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Look before you back...

Pilgrim

One Too Many
Messages
1,719
Location
Fort Collins, CO
I have egg on my face big-time, but not hat related. My daughters had a sleepover and one of their friends parked her Nissan in the driveway right behind my wife's garage door, where almost no one ever parks (we encourage street parking.)

In the AM, I had to make a quick run to the store for waffle stuff - and I backed my wife's newly acquired 1994 BMW 325i (got it last week, with 88K miles on it - a lovely car) out of the garage and straight into the Nissan. :mad: :( :rage:

My excuses are as follows:

  1. The boyfriends who usually DO park there both drive trucks that fill the entire view outside the garage door. The Nissan didn't show up nearly as well.
  2. I was a complete and total dufus. I shoulda looked.

The good news: there was NO damage! I was backing out quite gently since I'm new to the car, and it was parked very close to the door. I was barely moving, and the bumpers matched perfectly. There IS a reason for 5 MPH bumpers after all!!

So I moved it back into the garage, ran into the house and told my wife immediately - the good news first, then the bad news. She said "yes, I heard it"...but was visibly relieved to hear the good news.

I don't suppose anyone else wants to share a similar confession.

Today I have the dashboard out of my 1983 280ZX turbo to solve a vacuum leak that has made my air controls non-functional. AND - - - I just found it! Fortunately it's only about a 90-minute job each way to remove and re-install the dashboard in that car. Nice engineering and design. After owning it for 16 years, and it being my fourth Z-car, I'm pretty familiar with the entire design.
 

Raegan

New in Town
Messages
43
Location
Central Wisconsin
I can empathize with you. Last winter my best friend and I were going to go out and I told her I'd drive. We have a semi circle driveway and she parked right on the curve of it. No one EVER parks there. I went to back up and hit her car, put a nice big crack in it too. :eusa_doh: I felt like such an idiot. There was no damage to my car though, so I guess there's something to be said for not using plastic in cars.
 

LaMedicine

One Too Many
Mmmmm. Right now, I drive a cute little thing--well, maybe not little--that has a back camera/monitor, and a front crash sensor/radar monitor (that automatically hit the brakes if I don't heed the warning:eek: ), plus front side cameras...which didn't save me from a scrape with a bicycle that suddely careened out from a side street....:eusa_doh: :(
 

Caledonia

Practically Family
Messages
954
Location
Scotland
Been there too! Backed the shogun out of the yard gate before I opened the gate :D Also relied too much on the reverse sensor and didn't bother checking behind me in a car park. The shogun came out of it with a small scratch, and the other guy lost his front lights and bumper. :eek: I now remember to clean the reverse sensor so it works!
 

AtomicBlonde

One of the Regulars
Messages
164
Location
Fredericksburg, Virginia
a couple years ago I did nearly the same thing. I drive a big ol gas guzzling SUV, and my mom at the time was driving a rather nice little BMW. she decided to park behind me one afternoon, and she parked close enough behind me that I couldnt see her car in my rear view mirror. So, I hopped in my car, turned it on, threw it in reverse and hit the gas. I wasnt going THAT fast, but I was going fast enough to squish the hood of her car a little. The SUV escaped with no damage. Mom was furious.

I backed into my sisters pickup once too.

Backed into a wall... backed into numerous things actually... and lets not get started on speeding tickets...:rolleyes:

-Jess
 

funneman

Practically Family
Messages
851
Location
South Florida
I once backed into the baby sitter's car as the wife and I were on the way out for RARE evening out together.

I also once rear-ended a car at a stop sign, because I was kissing my wife! Doh!
 

Michaelson

One Too Many
Messages
1,840
Location
Tennessee
Back when my daughters were in high school, a young man came to pick up my eldest girl to go see a movie. My 1971 Volvo 164 (a decrepid old work car, but it did it's job when it was alive) was parked in our driveway, which is a downhill slope to my lower backyard.

After my daughter got in his car (which was, as a matter of fact, actually his grandmothers huge Olds), he turned around in our yard, and in backing up, bumped the Volvo. I was sitting in our living room watching television, and knew there was something amiss when I saw my Volvo slowly roll past the window of the house. I ran out the front door, and all I could see was the white of the boyfriends eyes, reflected in his rearview mirror as he watched my old car go slowly bumping in 1st gear down the hill, him apparently frozen to total inactivity.....as was my daughter.:eek:

I was able to catch up with the car, and luckily had left the window rolled down, allowing me to reach in and set the emergency brake....and once again reminding me that you don't leave a manual shift car in a forward gear facing downhill and no e-brake on....especially if you have young folks who like to use your car as a bumper for their turn arounds in your driveway. :eusa_doh:

Regards! Michaelson
 

Andykev

I'll Lock Up
Bartender
Messages
4,118
Location
The Beautiful Diablo Valley
Call Dent Pro!

No, but I almost backed into wife's little Ford wagon a few years ago. I had the Ranger in the garage, left for work in the morning, and it was dark. Something told me to STOP. And just in time. OOPS forgot the car was in the driveway.

Anyway, the only GOOF lately is some JERK CARELESS DOLT that let the shopping cart go in the lot, and it rolled into my wife's almost new Jetta.

DENT pro showed up today, and took out one deep dent, and educated me on how there were also three other dents from that cart! After warning me that it could crack the paint, deep and small dents are harder to fix than wideer ones...blah blah blah. He FIXED it to where you don't see any marks in the door at all!:eusa_clap

And at $135, it was a bargain.
 

Pilgrim

One Too Many
Messages
1,719
Location
Fort Collins, CO
The dent removal guys are great. As long as the dent isn't too large, on a crease or at the edge of a panel, they do great work - and for MUCH less than a body shop.
 

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