accident, might need a new vehicle, suggestions?

So apparently DH was stopped at a stop light and some guy rear ended him... He has been out of town this month working so have not had a chance to install our new foonfs into the car. (That guy's lucky cuz he would be buying me new ones if they were in there!) We were going to do it last week during a short few hour visit he had at home but didn't have the time. Cop already told DH he shouldn't worry that the other guy's insurance is going to have to cover fixing the car, (unless somehow they consider it totalled, in which case we put more work into the car this year then what the car is worth if we would have had BMW do the work (DH saved us a ton of money doing the work himself though but still, that was a ton of time and effort) So if they end up considering it totalled somehow all the time, effort, and money was a complete loss, (especially considering we have owned the car less than 2 years! It is a BMW 99 528i so value definitely would not be any more than 5000 at the most if I had to guess.

So the question is, if they end up considering it totaled what vehicles should I be looking at? Ideally, I would be interested in a 6-9 passenger vehicle (the more seats the better), good gas milage, great safety and reliability ratings, top tether anchors, and a decent price (under 10,000). Is there such a vehicle out there? lol Hopefully they don't consider it totaled but I do know how outrageous BMW labor and part prices are when you have to go straight through them so DH and I are worried that it may happen when they finish their estimate evaluation so I'm planning ahead just in case. Any suggestions are appreciated. TIA!

Do you need cargo space? If so, you're looking at a minivan (up to 8 seats) or a Suburban (can get 9 if you get the base model I think).

At 9+, an option to consider is the Nissan NV3500.

codex57 said:

Do you need cargo space? If so, you're looking at a minivan (up to 8 seats) or a Suburban (can get 9 if you get the base model I think).

At 9+, an option to consider is the Nissan NV3500.

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I don't know if DH would agree to a minivan. I know he wants something safe if we have to replace the car because now he's completely convinced the car is safe because it didn't move when he got hit so at least 4/5 overall for safety. I looked at some Suburbans online today, kinda liked them but gas milage seemed a little rough. Hoping for at least 20 combined MPG. Seems like a lot of people like the 2nd row being a 60/40 bench so interested in that now as well. I would like to be able to fold the seats if necessary for cargo. So far I'm not having any luck searching, especially considering DH would be picky and would want a car but I'm hoping to find something that fits the search criteria and the budget. I would love a buick enclave but that's out of budget. lol So I have been looking into other crossover type vehicles. But I'm starting to think such a vehicle does not exist.

More seats the better? Nissan NV.

AK11161217 said:

I don't know if DH would agree to a minivan. I know he wants something safe if we have to replace the car because now he's completely convinced the car is safe because it didn't move when he got hit so at least 4/5 overall for safety. I looked at some Suburbans online today, kinda liked them but gas milage seemed a little rough. Hoping for at least 20 combined MPG. Seems like a lot of people like the 2nd row being a 60/40 bench so interested in that now as well. I would like to be able to fold the seats if necessary for cargo. So far I'm not having any luck searching, especially considering DH would be picky and would want a car but I'm hoping to find something that fits the search criteria and the budget. I would love a buick enclave but that's out of budget. lol So I have been looking into other crossover type vehicles. But I'm starting to think such a vehicle does not exist.

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Even on here, there's discussions of the 2014 Odyssey's safety ratings. They're amazing.

You won't have much to pick from in the under $10,000, seats more than 5, and isn't a van category.

Do a quick search in your area for older Honda Pilots. To get under $10k it will definitely have to be older with higher miles. It seats 8, has top tethers in all positions, not terrible ( I average between 18-22) gas mileage, and good safety ratings.