Sooo... I crashed my mum's car...

[rscott]

Okay, so here's the story:

I crashed my mum's 05' corolla accent, I did enough damage to it 3 months ago that it could probably be considered a right-off - which doesn't seem hard considering how much it seems to cost to paint a car. I managed to damage a number of panels and the bit of metal infront of the radiator... mechanically it's as fine as a car can be after getting smacked by a tree, the frame isn't bent and so as far as I can tell it's all superficial

... now the problem

obviously no insurance, and I am not exactly in a position to pour many thousand into fixing it perfectly.

... however

I want to learn more about this, I want to figure out how to fix this myself and get it back to a point where I can call it roadworthy again. I know that I should be able to buy the parts that need replacing and replace them myself.

I really hope I have come to the right place for someone with some knowledge on this!

[Steven]

first of all, welcome to the forum

If you use the search function you may find tips and hints regarding what you intend to do, however as with most repairs what you will need to do is dependent on the damage and basic mechanical knowledge will be of more use to you rather than the mod-specific knowledge normally found here on the forums.

Repairing a car that has crash damage can be a rather complex job, and by the sounds of it you don't sound very confident in your ability to do so. I'm all for people learning new skills but in this case you should obtain a repair manual for your car (try Supercheap, Repco or other large automotive spare parts suppliers) as this will give you step by step information regarding removing panels etc.

Google and youtube is your best source of information for most everything else. I'm not trying to fob you off but rather trying to point you in the right direction to get the most out of your repairs. Forums are an excellent place to trade information and socialize but people do expect you to do at least some research online before asking 20 questions in a thread.

A hint I can give you is to go to a panel shop and get a written quote on getting the car repaired. Even if you can't afford it, it will at least have an experts opinion on what needs replacing so that can steer your research online.

Best of luck

[P_T]

Question is, even if the OP managed to fix the car, would it be road legal?

I don't know what sort of damage it sustained but by the sound it, neither does the OP. "As far as I can tell" doesn't really cut it IMO. Wouldn't it be wise to get it professionally assessed first? You don't know what kind of internal damage the car had sustained.

If it suppose to be written off, well... those cars have to be registered as write-offs right?

Sorry, I'm just looking at this from the legality perspective.