Belated updated on the car (G*d-damned IJIT)

I went around to a couple of cheap body-shops to see what the story with the car was - could it be fixed, sensibly, and at what price sort of thing. Final outcome: I found a place that'd do it for $200, no problem - though he did advise me of the rust problem that I already knew I had. So, he straightened out the rear panel, compounded some of the more serious rust-throughs, and took my $250 (he came in under the time estimate, and in compounding up the rusting, went beyond what we had spoken of for the basic job - so I gave him a bonus), and I'm back on the road. A little work that I can handle, and I can even get the lights working again (though I'm actually still legal). No claim to the insurance company (estimate turned out to match my deductable, so why hassle with paperwork?), so no rate hike on the insurance.