A VERY expensive whoopsie

[Dave1982]

OK.........I debated whether or not to post this, as the other involved party is on this forum. But I won't mention names; he knows who he is and knows exactly what he did. This is going to be ranty, but I need to vent.

A couple weeks ago, a friend and I had a need to jump start a car. We used my car to jump it, and I was in the car being jumped (it belonged to a third party).

After the jump, I had my friend remove the cables, and then close the hood on my car. I'd have done this myself, except the car we'd just jumped was a stick shift and the parking brake was shot AND it was parked on a hill, so I needed to stay in it with my foot on the brake pedal.

What does my friend do? He tosses the jumper cables aside, then FORCED THE HOOD DOWN WITHOUT LOWERING THE PROP ROD FIRST!!!!!!!! :eek:

That's right, HE DIDN'T PULL THE ROD FIRST!!!! :jawdrop:

I saw the whole thing, but because I was effectively trapped where I was, all I could do was scream "No no no NO NO NO NO!!!!! STOP STOP STOP" all to no avail. He ignored me and succeeded in severely tenting my hood and BREAKING the prop rod. Yeah, he bent the hood in half and broke the damned rod, which is at least 1/4 diameter solid steel. We were later able to bend the hood back enough for it to latch (and so I could see to drive) but now it looks like shit, and I can see it every time I look out the windshield, which is all the time as I drive it.

:burnup:


The friend who did this....well, let's just say he's very prone to this sort of lapse in judgment, and has a very bad habit of not listening to ANYTHING anyone says when he gets it into his head that something should be done a certain way. Until now though, he's avoided ever causing serious damage to something, but this time his luck ran out.

Now, I do know that his car has some sort of pneumatic or spring-loaded hood hinges and so doesn't use a prop rod, but he is also fully aware that my car DOES use a rod. In fact, he's lowered my hood more than once in the past without a problem, but this time had a massive brain fart and man oh man is it going to cost him.

I just got the estimate from my preferred body shop. It's a very good shop with an excellent reputation and - thanks to my father's notorious propensity for getting into car accidents - my family has given them a lot of business over the years. I therefore have no reason to believe they've inflated the estimate.

The damage - literally and figuratively - $765.26 :jawdrop: :cry:

This just makes me sick. After all, while he may be a doofus, he IS a good friend of mine and has been for many years, and $765.26 is going to put a serious crimp in his finances.

But of course, this whole thing is quite clearly HIS fault and his fault alone, so there's no reason for ME to have to pay this. And I doubt my insurance would cover it, at least not without putting my rates up.

So now I'm in a dilemma over what to do, and I hate it.

Any thoughts?

[crazylegs]

Any thoughts?

He didn't so much as goof but completely bollocksed it up, he pays.

You say that it will crimp his finances severly, now I have no idea how much money you have squirelled away, how about you draw up a formal contract where he pays you in installments and you get it witnessed by a couple of trusted mutual friends? (I'm assuming you have the funds to pay for it immediately if not then bin this suggestion)

[RecoveringKinkoid]

That was no accident.

My sister slamming the right rear door before the left rear door on my van is an accident (yes, it matters what order you close the doors on my van). Someone futzing up the wires when jumping a car is an accident. This guy had to work very hard to fuck your car up. You cannot accidently do what he did. You grab the hood and it won't close. You don't struggle to force it down over the rod, breaking the rod and bending a steel hood "by accident." Presumably, this took a few seconds at least, as you were in the car shouting "Stop!" repeatedly and he ignored you and pressed on.

No, this was deliberate. I'm really more interested in why this "friend" is so passive aggressive and so angry towards you.

You need to be wary of this guy. Extremely so. Even if you don't believe me when I say he's got some serious anger or resentment issues towards you, you can believe that anyone that stupid will fuck you up even worse than if he IS doing it on purpose.

Stupid people are far more dangerous than evil ones.

In any case, you really ought to rethink your relationship with this person before he runs out of inanimate objects to take his aggression out on and starts on you.

Oh, and yeah, he owes you the cost of the repair. I mean, if it really was an "accident" wouldn't he be falling all over himself to pay it? Wouldn't he have allready apologized and offered to pay for it? If it was an accident, and he was sorry, of course he would have.

If not, well, I guess he needs to learn that taking out aggression in this way carries a price tag.

[Dave1982]

Oh, and yeah, he owes you the cost of the repair. I mean, if it really was an "accident" wouldn't he be falling all over himself to pay it? Wouldn't he have allready apologized and offered to pay for it? If it was an accident, and he was sorry, of course he would have.

I forgot to mention this, but he DID fall all over himself to apologize for it, and immediately offered to pay for it.

I don't know exactly how much money he has immediately available, but I can afford to have him pay me in installments if necessary (though of course I'd prefer to not have to do that. $765 is a lot to do that with).

And I do not believe this has anything to do with anger issues, at least not with me. I could be wrong, but I've known him a long time, and I've seen him press on with stuff without listening or thinking before.

Rest assured though, if I were to get any indication that this was deliberate, I will deal with it appropriately.

[crazylegs]

That was no accident.

I would like to politely disagree, if you've spent the last ten occasions putting down a non rod bonnet (hood) then you'll just pull the thing down, and a lot of people don't know their own strength, depending on the make/model of the car a lot of bonnets have very little structural strength (for example the Mitsubishi Evo IX), not only to save weight but to increase their NCAAP star rating for pedestrian collision.

Dave,

Is there not a breakers yard that you could get another bonnet from and get it resprayed, perhaps that may be a chaper option (as long as hinges etc aren't damaged).

[Dave1982]

Dave,

Is there not a breakers yard that you could get another bonnet from and get it resprayed, perhaps that may be a chaper option (as long as hinges etc aren't damaged).

Well, the estimate I got is already for what is delicately termed "crash parts" except for the prop rod assembly, which will be new OEM (but that's only $18.25). And nearly half of this estimate is for the refinishing work to make the replacement hood match the rest of the car ($156 for paint and supplies, $208 refinishing labor).

The labor total alone is $324. The hood itself is $230. I suppose I could try and find a cheaper one, but the total cost would likely still be well over $500.

[kibbles]

I have to agree crazylegs, it may seem impossible; but, I can totally see absent mindedly (spelling?) trying to close someone..not being able to..then forcing it down without really realizing what you are doing.

ITA with crazylegs.

[Camry178]

If you decide to have him pay you in installments then I suggest you put it in writing with due dates and both of you should sign it.

I know this may sound severe for a friendship but in case he decides down the road that he's tired of paying you, you at least have proof of what he owes you.

[Sheldonrs]

I'm sorry. I kind of lost it when you said "...and I was in the car being jumped" and "...That's right, HE DIDN'T PULL THE ROD FIRST!!!! ".

lol!!!

[Crazeyal]

Well... It's a BODY SHOP... They tend to charge like that because Insurance is involved. So.. I'm thinking that you get the prop rod fixed and live without the matched paint. Is this some show car?

[Evil Queen]

What I would do is go to one of those pay-to-enter junk yards. They have them here in the states; you pay something like 10$ (Per person, this is how they make money) to get in, take a load of tools with you and attack the nearest vehicle that happens to be the same make and model as your own.

This way you essentually only pay to have the parts installed and painted.

Have your friend pay for his boo-boo and keep him away from your car.

[draftermatt]

Well I'm of the mind to have him pay it and pay it all at once. Never get involved with loaning money to friends. If someone's late, or whatever then bad things can happen to the friendship.

I would however recommend finding your own hood and seeing if you can install it yourself. That way all you have to pay for is to get it painted.

But seriously, he did it, he offered to pay for it, so let him pay and figure out how to do it.

Think about all the times you say to people "it's not my problem where your money is, you owe the company $--- and we want it"

[lordlundar]

Going on the basis that this was a complete accident (I'm not ssying either way, because I don't know him or the situation) My take is that he keeps making these mistakes because he never has to deal with the results. Billing him for the mistake would go a long way in teaching him to pay attention.

[RetailWorkhorse]

I'm sorry. I kind of lost it when you said "...and I was in the car being jumped" and "...That's right, HE DIDN'T PULL THE ROD FIRST!!!! ".

lol!!!

Very glad I'm not the only one.

[FuzzyKitten99]

get a Haynes or Chilton's manual and see if you can pull the hood off yourself and put the new one on, then just have the friend pay for the part itself and the paint.

A hood really isn't that difficult to pull off and/or install. You just need a second set of hands or a garage with the rafter-beams exposed and a long nylon rope if you're alone.

[LostMyMind]

If your car has original factory paint. I would find out the color and call junk yards to see if they have a hood for your car in that color.

If not, get a hood then find a paint shop to just paint the hood (keep the hood off the car). That should cut the cost way down.

Putting on a hood isn't that hard.

For $700, you probably could get the entire car painted.

[Evil Queen]

Painting a car must be really cheap in Florida then. If I did it here in Houston, it would cost me well over $2 grand.

[LostMyMind]

Well, there is painting and there body work and painting. I'm talking just painting, a coat or 2 of primer, the new color, then clear coats.

Once body work gets involved, prices go way way way up.

[Dave1982]

We're working out something of a compromise. The initially body shop estimate was just that: an estimate.

Swapping out the hood is not especially difficult. My friend has done some legwork on his own and found a place that deals in used and aftermarket car body parts that can sell us a new (aftermarket) hood for $150. So I think we'll do that, install it ourselves, and then look into having the hood painted to match the rest of the car. I'm also considering just having the whole car repainted and paying the difference for that myself (minus the cost of painting the hood alone), as there are several areas on my car already where the paint needs some attention.

As far as paying me goes......if he orders the hood from that place he'll just pay for it himself. The rest I'm willing to do installments on, as long as I get half up front, and he has agreed to that.

[Evil Queen]

What kind of vehicle do you drive?

[Dave1982]

1997 Honda Civic LX 4 door.

[Evil Queen]

Yeah, those should be in the local junkyard.

[Dave1982]

Yeah, those should be in the local junkyard.

They are, unfortunately, all the ones we could locate had hood damage already. :cry:

[Jester]

The damage - literally and figuratively - $765.26

$765.26 is going to put a serious crimp in his finances.

But of course, this whole thing is quite clearly HIS fault and his fault alone, so there's no reason for ME to have to pay this.

So now I'm in a dilemma over what to do, and I hate it.

Where's the dilemma? Read your own words. He caused the damage, it was his fault, and he has to pay for it. Yeah, it sucks to put your friend through this, but when you step back and think about it, HE is the one who put himself in this situation.

Years ago, while helping a friend move, I backed her car into the house's mailbox, basically destroying it. It happened to be a custom made brick-base mailbox. It was very expensive to fix. Guess who paid that bill? :wave:

I'm thinking that you get the prop rod fixed and live without the matched paint. Is this some show car?

Um, why should he have to? It's his car! Would YOU want to live with your car with the hood being all unmatched, ghetto as that is? I wouldn't on the Jestermobile, that's for sure! Nor should Dave, just because his friend had an idiotic moment. I have no problem with Dave trying to save his friend some money to help out, but when it comes right down to it, it is Dave's friend's responsibility to fix the damage he caused and bring Dave's car back to the condition it was in before his brain pulled a Steve Bartman.

We're working out something of a compromise.

My friend has done some legwork on his own and found a place that deals in used and aftermarket car body parts that can sell us a new (aftermarket) hood for $150. So I think we'll do that, install it ourselves, and then look into having the hood painted to match the rest of the car.

As far as paying me goes......if he orders the hood from that place he'll just pay for it himself. The rest I'm willing to do installments on, as long as I get half up front, and he has agreed to that.

Sounds like a plan. Your friend is living up to his responsibilities to fix what he broke, and you are being a good friend by helping him save money in said fix. I think you're on the right track!

[protege]

A hood really isn't that difficult to pull off and/or install. You just need a second set of hands or a garage with the rafter-beams exposed and a long nylon rope if you're alone.

I second that. Taking off a hood or trunk isn't all that hard. Most cars, you just undo the bolts holding it to the hinges. Using my MG as an example, it was just like that. It's not that the hood was heavy, but easily damaged. It's a steel panel, but is a bit flimsy compared to say, that of my Toyota. To remove that, I needed a second pair of hands--one person to support the hood, and me to remove the bolts. I removed the rear hatch the same way.

Also, painting a car can be very expensive depending on the labor involved. When I took over the MG back in 2004, it had some rusty spots under the doors. So bad, in fact, the metal felt crunchy to the touch :eek: Good thing it was just the outer panel. Anyway, I had to cut that out with a grinder, and then have new panels welded into place. Once all that was done, there was no way in hell to match the original 'burnt orange' paint. I had no choice but to repaint the entire car. Cost for that? I don't even want to think about it. However, on seeing the finished article, I can't complain about it :p

Getting back on topic here, I'd be a bit pissed if something like that happened to it. I'd probably tell the person that they have two options. That is, they can pay up now, or I can kick their ass and make them pay later :p