[f-5snopro]

last sunday i was riding my f-5 and was going across a field enjoying the day. half way across the field i hit a culvert/hole/dip of some sort and i knew i hit it pretty hard . when i started to ride again i noticed the handlebars were crooked , so i knew something was wrong in a big way . after calling the hardcoresledder man himself he directed me to what i should be looking for and there it was , a bent chassis and tunnel under the secoindary area .
so i called my insurance company(nationwide) and the adjuster will be here today to look at it and hopefully it will be a total loss in his eyes as well as everyone elses . i have called every dealer from pittsburg nh to cape cod massachusetts and nobody will give me a warranty on the work that may be performed . why? ill tell you. when cat puts the sled together they use blind rivets and install them with a hydraulic press system , when dealers "fix" the chassis they use pop rivets . the pop rivet system does not have the strength of the blind rivets , so nobody wants to accept the liability of the repair . everyone says they will fix it but im on my own after the repaires are completed . i called cat and they said the same thing . what really shocked me was how many dealers said they would fix it but sell it after i get it back, is that nuts or what ?? yeah, ill sell my sled someone could get killed on when the chassis fails...........geesh!
so today is the big day of me dealing with the adjuster , thankfully i deal with them on a daily basis due to the work im in so i know how to handle them, but if they dont total it then the battle begins !
i want to thank dan at the outdoor shop for his help and honesty on this matter, hes a stand up guy . i have all my papers in order for when the adjsuter gets here so wish me luck ! i hope to have a new sled by next week , i really like the f-6 but its not available in a sno-pro package so that leaves the 6 out. maybe ill get the 7 this time around? ill keep you all posted on how nationwide handles this claim.

 

[duality]

If it wasn't for bad luck,you'd have no luck at all. I'm very sorry to hear that.Hope things turn around for you.

 

[f-5snopro]

i do have the worst luck, if i get another sled that would be my third f-5 since sept 18th !!!!!

 

[alleycat]

glad to here you are ok....you can always get another sled.

 

[Slider79]

What happend that this would be your 3rd what happend to the 1st one?

 

[dave cat 7]

dont ever buy a airplane, glad to hear you are ok
good luck with your ins. co, they may ask you to take it to one of their so called preffered repair shops

 

[f-5snopro]

even "their" repair shops wont give any warranty for liability issues . kinda makes you think huh ! besides they cant make you go to their shops because thats called steering and thats illegal .
as for my first f-5.....................ill just say it needed to go back to the dealer so i got another one with the help from the great people at arctic cat and my local dealer.

 

[Nick]

Wow, that really does suck. I feel for you man. Look at the bright side of things..... Maybe all your bad luck is out of your system and you can only go one place from here! UP! Good luck and hang in there! Come to this board for support. We will all help you out!

 

[f-5snopro]

i just called another local dealer and they wont section in the front chassis either, but their is a whole chassis available from cat and to replace that costs in the upper 4,000 to 5,000 dollar range for the entire job. looks like it is done..............im going to bring it by for them to take a peek at it and get another estimate for the insurance comapany to base their decision on. damn, i hope this works out. the best winter here in new hampshire in a long time and now this happens when i hit the 1200 mile mark.

 

[nesc160]

Well..F5_snopro..i think someone might be misleading you a little..last week i hit a rock the size of a small car and tore up the right side a-arms and everything..i thought maybe it was small damage (4-500 worth) but then my dealer told me about the damage done to the belly where the a-arms attach to it..seems that something tweeked and now the rivits are coming off to get a new front belly..like i said front belly...they said it comes in 2 peices and the front was like 500 bucks..so check into it if thats the same thing we're talking about Also i heard they wont warranty the sled because of the rivits there using ?? whats up with that...is it them the dealer..or cat themselves..makes ya wonder why they didnt make a diff setup for that

 

[f-5snopro]

well, here is the rest of the story.
today the adjuster went for the whole chassis from cat the front and the tunnel are coming from cat already put together , thats the only way to do it from what ive learned . they are also going to get me a new vin sticker ! and the dealer has the proper punches to stamp the tunnel as well . i was up front with them that im the pickiest mother f'er they will ever have to deal with but the dealer so no problem . it seems it will take a week for the whole new chassis to arrive and the same for the rivets,decals and other misc. items. so far everything is going ok and when the parts all come in they will have me drop off the sled . the insurance company was easier to deal with than in the automobile side of things so thats a plus. when i told the adjuster they were looking at around 5,000 he said ok . ill keep everyone updated as time goes on. thanks !

 

[f-5snopro]

nesc,
the front and rear sections are available from cat ,BUT, when the chassis is put together by cat they use blind rivets and a hydraulic press system to attach the components on a bench system. when the repair facility elects to section the front or rear section together with prop rivets thay are compromising the strenght and durability of the chassis. i have called over 15 dealers and they all agreed that the pop rivet replacements are not as good as the blind factory rivets. good luck and ask for a written warranty that the sled is being put back to pre-los condition and i bet they say no !

 

[Nhpatriot]

It's not like they use the pop rivets you use at home, they are of aircraft quality.

 

[firecat_freak]

i work on airplanes, cherry maxes is what they are called

 

[F7_Ditch_Jumper]

my dad was an insurance adjuster for 15 years. I kinda know the other side of the story. I was suprised that they would replace the frame in that f5. I would have use the following argument.

1: It may take more than 6 months to get parts. (in wisconsing it is illegal to insure a vehicle that you can not get parts for in a timely maner. I think its near 6-12 months)
2: It may be a total loss. God knows what else is bent that they have to replace. Ad-orders can ad up quickly. IF the total amount of repairs hit a certain percentage even though they have already began work on the vehicle it may total out. If the total cost goes over i think 75% by law the insurance company must total it. And if they dont you can come back and sue them. I my dad's company police is around 60% because of the possiblity of add-orders.
3: The insurance company doesn't like to take responsiblity when it comes to structual damage.
4: You probably wont be happy with it afterwards. Too many things that gotta be realigned.

Parts are cheap for a frame replacement in a sled, probaly only 1000. But that Labor is gonna kill ya. I bet it will be 4 grand in labor.

 

[pottenger]

I would consider yourself lucky to have insurance. Where I come from if you have 3 claims, they won't even insure you!

I also agree with ditchjumper. If the damage is 75%, it should be a total out.

 

[dave cat 7]

i would go for the total, no matter what its a claim against you, yhis is your chance to get a f-7

 

[F7_Ditch_Jumper]

If you dont think it is a total, make sure it is a total. Find a 15' dropp off, stand next to the machine and floor it. Let it CRASH AND BURN. It sad to watch but its better off. Dont do something stupid like set fire to it. It can be proven if it was done on purpose. But crashing it into a tree or off a cliff cant be proofed.

What they will do is take a ball ping hammer and add more dents to the other side of the car. Most hail claims only effect oneside of the car to make it a total. If seen every trick in the book to get your way with an insurance company. My favorite one is on boats. IF you overheat your engine because you clogged the intakes with seaweed its not covered. You clogg it because of sand it is. Take all the weeds out and pour some sand in and dont stop keep pouring get a funnel if you have too.

 

[captainkirk]

3 Sleds and you still have not sent me the short chrome windshield you were going to sell me 3 months ago !!

Good thing you took the time to post it for sale in the classified section of this forum....I guess SOMEONE has your windshield...!

Thanks Dana

Captainkirk

 

[F7TimmyF7]

$7600 sled=no water, ditches, open fields, ice covered lakes or rivers. I have heard way too many stories and seen ppl hit things. 7 ppl last week alone went through the ice in michigan....its the trails for me or nothing.