Could have been a whole lot worse...

[human]

As I was coming home this evening (driving the Impala), I came upon an accident scene and when I touched my brake pedal I instantly realized why the accident had occurred. The road was slick as glass! A car ahead of me had stopped and when I realized I couldn't, I headed for the ditch, missed the car and stuck only bushes. Amazingly, I was able to drive the car out of the ditch. Police were already on the scene, which involved about four other cars but thankfully no injuries, and they could not have been nicer. The only damage to the car was the front bumper cover. It was torn at the inner corner of the fog lamp opening and the black plastic bezel around it is missing. I looked for it but couldn't find it in the dark. I may go back and look for it again during daylight. Thankfully, the fog lamp itself still works. There's also some plastic behind the fog lamp assembly that's broken and there are also a couple of very minor scratches on the fender well but I think they'll buff out. No creases to the metal. The bumper cover flexed enough to also pop the fog lamp bezel out on the driver's side but it did not break. I'll try to either pop it back into place or remove it tomorrow so it doesn't come out on its own and get lost.

I guess I'm lucky I wasn't driving the Aurora because the insurance company would probably try to say it was totaled and offer me just a few dollars over the deductible. Of course, I'm also lucky I wasn't hurt, nor was anyone else, and that's what's really important.

Daily Driver: 2011 Impala LT
Weekend Toy: 1995 Aurora

[tigger]

Good to hear you (and others) weren't injured!

[Toronado3800]

Tis the season for that type of thing. Glad to hear you are ok and thanks for the reminder to be careful.

If it helps, one of my buddies used to run a small used car lot. He used car-part.com to get mirrora and other body parts mailed to him. Its an online junkyard listing.

[human]

Thanks for the tip. I checked car-part.com and also gmpartsdirect.com, which is actually the parts department of Flow Chevrolet in Winston-Salem, N.C., 30 miles away from where I live. I was really shocked to see the difference in prices between the two was essentially non-existent. Front bumper covers with fog lights run between $180 and $220 on car-part.com and a brand new one from gmpartsdirect.com is $212.35. The plastic deflector behind it is also broken. It's priced at $47.54 at gmpartsdirect.com, so we're talking roughly $260 for parts, plus the cost of painting the bumper cover and installation. I've got an appointment with the insurance company's designated body shop on Monday, weather permitting. There's an independent shop across the road from the community college where I teach so I'll probably take it by there as well, just to have a comparison. The thing I'm thinking about right now is what the insurance claim will do to my premium. I've got a $500 deductible and I'm guessing the repair is not going to be much more than that by the time you add in the cost of painting the new bumper cover and installation. I wonder if I'd be better off paying out of pocket and skipping the insurance claim. Of course, the claim would be a moot point if the total doesn't reach at least $500.

I had a similar situation a few years ago when somebody broke into the Cadillac I had at the time by smashing out the small stationary window on a rear door. It would actually have been a lot cheaper to fix if they'd taken out the main window that moves up and down. The repair was $400 and my deductible was $500 so I couldn't file an insurance claim. To find this out, my insurance company put me on a three-way call with a local glass shop to get an estimate and the glass shop readily agreed to a 20 percent discount with the insurance company but promptly rescinded that when the amount came out below the insurance threshold, leaving me to pay the entire non-discounted amount out of pocket. The glass shop essentially charged an extra $80 for a simpler transaction without the insurance company as a third party. I was also mad with the insurance company for making no effort to secure the discount on my behalf.

Oh well, no need to borrow trouble right now. I'll deal with all that Monday.

Daily Driver: 2011 Impala LT
Weekend Toy: 1995 Aurora

[aj]

At least you and everyone was ok. I would have wanted go into a ditch too than go into the pile up of cars! So if its not too much money if I was you pay it out of your own pocket instead of getting the Insurance to pay for it because you know how they are and they will raise your rates. So hopefully you can get it repaired soon!

[human]

I went yesterday to the insurance company's appointed body shop and the whole repair will cost about $830, so the insurance will be on the hook for about $330 of that. Work is scheduled for 10 February. I declined a rental car since I have the Aurora to drive. Just one less thing to deal with, even though it wouldn't have cost me anything.

Daily Driver: 2011 Impala LT
Weekend Toy: 1995 Aurora

[human]

The Impala is now at the body shop. I should have it back by the end of the week or early next week. I'll be glad not to see that torn up front end anymore. Meanwhile, the Aurora is getting some exercise. I'm glad the weather's cold right now as that will minimize low oil pressure warnings.

Daily Driver: 2011 Impala LT
Weekend Toy: 1995 Aurora

[human]

The body shop called yesterday and I should be picking up the Impala this afternoon. That's a pretty quick turnaround. At first they said they might have it ready by the end of the day yesterday (Thursday), then called back an hour or so later to say it would be mid-morning today, then shortly after that, they sent a text saying it would be ready at 4:00 today. Meanwhile, the Aurora has been performing flawlessly--no LOPs so far. It may have its issues, but it's pretty good for a second car.

Daily Driver: 2011 Impala LT
Weekend Toy: 1995 Aurora

[human]

The Impala's home and lookin' good--well, as good as it can, being the plain jane fleet car that it is. The only semi-obvious thing that shows it's been repaired is the fog light surround on the passenger side. It's brand new and the black plastic is much--well--newer looking than the one on the driver's side that's had five years out in the elements. I'll try hitting it with a little Armor-All and see if I can remedy things. but if that's the worst thing I see, I'm satisfied. The better part is they guarantee the repair for as long as I own the car.

Daily Driver: 2011 Impala LT
Weekend Toy: 1995 Aurora

[tigger]

Good to hear!

I honestly thought you were updating to say that the shop had called again, lol!