Auto Insurance Claims: unrepaired problem found after two months, diminished value claim, minor accident

Question
My husband was involved in an minor accident two months ago. The truck in front of his 2003 civic suddenly backed up and hit his civic in the front. The car still was able to move after the accident, but it was very hard to steer. It was 100% the third party's fault so we contacted their insurance company. They sent an appraiser the next day and gave us an estimate. At that time, the front cover was not able to open and they couldn't inspect the inside. We took the estimate and the car to a local dealer's body shop and got it fixed. We didn't find anything wrong right after the car was fixed, but now after 2 months, I found the car was hard to steer sometime. I took it to the dealer and they said the steer flashing system needs to be replaced and it costs $520. I think it was damaged at that accident. I went back to the body shop and asked if they noticed this problem and they said they only did what the appraiser told them to do -- they have never checked the mechanical system. So my question is
1) Can I still ask the insurance company to pay for the repair?  
2)  I'm afraid that there're some other mechanical problem that they didn't notice. What if I find other problem in the future?
3) I just filed a diminished value claim to the insurance company. We're moving to another city and plan to sell this car. Do we need to keep our car until the whole process is over? And, we're currently live in PA and will move to CA. Can we sue the insurance company in CA if they don't want to pay the diminished value?

Sorry for my long story and thanks in advance,  

Answer
Hi Aya,

You will need to have a mechanic determine exactly what the problem is as well as being able to link it directly to the collision. The insurance company will give you a hard time due to the lengh of time that has passed since you picked up the vehicle.

You should keep the vehicle until the diminished value claim is settled. Sometimes in the process the insurance company may want to have their own appraiser lok at the vehicle.

You would not be able to sue from califormia. You can not sue the insurance company.  You would have to sue the at-fault person in the county in which they live. Then if you win it would be the insurance company that would write the check for the amount of your award.

I hope this helps
Richard Hixenbaugh