[arpad_m]

Well, long story short (TL;DR), just got back my car from the body shop after a month, and it's now officially my "forever car", as I literally crushed my chances of ever selling it at any decent price—not that I'd want to, heh.

What happened was back at the end of April I got new PS4S tires for the rear, because the Toyos I'd had on, while awesome in terms of traction, were just too noisy and hydroplane-y for the street (will sell them for cheeeep if someone needs a pair of almost new R888Rs for racing, just DM me). Lots of small things added up that day and slices of swiss cheese aligned the wrong way: cold pavement, new tires, tons of frustration, too much of a hurry to get back home... and destiny poked through for the first time with me behind the wheel.

The rear kicked out with not even that much gas, then I stupidly lost control of the car (waiting one second too long for stabilitrak to kick in, to avoid overcorrecting into oncoming traffic, big mistake) and hit a pole that happened to be just a few feet too close before I could get back into the lane. 100% my fault. Fortunately, no people were around, my speed at impact wasn't that much (brakes worked good), no airbags deployed and OnStar didn't kick in either, but of course the whole front end crumpled up like cardboard.

I learned a lot from this about lack of proper attention to conditions, driving frustrated and angry, relying too much on algorithms and not being more aware of every aspect of the environment in general.

The silver lining is that the body shop did an amazing job, there is no way to even tell anything ever happened. The car has a brand new front end (no rock chips, yay), splitter, radiators, hoses and panels, everything's OEM or exact aftermarket replacement, the paint blend is perfect, totally invisible. She drives just as good as before if not better, and now I'll make sure to get a wrap on the new front clip.

Kind of an expensive lesson, but I'm sharing it in case might help others. Take a few minutes to calm down if needed and never just assume anything even driving the most familiar of routes.

(Sorry, no photos this time, I didn't have the heart to take pictures of the car with the crushed front, and now it looks exactly the same as new anyway.)

[caSStro18]

Glad you’re okay! Sorry for the car damage though.

[Camaro_QC]

The important thing here is that you are fine. Cars can be fixed.

Now enjoy your Camaro, pretty sure it is same as it was before.

[Trak-Toy]

Yep, nuts, bolts, pins, fasteners, paint, clips, and parts.. easy peezy. Essentially nothing more than a conglomeration of parts and pieces that are simply replaced and reassembled.. But,, I know exactly how you feel. Don't ask me how I know.. Glad to read you're OK and will enjoy your Camaro for many more years ahead.

[Nothing like an SS]

Glad you are OK, that is all that matters! The car can be fixed, as it was, so now just enjoy it! We all learn some lessons the hard way, oh boy do we!

Glad it turned out ok for you.

[jamala00]

Glad you are OK, that is the important part.

[ItsChristianInHD]

Happy to hear your okay. That’s the important part.

[JT58]

Mishaps happen. Fix it and as long as you love it and it drives great, you will be the only one who knows.

I just backed into a huge cement pole in my brand new 2019 Silverado with only 1K miles. Fortunately no one hurt, no other vehicle hit and the pole barely had a scratch. A rushed, panic move of someone's stuff- over loaded truck, stacked boxes higher than the top of the truck and towing a 3/4 ton truck on a very hot day. Totally crushed the bumper and top step pad, damaged the trailer hitch and tail gate. $3800 damage if fixed by a body shop.

Did not use insurance, fixed it myself- got a new bumper and step pad for $400, bought the primer and paint for $100, straightened the trailer hitch support plates myself and re-painted it. Having someone professionally paint the bumper and fix the tailgate on the side. What a lot of work, jeez but it was not reported, no one will ever know. Fortunately no frame damage and I'm glad I know how to do some car work.

[AD17SS1LE]

I am glad you are safe, the most important thing. I think many of us including myself have driven a little too aggressive for the conditions/situation and had collateral damage. The only thing we can do is learn from our mistakes which I think you have done. Glad you got your ride back and working, I love my Camaro and plan on keeping it permanently.

[arpad_m]

Thank you very much guys, appreciate every response. Good call on fixing the truck yourself, JT58, it was simply not an option for me. Indeed it could've been much worse, I'm fortunately all right, and nothing sears in like learning the hard way, oh well.

She's going in for the PPF wrap on Friday.

[metros11]

Sorry to hear dude. Where did you get her fixed?

[Brudda*Termite]

Feeling your pain, I'm supposed to get mine back tomorrow hopefully. Got rear end blasted two weeks ago, $6K damage, 1/3 of that was the brand new Borla axleback I just installed. Diminished value be damned, drive it until the wheels fall off!

[arpad_m]

Originally Posted by Brudda*Termite

Feeling your pain, I'm supposed to get mine back tomorrow hopefully. Got rear end blasted two weeks ago, $6K damage, 1/3 of that was the brand new Borla axleback I just installed. Diminished value be damned, drive it until the wheels fall off!

Will do Hope yours will be fixed up all right as well

[arpad_m]

Originally Posted by metros11

Sorry to hear dude. Where did you get her fixed?

D&M Auto Body in Rockaway. Unfortunately, they were no strangers (met them through wifey's mishaps), and they always did good and thorough work. Worked through everything properly with full OEM and exact aftermarket replacements, even put on a new Velossa big mouth for the one that got demolished—they called me and asked what that "bunch of glossy black plastic shards" was coming from, heh ("must have been some kind of ram air").