Torchmonkey

I tossed the key to my 15 year old boy...he has been shown how to start a stick at least a 100 times and has done it many times successfully (he doesn't get to drive it, just start it). Well, the fruit of my loins forgets to take the 8 out of gear and dumps the clutch after the start...launching my baby right into a sturdy wooden shelf . I was in an adjoining room and I still can hear the scream of protest from my baby as she slams into the shelf. A gaping gash in the bumper, broken headlight, broken brackets and a reflector. Now I just have to see how much this frack up is going to cost me. With a 1000.00 deductible, I may not file a claim.

To make things worse, the little snot didn't even say he was sorry. He immediately went into excuse mode and complained to his mother when I snatched his shirt and slammed him into the wall (smarting off to me while mourning isn't intelligent ). I told him that this is MY fault for trusting him with my car...and it won't happen again (the 8 was promised to him if he can fund his own college education).

Mobile

You're right. It is your fault. He is 15 and you had to accept the fact that something could go wrong after you tossed him the keys. The second paragraph of your post disgusts me.

Spiker

u going to get a bodykit?

dillsrotary

sounds like there's more problems than just a car dent......

tiggerlee

^My thoughts exactly.

Shinka-Dono

That sucks. Sorry to hear that.

He should have been apologetic about his mistake. That is too bad. However it is difficult to blame him for making a mistake when we all make them -especially when we're 15- and you put him in the car. Take it easy on the kid. We all screw up even the simplest of things sometimes. Maybe if you make that clear to him, he'll sincerely apologize.

It sounds as if it may well cost a good chunk over $1000 to fix (pics?). Might be worth going through insurance anyway (disregarding a rate hike or if you know a body shop that'll give you a break). If you had a-lot of nicks from road debris on the nose at least that'll be gone. I hope it all works out.

ZoomZoomH

iTrader: (1)

so you gonna eat yer son now?

dumpels5

And that's why we take the car out of gear before turning it off. At least that's what my parents tought me when i was learning how to drive stick. My friend leaves his in gear too and that same thing almost happened to me when my mom drove our miata and left it in gear.

I'm done ranting so that sux. I hate to hear it happen to a newish or new car. Have fun with repairs lol.

8 Maniac

iTrader: (1)

umm... did he have a license? if not, then maybe this is the point where you should realize that there's a reason why there's age limits before someone can drive. I'd say a large portion of people would have their self-defense kick in and start having excuses when something like that happens... generally you dont enjoy that happening so you dont want to feel guilty. Though I will say an appology of some sort would have been nice.

Leaving it in gear is a good idea sometimes. Guess what happens if it's not in gear and your brake gives way on a hill. If you're in gear, it wont (shouldnt) roll. If anything it's just that extra resistance that helps sometimes. That being said, when I've taken it in I've come off the clutch with it in gear (before I started the habit of leaving it in gear). Lucky for me it was always clear in front of the car so I only suffered a little embarassment

Cromax

LOL ... I was going to say the same thing!

WTF? Slamming his kid against hte wall for something that's his own fault, I'm kinda disgusted by it to be honest!

Cromax

It wouldn't even be understandable if it was a Ferrari!

bassy

Videotape it and put it on Youtube.



















This thread is retarded.

Cromax

Ok, I have this theory. Perhaps TorchMonkey is a neanderthal and he communicates with his family members by throwing them against the wall and bashing them on the head with his club?

DrewMan

at 15, does he even have his license yet?

8 Maniac

iTrader: (1)

To clear up what my reasoning was (and probably other's as well):

The thing that bugged me about the OP was that he completely blames the son and reacts based on that. Yes, the kid messed up, but it wasnt like he was sneaking out with the keys to his dad's car. He honestly didnt even have a reason why this happened. He specifically said his son was only starting the car... why? To warm up is the only reason I can think of, and if that is the reason, then if the OP hadnt been too lazy to warm up his own car, then it wouldnt have happened. Using that logic, some of the blame is his and he should man up to that fact.

I do realize I dont know every last detail of the situation, but no matter what the story is, I feel rather certain that there is some fault that should be the OP's responsibility, therefore taking it out on the kid like that could be unreasonable.

machfive

Perhaps if more people like Torch Monkey used corporal punishment, we wouldn't have so many smart *** kids mouthing off!

dtorre

I congratulate you sir.........beat his ***!!!!!!! What a dunce....eat him

NoTears316

You should give him AIDS. That'll teach him.

yiksing

So instead of worrying about your kid whether he suffered any injury, you are more concerned about your car?

supergoat

+1

Shinka-Dono

You should give him a crossfire. That'll teach him.

Rems31

MisplacedRotors

yeah cause the kids obviously injured from that...good thinking.
as for the kid not being 16 yet so not having a dl makes a huge difference you can get your dl prior to 16 at least i know you can in tx its called a hardship dl. not as if there is a huge gap in maturity from 15 to 16. get over it people if he was instructed in the proper way of doing things and doesnt do it properly then he did something wrong, I for one OP think you restrained very well in the heat of the moment without doing the kid any physical damage.