Guest Nic-Rebel450CA Posted November 9, 2003 Share Posted November 9, 2003 Too bad this wasnt something to be happy about, though. I discovered that my Z can fly about half a second after I hit a pile of debris on the freeway at freeway speeds. I was heading out to San Francisco on a trip, and it was about 9:00PM. Freeway was pretty clear, and I was in the carpool lane that was wide open. All of a sudden my headlights were almost completely absorbed by a blackness in front of me. With no time to swirve, I barely was able to center myself over the object(s) before hitting. Right before I hit the object(s), I saw a twinkle off chrome, which led me to suspect that it was a full truck wheel. I hit (whatever it was) and literally went airborn. All four wheels came off of the ground. Just as the back wheels cleared the object(s), a piece hit the left rear wheel and cocked the car slightly sideways. For this split-second in time, I thought I was going to come back down crooked and plow the center-divide. Luckily, when I landed, I somehow managed to swiftly straighten the car out and stay in my lane. I shoved in the clutch and checked my oil pressure gauge as I hit my hazard lights and coasted off of the freeway. Turns out that the front chassis (under the fenders, etc) is slightly tweeked, there are crinkle marks here and there. The headlight bucket is pushed back slightly. The fender is slightly bowed out, and the fender behind the front wheel is folded back. The right headlight was broken in the impact, as was my stereo! Of course, I confirmed that the floor pans must be in good shape because they werent obliterated (yay, no rust). They just got squished up into the car some. Frame rails are bent, rear-end is squeeky, and I blew out my exhaust gasket on the custom flange I had installed. Oh, and cant forget the black marks from rubber down the side of my car. Good news is that a trucker that also hit some debris said I can make Caltrans pay for the damages, but it probably wont be an easy journey. I'll upload the pics soon. BTW, anyone have any suggestions on how to have the suspension, driveline and differential examined to check for any damages? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
z-REX Posted November 9, 2003 Share Posted November 9, 2003 BUMMER!!!! very sorry to hear about that... i wish you good luck in reaping the financial aspect, but it sound like you have a road ahead of you in terms of diagnosis and repair. a laser level would help to check the straightness of your frame rails, as well as just checking for evenness in the clearances between body parts. a good, competent body shop would probably give you the best diagnosis. the laser level would also work well for the driveshaft, otherwise check for signs of leakage (park it somewhere clean for a few days.) god, man, that sucks. you're lucky to have come out okay yourself, but i'd be really pissed off if that was my car. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ZR8ED Posted November 11, 2003 Share Posted November 11, 2003 There was a guy named Russ280zx on the zcar.com board...might even be here now.. This is going a while back, but he had the misfortune of running over a large log from a logging truck??!!!! I think.. it was pretty big.. 5ft long or something.. Anyways he ran over it with his z and left him airborne for a few seconds....he changed his screen name to "Russ the log jump champ!" Maybe we should start calling you the truck tire jumping champ! Sorry for the joke, but your situation just plain sucks, and I know how much it can Pi$$ ya off when something happens to your Z! Nothing else you can do, but keep on going, and be happy you were able to keep it out of the wall.... Glad your ok! and I hope you get your z sorted out. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RPMS Posted November 11, 2003 Share Posted November 11, 2003 Wow Nic, I'm sorry. Amazing how fast your day can turn sour, isn't it. I hope you can get your car back on the road quickly - it's a beautiful example of tasteful customization. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Nic-Rebel450CA Posted November 11, 2003 Share Posted November 11, 2003 Well, the good news is that the chassis doesnt actually seem to be tweeked. My Dad and I were looking over the car again and the little crinkle marks I saw appear to be the way it is supposed to be. I just need to get the driver side fender straightened. I still have no idea how my stereo got broke in the impact, but it was a P.O.S. anyway. The car wasnt messed up too bad though. It is still driveable, and still looks good In fact, I had someone following me through SF on my way out of town honking at me. I thought he was going to tell me something was gonna fall off or my lights were out or something, but he just wanted to give me the Now, I just need to decide what color to repaint... :| Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TomoHawk Posted November 11, 2003 Share Posted November 11, 2003 OUCH..... About a year ago, on the cross-city freeway (in my Escort), I was behind and left of a ltrailor-truck hauling a really big Hot tub that wa resting on big foam blocks (about 1 x 2 x 3 FEET). One of the block got loose & fell off, into my lane with no room to swerve, so i tried a glanncing blow with the corner of the bumper. Well, it just put a little nick in the paint and bounced off into the lane to the left where a big rig was. This truck just ran right over the foam block (you could hear the BOOM) and I saw a 'snowstorm' of foam pieces in the rearview mirror. Looked like the foam was cut in half. Also avoided an incident with a complete retread last week- was able to miss it totally. Why don't people report this stuff, so it gets removed? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
z-REX Posted November 11, 2003 Share Posted November 11, 2003 glad to hear your car's ok!!!! i've never come close to something like that myself, but on an empty country road late at night, my old 78 280 almost met a deer during a high-speed run. thank god z-cars handle, since 85mph z on deer would not have been pretty. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Nic-Rebel450CA Posted November 11, 2003 Share Posted November 11, 2003 Oh, deer are fun too. I came so close to hitting one in my Prelude that his little tail tuft hit my side mirror! It was a big old buck too, just ran out in front of me. Glad he didnt stop or my Prelude would have been Hon-dust. BTW, here is a pic of what I am thinking about doing with my Z now.. The airdam will be moved down about 2" and a custom spacer will be made to allow turn signals to be incorporated into the gap between the body and the top of the airdam. Then a set of side skirts and a rear valance to match will be made. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
z-REX Posted November 11, 2003 Share Posted November 11, 2003 i like! the only thing i'm wondering is after the spacer and everything, just how low is that bad boy gonna be? i guess no more stunt driving for you!!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Afshin Posted November 11, 2003 Share Posted November 11, 2003 Wow! that's one hell of a event. Nice job with the landing, glad you did not get hurt. The fact that the car also seems moslty OK after such an bad event is icing on the cake. So what color? hummmm on of the nicest Z's i saw was one with a clean stock bodied corvett yellow paint (I saw one two other yellow ones, but there were so so, one yellow had a hint of green in it (blah)and the other had a hint of creamy white). I thought it might look cheesy when my cousin told he would paint it yellow, but man was it nice. What colors are you considering? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Z-rific Posted November 11, 2003 Share Posted November 11, 2003 Right after I got my brand new 95 Eagle Talon turbo, AWD, I hit a deer at night. Went around a curve late at night about 50 mph and there was a deer dead in front of me. My first experience with anti-lock brakes. I got the car slowed down to about 20 when I hit, resulting in a deer rolling over the top of my car. The deer was fine, I had about 2 grand in hood/roof damage. About a week after that, on a side road doing about 30 mph, a dog ran out from behind some bushes and I hit it. There was nothing I could do, and the dog didn't make it. I was very upset, as I LOVE dogs. About a week after that, a bird flew into my windshield, resulting in a flurry of feathers and a dead bird. I began to wonder if my car was evil, and enjoyed hitting animals. Thankfully, 8 years later, the car hasn't hit a living thing and has got me out of a few problems that a lesser handling car wouldn't. All wheel drive sports cars are amazing with good tires. Nic, I would have the front end aligned, as that hard a hit may very well have knocked the alignment out. Oh, and then there was the time a gooseneck trailer jumped off a truck next to me on interstate at about 70 mph. Amazingly, nobody hit it. And, the trailer traveled relatively straight til it slowed to a halt in the median. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TomoHawk Posted November 12, 2003 Share Posted November 12, 2003 Nic- I once thought of using the divided bumper, but I didn't think they could be mounted well enough to be useful in a collision, at least head on,not to mention a corner hit. The idea was to lose a little weight and open up the front for airflow to the radiator. Well, it works on a Porch at least.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RPMS Posted November 12, 2003 Share Posted November 12, 2003 here is a pic of what I am thinking about doing with my Z now.. Nic, I like the idea of lowering the front valence a bit, but there's space between the wheelwell and the turn signal that needs to be filled in. That might be tough to match the contours so it doesn't look cobbled together. About the side skirts... I know you didn't ask my opinion, so please feel free to disregard me completely. I wouldn't do it. Your car has absolutely fantastic lines. The shaved door handlles, the lack of side trim, make your car look absolutely sanitary. Putting such tall side skirts on it, especially BLACK ones, is heresy! "I could be wrong." Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest zfan Posted November 12, 2003 Share Posted November 12, 2003 Sorry about the car but it could have been much worse. Atleast your ok! Mike Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Nic-Rebel450CA Posted November 12, 2003 Share Posted November 12, 2003 About the side skirts... Opinions are always welcome. Basically as far as the skirts, etc go, I plan to make a mockup first and see how it looks. If it doesnt look right then I will can the idea. just how low is that bad boy gonna be? I already have a bit of ground clearance. Since this is my daily driver I like it to ride fairly smooth, so the airdam sits just over 5" off the ground right now. What colors are you considering? I am mostly interested in a gunmetal like color or maybe a more metallic silver. I have also thought about using a color that I came up with when I dreamed of building a Lambo Diablo kit. The color was kind of a redish-orange with a copper-like tone. (Kind of like maple leaves in the autumn). Not sure how it would look on a Z, but looked damn good on a Lambo rendering. I have a Z model that I will play with colors on. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest polarity Posted November 12, 2003 Share Posted November 12, 2003 only horror story like that I have. About 2 years ago my brother and I were driving down I-55 (in Mississippi) and we were behind some type of dump truck. I see something, hear a breaking sound, feel a HARD hit on the seat. A spike about 9" long and 1" wide flew out of the truck, through our windshield and stuck into the seat of his truck. Somehow it managed to miss both of us. lucky day. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Nic-Rebel450CA Posted November 12, 2003 Share Posted November 12, 2003 ... and stuck into the seat of his truck. ... Anyone think we should have a "Count your blessings" forum? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Russ83ZXna Posted November 12, 2003 Share Posted November 12, 2003 Hey Zr8ed I'm here. hehe. My log jump doesn't compare to hitting a tire. ouch. The only thing that happened to mine was the front valance panel got screwed up. I also think that it screwed up the right front spindle because the wheel bearings never seat right. There was a guy named Russ280zx on the zcar.com board...might even be here now.. This is going a while back' date=' but he had the misfortune of running over a large log from a logging truck??!!!! I think.. it was pretty big.. 5ft long or something.. Anyways he ran over it with his z and left him airborne for a few seconds....he changed his screen name to "Russ the log jump champ!" Maybe we should start calling you the truck tire jumping champ! Sorry for the joke, but your situation just plain sucks, and I know how much it can Pi$$ ya off when something happens to your Z! Nothing else you can do, but keep on going, and be happy you were able to keep it out of the wall.... Glad your ok! and I hope you get your z sorted out.[/quote'] Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ZR8ED Posted November 13, 2003 Share Posted November 13, 2003 Hey Russ good to see your still lurking around! Drop me an email sometime and let me know whats up?.. you still Z'ing? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Perry Posted November 13, 2003 Share Posted November 13, 2003 2 stories. I was a kid with my dad and gramps on a trip. we were hauling a 3 axle trailer with a 1948 GMC winchtruck from Texas to Louisianna. It had one of many loads of an inflatable building on it. the hitch assembly came off the trailer with a chunk of the A frame, safety chains of course still intact and hanging on the truck with the piece of A frame. luckily we were making right hand turn at a light and going slow but... the very heavy trailer and it's evidently pretty well balanced load rolled straight through the intersection, over a curb, into a parking lot, bumped 2 park cars out of the way, then punched a hole in the side of a brick office building with what was left of the A frame. Also in my younger days... Dad was driving and I was looking at an 18 wheeler when one of the wheels off the trailer just gently rolled a few feet to the left of the trailer. not a whole dual wheel assembly, just one tire/wheel. it was doing about 80, everyone gave it lots of room but we stayed in sight to see what happened. it would roll a while then hit a bump or what ever and jump into the air a few feet and wobble around on landing, then it fell over from a bad wobble at like 65 ish and launched way up in the air, it's an old memory but dad will still swear it was high as a telephone pole. then it landed and flopped around and kept rolling then eventually shot off road carving a nice path into the woods. I remember gaining a lot of respect for the momentum stored in a couple hundred pound wheel at 80 mph. Perry Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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