[Clark Kent]

So my many sleepless nights due to my job finally caught up with me and I fell asleep at the wheel last week. What I thought was a minor accident (just jumped a boulevard in the middle of a street and went through some bushes) is now shaping up to be a $20K repair job on a 4-month old car!!! I can't believe that my first accident ever turned out this way but now I'm just trying to evaluate all my options and figure out what's my best choice.

If, as the estimate stands, they need to go through and replace my entire suspension system (sport package), I highly doubt the car will be back to original form, let alone all the rattles and noises I can expect. I'm still waiting on a final estimate after they can get under all the paneling (tomorrow hopefully) but I was told over the phone that it's looking at ~$20K.

Considering I bought the car for ~$45K (plus tax & license), do you guys have any thoughts on whether it's worth going ahead with the repairs or if it might be a safer decision to try to claim it as a total loss? I was planning on keeping the car for 5-7 years and can't see myself being comfortable with the repaired car for nearly that long.

Any thoughts / suggestions are much appreciated!

[aut0sh0cker]

Woah, I feel for you man. A similar thing happened to my dad a few years ago, though not with such extensive damage as yours. I would probably total the car in your situation, but wait for a final estimate...

BTW, are YOU alright!?

[Clark Kent]

Thanks for the concern / input. I'm totally fine. From my perspective all that happened is I jumped a curb at 15mph. If you were to ask my car the same question, it probably feels like it went through a lot worse...