Our 2002 Acura TL (non S) was rear ended a few weeks ago (other person
was 100% at fault). This accident resulted in about $11,000 in damage
(so far, they keep finding more stuff) and will take about a month in
total to fix.

We had only 18K miles on the car and it was in perfect condition. My
question is:
After the car is repaired (Insurance company insists that the car can be
repaired to "as new" condition the car will be worth considerably less
in trade in value (no way to hide a major accident in the days of
carfax.com....etc...).

We are located in Massachusetts which is one of the few states that
still recognizes (dimunition of value). However, the problem is in
making the claim to the insurance company. How do you come up with a
number that represents the reduced value of the car (because of major
accident). Any guesses as to how much I should be trying to get?

I spoke with Acura under the pretence of no longer feeling safe in the
car and wanting to trade it in toward a new car. The only thing they
would say about the post accident value was that it would bring the
trade in value down one condition level (at least). This means that a
car such as ours with low milage and otherwise great condition would be
considered good condition rather than excellent. No number attached to this.

Anyone have any advice for me around this issue short of selling the car
to see how much we lose in compensation to the buyer because of the repair.

To reply, just remove the remove. in the return address

Jay