Yesterday evening I was forced off of the road while entering the 101 westbound from Scottsdale Rd by an absent-minded driver of a BMW 5 series. To avoid a collision, I had to steer left into the dirt/gravel shoulder. I was probably traveling 55 mph or so, and cringed as I heard thousands of rocks being slung up at my car. I think I steered a little too quickly back onto the onramp, because my car went into a sideways skid...I almost recovered but not before my front-passenger corner struck the median wall, whipping my car around and sending the rear-passenger side into the wall as well. My car ended up sideways on the onramp.

Long story short, when the police arrived, it was determined that "no one was at fault" since there was no contact with other vehicles. So it sounds like I would have been better off allowing the idiot to strike my car as he came into my lane.

Oh well. I guess my insurance will have to take care of it.

The car is no longer drivable as both passenger wheels were cracked. Surprisingly, the fiberglass is largely untouched, save for some scrapes and rock damage. I had it towed to the nearest Chevy dealer until I can figure out what to do with it.

It looks like if I replace the two wheels, I could at least drive it home and not be at the mercy of the Chevy dealer. Question is, could the impact to the rear wheel have damaged any of the drivetrain/control arm, etc? What do you guys recommend; have the dealer evaluate the damage, or pick up a couple of wheels and drive it home? This way I could at least drive it to the shop of my choice...

Anyone have some magnesium wheels for sale (or that I can borrow) in the Phoenix area? Anyone know where I can pick up some, and quick?













At least the cop who showed up was cool. He let my friend play around in the back of his car...

 

Your car is probably ok. Those Magnesium wheels are brittle and crack like that much easier than aluminum or steel wheels would in the same situation.

Also, the Chevrolet Dealer SHOULD have people to asses the damage properly.

Of course you always have thoe guys in Tempe that are pretty darn god with Corvettes...

 

Yeah, I knew that the mags were brittle...I just hope they absorbed most of the impact and that my control arms, axle shaft, etc are okay. I was able to back it up slightly to line it up for the tow truck...but we'll see.

 

My car was rear ended last year, and no damage except to the rear facia,1/4 panel and trunk tub. Be sure to pull up your carpet and check the truck tub for cracks. As far as suspension damage etc.. the crash absorbing bumper works great as far as absorbing the impact, hopefully it did in you case and its not too bad. The tail pipe over the output shaft also bent on mine, absorbing the impact and limiting damage to the exhaust/headers etc... good luck and hang in there, could have been way, way worse.

 

You really want the other car to hit you. I know that sounds like sh*t but it is true. At that point where is your evidence? If you do what you did, in court his attorney says "You over corrected and thats what caused the accident". Unless you see a safe zone, hit 'em.
By the way, may I have first dibs on the front and rear wheels? The ones on the driver side. Are they ok? PM me and let me know. Very interested.

 

Yeah, I should have just let that idiot hit me. The cop explained that since there was no contact with the other car that he was not at fault. So my actions did nothing but save the other guy's car from damage...and left me with an inoperable car. Now I know for next time (hopefully there is not a next time).

On another note, should I expect my rates to increase after this claim? Probably a better question for my insurance co, but just curious if anyone has any experience here...

 

The definition of an "Accident" is "That occurrence in a sequence of events which usually produces unintended death, personal injury or property damage". (from Northwest Traffic Accident Investigation Institute). http://www.learning-for-life.org/exp...y/traffic3.pdf
Simply put a "Motor vehicle collision" is Any death, personal injury or damage to property that can be attributed to the motion of a motor vehicle.
The property damage is limited to "on or adjacent to the roadway" by AZ Revised Statute 28-665 (otherwise, every private property parking lot ding would result in state required accident reports). The "first harmful event" is a determining factor.
The definition doesn't include that contact has to be made between the two vehicles. However, most AZ departments will limit their enforcement action when there is no contact between the vehicles. Exception to that might be with corroborative witnesses independent of the parties involved or where an innocent driver takes evasive action to avoid the offending driver as in your case (usually a DUI, Reckless, or similar serious criminal traffic violation has occurred).
In your case, it sounds like an inattentive driver which is a violation of "Speed, not R&P", AZ Revised Statute 28-701A.
So, you could take civil action against the BMW driver (at the Justice Court or Maricopa County Superior Court), using that definition and hopefully his admissions to you, your passenger and/or the officer that his inattention attributed to the collision and damage to your vehicle.
By the way, you did the correct thing by trying to avoid the collision. You have no control over what might have occurred in terms of personal injury or death had you allowed the other driver to strike your vehicle. You probably mitigated the damage by your actions.

 

Unfortunately the only other witness who stopped said all he saw was smoke, and the Beemer driver most certainly did not agree that he came into my lane. I wanted to punch him.

I meet with my adjuster tomorrow at the dealership. I wonder if I should see about having the dealership's service dept look at it first. I really hope that the damage is purely cosmetic...

The fiberglass is deeply gouged in some places. Will this need to be replaced, or can it be filled? Which should I prefer? There is also a small crack (1/2" long) in the font fascia near the parking lamp...

If nothing else, I'm trying to turn this into a good situation by telling myself that I can potentially take this opportunity to have a few other blemishes fixed.

 

Witnesses are sometimes like that. Opposing drivers in collisions are almost always like the BMW driver...
It wouldn't hurt to have the dealership and maybe an independent Corvette specialist shot look at the damage. Hopefully, some more local AZ members will read this and have some recommendations for a good repair facility. I can't think of the name of the place, but it's in Tempe and highly regarded for Corvette body repair work. If it were my car, I'd want any damaged panels replaced with oem panels.
You've got a good attitude, turn lemons into lemon juice!

 

I would love to hear of a local shop that is held in high regard by other Corvette owners...I'd rather not leave it in the hands of the dealer. Honestly, I just had it towed there since it would do me no good at my home and it was close. Any locals have any suggestions?

 

So the BMW actually stopped?

 

This is the previous discussion that I was thinking of...CLASSIC GOLD AUTO in Tempe. I know there's been other discussions with members who also recommended the shop, but I couldn't find them with a search. You could post in the Southwest regional forum further down the main menu.

http://forums.corvetteforum.com/show...ette+body+shop

I'd check around and see if anyone else has had work done by the shop. Check with the BBB and so forth.

 

Classic Gold Auto Center
317 S Rockford Dr
Tempe, AZ 85281
(480) 967-2521


Would be a good recommendation to get it repaired.

You might also want to check out Arizona Corvette Enthusiasts for more local information.

Phil...1EvilC5

 

This is the place to go!!!

Classic Gold Auto Center
317 S Rockford Dr
Tempe, AZ 85281
(480) 967-2521

 

Yeah. I think as soon as he realized that no one else stopped who witnessed what happened, he took off. I got his info, but as I said, the police wouldn't pursue him for anything...

Cool, I'll check it out. Right now the car is at Van Chevrolet in Scottsdale. Apparently the rear control arms are bent and possibly the rotor and knuckle... Should I have them fix the mechanical pieces and then take the car to Classic Gold for the body repairs?

 

Talk to the shop owner that will be doin the repairs.
It never hurts to ask, you might be able to have them replace the rear fascia with Tigershark or Spectrewerks bits

If all you need is rims to roll it on, I have some wagon wheels collecting dust that you are welcome to.

Just return 'em when yer done with 'em is all I ask ..they're handy to have around in case of ..

-Frank (602-841-1396 ..out on the NW side of Phx, but any excuse to drive my Vette works for me

 

Thanks, Frank! I really appreciate the gesture. At this point, since I am told the rear control arms may be tweaked, it probably wouldn't do much good to put some good wheels on it just yet.

I may just end up waiting on some mags.

The adjuster estimated replacement for the front fascia; the other damaged panels were estimated for repair only. There aren't any cracks (other than the front fascia), and the fiberglass isn't gouged too deeply, so i guess it could be repaired, but new OEM parts would be more to my liking. I'll chat with the service manager to see if this is a good idea, and if not, maybe we can persuade the insurance company otherwise. Also, they will be replacing just the two tires that were on the damaged wheels, so it looks like I'll have to pay out-of-pocket on the other two so I'm not rolling on mismatched rubber. I'm going to stop in at Classic Gold tomorrow to see about having them do the bodywork; I'll probably end up having the dealership replace the mechanical pieces and the wheels, though.

Thanks to all you guys for your advice...I miss my car!!!!

 

Okay, so after a week of going back and forth with the insurance guy about whether or not I could source the wheels, I said screw it. If they want to pay - get this - $1200 for each OEM magnesium wheel, fine. I don't want my car sitting around in limbo... it's getting hot here and am not enjoying riding my motorcycle to work as much as I thought I would.

I'm going to get a hold of the GM p/n for the wheels to doublecheck the prices, though...I seem to recall finding GM "magnesium wheel kits" that included either both front or both rear wheels (plus centercaps, lugnuts, and lugcaps) for around $1200 for a pair... Anyone work at the parts counter that can confirm?

In any case, the $2400 worth of new magnesium should be mounted on my car tomorrow, along with all new Goodyear Eagle F1 GS-D3 rubber (insurance paying for two of 'em). At that point it should be driveable...I just hope that no mysterious codes pop up and that the drivetrain is truly okay. Everything looks good upon visual inspection, so I'll keep my fingers crossed...

I've decided to let the guys at Van do the bodywork. After the mechanical stuff is taken care of, I'm going to speak with the shop manager to go over everything before they begin work.

 

Try my friend Patric at Redline Corvettes. (909-946-5928) He parts out low mileage C4 and C5 Vettes and always has a ton of parts & wheels. Good stuff too, not junk. He also ships.
Good Luck!

 

Not sure if any of you care to hear an update, but here goes:

My car is back on the road again, albeit in the bodyshop. They put on the two new mags, plus all four Goodyear GS-D3's. I love the aggressive tread pattern on these tires...they look badass! I just wish my insurance company was a little more flexible...they wouldn't allow me to sub-out the stock mags for something non-OEM (I was thinking the Mallet (sp?) Z06 chromes). They would've been cheaper than the two+ grand they are gonna pay the dealer for the two replacement mags...

I was surprised that that was all that was needed to get the car going again. I hit that damn wall pretty hard. I figured a few DIC codes would've popped up for sure, or something else. Maybe I am lucky!

I just can't wait to get the car back...I've been riding my motorcycle everyday since, which is great, but not a whole lot of fun in this heat (I think it was 110 today). First thing I'm gonna do is put on my new exhaust (Borla straight pipes) and tint the windows (finally) and then take it for a weekend trip up to the Grand Canyon. I really can't wait.