Guys, I could use some help in recovering my ’72 Elky from a recent wreck. I lost the front driver’s wheel at 50 MPH (newer Camaro wheels w/o proper lugs n studs I’ve learned) and hit a stranded vehicle, damaging the driver’s front quarter. I bought the Elky a couple months ago and never had the wheels off... I was luckily unhurt other than my pride and an unknown amount of body work to get her back on the road.

I’m trying to piece together the necessary parts to rebuild and will post in these areas of the forum as well. I’ve got some questions I could use your help with:

Body- I’ve got a Chevelle hood, but will need the driver’s fender, fender well, front facial/trim, and core support. I understand the 70-72 hoods match between all body styles, but the Elky fenders and facials are unique – 2” longer (wagons could cross???). I’ve looked at a couple Chevelle mail order’s and am having trouble finding the 72 Elky fender & facials. Any tips on where to find these quickly? I’ll try salvage yards, ebay, and the sale forums here, but won’t have time for a swap meet. Any help would be great!

Suspension- I’m not sure if the spindle was damaged in the sudden drop to asphalt. How could I check this? Anyone had similar experience and feedback? I’ve got a complete new front end ready to go in (Moog center link->joints/ends, Energy bushings, Hellwig sway, Eiback springs, and new rotor). Any other suspension parts I might need to replace besides the spindle? Bent Arms?

Insurance- With State Farm full coverage, they’re searching for 30 vehicles of similar make/model to estimate my replacement price and if a ‘total’ declaration will be given. I’ve got the Elky at a body shop, waiting on the estimate findings before proceeding. They mentioned having trouble finding reference vehicles – and I’m not sure if that’s good or bad. The damage doesn’t seem that bad, but the rarity of the vehicle may influence an ‘easy way out’. Has anyone had a similar experience? Is the ins company estimated value accurate? If not, how can I fight for a more realistic value? Is a ‘totaled’ finding good for more rebuild $? If ‘totaled’, do I have to get a ‘salvage’ title?

As always, I appreciate your time in responding!
Tony Manion
Tony_Manion@hotmail.com
http://home.cinci.rr.com/badmagic/site_images/Banged_Elky-01.JPG http://home.cinci.rr.com/badmagic/site_images/Banged_Elky-02.JPG http://home.cinci.rr.com/badmagic/site_images/Banged_Elky-03.JPG http://home.cinci.rr.com/badmagic/site_images/Banged_Elky-04.JPG http://home.cinci.rr.com/badmagic/site_images/Banged_Elky-05.JPG http://home.cinci.rr.com/badmagic/site_images/Banged_Elky-06.JPG http://home.cinci.rr.com/badmagic/site_images/Banged_Elky-07.JPG http://home.cinci.rr.com/badmagic/site_images/Banged_Elky-08.JPG http://home.cinci.rr.com/badmagic/site_images/Banged_Elky-09.JPG http://home.cinci.rr.com/badmagic/site_images/Banged_Elky-10.JPG http://home.cinci.rr.com/badmagic/site_images/Banged_Elky-11.JPG http://home.cinci.rr.com/badmagic/site_images/Banged_Elky-12.JPG http://home.cinci.rr.com/badmagic/site_images/Banged_Elky-13.JPG


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Proud father of twins - 68 Chevelle SS & 72 daily Elky

The double posting of this is not necessary.

Sorry to hear of your accident.

Everything you are looking for can be found at Chevelle Parts retailers. You can try our sponsor Ground Up, Year One, Austleys etc... You can also search the for sale areas here and on e-bay. If you don't see what you need in the catalogs CALL the retailer.. Usually they have what you are looking for in stock. The only way to figure out what needs replacing is to take each part off one by one and inspect. I wouldn't want to tell you "Naaa no need to change this" to have you drive down the road, that part break and you ending up back where you started..... Tell your insurance company to check this site for reference vehicles, as well as e-bay.. Do the research yourself and FAX it too them!!! Don't let them determine the value of your car!!!

Good Luck!

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X-Ray View of my Chevelle :D (http://www.normieschevelle.com/sideview.jpg)
Getting Closer (http://www.normieschevelle.com/passfull.jpg)
my baby in primer (http://www.normieschevelle.com/prime/primerdrv.jpg)

An insurance company and body shop cant find parts for this car please! What parts are they still looking for, I can understand the fender but everything else can be found maybe not OEM parts but repro. If they do indeed total your car say hello to a savlage title and then you will have to get it inspected by the state DOT before you can put it back on the road. Get ready for them to tear that car apart looking for non matching numbers-stolen parts.

Like what Normie said do your research and find the parts yourself dont let the insurance companies value your car.

A fast way to check for bent suspension is look for any rust that looks like its gone or cracked painted, that would indicte a bent arm or spindle. Not a fool proof way but its a start.

I work at a production shop and never have heard of referance car, tell them you want new parts on your car not from a junk yard. They get a price of a junk spindle and thats the amount you get for a new one. Spindles for 68-72 chevelles in my area go for around 15 bucks, can you buy a new one for that? Insurance companie will more then likey take the easy way out, because of the age and they dont like messing around with "old junk"

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1970 chevelle
1970 chevelle SS455 not a typo its a buick baby
1949 and 1972 chevy trucks
http://briefcase.yahoo.com/bc/sevt_chevelles

Sorry to hear about the accident as well.

I just went through a similar thing with my 72 SprintSP. My insurance company is also State Farm and I had a little trouble with the shop finding parts as well. The shop had no clue where to get anything. If it did not show up on their computer they were lost. I had to give them catalogs (Ground Up, Year One, Austleys,+). They ordered everything from them but I had to find the horn relay and a few other things myself. While this was going on a month later State Farm totaled the car for about a day. The adjuster never called the shop,looked at the car nothing. The shop owner and my agent said the car would be fixed regardless. Then after the adjuster spoke with the shop owner the car would be covered with no deductable. The final cost of the repair a little over $6,000.

The only thing that gave me a leg to stand on was all my paperwork from the restoration shop and a copy of the ad he ran with my car and a stated value. The one thing that I did not have was an letter with a stated value with the VIN included within it. So I did not have a stated value policy. I was working on getting the letter from the resto shop.

Anyway, as the others have stated keep on top of it and you supply the part suppliers and don't let up.

Don't worry about the parts they can be found. Looks like a lot of damage and a non-SS car so the crash value will be low..guessing about $400. If you really really like maybe love the car then DON'T let the insurance company total your car. Cancel the claim and fix it yourself first. Then get a new insurance company that will respect these cars for what they are. The big ones like AllState have a Exhibition Auto policy but it is expensive nearly $300 for 6mth policy. But you provide an appraisel and it will be insured for that amount. Grundy and Collector Car Insurance are a lot cheaper $~120yr but they are NOT for daily driver vehicles.

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71 SS-454 El Camino

[This message has been edited by caddpro (edited 09-07-2002).]

Looks like you need the obvious. In the business we would call it a left 3/4 front. Meaning: Grille, l/headlamp, core support, hood, l/f fender, inner wheelhouse, & extn. As far back as the core suppt. is moved, you may have issues with fan blade, possibly fan clutch, shroud, radiator and condenser (if it has a/c). More than likely the cowl is pushed back, and the door has dropped a little. No big deal, easy fix. Based on the fact that the impact appears to have missed bumper, frame is probably fine. Probable damage to suspension would be Bottom of l/front control arm ground on pavement, maybe ball joint at grease zert. Also possible further damage to front crossmember and lower frame rails from grinding on pavemant. Best bet is to get a wheel on it and get it on a hoist, look underside over carefully, with a GOOD suspension/ frame technician. A half hour with a tape measure and a flash light will tell most of what you need to know. Back when we used to fix a lot of these, total labor in hours for the sheetmetal repair/replace, no paint, was in the area of 15 to 20 hours. After the cowl is pulled and door aligned, (if needed) a good tech. should be able to change core suppt. fender, inner fender, hood, etc. in less than 8 hours. If everything is really rusty, add time to get apart and fix mounting locations. Body wise, this is not a tough fix. Don't know shop rates in your area, but here is a possible economic scenario: Body labor 30 hours, paint labor, 20 hours= 50 hours 50 X $40.00 shop rate? = $2000.00 labor. Add parts cost to that. This is for front sheetmetal only, does not include, suspension, wheel, materials, or if you have anything major under hood. Too bad it is not a 66 I have most parts. Other posts have covered parts procurement. I think what the Insurance company means by "reference vehicle" is same model, year, condition etc. to determine value of yours. Use suggestions of others who posted to find other vehicles for sale, provide listings to adjuster. Most major Insurance Companies contract with outside information sources to provide them values. On our cars it is tough for their systems to work. As yours is one of many claims, they might be tempted to take easy way out, low ball value, and try to total, if you cannot provide verified value. They don't want to cheat you, they just want it off their desk. What you paid for the car is NOT relevant, unless it was a LOT! They will probably try to cash you out and sell you back the salvage. Don't know if the photos of r/side were intended to show damage as part of this loss. Check the salvage title law in your state. In Minnesota, after a vehicle is over six years old, the state doesn't bother with salvage title. Even a salvage title will not, in most cases have a significant effect on value of our cars if good records are kept of repair. Almost all frame off restorations, if done by retail shops would probably make our cars qualify for a salvage title. Only difference is we are usually fixing rust instead of dents. Example: My 66 elky, paid $4500, have another $16,000.00 in it now, still not done, will probably have $30K in it when done. Car may be worth $20,000.00 plus when complete. E-mail me if you have other insurance or repair questions. Been doing this for a long time. Good Luck Karl

All, thanks so much for the info you've provided! This has been a great help in obtaining replacement parts and dealing with the insurance company!

There's a couple of items I'd like to discuss in detail and will e-mail several folks shortly.

Thanks again to all who took the time to post!

Tony

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Proud father of twins - 68 Chevelle SS & 72 daily Elky