Got Rear-Ended Yesterday

Wait for the settlement to see if it can be repaired.
Steve

Yes, be patient. If money is in any way a concern, wait until you have deposited the settlement check before spending any more on this bike. 
If you are willing to gamble, or are going to rebuild this one or start fresh on another of the same model no matter what the insurance company does and you know that that body kit is exactly what you want and it is a screaming good deal, then go ahead and buy it.

wrote:

Has someone from the insurance come out and looked at the bike?  They may make a judgement based on photos, but that's only when they are going to total it.  No disrespect, but I'll be very surprised if they don't total your bike.  The value is going to be WAY less than paying professionals to fix it.  Having the frame straightened by a pro shop for example will likely cost more than the bike is worth.  Bottom line: don't spend any money until you get final word from the insurance.  
 

So far my insurance has only seen pictures, and they have already declared it totaled. But I am more than likely going to settle with the other guy’s insurance company, and they still have not made a determination, but it was them that said “repaired.”  They haven’t said yet whether they intend to come out and look at it. 

As for the bent frame… I already fixed it. I’m a bicycle mechanic and got to talking with some of my coworkers (also bike mechanics) and we just grabbed a bicycle frame straightening tool and bent it back. It looks almost good as new. 

And yes, I see your point, and that’s kind of what I was getting at in my previous post. It’s tempting to buy parts because I can, because I know I can fix it, and just figure the settlement will “pay me back” when I get it. But so far I have exercised restraint and not bought any parts. Well, that’s a lie, I bought a headlight. It was really cheap though.  

wrote:

Yes, be patient. If money is in any way a concern, wait until you have deposited the settlement check before spending any more on this bike. 
If you are willing to gamble, or are going to rebuild this one or start fresh on another of the same model no matter what the insurance company does and you know that that body kit is exactly what you want and it is a screaming good deal, then go ahead and buy it.

I guess that’s kind of the thing. I’ve already made up my mind that I want to keep and repair the bike. And I’ve already got some money set aside for this sort of thing. So I could potentially just go for it, and have it rideable again in a few weeks. And in theory the settlement check will come in and I’ll be right where I started, or likely ahead, since they still have to compensate me for time lost. 

But there’s still that potential “oh no” factor of what if they wanna dick me around and not settle for enough. Or what if, what if, what if… And that uncertainty just kind of leaves me with… waiting. Waiting, when I could easily be fixing my bike. 

I know that if I were in your situation I would go for it regardless of what happens with insurance. But I tend not to worry about the practical or financial side of things when I feel like I can really make progress. 

Seems like you really love your bike, which I understand completely. 

I wouldn't have touched that frame until the whole deal is settled, to an insurance assessor, a bent frame adds a fair bit to the damage repair, fixing it before they have seen it in person, and that's only if they do, could work against you, they are trying their hardest to give you as little as possible, that's their job.....

Personally I would wait, it is likely they’ll total it but if not, certainly in the UK they will decide on the repairer who is unlikely to use parts supplied by you ( they want to make on the parts and the labour) 

wrote:

I wouldn't have touched that frame until the whole deal is settled, to an insurance assessor, a bent frame adds a fair bit to the damage repair, fixing it before they have seen it in person, and that's only if they do, could work against you, they are trying their hardest to give you as little as possible, that's their job.....

Exactly.  

I got hit on my bicycle one time, resulting in the front wheel getting potato-chiped, rear derailleur hanger bent,  a small dent on the frame down tube, and various scrapes and so forth.  The guy's insurance sent over a guy to look at the bike and I played up the bent derailleur hanger and frame dent, not to mention the wheel.  I also shared with the adjuster a website that makes custom frames, and how much they cost.  In this case, I made the frame myself, but I didn't tell him that.  In the end they paid me over $3k for the damage.  I straightened the derailleur hanger, installed a new rim on the wheel, straightened out the handlebars and rode that bike another 10 years.   POINT IS, I wouldn't have been able to play up the frame damage, like the bent derailleur hanger, if I'd had fixed it before the adjuster saw the bike.  

Found some ZRX1100 shocks for sale, does anyone know if they will fit and be a good upgrade for my bike? Or can anyone give me any tips on how to track down the answer to that question? Seems like finding reliable info on OEM shocks is just as hard as finding info on USD fork lengths.*

*Reference to another thread. 

I am not sure if the ZRX units would physically fit your Zepher however, the ZRX is more than 25% (221kg vs 180kg) heavier than your bike. Unless the ZRX is very soggy as stock the spring weights would be excessive for your Zepher. This would make a very uncomfortable ride over bumps and would cause the back end to "skip" when cornering over bumpy surfaces ( could be exciting in the wet!!) this would not be a great upgrade as you may well turn a safe and predictable handling bike into an unpredictable monster that randomly try's to spit you off. (Only my opinion)

wrote:

I am not sure if the ZRX units would physically fit your Zepher 

I think the fit is the biggest question.  I've read some threads where folks say the spring interferes with the chain guard (not specifically on the ZR550), or some other bits collide.  And if they are longer it might change the geometry.  Here is a random thread I found where someone fit some on a ZR550.

www.sportbikes.net/threads/my-zr550-zeph...-build.426437/page-2

However, if they do fit and you're willing to invest in them, you can get different springs and change the valving to fit the bike.  Race Tech is one place that rebuilds these shocks.  I'm assuming it's not cheap, but still likely cheaper than buying new piggyback shocks from Race Tech.

www.kzrider.com/forum/5-chassis/218595-g...-back-from-race-tech

Overall it might be cheaper to go with Icon, although the end results will probably not be quite as good (or cool looking).

www.ikonsuspension.com/product/7610-1523/



 

Thanks y’all. I missed out on the auction anyway, but the more I think about it, the more I think I should just save my pennies and get some RaceTech shocks custom made. Expensive yes, and I’m not pretending like that’s an easy expense for me, but, at least it’s a sure-fire bet. 

The other guy’s insurance finally came at me with some answers. They also are calling it a total loss. They valued it even below my insurance, but their salvage value is also lower. I could probably lay settle with either agency and the difference would be negligible.

I did ask about getting a rebuilt title and whether or not I could continue to be insured with one, and my agent said that I could. He even seemed to be saying that I could potentially insure it for the same amount it was insured for before. 

I also asked if there was any way to keep my clean title, since I know the bike is repairable and I’m confident I can do it myself. My agent said that basically if I drop the claim and don’t settle at all that the title would stay clean. They are not required to report it as salvage unless I take the money. Of course the down side to doing that is that the entire cost of repairs would come out of my pocket. Now, I could make that happen, it’s not a huge amount of money to me, but it would deplete some savings I had hoped to use for other upgrades on the bike. Totally separately, I am also expecting to settle with the other guy’s insurance for pain and suffering, which may help offset some of what I’d be putting into the bike. 

So I’m sitting here trying to decide what to do.