if need be...

That's a lot of damage. I was for fixing it until I saw the rear quarter damage. I think I would use it for parts.

My 2 cents

Tom C.

God was watching out for you - if that had gone a foot higher, you might not be posting on the forum right now.

Realistically, unless the rest of the car is immaculate, you'll spend the same money buying a nice non-wrecked wagon as you would trying to fix this one.

I'd share that opinion. Due to the abundance of sedans, front end hits are easier to fix. When the rear quarter gets hit, it's no longer a bolt /on/off situation.

It doesn't look likw the rear damage is that extensive though. A good body man could get that straightened out for you. Sometimes that hard part is finding the trim pieces you need.

Hopefully Jarrod (1993 Roadyman)our resident B-Body Body expert will give an opinion


Dave

Glad you ok and still with us.

Since your in an area where you could finds these wagons in great shape I would but another one. Now if that vehicle was up north on vacation and it got hit here I would fix that in a heart beat.

Just thinking here but once you settle what would you sell it for? providing they take care of you there.

I say it's an opportunity to learn some new skills! Wrenching is a skill you need when owning an older car unless you like cutting checks to a mechanic.

Luckily it missed the bumper as well as your face. The hard part will be finding the OCC grill. Everything else you should be able to pickup off craigslist or the junkyard off a regular caprice sedan or wagon.

The 1/4 panel will need some massaging, doesn't look too bad however. I say save it, not many Custom Cruisers were made by GM in the first place.

MalibuSSwagon wrote:

I say it's an opportunity to learn some new skills! Wrenching is a skill you need when owning an older car unless you like cutting checks to a mechanic.

Luckily it missed the bumper as well as your face. The hard part will be finding the OCC grill. Everything else you should be able to pickup off craigslist or the junkyard off a regular caprice sedan or wagon.

The 1/4 panel will need some massaging, doesn't look too bad however. I say save it, not many Custom Cruisers were made my GM in the first place.

If you decide to fix it there is an occ grill on mpls mn cl I could pick up and send to you

Thanks for the input everyone, especially the info on parts. Once I figure out what insurance is doing I'll be able to make a more informed decision on the wagon's fate. I'm really hoping for fixing it, as long as I can keep my out of pocket costs below a couple grand.

Oh man, that's crappy, glad you are ok....Hope the trucking company ante's up. I would say insurance will total the car out, so I'd play the replacement card and look for a Texas LT1 wagon, unless you really love the olds....

You stated that the trucking company is involved, so I can't see any way that they would deny the claim. That being said, I am sure they will total your car. How may miles are on it? Most states allow people to keep their car if it is totaled, and some require that the title be changed to a salvage title. On a car that old, they may not make a fuss about the title. Basically, how it works is that they determine a value for your car pre accident, determine a salvage value now, and subtract one from the other, and you keep the car. I've never dealt with New Mexico so I have no idea for sure what their laws are. Just be sure to ask lots of questions of the adjuster when he calls. If you really want the car, make your preference known. Good luck and check back when you know more.

Oh MAN, just saw this. YOU must be sick!

I say get as much as you can out of the trucking company and buy another wagon. There are still a lot of Custom Cruisers out there...as you know they run forever. Find the cleanest one you can and move on.

Good luck to you with this mess! Glad you are OK yourself!

-Mike

Finally got word back from insurance after calling them all week...As far as the car goes, they're offering me $1500 and I get to keep the wagon to do with as I please. In the time it's taken them to come up with this, I think I've come to terms with losing her and now it's tempting to try and part her out and maybe make the switch to a bicycle lifestyle or something.

I just spotted this, and feel bad for you. That is a nasty hit. You are fortunate the tire did not come through the windshield. With the money you got from the insurance company, and what you can part this one out for, you can buy another nice one.

By the time you part it out, you could buy another nice one, and still have a lot of spares. The door only opens a little because the fender has been pushed back, and interferes with the door. If you forced it, you probably bent the door.

Depending on how much unseen damage there is, you are looking at about $350 minimum for junkyard parts for the front. Then it will have to be painted. The front bumper is ripped along the top where it attaches to the fender, so it may not be salvageable. I do not know how much the rear corner will cost, but it can be fixed. The cladding for a 91 is different from the 92, so you would have to get 91 cladding. There were more 91s than 92s, so you have a better chance of getting the parts than a 92. You are missing the tailgate trim as well (I don't know if it was missing before the accident).

I would consider what would have happened if you were riding a bicycle instead of driving a real car.

Tell the insurance company you would like $2K and keep the car. It does not hurt to haggle a little. They may just bend over.

Demand the 2000 for your rare now collectible wagon,dont ever accept the insurance companys first offer unless you have a rotten driving record.

Wagon is now at the body shop, they're going to give me an estimate tomorrow. The guy was not very optimistic, he kept pushing for me to cut my losses and junk it, and he thinks that I'm looking at well over $1500 in repairs to get it roadworthy again. The engine is still going strong, the noises appear to be something pushed back into the fan, but it starts and runs and I was able to park it at their lot without assistance so I feel confident the axle is fine as well.

Just looking at it, he says I need new radiator support, probably new radiator, new A/C components, fender, bumper, hood, grill, and obviously the headlight assembly.

My friend at the towyard has a Caprice sedan that is the same color, and it looks like the bumper/hood/fender/headlight could be a simple swap, does anybody here have any knowledge regarding such an operation? I do not know what year the Caprice is, but I swear the front end is a carbon copy of mine - it's kind of uncanny, even the color matches. If some or all of those parts will work, is it something I can do myself within reason, to save on the body shop (that I think may be giving me a raw deal)?

the caprice stuff is almost identical,.you just need an olds grille,. see if you can buy the whole front"clip" off the caprice,. it's the easiset way,..should tak your body guy a whole lot less time,.
i,d think the front clip shouldn't run much more than 500,. might be cheaper to buy the whole car and then scrap whats left,..

How many miles are on it? If the accident had not happened, would you still be driving the car? Unless it was a complete pos prior to the accident, I say fix it. Unless you have already signed the deal, I agree with Fred about haggling a little for some extra money. But, realistically, $1500 and not having to deal with the whole salvage title thing is excellent. Buy the Caprice, use its front clip, sell the rest for scrap, and (if it matters to you) keep an eye out for the Olds grill. As to the rear quarter damage, unless it drives you crazy, I'd live with it. Good luck.

It has a little over 180k miles on it, and yes - this was my one and only vehicle, and for sentimental reasons I had planned to keep it as long as I could keep it running. Current plan is to use the Caprice as a donor vehicle and do what I can, if the body shop tries to rake me over the coals I'll have them do the bare minimum to get it legally drivable during daylight, and I'll drive it down to the yard to throw the Caprice parts in the back deck and then park it at my apartment and have a summer project.

If the frame is straight (should be) swap the front clip yourself. It can be done in an afternoon with your favorite 12 pack.

I've done it:

Now there's a guy that knows, he's been there and done that!

Tom

silverfox103 wrote:

Now there's a guy that knows, he's been there and done that!

Tom

More than a few times,had to add that Ray!  

Hahaha I'll allow that one.

I'm glad you are deciding to keep it. Really, the front end damage is not that bad-it is hit up high so the frame should be undamaged. A rust free Cruiser gets rarer with each passing day. Even if you change your mind about fixing it, post it for sale here so at least one of us can revive it and keep it going. Can you post some more pictures showing more views, and the inside?

Wow. Good to hear you're OK.

If there's any other good news here, it's that I think the damage looks a lot worse than it really is. I feel pretty safe in saying that a similar occurrence might well and truly have ruined a newer car. Given the rarity of the Olds relative to the other wagons, and the fact that yours looks to have been in pretty good shape otherwise, I'd fix it.

Fantastic news on the front clip! The body shop wants to charge me $1700 just for the labor assuming I provide all the parts and they don't find anything else that's wrong, so I'm thinking I'll do it myself in my free time. Where would be a good starting point for info on proper removal and replacement of these body panels, and the radiator support? I'm good with tools, but I've never done anything like this before.

I'd take the parts car apart first since it is undamaged. There should be 2 big bolts with rubber donuts under the radiator support, and some more bolts where the fenders attach to the a pillar at both the top and bottom. The whole assembly(everything forward of the doors, including the core support and radiator) will come off as an assembly. Of course you will need to take off the rad hoses, and the main body harness that connects the front end to the body. Just take your time, and remember that it will come apart as an assembly-no need to take off each fender, hood, etc.

Today began the scavenging of the Caprice! Pulled the hood and most of the bolts for the fenders before I had to call it, going back tomorrow to hopefully finish the job. Once I remove the panels from the Cruiser I'll be posting pics to get ideas as to what to with them, at the very least it's good sheet metal for something craft-y.

Glad to see your fixing it, there are now three occ grills on cl near me, one looks to be your color and has emblems to boot, let me know if you would like me to grab these for you, I did put a link to that one on cl/ebay finds awhile back

Thanks, but I think I'm going to just use the grill from the Caprice (it's in perfect shape), and replace the hood ornament with a custom one. This accident gives me a good excuse to put a little personalized touch on the vehicle, so right now I'm exploring ideas.