Canny imagine the other driver ( assuming the OP is no blame?) will want to shell out towards it though at a potential £4 to 5K plus.
He/she.it will want to invoke Insurance surely? The car would need to be fully restored to OEM specs to avoid illegal insurance issues after all…just like airbags.
A wee scrape is one thing, the price of a nice Mk3.5 quite another.
TBH we do not really have enough info here ( eg fault) but that is the OP’s own business.
That’s a good point… Both parties will need to agree the best way forward, but proper repair is key obviously…
Rob
This is why there are some bargain to be had if repaired properly
Putting this through without insurance makes no sense. The two explosive actuators are £300 a piece alone. Paintwork is going to be needed. Nose cone has got to come off, because something will be broken there (“slight nose cone moved”). Wheel was hit, so there will be suspension/steering damage.
If youn are really attached to this particular car, you could buy it back, and then have it repaired. It will stretch out the whole process. Even if you decide to repair it yourself (presuming the other party is happy with that, not sure why they would), as a none insurance job, it will take longer time than you expect. Insurance work gets the priority at the coachworks.
It will need all sensors,ecu and the bonnet lifters !
Too much to pay yourself I think?
As for insurance work taking priority,not theses days as the shop don’t get paid straight away,unlike normal retail work !
Thanks for all the advice everyone I’ve a lot think about now I’ll just have to see what insurance offer’s and decide from that ,the more I read the more I think write off is coming my way , I just don’t want to see a lovely car broken up.
I’m really thinking that an own repair might be the way to go.i will let you all know.
It won’t get broken up; someone else will repair it. Own repair will be thousands., which might be more than the difference you would have to find to find a replacement MX5.
If the other party has admitted full liability there’s no reason to go through your insurance company, although I would advise them of the incident ‘for information’
I was in a similar situation with my last BM. Despite the total bill being upwards of £17k they insisted on having BMW repair it (I would rather they had written it off - car was worth around £26k, so it must have been close) however I am claim free, and bar informing them, my insurance company had nothing to do with it.
Don’t forget it’s your property, and it’s entirely up to you if, how and where it’s repaired, and if it is ‘written off’ you should be able to buy back the salvage. The whole process may be easier to control if you’re only dealing with the third parties insurance company, not yours as well.
Good luck whatever you decide.
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And remember, one of the 6 major principles of insurance is that you should be put back in the position you were immediately prior to the loss. If you are the innocent party (as you are, apparently) then you are in a good position to argue for repair or funds to replace.
Funds to replace means “to put back in the same position” so remember that second hand car prices are higher than a value book may give due to shortage of new cars. Hopefully you either have legal cover on your policy, or a stand-alone one, so that you can, if necessary, get legal advice in the event you have to argue the finer points of the claim.
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No way I’d be dealing with it outside of insurance, just to add you could also find significant delays in getting parts to fix the car, i’ve heard of people in similar scenarios being without their car for several months owing to parts availability.
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Talk to your insurance co asap if it’s going to be written off, as the registration belongs to the vehicle, I think you have to get the original number plate back on the car before it’s written off / sold on by them or you may lose the right to your personal plate !!
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So sorry to see your car in that state. It doesn’t look like much damage, but there is enough there to send you down all sorts of rabbit holes. panels not lining up, suspension damage, etc as others have mentioned.
Those actuators popping the bonnet up are likely comparable to an airbag going off. Requires all new parts, likely a new bonnet, and will also require ECU/BCM resets. £1-3k range seems about right for this.
All communications with the other party regarding repairs should be through your own insurance company or their provided legal firm. This is exactly how my previous insurance company (Privilege/Direct Line Group) handled my non fault claim with 2 other drivers, and afaik exactly what all insurance companies will want you to do.
In the mean time while your car is being assessed/repaired you should be provided a hire car to no cost - do not drive with the Active Bonnet deployed as if you hit a pedestrian you’ll open yourself to all sorts of legal trouble. You need to tell your insurers the car runs and moves (for recovery), but is not drivable due to deployed safety features. If the car is indeed declared a total loss and written off your insurance company should walk you through taking your plate off the car, may be worth just asking them.
Thank you Will
I’ve discussed the plates etc this morning with insurance and happy now that I know what to do , just waiting for Price etc and will take it from there it may be that they Surprise me and go down the repair route who knows anyway the response and advice received from this post has been very useful.thanks to all.
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If op could get around without his car for as long as the repairs take it could prevent the car becoming a “write off”.
I was rear ended in a mini a few years ago where it looked a small amount of damage, a replacement bumper, respray to match car. Job done? Er no.
It took them 13 days, which is my opinion 10 maybe 11 days too long, with me enjoying the dubious pleasure of using a filthy Renault clio at a cost to the insurance company of £90 a day.
The whole insurance company industry is a joke at the expense of us by delaying work that could be done quicker earning shed loads of money on the side.
I hope you get another car of similar spec, or your car repaired 100% to your satisfaction. But sometimes after a crunch they are never the same with creaks and croans where it never used to, good luck with what ever the outcome. At least no one was hurt
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@watchnut I’m not completely sure on whether it’s the entire claim cost or just the repairs to the vehicle that decides whether it’s economical to repair or not, but during my claim it seemed to be just the cost of repairs.
Think some companies will handle this differently, but for mine it was entirely the cost of repairing the car that decided if it was economical to do so or not. My legal claim costs or nearly £3k hire car invoice wasn’t included in this decision despite being paid by insurance. Luckily my hire car was a brand spanking new Mk4 Seat Leon so no complaints from me there! 
You aren’t obliged to use your insurer’s own repairer. This is a common misunderstanding. They like you to and encourage you to because they have special agreed rates etc, but you’re under no obligation.
If their repairer’s estimate would result in the car being a write off - perhaps because they would replace the front bumper rather than repair/respray it for example, then you can get your own estimate.
You may accept a repair on the bumper (just the example) but still get the bonnet mechanism repaired properly. Maybe the explosive actuators are available used from a breaker? (Seat belt tensioners certainly are for example). If you go to your own repairer with these sort of options, you can get your own quote and submit this to your insurer.
This may avoid a write off in this way. It’s certainly a better option than allowing it to be written off, buying it back, then getting it repaired yourself.
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The whole insurance “industry” is a farce. My Mini with it’s rear end shunt was a bill of £5000 for what was a tiny accident. I feel your frustration.
Good luck
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In 2011, I pranged my 1996 Eunos Roadster. 100% my fault (one rear wheel caught a iced manhole cover, span the car around into a grass bank). No other parties involved, as the grass bank wasn’t in a position to claim. Destroyed front nose, and both front wings pushed back, but no other damage.
As the car had been repainted (montego blue) just a couple of years earlier, I genuinely wanted to take it back to the coachworks who did the previous paintwork. The broker had arranged recovery to a local place, but the car was driveable (steering was fine, lights were all good), and I opted to get it to the other place, under my own steam. Informed the insurers, who was fine with that, except they wouldn’t give me a courtesy car, which is pretty par for the course for Eunos Roadster owners (we’re used to be treated as second class). Gave them all the details for their adjuster/engineer. Given the market at the time for 16 year old import Mk1s, I wasn’t too hopeful.
The insurer (broker) is a well known company offering MX5 and import insurance. I’m no longer with them.
The car sat at the coachworks for 3 works, without any notification from the insurance company to proceed with the work. I call the actual insurers, not the broker. Somewhat surprised that they had never been informed by said broker that my car was sat in a workshop in the Midlands awaiting a visit. Within an hour, they called said workshop, got assessment from the engineer there, including his assertion that the S-Special II in Montego Blue was a rare model. They ok’d repairs, which I think ran to something like £3500, so I was relieved. Only after all that, said coachworks couldn’t match the paint on the new wings and bumper, so its a bit piebald.
Taking the car to another workshop might lead to delays in repair, and you might not get a courtesy car (its a courtesy). Also, it didn’t matter on a 16 year old import that Mazda wouldn’t give the time of day for, but on a newer car, you’ll also have to consider about the paint/corrosion warranty, if there is any left.
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Whats a wilting rear hub?
Probably a reference to the rear hub carrier bearing problem