Crashed

[shifty_uk]

Been pretty lucky so far, not a single bump on the car in 2 years of driving, now the big one.

Driving on an icey back road in a hurry to catch my girlfriends doctors appointment. Coming down the hill and the car wouldn't stop when I applied the foot brake, ABS kept screeching but it just wouldn't stop before the end of the road. Idiot here decided to pull the hand brake gently along with the foot brakes which spun the car and we ended up in the side of the road

Drivers side is done, smashed headlight, corner of the bumper is smashed and the bottom grills. No insurance cover as I'm third party, car is at the garage now getting a quote

Worst of it is, I'm pretty sure my girlfriend will be leaving me now as she kept telling me to slow down, she missed her appointment and she now has to live with my **** up.

My fault entirely, just needed to vent. Any ideas how much this will set the wallet back? Never had to deal with any bodywork repairs.

 

[shifty_uk]

My fault I was late, my fault I pulled the hand brake. We've been together over 2 years.

I live 15 mins away, i didn't realise how thick the ice on my car was this morning, couldn't get it off in time and ended up not beating the traffic like I intended, making me late. Therefore I drove quicker than the conditions would permit.

Weird thing is, I slowed down after she told me to but coming down that particular hill the car just wouldn't stop so I pulled the hand brake.

Still shaking like a leaf, even more so about the cost of a new front panel and light.

 

[shifty_uk]

To keep costs down cant you check ebay / breakers for a replacement door, headlights, bumper?

It's just the drivers side, I wish I took pictures. New headlight is a definite, new bumper is a definite, not sure if the side panel can be bent back in though.

 

[shifty_uk]

Clio, 2002 model.

She probably sees him as irresponsible and likely to cause her issues in the future. I can understand why she would be considering the future of the relationship


shifty - hope it doesnt cost too much to repair, unfortunately ego takes a while longer to sort out!

Indeed

 

[shifty_uk]

Just got a quote, £340 for new panels, lights, respray. Sound fair? I'm picking the car up now so I'll take pictures.

 

[shifty_uk]

Sounds reasonable although pics would help. The question is, is it worth putting that money into a 2002 Clio for you? Will a new headlight a touch up suffice? You might be able to get second hand parts in the right colour to bolt straight on for much less too, worth looking at.

Uploading pictures now.

On the surface it would seem a harsh reason to end a relationship but from the other side of a coin here is somebody who put his girlfriend in danger and ignored her requests to slow down.

Hit the nail on the head. It wasn't excessive speed, I was doing 40-45 on a limitless backroad which I'd usually do 60-70 which is where she was telling me to slow down. Unfortunately when we turned into the icey side road/hill her discomfort was already there so my slowing down was irrelevant at that point.

 

[shifty_uk]

£340 worth of damage?

 

[shifty_uk]

It's just a flesh wound!

A £340 flesh wound. An unexpected repair I don't have the £££ for

I must add, when I got it home there steam was coming out the front of the grills.

 

[shifty_uk]

She's thnking about leaving you over that little bump? .

You'll understand when you've caused an accident that could've potentially put someone you've spent years with a love dearly at severe risk.

 

[shifty_uk]

£340 isn't bad, but why not look for second hand parts to save you some money? That doesn't seem like a tough repair and if you can't afford £340 you can save a lot of that by taking the time and effort to source and fit the parts yourself.

Only issue is, I need the car for work, which isn't viable with public transport

It was, you crashed.

Yes, my stupidity caused the crash, there's zero doubt about that. If I hadn't been stressed and in a rush, we would've been fine. My fault.

However, she often overreacts because my car is so small and the noise generated by the engine makes the car appear as if it's going quicker than it actually is. It's a 1.2, it can't do top speeds and I never exceed any limits or excess because of this.

Love works in mysterious ways - I wouldn't be too worried about that damage though and wouldn't bother getting it made perfect unless the rest of the car is. I'd wait and pick up bits off of owners clubs and down the scrappy.

The rest of the car is perfect. Only one owner before me, I've kept it in tip top condition aesthetically.

 

[shifty_uk]

Get your self on eBay: Headlight starting bid £20 with £15 potage: http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Brand-New-O-S...CarParts_SM&hash=item19c272ae65#ht_720wt_1139

I'm sure you'll get a bumper too...no way would I be paying £340 for that.

Front end, bumper, side skirt, headlamp, electrics, possible radiator repair and re-spraying, I reckon so it'll cost me a small fortune regardless.

 

[shifty_uk]

What did you hit at the bottom of the road btw?

A hedge with fencing behind it, I believe. It was all over in a flash, was too concerned about the passenger and the state of the car that I didn't even realise.

 

[shifty_uk]

Same thing
hammer
ebay
probably fine
scrapyard
do it yourself

Yep, I know its annoying to see your well-looked after car smacked up, but check out the above and you might get the repair well below £340. Thats probably what you should be concentrating on, rather than putting it right tip-top, when it wont actually add much to the residual value of the car. There's plenty of Clio's around for under £1k - they're cheap motoring.

On the more important issue, buy some flowers, grovel, apologise, and offer to book a driving lesson or 2. (If you want to keep hold of her)

Other than that, I haven't a great deal of other advice - Hope it works out alright for ya though.

I'm looking around for a local headlamp supplier to get me started and back on the road, might get a mate to chip in and give me a hand! Thanks for the advice, though!

Oh and she'll be getting a boxed rose and card delivered to work tomorrow!

Radiator looked fine but there's definite steam coming from somewhere!

 

[shifty_uk]

Do you know any scrap yards around this area Bio?

Thanks for the offer too, wouldn't want you travelling all this way for that! I'll see what I can do myself, otherwise it'll be off to the garage!

 

[shifty_uk]

Just an update:

I sourced all the parts both on ebay, the local merchants and europarts etc.. New bumper, new grille, headlamp and bulbs would've cost more than half the quoted price of repair. That was before any side panel repair, potential radiator damage and a load of painting.

So, I sent the car away Monday and it was delivered this morning at 10am looking better than it did before the accident Very surprised they managed to repair the cracks in the side panel without replacement.

Just need to fit a new side light and get the car booked in for front wheel alignment.

Thanks for all the help chaps!

 

[shifty_uk]

Just a question:

The garage obviously stuck a side light in but it blew prior to me getting it back. I just bought a new one and went to replace it, the bulb slipped out the clip as I was sticking it back in and subsequently fell into the rear of the headlight casing. Is there anyway to retrieve it without taking the entire headlamp apart?

Frustration!

 

[shifty_uk]

The frustration got me in the end, just stuck in a new bulb with hope that the fallen one doesn't rattle. Sounds fine so far.

He's right you know!
idd@mattfsr's post, don't spend £340 on an old Clio.

Too late It might be old but the rest of the car is immaculate, only had one owner before myself. I wont be selling anytime soon so I'd rather have it in decent condition.

How much did it cost in the end?

Oh...and how is the relationship status?

Just the £340 quoted price, think I'll get the tracking for free and then the cost of a couple of bulbs. Relationship is fine.

 

[shifty_uk]

Not think you both over reacted at the time abit too much?

Yeah, I think so. Apparently it's because 'I don't listen' to her at the best of times but it went 'too far' when I put her in danger. I overreacted only because of the impression and words I got from her. Anyway, back to motors

Glad the relationship is still going on! I get it aswell with my gf about speed/noise of rpm.

Glad you got it sorted fairly cheaply, what bodyshop was it as my dad needs work done to his door.

Was it the hill on the Ek backroad?

Yeah, probably not the hill you're thinking of, though - with the dodgy bridge , it was closer to Torrhead. The chap who usually sorts my car, behind the old Viking Sports building? He outsources work and got a mate to come over and give me a quote. Picked the car up and delivered it to my door 2 days later. Always get a lift whenever the car goes there for any work aswell, top chap. If he can't fix it, he'll outsource it to someone good/cheap.

 

[shifty_uk]

a "limitless" backroad you say?

National speed limit applies? Coming down the hill where I crashed, I was doing under 15. There's a sharp, almost hairpin right hand turn beforehand which is the reason I know how slow I must've been.

Ah I know those roads well enough, my boss often has his van sideways up the hill from Torrheads to muttonhole road? Think I've had ~110mph on one of those roads at somepoint

I'll mention to my dad about that place but I think he'll end up using his usual place.

Not really sure of the name, it was closer to Torrhead than Mutonhole. There's a turn before coming down the hill onto the roundabout. That's where I couldn't stop, panicked because I didn't want to pick up speed and hit the roundabout and pulled the hand brake. But yeah, the roads are awful. Doesn't excuse my handling of the situation, though!

 

[shifty_uk]

This does not mean the road is "limitless"!

I know, apologies, just the expression I used at the time.