When drivers don't pay attention...

[pparaska]

I know what you mean about light impact accidents and the soreness that shows up later. Still nothing. It was a very light tap. The fact that the Z is only about an inch or two shorter kind of confirms that . These cars are so flimsy back there!

 

Thanks for the concern though! I'll post if I start feeling anything (or if Glenn mentions it). He's on top of the world today, after starting a much better new job today (high end repair shop service manager), diagnosing a problem that 4 trained mitsu dealer mechanics couldn't solve for weeks (in another shop) after the symptoms were described to him in just a few minutes over the phone, and seeing an example of how his decision decades ago to stay up to date with the advances in auto technology have made him a valuable asset to the auto repair industry instead of being in the shoes of the old-school mechanic that came to the new place he's working at and not being qualified to get a technician's job.

 

Just found out from Zedd Findings (Charlie Osborne) that the lower rear panel is $159 US, and $23 shipping to me - way cheaper than MSA's $250 + shipping. Of course, many of us are not surprised by that info...I'm SO glad I don't have to go to the gouge-masters out west for this part!

[waynekarnes]

glad to hear nothing major, stiff neck and sore back ?

 

seeing the pix brought up anger, hearing you express that it could have been worse calmed me down.

 

the upsetting part is the damaged was caused by stupidity, not paying attention and poor driving skills.

 

i know that triple a makes a stink about using their approved repair shops when ever they pay for damages. my brother found out the hard way, that he should have insisted on taking his car to the shop of his choice ( car was vandalized ). the shop did more damage doing their mickey mouse repairs than the bad guys did. after having the car back for a while, he found the garbage the shop had done. threatened to sue triple a, they paid for a non approved shop to fix the fix.

 

stick to your guns, geico took financial responsibilty for their insured driver, means they have to satisfy you, not their pocket book.

 

you should go to the doctor get your neck and back checked.

 

i got rearended, didn't have my neck checked, years later screwed it up at work, appears that the accident compounded the work related injury. i thought i was fine, guess not.

 

how did you hide that bumper ?

 

eventually, i will be using the msa areo II body kit. i am leary of leaving the front and rear bumpers off. been thinking about how to hide something under the kit.

 

again, glad to hear you are doing okay, and looking after my future z.

 

wayne

[pparaska]

Wayne, the bumper was on there, shortened in the for/aft direction by 3/4", and I made strong mounts and put a piece of black pipe between them. The pipe was nested inside the bumper.

 

The Gieco adjuster was pretty cool about things. He said that Geico doesn't low ball, they pay what it takes to make the car right. He liked the car and saw little ripples and dips I didn't see, all the way up the quarter panel. The right 1/4 is pushed down about 1/2" at the back. The car will be on the rack getting stretched back into shape, no doubt. His estimate was about $2900. He said that it'd probably be more and that supplementals are expected. He was relieved that it's being suborgated (sp?) through Hagerty, because he was going to try to force a check on me. MD makes them settle within 15 days of the report. He doesn't like that.

 

I found that the guy that painted the car works close by at a nice new shop. I went and had his shop's adjuster look at it and he's working up an estimate. He found a bit more stuff, like the gap at the back side of the passenger door is closed up a bit. The adjuster was saying that about 1/2 of the car will have to be resprayed, to not have cut lines. These guys know what they are doing, and have a high level of quality. There was a 64 356 speedster there to get some work done, a 32 highboy body in primer, a 47 Plymouth that the painter was buffing out (jeesh, baby blue - some people's taste!!!) That car was a masterpiece and the paint as flat as you can expect from this guy (reknowned street rod painter on the east coast, Richard Glymph). Everybody at the shop, including the owner was digging the Z, so I know it'll be done right.

 

All is looking up. Still no pains. I may go see the doctor tomorrow though.

 

Now to get under the car and pull the back panel out of the way and replace the fuel tank and do some more tuning!!!! A C230 Kompressor wanted to play, but the Megasquirt program I have running now has acceleration and O2 correction turned off, so hammering the throttle just causes backfires and no joy in the backside.

 

Oh, I was laughing as I pulled into the parking spot at work. Some bozo's car alarm started going off - the exhaust is a bit loud .

[Mikelly]

Pete, You think it'll be done for the November FATT??

 

Mike

[pparaska]

Could be. I told the shop I'd wait if it looked like it'd be stuck in paint jail.

[waynekarnes]

i see the bumper.

 

it was blending in with the reflections.

 

thought maybe you had either removed it or had hidden it in the body work. i think i will try and hide a section of pipe under the msa rear bumper kit.

 

good to have a trained, experienced body man looking at the car.

 

as you said, he found that the gap at the door was off.

 

cheapo shop would have fixed the rear panel and the 1/4, ignoring the twist of the body evident by the change in the gap at the door.

 

sounds like you've found the right shop for the job.

 

nice to know that you are taking proper care in repairing my future baby.

 

thanks for going to all that trouble.

 

and Pete, no worries, my word is my bond, that $2500 we agreed on is secure in the bank !

[pparaska]

nice to know that you are taking proper care in repairing my future baby.

 

thanks for going to all that trouble.

 

and Pete' date=' no worries, my word is my bond, that $2500 we agreed on is secure in the bank ! [/quote']

 

Wayne, You're a NUT!!!

[waynekarnes]

Wayne, You're a NUT!!!

 

 

oh, that's a given !

 

a nut backed up with loc-tite and cold cash. lol

[VRJoe]

Glad everbody is OK, sorry about the car.

 

- Joe

[pparaska]

Thanks, Joe.

 

Let me share my thoughts on prized material possessions a bit. Sorry to get philosopical on you, but I think it's in order here. I have a lot of people tell me how much they love this Z of mine. I really think some people like it more than I do. But owning something that's covetted can be a sorrowful thing, if you have the wrong perspective. I learned this by watching other people get emotionally wiped out when their inanimate pride and joy was destroyed. I told myself I never wanted to be there. Hopefully, if this Z ever gets really mashed or burned up, I can stay away from the dark cloud of mourning for a sheetmetal loved one. I don't know, it's hard to imagine how I'd feel, but something tells me, I've been given a chance at seeing how I might deal with it. BUILD ANOTHER ONE OR SOMETHING ELSE is my first thought!

 

The rule I put myself under when I got the expensive body/paint work was that I wouldn't get upset if it got messed up. Getting an Agreed Value Policy with a reputable company like Hagerty was the first step to staying away from the dark days. Luckily, when this minor accident did happen, it wasn't too bad, so that it was KIND of easy to follow my own rule. I was upset for less than 1/2 hour, really. After that, I used the realization that Geico or Hagerty would put the car back right, it wasn't that bad, and that no one was hurt (that last part was what really mattered) to look at it rationally.

 

I'm writing this in the hopes that others might put themselves under the same rule if they buy or build a car or something that is done "nicer and more expensively than what sane people would do". I think it's important to prepare one's self for life's little bumps. And getting a grip on reality really helps here! IT'S JUST A CAR!!!

 

Well, that's my rational point of view anyway. I hope I can keep it and stay rational if something really bad happens to my Z.

 

The shop that is going to do the work (where Richard Glymph works, the painter that did the car originally) sent me their itemized estimate today (about 24 hours after they saw the car). $4506.67. Hmm. $1600 higher than Geico's adjuster (who looked at the car for 15 minutes and wrote the estimate on the spot in about 10 minutes).

 

Let's just say imy shop did a much more in-depth estimate, and the amount of time they estimate for doing things seems like they won't be rushing to get it done - i.e., they'll be taking care to do it well.

My shop (vs Geico estimate):

56.3 (vs 27) hrs of body labor, $38 (vs $36) per hr

16.8 (vs 10.7) hrs of paint labor, $38 (vs $36) per hr

2.3 (vs 2.3) hrs mechanical labor, $75 (vs $68 ) per hr

6.0 (vs ZERO) hrs frame labor, $55 (vs none) per hr

16.8 (vs 10.7) hrs paint supplies labor, $22 (vs $20) per hr

(My shop stating 3 stage vs 2 for Geico - I think I steered the Geico guy wrong there.)

$1168 (vs $1103) parts and supplies

 

Other Differences:

3 stage versus 2 stage,

higher labor rates,

the frame machine setup, measure, pull, align labor (vs none)

my shop including more Remove&Installs of interior, antenna, etc., including the fuel door,

my shop: R&I lamps and emblems both sides instead of one,

my shop: removing scuff from bottom of (EURO!) tail lense, (vs no mention)

my shop: repairing the tail light finisher panels, (vs no mention)

etc., etc. made the labor hrs much larger but more realistic.

 

Basically my shop did a very detailed estimate based on knowing all the little moves they'd have to make, the Geico guy simply left stuff off, and probably hasn't worked in a body shop ever or for a long time.

 

The more I consider getting it fixed before the Nov 4 track day, the more I think I should. The tank is really crunched up, but not leaking. What I don't want to happen is the tech inspectors seeing it crunched and not letting me run. Plus, there's a few more shows to take it to this fall, and many more weeks of nice weather I'd like to have it looking good for!

 

Sorry for the book! But I figured Wayne would want to know how his baby was getting fixed .

 

I wonder how long it will take for Hagerty and Geico to agree on a $ amount. Hopefully not long!

[waynekarnes]

Sorry for the book! But I figured Wayne would want to know how his baby was getting fixed .

 

 

LOL

 

i am watching this posting/thread like a mother hen !

 

as i was digging in my garage for a vw tow bar a friend wants to borrow,

 

i got to thinking,

 

2500 in singles, that would be quite an impressive stack.

 

singles okay with you ?

[VRJoe]

Pete, you're right on the money with what you said. Once you build a custom car you have to assume some moron is going to open a door into it. You laid out the best plan, get good insurance coverage and good estimates. You can then find a good shop and get it put back in shape. My biggest concern when my VR project gets finished is that if something happens to it I'll end up with the "Well, what the heck, since I have to fix that I might as well modify this and change that ...........".

 

- Joe

[pparaska]

... My biggest concern when my VR project gets finished is that if something happens to it I'll end up with the "Well' date=' what the heck, since I have to fix that I might as well modify this and change that ...........".

 

- Joe[/quote']

 

I don't see how this is a problem

 

Hi, Joe. Thanks for calling and offering the cell. But I think it'll be easier to just put another tank back in it. Luckily for me, my procrastination kept me from changing in the replacement tank I had gotten from Doug Carrow months ago! So I have one sitting right near the Z now

[Mikelly]

Pete makes an excellent point.

 

Jim Pearl - AKA- BLKMGK is going through this very issue right now. His 1995 Toyota Supra was totalled back in July. He's STILL awaiting State Farm to cut him a check to settle the loss of the car, whose mods totalled well over $30K alone.

 

GET good coverage for the car's intended purpose. READ ALL CLAUSES and MAKE sure you understand the coverages you purchased FOR THE CAR. Make sure that racing it at the track, doing lapping days on a road course, or time trials and autXs are covered as activities that won't VOID the claim.

 

And above all else, if you have tens of thousands of dollars invested, research REPLACEMENT VALUE coverage.

Mike

[spotfitz]

My condolences Pete...

Glad to hear you are OK. It has been my experience that in a lighter impact accident' date=' you won't even feel the accident until the next day or two. I was wondering if you felt a little stiffer or more sore today...[/quote']

 

I agree with this statement about accidents mostly. The impact intensity sometimes doesn't have anything to do with not feeling it until later.

Back in '90 someone pulled out in front of me and all I could do was swerve to avoid their drivers’ side door. At the time I wasn't wearing a seat belt (wasn't a law at the time) and I T boned this little S10 pick up @ 60mph in a '72 Monte Carlo. I staggered out of the car some 100 feet down the road in the ditch with, what I thought at the time, nothing more then a broke nose. Fast forward 7 YEARS. I was out of town on work and very lightly bumped my head on a cabinet while standing up. That night while trying to fall asleep I turned my head and felt a burning sensation in my neck. Didn't think anything about it and went to sleep. The next day I couldn't lift my head. I didn't have health insurance at the time and I had a friend who was chiropractor. After several weeks of everyday therapy and then months of once a week therapy I was better. I still needed to go see the chiropractor every once in awhile, but then it started becoming more and more frequent until I finally decided to go see a specialist about 3 years ago(that being 5 years after the first problem). Come to find out, I have 2 bulging disks in my neck, each being separated by one disk. I still to this day have problems with my neck which has a rippling effect. This can cause problems with other parts of your body in more ways than you can think of.

With all that said, get checked out. Get X-rays, MRI, the works. We have insurance on cars for a reason. It’s not just for the car! I've read what you have said about material possessions and agree. Lets not think of our bodies in the same fashion.

[pparaska]

Hagerty doesn't care for racing. Even if you know they don't cover it while one the track, they don't want to insure a car that is raced more than a few times to find out what it'll do. They made that quite clear to me.

 

I am VERY cognizant that Hagerty doesn't cover me while on the track. It's a risk I take, but a CALCULATED ONE. People on the track days are typically not going to hit you. The risk is all pretty much either under your control (the pedals and steering wheel), or due to you overcooking the brakes or just taking parts beyond where they will work without failing. That's all a risk that I run at track days, etc. KNOWINGLY.

 

The street is typically a riskier thing, since I drive pretty conservatively on the track. The street involves people that are near my car that are usually much less attentive to driving their vehicles than people at the track might be.

 

So yeah, get good AGREED value insurance if you can, but realize that most of those policies are for collector cars, and don't cover you on track. Maybe a separate policy or rider for track stuff.

 

Last but not least, realize that it's a bad investment (generally) to have any money tied up in a car. Especially a daily driver. My wife and I learned that lesson on her 1st gen Integra years ago. The companies care not 1 cent if your car was in great, way above average shape before it was totalled. Unless you can show it was a cream puff with low miles, show-type car, it's just in "good condition". Her Integra was low miles and beautiful. The insurance company wouldn't give any more than an average amount to replace it. Moral of the story - if you keep your daily driver in tip-top condition, it's at your own risk to do so - realize the insurance companies don't value it any higher than all the rest of the decent cars out there of the same model and year. The insurance companies lumps all daily drivers (under non-agreed-value policies) into one category and pay accordingly.

 

Seen my daily driver?

(At Watkins Glen! )

Runs, works, but ugly as sin! No way I'm going to put any extra effort to keep it pretty, not after that lesson. Pretty daily drivers aren't important to my joy, and I drive them until they die, so resale value isn't a concern for me...

 

spot - good point on taking care of our bodies in these instances.

[rags]

Wow Pete, what a bummer. I don't know how I missed this thread. Glad no one got hurt and you seem to have a great outlook about the whole situation. About the crumpled gas tank and track days, what are you worried about? I guess you forgot what Baldwin uses to hold up his tank. If that passes your slightly dented tank should be a shoe in to pass tech!

 

Joe

[pparaska]

Wow Pete' date=' what a bummer. I don't know how I missed this thread. Glad no one got hurt and you seem to have a great outlook about the whole situation. About the crumpled gas tank and track days, what are you worried about? I guess you forgot what Baldwin uses to hold up his tank. If that passes your slightly dented tank should be a shoe in to pass tech!

 

Joe[/quote']

 

Hah! Yeah, I remember the nylon strap that was holding up Dan's tank . That was pretty funny! I'm just thinking that the tech inspectors might be a bit more stringent .

[pparaska]

Update:

 

The Hagerty adjuster called yesterday to find out when I was going to send in the estimate from my shop. Ugh. The shop was supposed to have done that last Thursday! Well, it turns out that they did, but it got lost somehow, and the adjuster didn't ever get it.

 

Part of the reason that it took the adjuster to get back to me is that the Katrina disaster has Hagerty busy. They're working a lot of overtime get those folks reimbursed.

 

I had the shop fax the estimate to her again yesterday. They got hooked up and it went through. She then talked to the shop's adjuster about the custom work, etc., etc. and felt like they knew what they were doing and could get the car back in shape.

 

Today she called and said a two party check in the amount of the shop's estimate was mailed out today!

 

Now to see when the shop can get to work

[Mikelly]

Pete, I hope you get it back together for the November date. I may be able to make that date. I'm calling tomorrow to see if a slot is available... Donna has me on a leash while we set up the company, so spending is gonna be at a premium for a while...

 

Mike