itsallaboutgary

alright guys...i was on the freeway and i guess there was a dust storm...and there were concrete rocks everywhere flying into the air...Luckily it didnt hit anything in the front..but some damage was done to the front air dam and also to my CONDENSEr...this shows you u can never be too careful. heres the results...and also if anyone has answers of how i should fix the condenser? like take it in and BS or whatever..lemme know.. I have EVEN MADE THe FIRST PAYMENT ON THIS CAR YET! well heres the pics..u cant really see the scratch on this pic...but it sure was deep. look at the size of this rock i found inside the dam.

itsallaboutgary

the condenser!

itsallaboutgary

CLOSE UP

itsallaboutgary

AND THE ROCK THAT HIT IT>...SOMEONE PLEASE HELP ME !

RX8by

Which condensor is it ? You have oil,water, and AC or Auto trans. Doesn't look bad in the pictures. The fins take most of the damage. Look for oil, water,or A/C oil in the area.I doubt this is a leaker.

Superfan

You're bound to get a few dings in the condensor. If it's leaked and your A/C doesn't work then take it in. If it's just a ding, forget about.

itsallaboutgary

its the A/C condenser the one u can see when u first look inside the air dam

Nubo

ouch!

As someone said, a few squished fins aren't going to hurt anything. However, the horizontal parts are carrying the refrigerant so you need to double check and see if the A/C still works. If not, you sprung a leak. Check posts by Hymee - he had a similar problem and did have a puncture which I believe he fixed (at least temporarily) with some type of expoxy material and then had it re-gassed.

The lesson here I think, is that air openings like this need the protection of some type of grille, especially the A/C which is so close to the ground and has very thin and soft aluminum, for thermal efficiency. Hymee also is making some grilles of his own design available.

It would be helpful if you put something next to the rock so we can judge its dimensions (like a ruler, or a coin). I am interested in what size rock this is and what speed you were travelling. I am going to fabricate my own grille and I'm interested in what size rocks it takes to do damage so I can pick an optimal mesh size for the grille.

itsallaboutgary

ohh for sure i am...well the fins got smashed in...im gonna put this type of grill called grillcraft...my friend is gonna custom it for me..he said its pretty good. when something hits against it..it will just bounce right off...i believe the a/c still works...can that one lil smash really do damage to the a/c?

heres a pics...of comparison...i was driving bout 60 mpg...and then suddenly u see this srt-4 hit all of that concrete rock into my car..and i was on the right side of that car kinda far..im glad it didnt hit anything else..oh yeah while i was looking in the front dam i even found a paper cup down there...imagine the possiblilities of what else can go down there.

itsallaboutgary

heres another pic