Arggh! Damage to my son's car this am...how would you guys handle this?

[RedBaron]

I would just do a homeboy repair and if he doesn't like it he can fix it himself. He should concentrate on university and getting good grades, not trying to scrounge up money to fix a car.

[SilberUrS6]

Young and dumb, just a bumper cover, NBD. Apologize for yelling at him, because mostly you were angry with yourself for not giving him a warning. Help him do a temp fix, then have him save money for a permanent fix. And you earn points with your wife this way.

[2porscheguy]

Originally Posted by SamC.

Determine what is most important to you - your own flesh and blood or a hunk of steel? Answer that question and proceed accordingly.

A bit of personal soul-searching may be in order here as well. You discarded loyalty and shamed your son by ripping him in front of someone who is not family - the garbage truck driver. In addition to repairing the car, you likely have a bit "fence mending" to do as well. The boy is going to remember this long after the car is gone.

Actually SamC, I didn't rip into him in front of the gentleman. It was when he came back in shortly after the collision. But I agree, that would not have been a classy move on my part.

[patz]

Originally Posted by 2porscheguy

Patz, JB and I were a little concerned that it would look too "busy" there with the stone guards but I think it turned out well!

Hey, how is JB doing btw?

Sorry for the OT babble here guys!

The nice thing about vinyl, it's not permanent.

[Lapkritis]

He needs to pay to fix and learn responsibility. Otherwise you'll risk cleaning up his mistakes for life. He will thank you later for the advanced lesson.

[ckelly78z]

Ultimately, the responsability of safety belongs to the driver who backed up without looking. I always check my mirrors and look for any thing behind me before I back down our driveway. If I hit something....it's my fault. Figure out a way to re-attach the bumper securely and trade the car in to a dealership.

[john70t]

Originally Posted by Lapkritis

He needs to pay to fix and learn responsibility. Otherwise you'll risk cleaning up his mistakes for life. He will thank you later for the advanced lesson.

This.
-Work hard and do well in college. Make enough to pay others, or you'll be doing it all yourself (which is not usually physically possible).
-Learn everything dad knows in the meantime.

[2porscheguy]

Update: (b) We did end up re-attaching the bumper over the weekend, so all is good!

Originally Posted by on2wheels52

krikey, just zip tie the thing back on.

Basically that's what we did!




Actually he prefers it this way as opposed to getting a new bumper installed. The four holes you see to the right of the licence plate are where the front right hub of the one ton truck became embedded into the plastic bumper upon impact.




He says they look like bullet holes...cool!

Kids!

Thanks once again for all your input guys!