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Collision with curb - Major damage - Advice needed

11K views 15 replies 9 participants last post by  Chris07 
#1 · (Edited)
Hi Guys, Ive been visiting challenger talk ever since i got my Challenger 2 years ago and totally love this site.

6 months ago I was involved in a high speed collision due to a girl in the car turning off the traction without me noticing.

I love my challenger to death and would not consider selling it even if my life depended on it, so i decided to go ahead with the repairs and save up the money for all the parts myself.

The car hit the curb sideways at around 50 - 70 KHM (ouch). after checking if everyone was ok i stepped out to assess the damage, the body was intact, but both right side wheels tires were literally mangled and resting almost under the car.(fml)
Theres were no liquids such as oil water on the ground, the engine was still running but as i moved the gear lever from neutral to drive to revers the car wouldn't move it just revved.

After getting the car and throwing it at the mechanics he gave me the list of parts that I needed to get:

Front Right:

-Lower Arm
-Shock
-Upper Arm
-Knuckle and Hub
-ABS Wire
-Brake flex Pipe
-Brake disk
-Rack and pinion steering system

Front Stabilizer balance roll
Front stabiliser link right side
Front Wheel arch plastic cover

Rear Right:

-Rear Right Axle
-Rear Brake pipe
-Rear Right Shock Absorber
-Rear Right Knuckle and Hub
-Lower arm Rear Right
-Upper Arm Rear Right

Other:

4 Rims and tires

------------------------------
I decided to save up the money and go ahead with the repairs - we installed all the front parts and now awaiting the rear parts to arrive in the meantime I'm trying to source the rims from elsewhere as the ones I have are expensive.

The mechanic tells me that we still don't know the full extent of the damage since he is not able to move the car (to lift it and inspect the undercarriage) as its still too low to the ground and he needs rims/wheels so he could move it.

Guys, at this point I'm loosing hope, should i give up, should i continue and see it through?

What are the chances that the Chassis is bent?
Is it possible that the transmission is damaged?
Should I jump off a bridge?

Its been 6 months now, and it breaks my heart seeing the car all dusty and lying there.

Any feedback is appreciated.

Thanks
 
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#2 ·
Without more details, it's hard to say, but there could be frame damage.... drunk driving has repercussions. Luckily no one was hurt. I would say there's a good chance the frame is NOT damaged.

Good luck.
 
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#3 ·
Thanks for your quick reply, U gave me a shred of hope.

I'll just have to wait for the rear end parts including the wheels/tires to be installed and then wait for the analysis by the mechanic.

Im just praying that the frame is not damaged, and that no other parts are needed coz as soon as i buy the rims I'm literally broke for a while.

This is a pic of the car leaving the impound, you can't see much but it looks slammed.

after unloading it at the garage the front wheel literally broke off and hit the front fender and damaged it, apparently it was just hanging by a wire as everything behind it snapped off during the accident. I'll post a pic of that also when I can.
 

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#5 ·
Having lost a family member to a drunk driver, I think it best I make no comment on that aspect of your post.....except you are SO lucky nobody was hurt. Its a difficult thing to live with.

I would part out the car to be honest. Engine and drive train are probably fine, body panels, etc.

To fix it I bet would run you $15,000 by the time you are all done and it may NEVER be able to be aligned properly, etc.

Part it out, pay off your loan.

Then grow up.
 
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#6 ·
So sorry for your loss and thanks for your reply and feedback. In my defense I only had two beers but in the country I reside in thats a big deal.

Yes I have doubts it would never be aligned properly but i guess i have to give it a shot.
 
#7 ·
2 beers does not make you intoxicated unless you weigh 40lbs.

I've been to your area of the world....like anywhere else, it all depends on who you are doesn't it....if you are a local, related to a prince, you can literally get away with murder...if you are some poor foreign worker, you are screwed.

You have a problem. I would try and get it to a frame shop, but I dont think they can even MEASURE things without the car being on wheels.

Calculate the energy you hit that curb with....60kph, 4000lb car......the result will surprise you
 
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#8 ·
What you said is true, I left my country which is also in the middle east to the one i reside in now, in my country i could've just made a phone call and everything would've been resolved, but since here I'm considered an expat so basically I'm kind of a foreigner working like everybody else there was nothing i could do about it.

The problem here is that they have ZERO tolerance for alcohol so if they breathalyze me and they find 0.01% in my system its considered DUI. If I were a local resident things would have been different so you're right in every sense.

Thats exactly what I'm going to do, After I install the rear parts and wheels/rims its going straight to a frame shop to get measured..only then i'll have an idea.

Its times like these where i wish i was a local lol.
 
#9 ·
You said in your first post that you already installed all the front parts, if you can't even get it on a lift because its sitting to low, how did you get under it to remove and install the new parts?
 
#10 ·
My mechanic only revealed that to me afterwards...the imbecile hired a forklift he put pieces of wood on each arm and made sure he didn't damage the undercarriage. I flipped out screaming in disbelief when i heard...But then again i can't think of another way, coz once that font wheel broke off when the car was being unloaded the front end was literally kissing the ground, the mechanic had to put a moped tire between the plastic side skirt and the ground but the front lip was pretty much almost touching the ground.

What are your thoughts regarding the drivetrain and chassis? any feedback?
 
#11 ·
I have personal experience with this as I too was screwing around one night with cold F1 tires in my brand new challenger about a year ago. I was in a nice drift, ESP off, front tires lost grip, it was 18* out. Over corrected about 3 times and slapped a curb on left side of car doing about 20MPH. Total repair bill was in excess of 12K, (2800 of that was just the heritage II OEM rims) Curb screwed up radiator/condenser, fender, rims and rear A-ams and a few other odds and ends. Where the a-am connects to body was bent, it took over a month to repair and they had a hell of a time getting it to align properly. They just started replacing parts until they found the one that was slightly tweaked. Its going to be a long road, as you was going way faster than me. I hope for the best.
 
#12 ·
Chris, Thank you for sharing, now I have hope..im gonna go through with it and fix it...anyways no turning back now i already payed for 3/4 of the parts and yeah the god damn rims and tires are the expensive bit but I'm torn in between SRT replicas, which i don't like the sound of and used original ones....as for tires i got a cousin that is a regional sales for goodyear so that should help.... a lot.

Thanks again for sharing man u put my hopes up.
 
#13 ·
That's unfortunate man. I'm sure you learned your lesson. 1 beer 2 beers whatever. Lucky no one got hurt and that's all that matters.

You are this far deep already with parts and with the car down all this time I would assume its not your only mode of transportation. Just keep fixing it slowly. Parting it out is always an option but I would look at that as a last resort. There probably are not a lot of challengers needing parts in your country. Shipping parts to the states, especially big ones like a motor, trans etc isn't even realistic.

Good luck with it. Do try and keep the woman from pushing random buttons in the car. Stay safe.
 
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