Thundercat

anthony grishmann said:
im having a thought here...........opps no its gone, there was a concept cougar on ebay in metalic grey, just like that one on here, and they wanted £2000, it got sold, so someone out there has this grey one, i looked at all the quotes, oh man if its that shagged out it aint worth repairing eh? shame though stuff happens ive seen with some guys i know here mercs and bmws all knackered curbed dented couldnt give a banana for their cars one geezer i know i said oi whats up with you? hes says its just a lump of metal mate when ive trashed it ill go get another ..see what i mean :)
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that was a totallly different kettle of frogs, IIRC it had a standard engine and was only the cosmetics that were done ... also IIRC when it first went up for sale he wanted £15,000 for it.
 
Going round in squircles here i think lol, but I got side swiped in my last capri. Front wing, drivers door and rear quarter, all caved in but no structural damage. CAT C!. I bought it back, repaired it, VIC/MOT and back on the road three months later. The only legal requirement is that you are legally bound to inform the new owner of it's cat c status even though it's been fixed and passed as roadworthy.
Mike is correct, the stigma is there, and i think it stems from the old cut/shuts media coverage rather than the actual facts of each individual case.

Ding! Ding!....Hold tight please! :)
 
talking to a chap today who came round to collect a part off me....he is a window fitter. Insurance companies are now writing cougars off if a rear quarter glass is smashed, as they can cost upto £1000 as they are made to order.

We are going round in circles as Alan said, Cat C means feck all other than it has to be declared. People seem to be getting hung up on it for some reason

It makes jack difference to the value of a car already worth naff all.
 
Not all Cat C's are a right off. But everyone knows the history of this car and the work done to it. The worrying part is as others have said, the 2 buckled wheels, brakes shot to bits, cracked carbon fibre airbag cover, seats gone, lambo doors not on the car, supercharger belt not on + the over all damage to the car.
My main point is the price that the seller wants. I do feel that this car is not worth £1500. I think it is worth £500. Then spend £2500 on it to bring it back to life. So a £3000 total outlay would be well worth it. That is if the engine is all ok.
 
Peter Froud said:
Not all Cat C's are a right off. But everyone knows the history of this car and the work done to it. The worrying part is as others have said, the 2 buckled wheels, brakes shot to bits, cracked carbon fibre airbag cover, seats gone, lambo doors not on the car, supercharger belt not on + the over all damage to the car.
My main point is the price that the seller wants. I do feel that this car is not worth £1500. I think it is worth £500. Then spend £2500 on it to bring it back to life. So a £3000 total outlay would be well worth it. That is if the engine is all ok.
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??? What does it mean if it doesn't mean Cat C write off?

Category A Insurance Write Off – the vehicle must scrapped and no parts or components can be sold other than for scrap. Amounts vary but Category A Insurance Write Off vehicles can be very valuable.

Category B Insurance Write Off - the vehicle must not be used again but non- structural and roadworthy parts and components may be recovered for use in other vehicles.

Category C Insurance Write Off – the vehicle is repairable but the parts and labour would exceed the value of the car.

Category D Insurance Write Off – the vehicle is economically repairable but other factors are involved that cause the insurer to declare the vehicle a write off.

Category X Insurance Write Off – the vehicle is easily repairable and may even be still roadworthy.



Unrecorded Insurance Write Off – the vehicle damage was not reported to the insurer or the driver was uninsured. The most common example is drivers who only have third party insurance but have had an accident that was their fault (usually not involving anyone else).
 
scunnycougar said:
??? What does it mean if it doesn't mean Cat C write off?
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Like what you just said........ rear window smashed, is that a write off ?
Or if your door lock gets screwdrivered, or your alloy wheels get stolen. All these things can be Cat C write off things. My point is it has damage to the bodywork, so looking at the pictures, yes it is a write off.
 
Peter Froud said:
Like what you just said........ rear window smashed, is that a write off ?
Or if your door lock gets screwdrivered, or your alloy wheels get stolen. All these things can be Cat C write off things. My point is it has damage to the bodywork, so looking at the pictures, yes it is a write off.
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Yes
 
Think I know what Peter means, although it is cat C doesn`t mean it is a write off in the literal sense i.e. not repairable, only as far as the insurance repair cost versus market value is concerned. Most cat C`s are very repairable (look at Mikes!), I`ve done it myself with the blurple that Neil (Casscougar) & I did between us so that part is not in the least daunting.
 
rikedwards said:
Think I know what Peter means, although it is cat C doesn`t mean it is a write off in the literal sense, only as far as the insurance repair cost versus market value is concerned. Most cat C`s are very repairable (look at Mikes!), I`ve done it myself with the blurple that Neil (Casscougar) & I did between us so that part is not in the least daunting.
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Give that man a medal, cheers mate, someone who understand what I am on about.
 
scunnycougar said:
Yes
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No Si, you are missing the point. + if I had my window smashed, I would pay my excess and have it fixed, so you are wrong about that. Claiming on glass is not the same as a full blown insurance claim. 2 different things sorry. They would not write your car off for a smashed window.
 
I think we are talking cross purposes...d'oh.

I fully understand what you are getting at peter....and what Rik has said....and I don't need a medal

Just trying to give the literal perspective on things. The example of the quarter glass came from an auto glass specialist who says these items are becoming unavailable. I will make him have a word with himself in a dark room.

Cat C does equal right off. If the cost of a repair is more than 60 per cent of the value of the car, it can very easily be a write off. This is where people will pay the excess, buy the car back and repair more cheaply etc.

Anyway...moving on...peter, what I am trying in a roundabout way of saying is, don't let the above alone put you off buying it.

I hope you do, and bring it back to glory
 
Write off........
Mechanical.......not worth the aggro (Probably)
Economical.......worth the aggro

Insurers will 'write off' a vehicle if it is 'Beyond economical repair' regardless of what is damaged, its the cost of the parts and labour that count
 
Cars which are mechanical write-offs - i.e. it isn't technically feasible to repair the damage are normally Cat A or B, hence they cannot go back on the road.

Cat C varies in meaning with the age/value of the car. It's an economic question. The car is always technically repairable, but it could range from reshelling a 3 month old BMW M3 to a broken bit of expensive glass on a 12 year old Ford. Generally speaking, the less valuable the car, the less significant the damage needs to be in physical terms to gain a Cat C verdict.

Cat D is laziness, or that parts were cheap enough but not readily available for some reason - e.g. MG Rover under the Phoenix Four who couldn't keep up with spares demand following relatively huge sales of the MG ZR with free insurance to 21 year olds who promptly crashed them all.

The term "Write-off" comes from the old Royal Flying Corps in WW1, and how they categorised damage to their aeroplanes. Category 1 was fairly light damage and Category 3 was fairly serious damage. If it was too difficult to fix or there was nothing left to work with, the aeroplane's registration number was scored out of the books and it wasn't considered part of their inventory any more hence "written off". Nowadays "write off" in insurance terms means "Can't (sensibly) be repaired", with the sensible word being included for Cat C and D stuff.

Either all Cat Cs are write-offs, or none of them are. If you go by the modern insurance definition they all are. If you go by the old RFC definition (i.e. could it be repaired at all?) then none of them are, because to only get a Cat C after a crash the car is deemed to be technically repairable and it is allowed back on the road following suitable repairs. If the car was not judged to be safely repaireable, it would have been a Cat B.
 
This whole story is such a sad one. Paul has such high expectations of the vehicle when he made the conversion, not to say anything about the money and effort expended on it.

I have real concerns for a group buy even if it is for small number of members, the practicalities of where it is kept, who drives it and when are vital. It makes the dangerous assumption that people will still have the same amount of enthusiasm for the project 3-6 months down the line. When everyone has to start forking out even more largeish sums of money that is going to cause problems. I see the potential for very unpleasant divisions occuring between members and that would be a shame when we have such a good solid club even it it is for ever decreasing numbers.

I always loved the Cougar S but there are so many negatives to this situation it scares me. Tread carefully guys!!
 
Peter. If you buy Thundercat, I know you will do a great detailed job of breathing life back into the car. I will not be purchasing Thundercat because the Mrs said " we don't need two cougars, get your turbo thingy done, but that's all you dog" hmmmm A good incentive from her to deter me? or was i using "man-maths"? answers on a post card!!! :cool:eyyy!
 
Mani said:
Peter. If you buy Thundercat, I know you will do a great detailed job of breathing life back into the car. I will not be purchasing Thundercat because the Mrs said " we don't need two cougars, get your turbo thingy done, but that's all you dog" hmmmm A good incentive from her to deter me? or was i using "man-maths"? answers on a post card!!! :cool:eyyy!
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Well, I have done a deal with Dave and the Bolton Mafia for a St200 engine so I am afraid I am out on this one. I am also building a £2500 garage at the end of my garden in a few weeks ( to keep my car at my house ) so all my money is taken up this year I am afraid.
Shame really as I do think I could have brought this car back to its former glory.
 
Peter Froud said:
Well, I have done a deal with Dave and the Bolton Mafia for a St200 engine so I am afraid I am out on this one. I am also building a £2500 garage at the end of my garden in a few weeks ( to keep my car at my house ) so all my money is taken up this year I am afraid.
Shame really as I do think I could have brought this car back to its former glory.
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Understood dude. I hope there's someone out there though.
 
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