Destroyer of Wheels
 

Hi, i have a personal history of destroying stuff on wheels, but that never made me stop rolling...

January the 13th... i bought a '95 cosmos schwartz metallic 318 compact with 154000 km on for 1300 euro. Passenger door slightly scratched, right side fender also. Paint a little bit faded and some rust on the left back wheel house but all in all a nice car for a reasonable price.

This is my first car and i like to drive it, done over 200km in the days after i bought it. To me it seemed in very good condition.

Now, this tuesday (6 days after i received the license plates) i was driving at night and i accelerated in a corner, lost control and rammed 2 cars parked there. I hit the first car in the left rear with my right front at max 60km/h, probably lower like 30-40 cause i tried to stop after i lost control of the slip, wasn't really paying attention to my speed at that moment. After that i hit the second car but really lightly as it had very little damage. I'm insured so i called the cops, and made a statement, after that i checked the damage on my car, took out the other car's fender and then my headlight or what was left of it, "straightened" my wheelhouse and drove the car home... slowly, very slowly.

Some may call it bad luck, but i know it's all me. Should have eased on the gas and i'd still be driving. :mad:

Anyways, obviously the car is damaged and i'm looking to repair it, i was wondering can i source bodyparts like the front bumper from a diesel compact or does it have to be a gasoline car? I've seen a '97 318tds compact in my color for a reasonable price with good bodyparts. It would be awesome if i could use this one to source, it has the bumpers/sideskirts painted, unlike mine. My other option is either a sedan in my color or a schwartz II compact gasoline.

What are the chances of my car being totaled or chassis bent?

It looks to me that only the fenders have taken heavy damage and the wheelhouse less, what i'm worried about is the gearbox, it's tilted down to the front causing 1st, 3rd and 5th gear to pop out unless you hold the stick, central drive shaft feels like its spinning in ellips rather than circular.. No leaks that i could see, maybe the wiper fluid but that was almost empty anyways, the airco -i think it is- is hanging loose but no visible leaks.

Tomorrow i'll be speaking with a garage about the car, i really hope the damage to the engine/gearbox/central shaft is minimal. Replacing the bodywork i can do myself but i don't have the equipment/knowledge for all the rest and i'm kinda short on money since i bought the car.

To any offended 318Ti-fans out there, i'm truly sorry.

Maybe i'll have some pics tomorrow. fml

pics:

http://s13.postimg.org/ipfc0at6b/IMG...123_131104.jpg

http://s13.postimg.org/3pshn2nir/IMG...123_131054.jpg

http://s13.postimg.org/dbm23deoj/IMG...123_131317.jpg

http://s13.postimg.org/q9d0g3bqr/IMG...123_131257.jpg

http://s13.postimg.org/re72lgy7n/IMG...123_131157.jpg

http://s13.postimg.org/4qn81kt9v/IMG...123_130953.jpg

http://s13.postimg.org/io5e6vrcj/IMG...123_131019.jpg

http://s13.postimg.org/f73c3wsab/IMG...123_131006.jpg

http://s13.postimg.org/9f37wrigj/IMG...123_131034.jpg

I am glad I don't live in belgium. Race it at the track, people walk on streets, even in the middle of the night.

I agree that racing belongs on a track and i shouldn't have accelerated in that corner, period.

But i do feel some nuance is in place:
I was hardly "racing". The evening of the accident i had been cruising thru the city (below the 30 km/h speedlimit) for almost 2 hours. I crashed in an area that's deserted at night. (port/industrial area with warehouses)
Even there i was below the speedlimit, and maybe if it wasn't freezing this wouldn't have happened.
This doesn't mean it was ok to accelerate in that corner, i'm only trying to explain i wasn't driving like a madman, just that one corner i made a bad decision.

But yeah, i'm very grateful i hit just cars and not people.

Have you ever been to Belgium?
Or care to explain why you're glad you don't live here? (don't tell me it's just so you can't get run over by me, most of the time i'm riding my BMX anyways :p)

Yep, thats the reason :)

I was young once, and foolish too. Now I have teenagers myself and cant help but lecture people who show bad behavior (or bad judgement)...

When you have kids of your own you will be just like me, and worry that your kids will do the things that you did when you were young. And you will yell and shake your fist at the kids who drive too fast thru your neighborhood and you will realize that you have become one of "THOSE" people.

Off my soapbox now.

Good luck with your repairs!

Hi Pier!

All looks repairable with other 95 compact parts. At least here, the side marker lights position is different on the 95 than the later models. It could be different for Euro models. The point is just check. The front light grill and headlight are replacable

Of course you have to check the extent of what's bent under the fender for straight alignment. looks like some work is needed there.

I worked in Mechelen in the winter for a time. Charming town and if the cobblestone streets had ice on them, I might be crashing into things too... :cool:

Thanks for the good luck and lecture. If you ever decide to visit Belgium, give me a pm and i'll leave the car in the garage. :biggrin:
The road where i crashed has cobblestones... i live in Antwerp, pretty close to Mechelen.

The marker lights position isn't really a problem because i will be buying a complete car for parts, so i can replace both fenders if needed.
I've shown the pics to a mechanic, and monday i will bring the car to him so he can check the damage in person.
What worries me is that the engine seems to have either the silentblock(s) or engine mounts broken, i don't think i can source those from the parts car since it's a diesel engine.

The mechanic also told me that depending on how badly the wheelhouse is damaged it might be better to cut it out and weld in another rather than trying to straighten it.