VetticusSupersonicus

So, my greatest nightmare has become a reality: my friend did a 360 and crashed my '76 into a meridian and messed up the rear end. There was luckily no damage to the body or anything, and it doesn't look like the frame is bent, but a huge chunk of the rim (I have the slotted aluminums) was taken off and some kind of brake component was destroyed. The wheel was covered in brake fluid and, naturally, the brakes are completely non-functional now.

I'm having a nervous breakdown.

I'm going to go to the wheel shop to see if they can repair it or get me a replacement, but I don't know about the brake stuff. It looks like the fluid is coming from way up in the body somewhere. Or maybe it just splattered up there, but what is the likely cause? i.e., what is going to have to be fixed/replaced/etc.

Also, what other kind of damage should I look for? It flew over the meridian at about 55km/h (~30mph or so), so it was a fairly solid impact and I'm surprised more things weren't broken.

:sad: :sad: :sad: :sad: :sad:

boredsoIstrokedit

That sucks, eh? :D

Seriously, though, that does suck. You will have to check EVERYTHING in the rear end. If you hit it hard enough to chunck the rim, you probably have other problems, too. Start at the spindle flange/rotor, and work your way to the other one. Runout, bearings, U-joints, half shafts, camber rods, differential (I didn't see what year, but if the aluminum like mine you could have cracked that) leaf spring/hardware, T/A... It is hard to say what happened to the brakes. I would check to see if you cracked a caliper, or ruptured a brake line. Just to give you an example, my buddy and I went booze cruzin in his parents lumina when we were 14 and he hit a curb at 35mph. He cracked the subframe in that thing! along with a host of other problems (he kept the rim, it completly folded over on itself) His dad whooped his butt SEVERELY, and it cost justin 2000 bux to fix. THe vette is tougher than that POS, though, you your damage should be less severe.

Good luck with all that :smash: :smash:

NorthVette

Man that REALLY sucks!!! (That's why only I drive my cars... Nobody's fault but mine).

Glad to hear there were no injuries!

As far as damage... I'll guess the caliper is gone (brake fluid spatters).. You will likely need a replacement ally. rim... As far as any other damage.. Get it on an alignment rack to check the T-arms for trueness, they may have suffered some trauma... As well as the struts and spindle...

Good luck, and let us know what you find... And give your friend a smack in the head for playing with your car like that!

Graemeinvette

Sounds like it could be a brake pipe, but you need to be a bit more specific. It sounds like a hard hit so take it to someone who knows how to check for chassis damage etc. since a lot of the time you cannot discern it just by looking. As a minimum you should have your alignment checked, once you fix the brakes and wheel.

Desertdawg

Aww man, thats bad. I bet theres a lot more messed up underneath than just a broken rim and some leaking brake fliud...

Get it checked out real good, and I hope your friend has decent insurance.

Yeller81

Is he still your Friend ????
Good Luck
:steering:

Jughead

:iagree: :cry

QuickVet

I sure hope you friend has offered to help repair it or pay for it. There are so many people out there that just try to find a way out of it. :rolleyes:

79MakoL82

Don't you mean EX friend?

Definately check everything out. Struts, trailing arms, etc. If you hit that hard, you could have a lot more problems than just the obvious. You probably need a new caliper. Hopefully, that and the wheel are the worst of your problems. Good luck.


[Modified by 79MakoL82, 12:01 PM 9/14/2003]

lyndave75

Sorry about your luck, that hurts. Were you in the car too? Hope it was an accidental 360, not being stupid.:nono: Either way I think you should break your foot off in his azz!!!

JungleCat

Man that eats. Besides my wife and I, the only ones to drive my car have been my brother, 13 year old nephew (only down a mile long driveway), and my best friend (I got to drive his 98 Mustang). I guess I'm lucky that as much as they all love my car, none of them tried to abuse it. I'm sorry about your troubles but keep your chin up. Hopefully it's not as bad as it sounds. :seeya

Tom T

ex-friend or still afriend???

Best of luck fixing it.. accidents do happen

MotorHead

That really bites, I hope the guy offers to pay for all repairs.

I just got a new clutch installed, told the mechanic to adjust it in the shop, I would road test it, taped the milage to the speedo glass :D

cardo0

:( Sorry to hear your misfortune. :nono: My shark don’t go nowhere without me in it. Happens all the time.:mad A friend relative, or even a mechanic all want to joy ride my hot-rod. Not while I can still throw a punch.

NHvette

Lots of times, the caliper brake line (goes from rubber hose at trailing arm)
will be routed over the area that takes a hit from the suspension bumper.
Take a solid whack on that, and the line will be cut.
:seeya

WashingtonRacer

Ohhh man, that really does bite, I would be severly punishing my friend. I am willing to bet that the whole suspension on that side would need replacing, bushings, trailing arm and all. at this point, consider a Van Steel complete rearend upgrade, I hope to god your frame didn't get messed up. I don't think it would though, it's high enough, and the only components that would recieve impact that are connected to the frame, are much weaker.

Let us know how it's comming along.

My69

Some friend. I would have the whole under carriage checked out by someone who is knowlegable about our cars. If you hit hard enough I would suspect there could be hidden damage. Good luck

OddBall

See if he truly is a friend when you hand the bill.
I trust one mechanic, and one body-man on my Vette,
even family don't get that privlege.
Good luck on your repairs

flood

That is a nightmare come true. I have a few friends that have been bugging me to drive my car.

I feel kinda stuck up or "stash" when I say no. BUt this is the exact reason.

This one guy in the group lets people drive his 97 Z28 at a track ! I think he is cray :crazy: cause it would be real easy to wreck there with no fear.

VetticusSupersonicus

Well, it's at the mechanic's right now, and the wheel is being tested for runout/etc. to see if it can be repaired. The mechanic is checking the frame/suspension/brakes to see what needs to be fixed. I'm also looking for a lead on a new wheel (factory slotted aluminums). My friend is going to pay the bill in full, and he feels about as terrible as a person can feel.

He just pushed the car past his own limits as a driver and this was the result. But in a few days, it will all be fixed and I won't ever have to think about it again.

The thing that really gets me is that I've only had the car on the road for a month of the summer: in June I broke the transmission and then I spent almost a month trying to pass AirCare, finally succeeding the day before the crash. But poopie happens and you can't just sit around crying about it. I've learned now that nobody should ever get behind the wheel of my car besides me, since it's really all I've got and I can't afford to have it taken away. So this has been worth learning that lesson.

Thanks for listening, CF.