I am looking for a reputable apprasier to do the Lexus.
My insurance thought it may be worth a shot since it being a 5spd makes it a very low production car. Lexus #s indicate 910 5 spds made in 1993 and only 3,800 made through the entire model. It also only has 80k original miles and is pretty close to stock.
That and I am sort of curious what someone else would see if they looked at it. KBB values are around 6,500 for it.
KBB is generally way, way, way off.
Not that it matters for insurance purposes, just an FYI.
My agent called me today and said that if I got an official appraisal letter for X amount and the limited use the vehicle gets, there may be a savings of a few hundred dollars a year so I thought it would be worth investigating. The car is not old enough or “exotic” enough to meet Haggerty’s requirements.
Is it really worth that much? I understand its rare but is it highly desirable?
It is in that particular community…I dont know how that translates to the general population but I would assume an appraiser would understand the market a bit better.
I dont think I have seen another one with similar miles and condition in a factory 5 spd for sale. Cars in SoCal with 2-3 times the miles, but similar condition are selling for $5500 - 7500 largely in part because the amount of them available is always limited.
I had an offer of $8500 before I had it painted if it was the even more rare hardtop.
They are pretty desirable cars due to the “supra in a tuxedo” persona many people have about these cars. Most people don’t buy them planning to keep then stock, but instead to do something to them. Could up possibly go to the dealsr and have them appraise it and maybe it would be “official” enough for your insurance.
The price of a good appraisal will eat up the savings of your insurance discount. I had one done on the supra for insurance requirements. I used this guy http://www.speedforsale.com/pages.php?vid=173
If you wanted to do a limited use policy grundy does not require the car to be exotic or anything like that. I have my mustang insured through them. It is all based on agreed value of the vehicle.
I got mine through Hagerty and they just required a list of receipts to arrive at a total. No use restrictions and I feel like they gave me a good deal on a pretty substantial replacement value.
Why don’t you try and find a company who will base the insurance premium off the value you choose. That way if you total it there is no arguing about the amount of the check… you already picked it. Not to mention if you want more money you pay for it, if you want less… you pay less.
It is great for boats or high ticket items but might work for you also.
Have always heard good things about them probably worth checking out :tup:
Most companies will write this. It is known as “agreed value” and is usually used when you need to insure something worth more than what you want it to be. This will defeat what he is trying to do though, because his premium will go up for sure. While your agent may seem like he is doing you a favor here, the cost for this appraisal may not be beneficial to you, but I guess you won’t know until you try…
If the person isn’t paying cash for it, banks won’t give a shit for cars. They are not dealers, they are going off the KBB value. If you had a 1985 Civic with 200,000 miles, they don’t care if it was made of gold. It is worth jack to them.
That’s because an 85 civic with 200k is worth jack.
I want to properly insure my camaro someday when it is finished. Do you think I would be better off with an agreed value policy or having it appraised?
Some policies will require an appraisal. Would it be considered a classic?
If you stop in to K+S and get a Show and Cruise news magazine they have a bunch of local appraisers listed.
definitely not a classic. the base vehicle is a 95 camaro. I will call around when it gets closer to running
Not being a dick here but whats it really worth?
SHO motor
V6 Camaro roller
TH400/350
You’re looking at what 5k? lol
So then you end up paying a bunch more for insurance on something that only has a total value of 5k
if you think there is only 5K into this car you are seirously mistaken. Its value is dick there is no question there. I would like to recover reasonable time and money if some asshole rear ends me because they are not paying attention or a tree lands on it. Who knows maybe that russian meteor will come back around and land on it as soon as i start it. If I was looking to insure 5K i would just carry min coverage because I could eat that if something were to happen.
Getting back to the OP…
So you have a Lexus that KBB thinks is worth $6k, so your insurance company is charging you $X for your policy that basically states in the event of a total loss you’ll get $6k. Why would you think that if you got the car appraised for say $10k that your insurance company is going to charge less when you go to them and say, “My car is actually worth $10k, so that’s what I’d like it insured for”.
My understanding of agreed/appraised values has always been that it’s something you do when you’re willing to pay a little more for insurance to make sure you can actually replace your “special” vehicle who’s values don’t align with KBB because of mods, sentimental value or rarity.
I bet I could buy a Yugo tomorrow for $500 and get it insured for $50k if I was willing to pay enough for the policy.
Going with a limited use policy like Grundy or Haggerty is a whole other issue where yearly savings come in to play, but that has less to do with value and more to do with the fact that they know you simply won’t be using the vehicle much which puts it at a lower risk.