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Damage To My Car(Click for bigger…)
This is why I can’t have nice things.
See, I was at the Target / Lowes complex in Sterling Heights to buy a new toilet seat (coming in future post). Well, when backing out of the parking spot I suddenly heard a CLANKgrinnnnnnnnd sound, which stopped when I did. Looking in the rear view mirror (where I had been looking) I saw nothing. Looking in the side view mirror I saw part of the cart corral really close to the back of my car.
I pulled away from it, went and parked, got out and looked, and only saw a bit of scraping to the side of the vehicle near the back. Nothing broken, nothing dented. Looking at why I hit it, the damned cart corral was sticking out into the lane 5′ – 6′! It’s also much shorter than my car’s rear end, so it was pretty much impossible to see. (Use the Grand Am in this photo for comparison; my car’s trunk is about that same height.)
Once I got home I wiped down that part of the vehicle and took the photo. It’s really not as bad as it could have been, as it looks to be only a scuff. There is also a couple small marks on the bumper. I’ll check it all out again tomorrow in the daylight.
While rubbing compound should take care of it, I’m still a bit frustrated. I’ll probably find some way to complain to Target about it, because that corral should not have been positioned that far out in the lane. I don’t really want anything for it, I just want it fixed so no one else hits it.
I’ve seen corrals move around. They’re generally just sitting there, and I’ve seen people try to pull into the spots, hit the corral, and push them a few feet. Target probably didn’t put it where it was when you hit it.
I almost wonder if it got moved between the time when I pulled into the spot and when I left. It was only about half an hour, but with it sticking so far into the aisle, I would think that I would have seen it when pulling past it into the spot.
That’s why I don’t buy brand new cars. These days I don’t care if my car get dings or scratches. Oh and rarely get car washes :)
Car…wash… why do you use those words together?
I currently drive a car that I bought new. A couple of weeks ago, I was stopped at a stop sign behind another car, waiting for traffic to clear. A woman in a Forrester made a right around the corner, took it way too wide and hit my front quarterpanel behind the wheel. She was OK, her damage was the front plastic bumper a little scratched up and the styrofoam behind it crunched; the damage to my car was just a dent the size of a basketball going in about 2 inches. I don’t bother carrying anything but PL/PD insurance anymore, so I just said “It’s up to you if you want to report it. The damage to your car is almost certainly below your deductible, and I don’t really care about my damage.” We just drove off. No stress.
My fender was hitting the door a little, so when I got home I wedged a hunk of wood in there and partially closed the door, bending the fender back out. Done.
I have friends who pay more for their cars 50,000 mile checkup than I’d be willing to pay for a car anymore.
Mainly, I ride my bike. About 5000 miles a year.
My car these days are under 5K and usually they’re in great shape. They run better than new cars. My last two cars have been both Honda Civic. They keep on running and running and running…. and so on. :)
I’ve never owned anything but Fords, and I’ve never had a significant problem with one. Nothing that cost more than $50 to fix, other than replacing tires. My Taurus has 128K on it. It’d be close to 150K but as I said, I mainly ride a bike these days.
I wished the weather were 70-80 degree year round, else I would ride my bike as well. But riding 20 miles a day to get to work is a bit too much. I guess I’m not as hard core as you :) As far as my cars is concern, my previous civic got up to 179K mile before I got rear ended by an old lady. The engine was intact but I got a paid out from my insurance that was much more than I paid for the car :) My current civic is pushing 105K miles.
I don’t bother carrying insurance on a car once it’s past 100K. I drive so conservatively, and so much on roads without high speed traffic on them, that it’s a very good gamble to not carry any collision insurance.
I ride a bike 21 miles round trip daily, year round. I just put the studded tires on for this week. The low temp so far was 8*F, yesterday morning. Still fairly comfortable with just an extra layer or two. Last year we had several days in a row that were below my thermometer’s bottom end of -20*F; I’m guessing -25*F. In that weather I switched to platform pedals so I could wear hunting boots and keep my toes warm, and I had to dress carefully.