Open Apology to all, but I'm sure someone can point me in the right direction...

[REH]

The day before Christmas Eve 2004 a teenager slammed into the side of my wife's Mini Van. His large truck was unharmed, but our van was DOA. We had the same insurance company as the boy who hit us, that is both were State Farm but by different agents.

I figured our Plymoth Van (1999) was going to be totalled. I went to the repair place to talk to the repair person who is also a rep for the insurance company. When I got there, the person who had hit my wife's van was leaving in his newly repaired truck.

The repair person told me that he'd decided that the car was totalled, and that we'd have to wait to hear from his insurance representative. So about 30 days after the accident the representative for that guys insurance called, says they are not going to total it and will have it fixed soon.

2 weeks later we get the van back (We were in a rental car for a total of 50 days luckily their insurance paid it). Drive it for 1 week (take it out of town on a trip for 30 miles highway travel). Then the engine locks up. It gets towed to the body shop; that was on 2-21-05. They gave us another rental.

Now today 4-6-05 I get a call telling me the car is ready, that they put "NEW" *****( their words) engine in it. I pick it up and I find out it is not a new engine or even if it is a rebuilt engine, it might be just another engine out of a used van or something. Heck, my wife came home with no papers. All the guy said was that the insurance company paid for everything and he didn't have any papers for her to sign. I don't even know if the engine has the same VEN number as my car.

Now, I get home and my son shows me the oil it is leaking onto the driveway.

Now, I'm no Dolly Lama, no Mother Teresa, no buda. I try to be a good person, and not take advantage of anyone. I work with sick people every day. I could really use a break and some sound advice if some kind person could help.

I don't feel the engine should have been replace with any thing other then a new engine. For example; If your door falls off, they should get a "new" old door from the junk yard or aren't they supposed to buy me a brand new door.

Please post any suggestions or advice. Flamers, your email will be forwarded to my MIL.

[m Ransley]

A 7 yr old van, how many miles? 100- 200000? You want a new motor. Did you check the oil or water when you picked it up, No, or it would not have siezed. It leaks oil so they will fix that.

[Colbyt]

I would contact my agent and ask him or her who you need to speak with to resolve this issue.

State Farm has always handled any claim I was involved with to the complete satisfaction of the parties involved.

The replacement engine might not be required to be new but it should have come from a vehicle with similar mileage and maintenance. The maintenance part is where the documentation becomes difficult.

But I have to ask, how was the engine lockup due to the accident?

Colbyt

[longshot]

What does your agent say? you should simply tell him what's going on. he should handle everything for you.

[Doug Miller]

Why? You didn't have a new engine when the vehicle was totalled, did you? Seems to me you had an engine with five years of use and wear on it. Why would you expect that to be replaced with a new one?

They're supposed to repair your vehicle so that it has the same value after the repairs as it had before the accident. That does not mean that they owe you new parts.

-- Regards, Doug Miller (alphageek at milmac dot com)

Nobody ever left footprints in the sands of time by sitting on his butt. And who wants to leave buttprints in the sands of time?

[Beeper]

[AutoTracer]

First, tell your agent that the repairs were unsatisfactory and that you do not consider the claim to be closed. Eventually that open claim will get on someones back.

In my state (CA) when you sell a vehicle you must sign a statement on the title authenticating the milage on the vehicle. I don't see how you could do that if they did not provide you with documentation on the milage of the replaced engine.

Even a new or rebuilt engine does not replace all the stuff attached to the engine. They may have replaced the lower part (block, pistons, crankshaft) but reused the top of the engine (header, cam etc.) and you can be sure they reused the alternator, water pump, carb, exhaust pipes, and transmission. The oil leak may be where the engine joins the transmission (rear main seal) in which case the workmanship was flawed not the parts.

In any case, don't give up until you are satisfied the car is as least as reliable as it was before the accident. You really can't expect it to be better.

[TURTLE]

This is Turtle.

i'm not a rebuilder of cars but a friend of mine does buy car and rebuilds then to sell. i would go to the sale with him to buy cars and he would always say he did not want a front wheel drive car or van hit on the transmission side of the car. He said if you could hit the transmission drive shaft hard enough it will drive the crank shaft in on the motor and loosen the piston shelves of the pistons. The trouble will not show up a while but the motor shelves holding the pistons will come loose sooner or later. Now it has to be hit hard but it will do it and also it works on the transmission when the pressure slides through the shaft. The rules is don't buy a auto hit on the transmission side of front wheel drive. This is the only case of the motor going out later. the hitting on the front or back usely will not mess with the motor or transmission.

TURTLE

[Edwin Pawlowski]

Is there a place to denote engine mileage? I've never seen it in other states. A rebuild is a plus and as a seller, I'd want the buyer to know that.

Yes, new is out of the question. There may be problems related to the installation, but they will never replace it with factory new.

[AutoTracer]

It is the bottom third of the front of the title. there are two additional boxes you can mark "the odometer reading is beyond the mechanical limits" and "this is not the actual milage" but there is no line to explain why.