Yet Another Rear-Ender
 

This is my first new thread; sorry if it comes out in the wrong place. I followed the forums for several months and bought my Titanium Grey '05 new in early December. Now, less than 4 months old, its been "kissed" by a tractor trailer.

We were both stopped in bumper to bumper traffic on the Gowanus Expressway (in New York City) when the tractor trailer behind me lurched forward into me. I had room in front and wasn't pushed into anyone else.

The damage is similar to many I've seen on the site; shot bumper and cover, one broken taillight (right side), and a raised and misaligned trunk lid (though the lid itself is undamaged). There's also a dent just forward of the broken tail light on the rear pasxsenger quarter panel. My concern is the trunk and dent. I'm worried about frame damage or any long term problem. The body shop says it all looks ok, though they can't be sure till they break down the bumper.

I'm looking for some ideas from other rear-end victims; hopefully reassurance on the frame but also things I might be able to check (or have checked) to see if everythings really cosmetic.

Oh, the car feels fine, exhaust is fine, and the estimate is $3100. The doors and wheels all look evenly spaced and properly aligned. I know pictures would help, I'll try posting some tomorrow. Please let me know how things turned out if you've had similar damage...

As a Silver owner myself, welcome to our curse!

he has a ti gray.

sorry it happened dude.

Thanks for the info.
Ti Gray isn't exempt..
She still blends into the blacktop making her hard to see by other drivers..
Silver or Gray = a Stealth 8

Sorry man I have a ti grey too. I banged her up the first week :(

Here are a few pictures taken real quickly this am.

I was rear ended at 700 miles so I know your pain. My bumper was tore off, muffler bent and tail light cracked but no sheet metal damage. They just replaced every thing and all was well. The car drives just like it use to.

The curse continues...

Vince

Hey Postul8 (nice username pun - clever),

From what I've seen and heard of other accidents: the crush zones on these cars are isolated enough to prevent full-body frame twisting unless you hit viciously hard at an off angle *cough* Labop *cough*

https://www.rx8club.com/lounge-4/first-last-time-drag-track-83269/

My damage was head-on, but it exceeded $10,000 in repairs and the car *is* just like new:

https://www.rx8club.com/rx-8-discussion-3/hit-deer-5-week-anniversary-76587/

Here's my body-shop tip - ask if they offer lifetime warrenty on workmanship. The Mazda dealership in Rochester had a BASF paint studio for their body shop (which is part of their service center) and they provided a lifetime warrenty on the paint and finish. That made me feel a little better - the OEM warrenty on paint isn't nearly that good.

Thanks for the kind words and the advice from Cool Blue Dad... Glad to hear from a few of you that there's life after body work. For (almost ) four months its been the most fun-to-drive car I've ever driven. Just hoping it stays as is (or as was!).

postul8, you are in one of those it might have been better if your car were hit harder situations. That dent in front of the tail light is going to be hammered out and body filler. If the quarter were more badly damaged they would replace the panel. I hate body filler.

Actually, Postul8 might be able to insist on replacing the panel based on the age and mileage of the vehicle. What's your mileage Postul8? I would make the body shop quote replacement and repair separately, then harp on your insurance assessor (be sure to get his number). My car was 5 weeks, less than 3,000 miles. The body shop fully backed me up on several replace vs. repair items.

The assessor should be your first point of attack. If you convince them, they pay - no problem.

The body shop is your last line of defense. For a couple of parts the body shop just ate the difference - they told me the insurance company allowed more labor for some things than they really needed so they shuffled the cost around and still make money on the deal.

However, if you get into replacement parts prepare for the worst. It took 3 weeks + 2 days to get the last part delivered from Japan (the core support). Worse than that, that core support had a fit problem so the body shop made Madza ship another one over-night express which resulted in more delays. 6 weeks without my car, but I can't blame the shop for goofing off, they did their work in 2 weeks flat after waiting on parts for a month.

Best wishes for a painless fix and a good rental!

Thanks again for the advice. New parts (ordered Monday) are the bumper, bumper plate, and bumper cover and right tail light. The quarter panel and trunk are "repairs". I had trouble tracking down the trucker's insurance so I'm going through mine. They, in turn, will continue the good fight to get repaid.

The car has 4400 miles on it (each one an absolute pleasure to the driver).

Before going to the insurance appraisal I had an estimate from the dealer's recommended shop. The insurance facility gave pretty much a carbon copy of the independent's estimate (they too had the quarter panel/trunk as repairs). Both shops "felt" right. They seemed to be clean, organized, and professional. Both mentioned the possibility of finding additional damages once they started the breakdown. Since subsequent negotiations, if any, would go quicker through the insurance facility I decided to go with them. Only difference was replacement of the electric lock (which is working). Independent was going to replace it just in case.

A rental's covered (mostly) so everything seems to be going well. Its amazing how spoiled you can get in a short time but the rental's a far cry short of my 8! Hope to be back where I belong in about a week depending on parts delivery.