OK. My G35S is only a month old to the day. As of today, it has only 2500 miles on the odometer. I don't even have plates yet!

This car is awesome, and driving it makes me feel so cool - it is really comfortable, incredibly fast, and a blast to drive. I can honestly say that this is probably the best car I have ever owned (or at least one of the best!).

Now for the "bad luck" part of my story. I was driving home from work the other night (on Hwy 24 in Orinda, CA) when all of a sudden I hear a loud bang from the front of my car, and then a grinding sound. Mind you I was travelling about 65 MPH at the time in rush hour traffic. As I looked around, I didn't see anything at first. Then I looked out the driver window, and I see a metal rod or pipe stuck under the front of my car. I must have dragged it for about a mile (generating the grinding sound), and then it fell off into the road.

Now I am really upset, but I continue driving, and get off the freeway at the next familiar exit and turn into a shopping plaza. I get out of my car, and at first I don't see any damage - that is until I walk around to the front of the car! In the front bumper, near the front driver-side tire, was a nearly circular hole about 1 inch in diameter!

My theory is that this pipe or rod (or whatever it was) was run over by a vehicle in front of me, and was cataputed toward my G like a projectile. When it hit the car, the end of it went through the bumper, shattering the plastic shield behind the bumper. When it finally fell off it must have bounced off the pavement, hitting my rear driver-side door because now there is a ding (albeit small) along with several paint chips.

Now I am really upset, but then I am thinking the damn thing could have come through the windshield, and that would have been bad - VERY BAD!!

Anyway,the next day I got a couple of estimates from local autobody repair shops. Luckily the only damage is to the bumper cover and the rear door, but that's it. The estimated cost for repairs is around $1,800. As you probably realize, the bumper cover will need to be replaced, since you cannot repair rips (or holes) in the plastic.

It kills me to drive the car this way, but I am dropping it off on Monday, so I will be driving a rental for about a week (which really sucks!). But now maybe "Mr. Bad Luck" will go away and leave me alone for a while!

Thanks for listening

 

Yikes!! That is such a shame Greg, sorry to hear about your misfortune. Do you have any pics of your bumper?

 

Ouch.....It could've been a lot worse. Hope everything works out.

 

I guess I shouldn't complain about my small nick on my rear door handle ;0( (still hurts tho)

 

sorry, dude...

ttwwp, though

 

Damn, really hate to hear stories like this.

Hope they get it back to you looking and driving as good as new (well, I guess it is new).

Best of luck on the repairs.

 

You said it yourself: had that projectile been kicked up at a different angle, this story could have had a totally different ending. I'd say that you were actually pretty lucky!

 

i feel for you. something similar happened to me but with a piece of plywood. glad to hear that you didn't get hurt.

 

A friend of mine had a 2" and 10 foot long pipe ram through his windshield missing his head by about 2 feet... it was a pickup truck he was driving - but dang. You have to be thankful it didn't come right at you.

 

Sorry to hear that! Hwy 24 has some of the worst congestions the Bay Area. I hope your insurance deductible isn't too high (~$500?).

 

Ouch! Sorry to hear about the freak projectile man! Its amazing what you will find sitting on the middle of the freeways.

As was mentioned earlier, just be grateful that it was just a whole in your front bumper and not in your windshield! Drive safe. Your car will be just like new in no time!

 

Reminds me about 12 years ago... Went thru one of those underpass/tunnels in downtown Atlanta in heavy traffic doing about 70 and as we hit the dip at the bottom of the underpass/tunnel and a transmission bounces off the back of a pickup truck (with the rear gate down!) in front and one lane over from me. I'm driving a rental LTD. The car beside me hits it. It tears his front bumper off and hurls it across my hood into the windshield of the car on the otherside of me. I think I nicked the transmission on the drivers of the LTD. By the time I realized what has happened I was out of the tunnel. There was nowhere to pull over for about 1/8 mile and when I pulled over to check the car I could already hear sirens back at the underpass. Small nick in the lower edge of body under the door. It was strange. I was the only car that came out, other than the pickup truck, he keep going and I didn't even think to get his plates cause I was trying to see what happened in my rearview mirror.

 

To All,

I appreciate all of your kind feedback. I am sure when I get the car back it will look as new as it did earlier this week.

I will post some pictures of the damage over the weekend.

Regards,

 

If you don't want license plate holes in the new bumper, make sure you remind the shop not to drill them.