R.i.p. '83

[Brozoar]

Perhaps this is the wrong part of the forum, but just wanted to share my grief. My beloved black '83 944 is no more.

I was pulling out of a spot in a parking lot, with a huge Denali pick-up next to me, going slowly so anyone would have time to see me pulling out, and along comes a huge black Ford Explorer going way too fast down the lane. He hit my passenger's side front quarter-panel, destroying that panel and bending the passenger's side door like a beer bottle cap.

The front pass. side wheel is now positive cambered at about 30 degrees. I know virtually nothing about the suspension and steering systems on these cars, much less any car (never had to take care of an issue on that front... yet), but it looks like the strut is buckled. It'll roll but it won't drive.

I feel like I lost a good friend. She was my first car, outside of a '97 Mercury Sable that I shared with my older brother. She was a very special lady. Maybe I'll post some pictures later if I can bear the grief. It sucks feeling like you've lost a part of yourself...

So I haven't decided yet if I'm going to part it out or try to sell it as a whole. The rims are intact, motor was still running when I stopped it, not leaking any fluids; overall I'd say the motor seems good. But I'm not equipped to remove it myself. Rear hatch glass, sunroof, driver's side door, both rear quarter panels and bumpers are all fine. Any advice on how to get the most out of selling her would be appreciated.

I can't afford another car right now, but I already know that the next car I'm getting into is another 944. If you see any good deals in my area (Mt. Clemens, MI) send me a PM...

[Dan Himan]

That sux, sorry for your loss.

[jcommin]

My Benz just got sanwiched on an Expressway last week. Not as emotionally attached as you are to your 83 but I was sad to see it go. I remember my first car and it was special to me.

Sorry

[ernie9944]

Sorry to hear about your lost ,hope you get another soon .Keep us post.

[carlege]

you have a couple nice parts on that 83 like a crossdrilled crank from the factory. Sorry about the loss.

What type of insurance?

[RedBaron]

Get an evaluation from PCA, send it to the insurance company with a copy of the Excellence values, and send them all the receipts.

You could probably get a tub and switch everything over as a side project or buy a nice 944 with a blown engine and you could swap over all of the parts.

[v2rocket_aka944]

i can tell you from experience that these little go-karts are pretty good at taking crashes...

if you can share pics, we might be able to tell you if its fixable...

[Brozoar]

I have no-fault insurance. >

I'm learning that this is the case; these cars can take crashes pretty well... After getting over the initial shock, I went and checked it out again, and besides the quarter panel, the door, some roof warping and a crack in the windshield I didn't notice before, the thing is still pretty solid. That entire fender caved, but no damage to the inside of the front pass. side quarter.

And to revise what I said earlier, the wheel is 30 degrees negative cambered right now, not positive. I'm at the good old office right now, but I'll post lots of pics ASAP when I get off of work.

[nynor]

roof warping = bent frame. that really suxors. you have no-fault insurance, but what about the other guy? being that you were backing up, the accident will probably be pinned on you. total bummer.

[Truckin4life]

Pulling out of the parking spot and they caught your front fender?
Im not sure to be honest, it could go either way if you could prove they were going to fast for the parking lot. you MIGHT be able to pin it on them. But not likely. Sorry about your loss...

[vdubr928]

Private property....... they will make a determination. These guys are correct about backing out. Make sure you stress their excessive speed.

[Brozoar]

Originally Posted by nynor

roof warping = bent frame. that really suxors. you have no-fault insurance, but what about the other guy? being that you were backing up, the accident will probably be pinned on you. total bummer.

That's what I feared. It's so damn uncool knowing you were attentive, doing everything right and you're still screwed. Such is life I guess, bad **** happens to everyone. The lucky part is my dad knows a guy with a tow-truck, a lift and a shop who's reportedly been getting pretty good at bending back frames. And he owes my dad a favor, because he never paid him to design his condo.

My dash also split a bit, between the top and bottom. So I figured there was some warping going on there... Who goes that friggin' fast through a parking lot? Hopefully it's not too serious.

Well, here are some pictures of the damages. They're pretty ugly, so ready yourselves.






What do you think? Tow truck driver said it looked like the control arm broke, but since I know nothing about the suspension and steering... I can't confirm or deny that.

[krystar]

typically in a wheel cambered situation, the control arm does bend/break. but it looks straight from the picture. the strut is def bent. and the strut tower top moved so that accounts for the camber.

at this point...is it worth it bending the frame back?

[black_falcon]

Typical suv owner. I hope you read them the riot act, I would have been livid. Sorry for your loss, fix her up if you can.

[nynor]

Originally Posted by black_falcon

Typical suv owner. I hope you read them the riot act, I would have been livid. Sorry for your loss, fix her up if you can.

hey!

i wonder if they were on the phone at the time. that would be fun to pull their phone records.

[Brozoar]

Originally Posted by krystar

typically in a wheel cambered situation, the control arm does bend/break. but it looks straight from the picture. the strut is def bent. and the strut tower top moved so that accounts for the camber.

at this point...is it worth it bending the frame back?

So forgive me, I'm a newb; by the strut tower top, do you mean under the bonnet, where the strut mounts to the car body? As in that entire inner quarter section, not just the fender, was bent by the impact? Because under the bonnet, everything honestly looks fine... It looks like the fender and the tire took all the impact and left that inner quarter section intact.

I know I can get a decent used strut for a good price, and I just called a guy today who said he'd sell me a fender for real cheap. He said he also has a door for that side I could probably also get for cheap. So it's really up to my dad's friend now to determine whether it'll be easy enough to bend back, or whether it's worse than it looks...

And I really should have been more livid. I blamed myself at first, but in retrospect, looking at the damages, he was going way too fast. If I had stopped in that spot, rather than pulling out because I saw a closer one, he could probably have hit and killed my brother.

But... he was angry, muscular, and had tattoos, so priority alpha for me at the time was just keeping him calm.........


Edit: But seriously, the friggin' criteria for determining who was at-fault are so bogus. I shouldn't have to pay for this alone.

[Guest765]

it's not worth fixing. it is going to cost you a lot to straighten that strut mount back out, and it is never going to be the same as before. if you choose to take that route, bring money.

best of luck, really sorry for your loss man.


edit;

buy a cheap car that rolls, and swap over all of your equip.

[raison debtre]

Bummer - sorry to hear about the accident. Try to get what you can from the insurance company and buy another 944. You will probably do better that way.... Again, sorry about the accident.

[Guest765]

Originally Posted by raison debtre

Bummer - sorry to hear about the accident. Try to get what you can from the insurance company and buy another 944. You will probably do better that way.... Again, sorry about the accident.

please learn to read threads. he has no fault insurance (basically liability) and he has been found at fault. there will be nothing from the insurance company.

[Brozoar]

Originally Posted by fwayfarer

it's not worth fixing. it is going to cost you a lot to straighten that strut mount back out, and it is never going to be the same as before. if you choose to take that route, bring money.

best of luck, really sorry for your loss man.


edit;

buy a cheap car that rolls, and swap over all of your equip.

I got no money. Money enough for new panels, if I pinch pennies for a while, that's about it.

If you're right, and that mount has moved, then it really isn't probably worth it. I'll keep you guys posted.