I need a hug!!

KillerKittyCat · May 23, 2004

I have been working on the Mustang. Fixed all my little leaks, bad valve and upgraded to the Pertronix. The car is running "sweet". I am getting 26 mpg and have all the performance I want.

So I went to the store to pick up a few things and coming home some kids decided to cross a four lane street. The three cars in front of me stop as do I. I hear tires skidding and BAM!. A guy and his wife in a 1992 Buick Century creamed the car. He had 20 fence boards tied to his roof and they came lose and made swiss cheese out of my roof and trunk. The bumper and tail light panel are history. I have the GT exhaust pipes and both of them tore through the valance and are sitting about an inch off the ground. Lots of witnesses fortunately. The first words out of his mouth were "Why did you stop in the middle of the street?".
I have calmed down some now but trying to decide how much I should have the insurance company fix. Besides the damage I should be able to have the whole car painted. (I hope anyway). I need to seriously look at the suspension too since both exhaust pipes bent around the axle.
I walked out to the car this morning and wanted to cry!

allcarfan · May 23, 2004

The guy behind you got a ticket right? Following too close? He better have. The brakes on his damn century should be better than what you have if you are stock. HIS insurance company is paying right? This is a tough choice. You could get an NADA value and have his insurance company pay that and give up the car. You could get an estimate on the cost to repair, and submit it to his insurance company - be forwarned though, they are going to try and say its not worth the repair. If this is the case, get a lawyer and be prepared to sue. If this just happend, you really need to go to the hospital and get checked out even if NOTHING is wrong. You need that on file...HIS insurance company should pay for that too.

good luck

KillerKittyCat · May 23, 2004

His insurance will have to pay. I just had the car appraised at 11K.
Police were not involved but I do have six witnesses. Funny thing is that they all were more worried about my car than about me!

allcarfan · May 23, 2004

dude, you really should have filed a report. He can be a knucklehead and say 'nothing happend.' Even if there were witnesses...its gonna be a he said she said battle. Good luck.

if you car was appraised at $11k...and the damage you described, its going to be an uphill battle. Personally, i would have just killed the guy and sold his organs on the black market...it would have been easier! HEHE Keep us informed

DarkBuddha · May 23, 2004

KillerKittyCat said:
Police were not involved but I do have six witnesses.

WTF???? Are you kidding???? Trust me on this one, I speak from experience... IMMEDIATELY CALL THE POLICE AND INQUIRE ABOUT FILING A LATE REPORT!!! DO THIS NOW!!! I just hope you have names and contact info for every one of those witnesses. Include them in the late report you file. The law and insurance companies get messy very quickly. If there is no report, the insurance companies do their own investigation, and trust me, it won't favor you. They may deny any responsibility completely, which leaves you to sue the other driver directly. This means hiring a lawyer who will take a good bit of any money you might get.

One last thing... if the guy did smack you pretty good, pay attention to your health. Again, I speak with quite a bit of familiarity here... whiplash and head injuries can be slow to appear, but incredibly devistating and painful long-term. If you start getting headaches, backaches, concentration problems, nausea, etc., seek medical attention ASAP. The car is one thing, your life is another completely.

Good luck getting it all sorted out. Keep us posted.

KillerKittyCat · May 23, 2004

Well the Police do not want any part of this. It's in the insurance company's hands. Prelimenary is $3000. Gas tank cracked, right spring shackle damaged. As far as the hospital . . .

Route666 · May 24, 2004

Man that makes me so mad. I would have called an ambulance for him because he'd be on the ground in a pool of his own teeth and blood after asking why I stopped.

If all else fails, and you end up getting screwed from this event (which I really hope you DON'T), there's always old faithful. The molotov cocktail through the house window 3 hours after all the lights go out...

Route666 · May 24, 2004

It sucks how in this day and age you have to be insured for everything because noone has the guts or decency to admit they're wrong and pay their debt.

2nd Mustang · May 24, 2004

KillerKittyCat said:
Well the Police do not want any part of this. It's in the insurance company's hands. Prelimenary is $3000. Gas tank cracked, right spring shackle damaged. As far as the hospital . . .

Believe me, I feel your "pain". My Camaro was totaled while my son was driving it in the city of La Habra, California. The police refused to issue a police report because no one was injured, EVEN WHEN THE OTHER DRIVER HAD NO INSURANCE AND NO LICENSE Moral of this story, stay the H**L out of La Habra if you drive anything you cherish!

Sudz · May 24, 2004

KillerKittyCat said:
Well the Police do not want any part of this. It's in the insurance company's hands. Prelimenary is $3000. Gas tank cracked, right spring shackle damaged. As far as the hospital . . .

Did you get the names and phone numbers of the witnesses? That will help take care of any legal issues. You should have no problem getting a police report. It's clear who ran into who, so you will not be faulted for the accident (at least, that's how it works in MI). You'll need a police report for their ins. company, and getting one shouldn't be too much trouble. Regardless of witnesses, the other driver hit your car.

Good luck, and I hope you're ok

68GEETEE · May 24, 2004

I dont understand what you mean by the police dont want to be involved. They are public servants, and if you need to file a report, late or not, they need to take one from you to account for what happened. If they dont, my next phone call would be to a lawyer.

If you ignore this, whats to stop the other driver from somehow trying to blame you for the wreck. And maybe sue you for their injuries, even though they hit you!!

As stated, dont get screwed on this, get yourself some backup.

Max Power · May 24, 2004

Well, that's the reality of it. I have had my car broken into, and you leave a voice mail and a clerk calls you back a month later with a case number for your insurance. They won't even send a squad out.

2nd Mustang · May 24, 2004

68GEETEE said:
I dont understand what you mean by the police dont want to be involved. They are public servants, and if you need to file a report, late or not, they need to take one from you to account for what happened. If they dont, my next phone call would be to a lawyer.
.

Believe me, the city of La Habra did send an officer out to help with traffic control and calling a tow truck (which I could've done anyway) but the officer and the desk officer at their offices both refused a police report, even after saying I'd pay for it (which most cities would do for a fee). It's bad enough I couldn't collect a penny from the other party, but when you can't get any help from the local police, that really sucks, so again, if you cherish your car, watch out when you drive through La Habra.

KillerKittyCat · May 29, 2004

Well here's were we are!! It seems the Police do not want anything to do with anything they are not a part of. Why??? Because the city or county is so back logged on "motorist" cases. They are four months behind on simple traffic violations. They have more Officers sitting at the Court House than on the street.

Anyway, after a few arguements the car is going to be fixed, The hardest part was the paint job. Since ENAMEL is illegal in CA they are going to repaint the car.

$2985 and I still have a 39 year old car with 310129 miles on the original engine. Doggonit this is more than the car cost new!!

pabear89 · May 29, 2004

Their all More to repair then when they were new.

On getting it fixed, Hope it comes out right.

PB

skywalker · May 30, 2004

KillerKittyCat said:
Well here's were we are!! It seems the Police do not want anything to do with anything they are not a part of. Why??? Because the city or county is so back logged on "motorist" cases. They are four months behind on simple traffic violations. They have more Officers sitting at the Court House than on the street.

Anyway, after a few arguements the car is going to be fixed, The hardest part was the paint job. Since ENAMEL is illegal in CA they are going to repaint the car.

$2985 and I still have a 39 year old car with 310129 miles on the original engine. Doggonit this is more than the car cost new!!

Why the hell is enamel illegal in california? Some stupid enviromental thing? Ever since I left there I've been wondering how you people survive living there on a permanent basis - I had a hard time with 6 months!

rbohm · May 30, 2004

when the body shop says your car is ready, give a close and thorough inspection BEFORE YOU SIGN ANYTHING. if there are problems, or if the job is not done to your satisfaction, make the shop fix the car before you take delivery. if you sign anything releasing the car to you, you will be held responsible for any repairs made after that, even though they will give you a warrenty on their work.

jesserose17 · May 30, 2004

KillerKittyCat said:
Since ENAMEL is illegal in CA they are going to repaint the car.

Really? I just bought a rattle can with enamel paint at Wal-Mart in CA.

2nd Mustang · May 30, 2004

jesserose17 said:
Really? I just bought a rattle can with enamel paint at Wal-Mart in CA.

I think lacquer paint is illegal now for automotive finishes. Something about the chemicals that do harm to the ozone layer.

kslushy · May 31, 2004

rbohm said:
when the body shop says your car is ready, give a close and thorough inspection BEFORE YOU SIGN ANYTHING. if there are problems, or if the job is not done to your satisfaction, make the shop fix the car before you take delivery. if you sign anything releasing the car to you, you will be held responsible for any repairs made after that, even though they will give you a warrenty on their work.

To add what Rbohm said, make sure they understand that you do not want them driving the car off the lot, so take the mileage down. Bodyshop guys just love driving mustangs

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