Auto Insurance Claims: old car, reasonable value, bio diesel, mile radius

Question
I drive (drove) a 1983 Mercedes 300D. I was hit by a driver who ran a stop sign and there is extensive damage to my front end. The other driver was cited for failure to stop at the scene and her insurance company acknowledges 100% responsibility. The damage includes a bent frame re a body shop guy who looked at the car. My question involves the value of the car. In my area these cars are in demand because of the ability to run bio-diesel (I've been using bio for the past 2+ years). My mechanic says that realistically I could have expected to sell the car for $5000 (they are selling for as much as $12K on Ebay). I'm concerned that the insurance company will be unwilling to pay that much (5K) and am not sure how to proceed with the claims adjustor. The other problem is that there are no cars available like mine (model/year) within a 500 mile radius due to demand. How can I be sure to receive the complete value of my 25 year old car? Is there anything that I can do to help my case?

Answer
Hi PJ,

You should assemble as much value information as you can. Due to the age of the car, it is ok to to do a national search. Once you assemble some value info you will be armed with the ability to negotiate with the insurance company if their offer is less than favorable. You should ask them to provide you with the documentation thay used to determine the value. That way you can review it for errors. The main thing to remember is that the numbers are negotiable.

I hope this helps
Richard Hixenbaugh