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2013 total loss Avalanche. What to save?

deaden

New Member
Joined
Jun 17, 2018
Messages
4
Hi all,

I bought a 2013 this summer, and was looking forward to ownership. Unfortunately a month ago I had an accident and the truck is a total loss.

I'll buy another when I can find a good low miles avalanche with the insurance payout. I loved that truck, and it was a sparkly dark green that at first I wasn't sure of but hey it really did grow on me.

They're towing it away Monday. Any suggestions for non-major parts that I should grab before it goes to the insurance auction in the sky? Toneau cover, check. Anything else?

Thanks all.
 
Sorry for your loss.

Dang, Forest Green Metallic.

Those are pretty rare.

Sorry to see one go.

(n)
 
First welcome to the website,
Sorry to hear about the accident, hope everyone is OK.
What are your plans for the parts? Are you thinking of buying another AV and just want to stockpile possibly needed parts? Or are you looking for resale of these parts? (if that's the case look in the parts wanted section and see what other members are looking for to get ideas.)
It is always a gamble to store parts with the idea of using them later, you may never need them and then you end up with a garage full of dusty parts you need to get rid of someday or it's the one thing you need that isn't made anymore.
 
A few things worth keeping and maybe you can make a buck on:

  • Rubber bed mat
  • Midgate drain cover and flaps
  • Floor mats of course
  • Make sure you check the saddle bags and all other storage compartments to make sure you get all your personal belongings
 
Thank you all for the kind welcome... and the for the condolences. No injuries and thanks for asking. In fact I was able to drive the truck for 300 miles after the accident, damage is to front, frame and rear bumper but there's a lot untouched.

It is sad but I should be able to replace it with some hunting around. Just going to have to cross my fingers for another forest green metallic.

I'm not necessarily looking to save parts for resell unless its really easy. Just too busy with work to do much aside from that these days. Mostly I'd just like to store any Avalanche particular parts that tend to be hard to find without getting too crazy about it. Vaeagleav's point about filling my garage with dusty unused parts is well taken. It's a shame to see it go to some generic auction yard all the same.

It's got 20" aluminum rims (tires are about done though). Think it's worth my while to keep the rims and swap them out for cruddier ones before they haul it away?

Frito, I will grab the bits you mentioned thanks for the suggestions.

Anything else?
 
Glad you're OK.  The midgate hinge and flap is prone to breaking so that'd be a good one to keep around since you're looking for another one.  They are stupid expensive and every used one I've come across has the same issue of the mounting holes breaking.
 
Once you accept the check for a total loss, and the insurance company has title, the vehicle belongs to them and removing parts, or exchanging parts of lesser quality, could find you in trouble with the them as they will receive less money in salvage at the auction.  Have you talked to the claims adjuster and requested approval to remove any parts from the truck?
 
Good point Paul. I have not accepted or signed for a total loss agreement yet, though that should happen by Friday. I had thought to take the aftermarket stereo I installed myself, but I should ask about that too. I will talk to the adjuster before I grab any parts, not interested in anything dishonest, just want to keep a few Avalanche specific parts in the garage that might be hard to track down later.
 
deaden said:
Good point Paul. I have not accepted or signed for a total loss agreement yet, though that should happen by Friday. I had thought to take the aftermarket stereo I installed myself, but I should ask about that too. I will talk to the adjuster before I grab any parts, not interested in anything dishonest, just want to keep a few Avalanche specific parts in the garage that might be hard to track down later.
If you still have the stock radio, toss it in the hole when you take yours out. Adjusters are not worried about what radio is in there, just the fact that there is one in there.
 
When my old 1993 Ford Explorer was in an accident a couple of years back, the adjuster from the other guy's insurance company came to my house and took pictures of EVERYTHING.

The truck was hit in the driver's side front fender, right in front of the tire.

No damage to the frame and mechanically, the truck was fine.

Just the front of the fender and the front bumper was bent a little.

Since the truck was so old and not worth anything, the cost of repairs was enough to total the truck.

But, the adjuster made note of the condition of the carpet, headliner, seat leather and tread left on the tires (which only had about 1000 miles on them).

He even took pictures of the engine, the underside of the truck, the roof, the spare tire and the cabin area behind the rear seat.

If he had taken a picture of the gas gauge that would have been a waste of time since that hasn't worked in well over 10 years.

I bet Ford doesn't have as many pictures of a 1993 Ford Explorer as this guy has.

Point is, they had a photographic record of my wreaked truck from top to bottom before they completed my settlement and offered me a payout.

Ended up, they paid me for the value of my truck less the condition.

I took the payout, bought the truck back for $78 and used the money to fix the damage and make repairs to other wear items I had long ignored.

No salvage titles here, so I ended up with a truck that looked better and was more mechanically sound than what I started with.

I'll call that a win, any day.

(y)
 
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