Jumbo Boost

wow good luck on the rebuild man. drivers side airbags are usually all over ebay, passengers side is expensive new and they almost never pop up used, I think I may have an extra passengers side one if you don't find anything... the side/roof bags are probably best buying new, should be ~$600 or so online for the pair, they list ~$400 each, also the control module for the airbags needs to be replaced and it's over $700 list but lmk when you get to that I have a source to hack/reflash the original SRS module back to new for dirt cheap.

the worse part of your damage seems to be the one quarter and whatever suspension damage there is, front looks to be mostly just bolt on stuff, doors can be skinned, it really doesn't look too horrible to rebuild
 
Big Red = Phoenix, hah, so cool man. I saw the thread pop up and I was like just members thread skimming? What a treat when I took the time check it out......

Glad BR will live again but honestly really pleased to see you return, was concerned you might just faddeeeee awayyyyyy.
 
Chedman13 said:
I was wondering if you were willing to share any advice for us fellow modders -- I also have an aftermarket parts insurance through my auto insurer -- is there anything you would do differently or suggest we confirm with the insurer to make claim settlement smoother if something does happen?

I am well covered up to $x,xxx, but wondering if something did happen, what they would actually pay out.
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This is a good question - anybody that installs parts that can't easily be returned to stock should pay attention. The short story is - it all depends on your particular policy. If you have what I consider to be a standard policy, the insurance company will pay you the market value of the car (bluebook or close to it) with essentially NO consideration to any of your mods. There is the settlement for the current value of your car and there is an added value for aftermarket upgrades.

In my policy, they allow up to $5K in upgrades and the list of what is allowable (covered) is defined. I submitted all my aftermarket receipts and they adjusted my salvage value. In my case, they gave me a dollar amount for an unmodified FX with my mileage. Then they put a second dollar amount on my upgrades and offered to give me that cash OR the salvage. Since the dollar amount for my upgrades was about 20K short of what I put into it over the past two years, there was no other option for me. I had to take the car and sell or use the parts in order to recover value.

Through my experience and talking with several custom owners and insurance companies, the best way to go is called a, "declared value" policy. These are generally for show cars and have mileage restrictions, but can be purchased brute force if you want. It just comes down to what you are willing to pay.

I can tell you this - I'll be getting a declared value policy after the BRPheonix is rebuilt.

Speaking of which...

News is good and bad, I guess. The good news is that I'm definitely starting the Big Red Pheonix (S50BRP) project and will end up with a boosted FX.

The bad news is that Big Red's chassis is toast. The body shop thinks a donor car is a cheaper alternative to trying to fix all that needs to be fixed. It's too far gone to be cost effective, apparently.

I've been on the hunt for local FX sales - talked to dealerships about finding one with a bad motor/drivetrain and have one or two calls in to some local sellers. I could be in my second FX pretty soon.

Big Red is being transported from the body shop back to Powerfab today. I get to spend an hour or so removing any bolt-ons and interior bits before the shop strips it down for parts. When they are ready for transplant, I'll bring in the new FX and we'll begin the install. Will definitely do a few things differently this time around, building on Big Red's experience.

A little stressed and excited about getting another FX - hope it works out soon!
 
Logan said:
Candy apple with a generous helping of metal flake......
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I would HOPE you guys know me better than that! Original Laser Red, nothing else can compare IMHO!

I'm actually going to test drive my next FX this afternoon. I say next because the price is right and I really dont care about the condition of the drivetrain or suspension. Pretty sure it's mine unless the owner tries to jack up the price. This one isn't Laser Red, but she will be. I visited the car two days ago and listened to the motor but couldn't drive it. If there is something obviously wrong I'll try to negotiate on the price but I'm willing to pay his asking price of $10,500 for this diamond graphite 2004 RWD with 129,000 miles.

I also spoke to Powerfab today. They have Big Red will be evaluating damage of all the swap parts. We are starting a list of items that need to come from the donor car and a list of items that need to be purchased. There is also a list of items that need to be re-fabricated, like the exhaust and the charge pipes. If we can save any of the resonators, mufflers, V-band clamps, merge collector and tips, no need to purchase any of that.

There's so much to do! I'm honestly looking forward to the whole process again, with the benefit of having done it all before on the same exact chassis. I have such big plans for the subtle custom body work, Laser Red repaint & custom interior. The donor FX is all Willow inside, necessitating that I swap over Big Red's black interior as much as possible. I can also swap brakes, wheels, coilovers and un-damaged braces - I plan to do all those myself BEFORE she checks in to Powerfab for the drivetrain swap.

As Big Red is dissasembled, I've asked the shop to remove the driveshaft to have it sent out to CA to a company that makes Carbon Fiber shafts. One of the guys working on my car at the shop owns a 750whp G35 and has this shaft. Says it made a huge difference in feel and I expect that would be even greater on our heavier platform.

I've also asked that the donor car's transmission be sent to SFR for the 5AT 650whp build. This will allow us to explore the limits of the current turbo and entertain either adding Nitrous or a larger turbo in the future.

I seriously have no regrets about Big Red's build. She was exactly what I wanted and reflected my decisions every step of the way. The build and balance of the mods were awesome - such a pleasure to drive every day. The only thing I regret is not having the proper insurance policy to cover the passion this became. I won't make that mistake again. In a way, I have to credit the insurance policy I had on Big Red as the reason I am building a second FX. Financially and emotionally it didn't make any sense to walk away from the time and money I poured into that car. If I had a policy that covered the full expense, I would most likely be in a GTR right now, lol.

Knowing what I know about how it will turn out, I'm totally willing to do it again. This time with experience.
 
In the end it comes down to the deal I can get on an FX right NOW - and I have not seen any AWD FXs with high enough mileage to bring them down into my price range. I guess I could just wait around for the right deal to arrive but I need to get moving. I've been without a family car since December and that's not going to shorten with a wait for a perfect donor. I know I loved what I had - keeping true to that original spirit will ensure I love the second revision as well.
 
jumbosrule said:
In the end it comes down to the deal I can get on an FX right NOW - and I have not seen any AWD FXs with high enough mileage to bring them down into my price range. I guess I could just wait around for the right deal to arrive but I need to get moving. I've been without a family car since December and that's not going to shorten with a wait for a perfect donor. I know I loved what I had - keeping true to that original spirit will ensure I love the second revision as well.
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Understandable. Sometimes I forget that not everyone gets 9.5 months of rain every year. :p
 
Agreed Value coverage through Grundy is preferred by many with highly modified vehicle. You're right about the restrictions from the insurance companies. They all are very serious about the no track or racing clause so be careful when sharing your next runs or auto-x online. Come talk to the car guys at the next Coffee and Cars meet for the latest 411 on the additional insurance policies.
 
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