marshall...go ahead and weigh in here i was on my way home from work, i was stopped waiting to make a right onto a traffic clogged main road. was inching up to see if i could merge in...and the dodge caliber behind me decided to go ...right into my rear end. already talked to his ins. (Geico) and they need to talk to him. then we can proceed. ...my poor car. some of you may recall my mom hit my chevy wagon 2 days after i got it.
Oh man! Doesn't that just kill you when your brand new car gets its first boo boo?. At least it's not a huge amount of damage. With that depression though, it's a possibility the bumper reinforcement got slightly tweaked. And since the Focus is brand new, the insurance company will have to pay for FORD PARTS, not the 'alternative' stuff. I was on the offensive side of an accident just like that back in the 90's....very common. On a little side note, I did my own boo boo last Saturday. Was at a big car show, leaned over to view the engine compartment of nice '68 Camaro. Forgot I had our big Canon camera around my neck on a strap. Camera banged into the fender, causing a 3/8" scratch in the nice new 3-stage paint. My wallet is quite a bit lighter today.
Geez, bummer for both you guys. A1 - it seems that you have the same issue my wife has. People just want to be up close and personal and they think the best way to do that is to "tap" the bumper. KK - wow, that hurts in many ways. Good for you for making sure the owner was taken care of. Having met you I know it is the kind of person you are to take ownership for something you've done. That Camaro owner was just lucky it was someone with your ethics. That said, what a tough thing to happen.
Sad that bumpers are no longer made to BUMP! I go out of the way to keep my cars and truck ding free. However I've been driving my Dodge truck with the fancy red painted rear bumper, which is actually made of steel, with two dents in it. My fault. Two separate trees attached it. One as I backed up to my RV at a campground. The other one just grew behind my garage as I backed up to unload groceries. This Dodge truck rear bumper is made of some sort of metal resembling an aluminum beer can in thickness and strength. The fancy front one is plastic that wouldn't hold up on a slot car toy. These safety bumpers are a joke. And merging lanes are another joke.
The old bumper 'absorbers' that were common in the 70's all went by the wayside. Not sure if any manufacturer uses that type anymore. They also were used to meet a 5mph impact standard, which is now 2 1/2 mph IIRC (here in N.A.). The most common type of bumper system these days is a urethane cover over a (mostly) styrofoam absorber, in front of an aluminum reinforcement bar. Usually effective in very low speed impacts, but the main improvement is considerably lower weight that the older systems. Old systems could weigh around 300 pounds or more. Modern bumper assemblies weigh maybe 100 pounds or less total.
Geeze, Ian....you really CAN'T have a nice car! That would really p me off! Brand new and you were minding your own business. Sorry that it had to happen, pal...really a shame. I hope it gets fixed fast and perfect for you. Hey, KK...what a bummer for you, too! Stay away from car shows in the future or you will run out of money to finally buy a wagon! Good for you for taking care of the poor guy's paint job!
Old systems could weigh around 300 pounds or more. Modern bumper assemblies weigh maybe 100 pounds or less total. Older bumpers cost $100 back in the good old days. New ones cost $1000 !
The money came out of wagon fund, too...... The thing that I got so mad at myself for on this is that I always (or so I thought) was very careful around car show vehicles, not getting even fingerprints on them, making sure any belt buckle I was wearing didn't come into contact with the car, etc...... All it took was one brain fart. Won't be putting the camera around my neck anymore.
I hope the owner didn't freak out too bad! You could have done that to my (former) Cougar wagon and no one would have noticed.
I think your next purchase should be a Carnival Bumper Car it doesnt look to bad...and your ok....thats the important stuff pal
