Sierra 3 is toast.

State Farm will total a car if it cost more to repair then what the Blue Book says its worth. If you have receipts and can prove that the motor is rebuilt or the tires are new, etc, etc are worth more, they will give you more, depending on how "new" the parts are.

The only way around this is to have a written appraisal by a professional. If you have an old car that you put custom paint and/or parts into it, have it appraised by an auto appraiser. Add that written appraisal to your policy records.

Some insurance companies even have a Custom Paint Adder -- just present your receipts and they will list the new additions on the car's total worth.

Of course, if your car is listed as an antique, that is a different insurance policy. Back in 1980, when RadioShack borrowed a '60 Corvette from one of the local Corvette clubs for an album cover photo shoot, they had to insure this car for $30K -- because that was what it appraised for. The lady in the club with the car was the original owner and had the window sticker. She bought it for $4400 in 1960!

I met Dean Torrance (Jan and Dean) and Mike Love (Beach Boys) at that shoot. Love kept hitting on the makeup girl.

If I can find that album cover (audio cassette) I'll post it. RS relabeled the license plate of the car to read "TTTTTT".
 
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