hello, heres my little story, sad ending is yet to be confirmed since the age of 12, i wanted a vl, i just loved them, when i was 14 i started to research into them, there history etc, when i turned 16 the first day i got my L's, dad surprised me with a 1986 vl calais, at that stage it was in really good condition minimal rust perfect drive line etc, the 3 years of owner ship i spent countless hours and coin on it, went to many cruisers etc, did the usual p plater first car stuff, heres just a small list of stuff i did ( i had no experience with cars etc before) 18 inch rims CAI ppod filter in custom box injectors etc replaced VT big brake upgrade bigger booster/master cylinder monster tacho after market head unit/sub/amp/speakers full interior clean new parcel tray vs seats new springs/shocks all round full noltahne bush kit new grill/head lights rebuild diff new cowl panel (was done on my front lawn under a tarp with nothing more then a good welder and house hold tools lol) new front window and rubber rust removed from boot and boot channel stuff i can think of the top of my head ^^^ all i had to do was move the battery to the boot and it would of been ready for full body respray, below is a few pics i've randomly selected ---------- Post added 25-06-10 at 18:06 ---------- yesterday at 4pm, i pulled up into peak hour traffic bathurst street liverpool, came to a complete stop as the guy behind me did, next minute i find my self wondering WTF happened, get out of my car to find the guy behind me on the ground, a brand new land rover went full spend (40-50km at least) into the back of this little toyota yaris? pushed him into me and me into a commodore in front with a massive tow bar, yaris is totaled drive suffered from shock, land rover hardly a stracth and commodore fine, and my dream potentialy gone for good, i'm still waiting to hear form the insurance but my guess is thayl write it off give me stuff all and i'm left with the biggest decision of all, WHAT TO do, transplant everything into a cheap shell, or just cut my looses and never go back to cars? rears bent up to the rear door, it JUST opens and has creased the rear 1/4 panel in front looks ok but everything on the front left is vent back at least an inch ---------- Post added 25-06-10 at 18:08 ---------- sorry for the long and boring post and for all the spelling and grammar mistakes but my neck and shoulder is killing me and i kinda just rushed it thanks for reading Some original photos have not been recovered yet.

u gonna build her back up again.... as long as u got insurance it should cover it ay??

Build it back up again.

i suppose it all depends on insurance i'd build a new one cause a car is never the same once it's been smashed but i get a certain amount of money paid out to me if my car is smashed

as above said, if i get stuff all, transplant into another shell, if i get more or thay fix it well then yeah fix it

yeah so sad mate, im doing basicly everything youve done atm! Some original photos have not been recovered yet.

hate to say it mate but I dont think it will be worth trying to fix it, there is a lot of damage there. I would just start fresh, I know how much this sucks as Ive just gone through the same thing but mine wasn't as bad and was repaired under insurance, just got it back tonight. still needs to go through regency though. all the best mate, hate seeing things like this

sorry to hear mate ya gotta fix it

i've decided, if insurance fixs it well all good then, if thay write it off and give me what ever for it, i re shell everything, i'm not going to waste x amount of money to get the car ALMOST back to how it was when i can start from the beginning all over again with all the parts i need i have and build it from the ground up bigger and better

im 99% sure insurance wont fix that man. not trying to be rude at all but at the end of the day to them its just a na vl calais, what are they worth ?? $3g-$4g for a nice one. there is alot more worth in damages there by the looks of the pics

i wouldnt bother fixing that one. find one thats just as nice and sell the one you have as parts. i did a similar thing to my first car that i'd had since i was 15... its heartbreaking but what can you do. after the accident i was cut as, told myself id never buy a vl again cbf with the headaches etc etc... but i ended up buying one anyway lol... the bug always bites.

nah i agree with you pumba fully, and the don, it wasnt even an hour after the acoo and i was looking for a good shell,i've loved these cars since 12 (weirdo yeah?) and havent lost an interest, i spent close to 3 grand on the under carriage alone so i dont think i'll bother parting it, just find a good base shell and rebuild it wit the parts i already have,

defiantly see what you can do about insurance but if not. Find another one and do it up agian to the mint condition you had that one at . Obviously you love vls, and now you know what u would have done different ( if anything) and can do it on a different vl.

Sorry to hear the bad news. My first car I rolled. I scraped it, kept the parts & brought another VL. It was handy when something broke or failed, I would just run out to the shed & replace the part. Instead of being ripped off at the wreckers. If you have the room. Grab every piece off it. Store it, grab your insurance claim & scrap the shell. Some original photos have not been recovered yet.

don't quit dude she looked great, never give up

Looks like it couldve bent a few things & done so real damage. Your probably better off taking what you want from your VL Calais, buying another clean shell and doing that up. But i'm sure your very attached to the car & you'd be prouder if you rebuilt it back to it's glory, i know i would Some original photos have not been recovered yet.

thanks for the comments guys really appreciate it i am attached to it, but at the end of it all, itll be cheaper to re shell then to re fix, least i can do the things i wanted different again, and start from the ground insted of fixing problems that where htere to begin with Some original photos have not been recovered yet.

you may lose the shell if they write it off, depending on which insurance co you're with as it usually becomes their property as part of the settlement you can buy it back from them, possibly at auction that isn't economically repairable imho

they nearly always offer you the car, you will just have to pay for it, out of your claim money, so then you have to decide if how ever much they want is worth the parts you can salvage??

Dont give up. Get her back from salvage and if you're really fussy keep your eyes peeled for a genuine Calais roller, you've got most of the good stuff anyways, that way you can have your genuine calais back. she was a nice car too mate