Totaled B4V, buy back from insurance?

Steve Addy

Top Post Dawg
Joined
Aug 7, 2002
Location
Iowa
TDI
97 Mk3
Give this B4V GLX a look.

I like it...but are the pics all of the same car? The first one looks like it's twilight violet in color...the rest IDK...last one kinda maybe looks green.

Would be worth a conversion though..

Steve
 

thechoochlyman

Vendor , w/Business number
Joined
May 7, 2015
Location
Campbellsville, Kentucky
TDI
1997 B4 Sedan
I like it...but are the pics all of the same car? The first one looks like it's twilight violet in color...the rest IDK...last one kinda maybe looks green.

Would be worth a conversion though..

Steve
They're definitely using a filter in one of those photos. It's been up for a while, I ought to message them and ask for better pics and info.
 

Lug_Nut

TDIClub Enthusiast, Pre-Forum Veteran Member
Joined
Jun 20, 1998
Location
Sterling, Massachusetts. USA
TDI
idi: 1988 Bolens DGT1700H, the other oil burner: 1967 Saab Sonett II two stroke
Hey all, last week my beloved 96 B4V got totaled.

Please note I am only interested in owning wagons. I have zero interest in having a sedan version of anything.

https://flic.kr/p/2nVtfa3
The car got totaled? All by itself? The image, although after the collision, would appear to show that the car rear ended something that was ahead.
The gap between the front right door and the right front fender was all I needed to see to have me convinced that it is a total loss.
But it's not the first time for this one.
I'm surprised the insurance company is paying as much as they are. It was a "salvage". It has an odometer discrepancy, and it's insured for more than going value. If I were on the insurance fraud squad I'd be seeing three red flags.

I understand the irrational attachment to the B4. I've had 5, two were sedans and three were wagons. The B5.5 wagon is a let-down, an inadequate substitute for the B4V so don't go that route. I was far happier with an A4V when the supply of B4V in my area flaked away into rust.

The B4V GLX has a LOT to offer as a recipient: std ABS, std limited slip diff (through the ABS), std leather seats, std MFA, bigger brakes, better suspension. See the posts of my swaps in the conversion threads.
Decide quickly, and without emotion, if a 32 year old design (1991 for the B3) is as advanced (only so-so safety and crash test results) as you want and snag the B4V GLX, auto or manual. Take the insurance buy-out and keep the TDI.
Otherwise look into the A4 Jetta wagon as a replacement.

regarding the wagon-only inclination: I'm finding a hatch to be nearly as practical (logic), but I'll always want (emotion) a wagon.
 
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Camel413

Veteran Member
Joined
Jun 22, 2010
Location
South East Missouri
TDI
96 Passat Wagen Totaled, 95 Passat GLX future conversion
I sent a message to the one that was listed. No response after 24 hours. I am going to look at another GLX tomorrow. Unfortunately I let insurance get mine already.
 

TDeanI

Veteran Member
Joined
Oct 14, 2007
Location
Bremerton WA
TDI
'97 Passat TDI Wagon w/ 286K mi.
Insurance company will probably not insure it even if you rebuild it. They are getting picky with rebuilt title losses. My insurance company will not insure any rebuilt title losses.

I would buy a gasser wagon and convert it. Then you can have ABS, a better interior, a sunroof, and nicer wheels with easy to find tire sizes.
 

Bob S.

Top Post Dawg
Joined
Aug 17, 2006
Location
Central MD.
TDI
A B4V, some ALHs & BRMs
Todd, Standard insurance with the USAA added vehicle replacement provision. Three times, now, 2x for me & 1x for my son. USAA low balled values. Each time I have had to get very aggressive. The first was a low milage B4V, a prime specimen with a broken sunroof glass, they wanted to total the car @ values less than $1,500. My son's A4V, a very nicely set up car, perhaps an 8/9 out of 10, glass and rear gate damage from a hurricane. USAA wanted to total @ values under $2K. He withdrew the claim & repaired himself. Now, a 30K Mk7 GSW, a 10/10 car with nice mods, damaged in IAN, they are low balling, saying less than 18K. I will be moving all my insurance from USAA. I have been with them for 40+ years. But, no more.

On edit, the IAN flood damaged car, the USAA did not even look at the car, relied on my cell phone photos & alleged that the car had normal scratches, dings & interior wear for its 7 year age. It was Zanio'd from day 1, never driven in salt/winter, & always kept under cover or inside.
 

Camel413

Veteran Member
Joined
Jun 22, 2010
Location
South East Missouri
TDI
96 Passat Wagen Totaled, 95 Passat GLX future conversion
My car had a rebuilt title when I originally bought and insured it so I know my insurance allows that. This one is not rebuildable with out a ton of money. The whole cab is twisted along with the buckled frame. Its more than a bolt on new sheet metal job. I knew from the beginning that insurance would lowball the value if it ever was in a wreck totaled or not. This is why I got an appraisal and opted for a straight insured value shortly after acquiring the car and adding it to my insurance policy. The new car I will more than likely be going with Hagerty to avoid the whole fiasco dealing with normal insurance that doesnt understand that these cars are hard to find in good shape and if you do they are not near as cheap as they want to pay out on them.
 

hskrdu

Top Post Dawg
Joined
Oct 17, 2003
Location
Maryland and New England
TDI
2003 Golf GLS 4D 5M, 2015 GSW SE 6M
If you love the B4V, maybe take the money and replace with another. A FBM check of B4V's in the Mid-Atlantic turned up these (not sure why the club creates the characters):
 

Abacus

That helpful B4 guy
Joined
Nov 10, 2007
Location
Relocated from Maine to Dewey, AZ
TDI
Only the B4V left
That bottom one looks like it was hit in the drivers rear and the cluster is smoked.

That guy is dreaming big.
 

hskrdu

Top Post Dawg
Joined
Oct 17, 2003
Location
Maryland and New England
TDI
2003 Golf GLS 4D 5M, 2015 GSW SE 6M
That bottom one looks like it was hit in the drivers rear, unless thats an illusion.
It's got a GLX hatch and multiple different colors, so I'm guessing it's seen some action. As long as it drives straight, it's $2000 less than the insurance payout.

I like that first one, seems nice.
 

Camel413

Veteran Member
Joined
Jun 22, 2010
Location
South East Missouri
TDI
96 Passat Wagen Totaled, 95 Passat GLX future conversion
Wanted to give another update. I was able to win my car back! I also picked up a 1995 74k orginal mile GLX in my favorite color that is in great shape. The last owner had owned it for 19 years before passing away. This will make a great base to start a new build on. I am acutally planning on doing a build thread this time around. I have enjoyed reading other build threads and figured I should try to do one. Does anyone have a better way to add pictures? Recently I have been using flickr and its a pain.

https://flic.kr/p/2o1N95T
https://flic.kr/p/2o1Tosw
https://flic.kr/p/2o1QzZy
https://flic.kr/p/2o1Tok2
https://flic.kr/p/2o1RYzu
 

ToddA1

Top Post Dawg
Joined
Aug 3, 2011
Location
NJ 08002
TDI
'96 B4V, '97 B4 (sold), '97 Jetta (scrapped)
Wow, that wagon is clean! You won it back, meaning free?

I hear Tapatalk is supposed to be easy, but I couldn’t figure it out….

-Todd
 

tbones

Veteran Member
Joined
Dec 22, 2005
Location
Annapolis, Maryland
TDI
1996 Passat wagon tdi, 1991 Corrado TDI (sold)1983 Vanagon 7pass.GL 1.6td 1982 Westy;THE PHOENIX 1.6na(NOW JX/5speed) my partner's 2014 Jetta Sportwagon 6spd manual AND MY NEW TOY/PROJECT... Sunny, a bright yellow 87 syncro Westy with 1Z TDI motor
Bummer…

Another light blue wagon bites the dust!
I’ve been looking for this, or the dark blue one as a start of a project, but I haven’t found one to do yet.

I have a crusty B4V, but that’s not what you need it looks like.

I was considering Charlie’s but decided it was just going to be too hard to get it and get it back into a drivable shape.

Somebody mentioned getting an estimate from a good body and frame shop,working from a customer versus insurance company point of view. they might be able to put it into drivable condition again… I think that would be, your best bet to know if it could be done reasonably or not.

Sorry again and good luck with it.
 

Camel413

Veteran Member
Joined
Jun 22, 2010
Location
South East Missouri
TDI
96 Passat Wagen Totaled, 95 Passat GLX future conversion
Any updates on a new build thread?
New rims just got here today and tires will be at the tire shop Monday afternoon. With these 2 things I will be able to move my coilovers from the blue to the green. Since I have to remove all the rear interior to get to the struts I plan on doing some sound proofing and running some wires for stereo while I am in there. Still have a huge list of to do items to get the chassis all sorted out before I even consider the engine swap. My biggest question is what changes I want to do to the engine while its out.
 

Lug_Nut

TDIClub Enthusiast, Pre-Forum Veteran Member
Joined
Jun 20, 1998
Location
Sterling, Massachusetts. USA
TDI
idi: 1988 Bolens DGT1700H, the other oil burner: 1967 Saab Sonett II two stroke
... I will be able to move my coilovers from the blue to the green.
Still have a huge list of to do items to get the chassis all sorted out before I even consider the engine swap. My biggest question is what changes I want to do to the engine while its out.
Check on the differences between the base GLS level front suspension B4 TDI and the "plus" GLX front suspension as you consider what to transfer. The hit looks to have been pretty hard, I'd be concerned enough to NOT swap the front dampers.
The wiring harness for the radiator fans is different with 2 speed on the TDI and three on the VR6
Will you be swapping the manual TDI cluster in, or keeping the automatic VR6 cluster?
 

Camel413

Veteran Member
Joined
Jun 22, 2010
Location
South East Missouri
TDI
96 Passat Wagen Totaled, 95 Passat GLX future conversion
I plan on swapping the manual 96 TDI cluster in. The engine/tranny swap wont happen for a while. I have all the normal B4 issues to work through first. While this will be a daily driver type car I still plan on doing some more modifications while the engine is out and everything is easier to access.
 

Camel413

Veteran Member
Joined
Jun 22, 2010
Location
South East Missouri
TDI
96 Passat Wagen Totaled, 95 Passat GLX future conversion
So I’m trying to start the car to be able to move it around the drive. Obviously with no radiator I won’t be able to run it very long but enough to drive it for 30 seconds to a min to move it.

it has sat since the wreck in October. No luck in getting it to start. I’ve cracked the injector lines at the injectors and I’m not getting any fuel up to them. I’ve used the mighty vac to try and pull fuel through the ip and as far as I can tell I’m getting fuel and no air out of the return fitting on the ip. Is there a fuel cut off solenoid somewhere that either could have went bad or had damaged wires to it in the wreck?
 

ToddA1

Top Post Dawg
Joined
Aug 3, 2011
Location
NJ 08002
TDI
'96 B4V, '97 B4 (sold), '97 Jetta (scrapped)
Have you checked for cut wires or scanned for codes?

-Todd
 

Camel413

Veteran Member
Joined
Jun 22, 2010
Location
South East Missouri
TDI
96 Passat Wagen Totaled, 95 Passat GLX future conversion
There is a few cut wires for the turn signal and horn on the frame but that’s all I see. Didn’t think about codes. The car hasnt had a battery in it since Oct. Would the computer reset any codes after that long?
 
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ToddA1

Top Post Dawg
Joined
Aug 3, 2011
Location
NJ 08002
TDI
'96 B4V, '97 B4 (sold), '97 Jetta (scrapped)
Possibly, but once you have a crank/no start condition, I’d think that’d bring the codes back. Something is wrong, keeping it from starting.

When you turn the key on, are you getting the standard bulb check? You definitely want to see the GP and CEL light briefly.

-Todd
 

Camel413

Veteran Member
Joined
Jun 22, 2010
Location
South East Missouri
TDI
96 Passat Wagen Totaled, 95 Passat GLX future conversion
Todd, when you asked about the standard bulb check that made me think. I feel like a complete idiot but I figured out the issue which is a good thing. So before the car was being picked up by Copart last October I took out the computer to keep since it had been chipped. I never put it back in the car once I got it back. Very hard to start with no ecu in it. Put it back in and it fired right up. Stupid move but at least it was a simple fix. Thanks for the reminder on the dash lights.
 

ToddA1

Top Post Dawg
Joined
Aug 3, 2011
Location
NJ 08002
TDI
'96 B4V, '97 B4 (sold), '97 Jetta (scrapped)
Easy fixes are the best. Bulb check is there for a reason!

-Todd
 
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