Wrecked.

[James Hodge]

And I can't even blame Kyle Busch for this one.

I was going through an intersection when this guy at the head of the line was blocking the rest of us from making it through because he wanted to go from the far left to the far right lane. As he finally got out of the way we sped back up since we had a green light ahead of us. I took a quick glance over at them and when I looked back...I got a face full of Ford Ranger that had hit their brakes. I hit mine but it was too late.

No airbags, and the truck's damage was minimal...she'll just need a new rear bumper. Insurance is handling it and while I'm not out my $1,000 deductible...I'm otherwise OK. The lady was really understanding and not mad at all. No police called and we just exchanged info and took pictures. I'm off to the body shop now...just wanted to share my screw up I guess. All I can say is I was surprised by how well the car took the hit...I didn't feel much except shock and then thinking to myself "did that just really f***ing happen?"

Be careful out there, kids.

 

[flyersfan4888]

Well, at least your Ok. Although the nose of your Accord looks Kurt's nose after Jimmy Spencer got done with him

 

[DavidCarter2]

That sucks dude, luckily everyone is okay.

 

[4WideRacing]

Glad it wasn't "that bad" of an accident and that you're safe!

 

[MillsLayne]

Well, at least your Ok. Although the nose of your Accord looks Kurt's nose after Jimmy Spencer got done with him

Maybe that's what Kyle needs! haha

Yeah, it's a GREAT thing that you're okay, that's the most important part.

 

[Janitor Dave]

Yikes, that's a crying shame; that was a slick-looking car right there, too

At least it was just the body that got banged up, and it didn't damage any internal components.

 

[James Hodge]

Thanks guys. Just got back from the body shop. They have to do a tear down before they can get an estimate. All I know is I'm out my deductible for $1k...looks like I'm dipping into the wedding fund.

One nice thing is the body shop I went to is next door to the Honda dealership so they shouldn't have any problem getting Honda factory parts.

 

[Justin Stelzer]

good to hear your ok!

 

[Enter Sandman]

That's heart breaking dude. Having gotten familiar with Grace's cousin's blue Accord coupe, it's a prettier car than pictures really show (pretty awesome to drive as well for an automatic). Hopefully the body shop gets her as good as new for you dude.

A few weeks back some little nineteen year old witch in a Prius rear ended me behind a school bus. There was nary a scratch to the Mazda's rear bumper, yet the Prius' nose was all stove in. It was only a slight impact, but I was still really impressed with how my little 3 held up.

Grace also hit a deer in her Civic a little over a month ago. After a 50+ MPH impact with the left front fender, all the car really needed was a new fender, windshield, and a little work on the A-pillar. Honda has some really good build quality.

 

[tipptruck]

Thanks guys. Just got back from the body shop. They have to do a tear down before they can get an estimate. All I know is I'm out my deductible for $1k...looks like I'm dipping into the wedding fund.

One nice thing is the body shop I went to is next door to the Honda dealership so they shouldn't have any problem getting Honda factory parts.

From working in a body shop I knew they would have to tear apart the front. I have seen wrecks like that and some times there is minor damage to the front chassis brace and other parts. They don't know that in till they tear it apart. But they should have been able to tear it down while you waited. I have taken of more front ends its not even funny. A good shop could have had the front end torn apart in under 10 minutes. In under 1 hour at the shops I have worked at you would have knowen how munch it cost.

I will make a estimate though for you. New hood for sure. Bumper might be fixable can't really tell from the pictures. The fender might need to be fixed if there is any thing wrong. Cant tell due to picture. At lest one new head light maybe the drivers side. A new grill. I am saying any were from 3-5 for paint parts labor. A few days in the shop and you will have you car back.

Also about factory parts. Unless you or your insurance told them to use factory parts. They wont use them. There is also nothing wrong with aftermarket parts. People think there is. If you put two painted bumpers next to each other. No one but the person that knew it was after market would know.

 

[James Hodge]

^ Good to know. I guess their work load today kept them from doing the tear down right away. I don't mind, I just need it back as soon as possible.

As for cost, I already know I'll be paying my deductible so anything over that won't matter much to me. My parents have nicely offered to help with the payment since they know it'd be coming out of my wedding funds.

The estimator said basically everything up front will be repaired or replaced. The driver side fender buckled, the bumper is cracked and warped, grille got destroyed, headlights scratched and pushed in and obviously the hood turned into an accordion. My hope is that all damage is limited to the exterior and no engine damage.

I'm off to go do something about my neck. I'm all achy from tensing up when it happened...not a good feeling.

 

[Henderson]

Glad your OK James!

I almost did the same thing. It wasn't in an intersection, but we were accelerating, and I was looking at a beautiful car. (A Camaro to be specific) I looked in front of me, and there was a guy that looked like he was stopped like two feet in front of me. Luckily he was just braking. I braked so hard that my tires screeched, but never hit him. That was with my learners, and my mom in the car.

Fortunately, we all survived and I have been paying much more attention to traffic and braking ever since. Sometimes getting in an "almost" wreck can be a good thing. I mean, I feel like I am better driver just because of that incident.

 

[Bwallace83]

Glad your alright bro, car's can be fixed, you.....can't be..? you know what i mean.


Also, never would have thought you drove a Honda Accord

 

[James Hodge]

Yeah, this just sucks because I've always been proud of my driving skills. It's a little infuriating, because the woman I hit admitted that she slammed on her own brakes because she too had taken her eyes off the road and came close to the car in front of *her*...so basically it was a chain reaction. I still know it could have been avoided had I been looking the entire time so...I know it's on me.

 

[Ryan597]

Happy your OK.

 

[James Hodge]

Also, never would have thought you drove a Honda Accord

Yes, up until now it had been a deeply guarded secret

And yes, I know what you mean. My dad is a paramedic and I know from his stories how much worse it can be. Most people only get into an accident maybe once in their lives so if this was mine *knock on wood* then that's just fine.

 

[David24]

Be careful out there, kids.

This cannot be stressed enough.

BUT you can be the safest driver in the world but still get in accidents, unfortunately.

That's a damned shame that happened though. From the pictures it looks like nothing was hurt other than the body (maybe the radiator? I'm not sure how far it sits back from the front) At least the lady was understanding and didn't go on an outrage. It could have been worse:

I was in a wreck on October 11th. I was driving down a residential street next to some apartments and the street was lined with cars parked on the side. There was a driveway which I couldn't see. So anyhow this lady thought it was ok to just pull out right in front of me. She didn't edge out to stop and look or ANYTHING. I was going about 30mph and I did manage to hit the brakes but it was too late.

That was the aftermath. It was 100% her fault. I had chest pain, breathing pain and now back pain from this and a totaled car (which I didn't even have for a month) So yes I did cuss her out. There's a difference between your situation and mine James because she didn't have any precautions or use her brain at all frankly. So I have my reasons. But yeah she is paying for every cent I've lost, wage loss, doctors appointments, physical therapy. The list goes on.

Here is what my car looked like before the wreck. I had tons of plans for her....

James just be glad it wasn't any worse and that no one was injured. Looks like you also got the least amount of damage under the given circumstances too.

 

[wslates]

Yeah, I'd suggest you might want have a doctor make sure you're okay. My dad was in an accident about 10 years ago, and felt fine after the accident. The next morning, he could hardly move. Turned out he burst a disc in the accident, and the adrenaline had covered up the pain.

Glad you okay, though.

 

[James Hodge]

Yeah, I'll see how I feel tomorrow. Couldn't hurt to get checked out anyway I suppose.

The real tragedy...now I'm off work for the day and the fiancee will e at work for another 4 hours...yet for some odd reason I really don't feel much like setting up a race in NR2003...

 

[Alan Harkleroad]

Glad your ok. That was a pretty car... now not so much. And no amount of parts ever makes em drive like they did when they left the factory. Wish it was totaled so you could just get a new one.