I was involved in an accident where I was hit on the Driver front side by a scooter. It took off the front bumper completely, but was otherwise drivable. Right after the accident occurred I noticed that the steering was feeling a bit heavy, very weighted as if the power steering had cut off. I took it into the Mazda dealership where they verified that the rack and pinion had been damaged. My insurance adjuster did not believe this and I got a second opinion from another Mazda dealership who said the same thing. However as the damage is "internal" according to the insurance company, (USAA ), they will not pay for it as they are attributing it to wear and tear. That is the biggest BS I have ever heard in my life, the dynamic stability control is OFF all the time since the accident and also if I turn my steering wheel all the way to the right, the engine shuts off! Has anyone else out there had any similar experiences? Since I was hit on the rim area, I think it is clear that it can damage the Rack and Pinion. I am posting some pics, any advice you can offer on fighting this will be sincerely appreciated. The pictures were taken moments after the accident btw.

 

Did you get any estimates from a body shop? If so, the steering should have been included.

 

Bring the car down to a few mechanics and explain your issue. You will find someone who will work with you to get as much money as possible. What the shop can do is markup the price of parts and labor so you get closer to the actual cost of repairs. Depending on exactly how much it will cost to repair, you may not have to pay anything, or you may have to pay a several hundred for the remaining balance or deductable.

Another thing you can do, is go to the Mazda Dealer, have them look at the issue and have the Dealer call USAA and tell them that this does happen from a front/side impact(if it does). This will prove that it happened in the accident and you can make USAA pay for it.

 

dude i got the same problem i was cut off and smashed into a curb.its been to 2 shops 6 times because it keeps makeing a banging noise ,,they couldnt find the problem,,i crawled under my own car and found that the staering rack is damaged now im worried because the rack is like 800 dollars,i not gonna pay for i dont care if i gotta take them to court, they have been no help and you gota chase the insurence company down like dogs,how can a trained mechanic not find it i was under the car for 5 minutes,,?i hate these pieces of ****,,they aint gonna walk all over me thats a promise,,oh did i tell ya this is 5 months after the accident,,ive kept it garaged cause it isnt to fun driving a car that bangs on every bump,,there some ********,

 

You do realize that this thread is nearly 3 years old from its last post, right?

Just tell your insurance company to fix the issue.

BC.

 

Never realized it since you said it...lol