Originally Posted by eclipseownzu

Your best bet is to find a shop that will replace the stock parts with aftermarket. Had the same thing happen to my eclipse and ended up with a better car than the one I wrecked. Sometimes replacement parts are cheaper than stock ones, might be something to look into.

Originally Posted by akunochi

Yeah allstate is a good company but there is no negotiation room. I have been without my evo for about 5 weeks now.

Originally Posted by fury656

If possible I would take the $19,400 settlement check and simply part out the car. You'll most likely surpass what you would have gotten on trade in. Ofcourse this is only feasible if you have something else to drive and a place to store the car while you part it. I was in a similar situation, had $15k in damage but the threshold to total it was $18k, my car didnt have any major mechanical damage or frame damage so they simply repaired it and put me on the bus for 2 months (figuratively, couldnt work out rental reimbursement).

Also, did you go through a shop that Allstate referred you to? They're often more rigid about using aftermarket parts. All reputable shops guarantee their own work for the most part as well, I put in a 3rd party claim on my accident and did not use and a shop certified by that insurance company.

If financially you cant afford to take the hit and eat the cost difference for a new evo I'd say go to a different shop, ask around and shop your business around. As long as the subframe isnt twisted up badly and the damage is ahead of the struts the car will absolutely come back 100% if repaired properly. Otherwise, with the frame alignment tools that these shops should have they still come back perfectly straight. Its definitely a tough spot, good luck.