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Model specific boards => Golf mk5 => Topic started by: illyun on 23 April 2008, 09:09
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Hi Guys... haven't posted much here for the past few months but I'm going to be very mercenary and ask for your advice now. To cut the story short, my Ed30 has been hit from behind. The rear bumper (both top and bottom parts have been damaged with paint removed and stress marks on the plastic. The rear hatch (boot) also looks slight misaligned with the passenger side vertical gap slightly larger than the driver side although that may only be becasue the bumper is out of place. Thing is, I have it booked in today and tomorrow at 2 different garages to have assessed and I need to know what questions to ask and what I should ensure they look for. I really don't want to leave any stone unturned in making sure the car is checked out as thoroughly as possible. What worries me is that there may be more damage that can't be readily seen. Any suggestions would be gratefully received.
To those who want to know what happened, here's a run down. My Ed30 was in slow moving traffic yesterday when some complete t055er decided to drive his banger aka Vauzhall Vectra into the back of my pristine Ed30 - had just washed, waxed and detailed it it 3 times the day before. Anyway, the guy tried to fob me off saying it was minor... at that point I had to remind myself how much time I'd be doing inside if I pranged him with my fist. The impact certainly wasn't minor and I my legs and body went flying and if it wasn't for the seatbelt I would have hit the steering wheel quite hard. It was a busy dual carriageway so we decided to drive to the next roundabout and talk there - its not as if he was going to get away from me in a Vectra. When we stopped again, the guy again didn't give me his name and tried to give me a mobile phone number - not something I was going to accept in the middle of Sparkbrook, Birmingham which has a bit of a reputation for being a dodgy area. My wife's cousin who was also a passenger decided to phone the police at this point as the guy wasn't being co-operative and we were suspicious that he may not be insured. Suddenly the guy's mouth burst into life and gave me a landline number and said he owned a bodyshop just round the corner and we could go there and sort out all the details. He still said it was minor and refused to accept liability! :huh: :angry: I told him it was a £30k car - £32k with the finance - and that the VW dealer or recommended bodyshop would decide how minor or major it was. I've also now got lower back pain and stinging pain in my left arm as a result of it being violently yanked from the steering wheel and will be taking the guy to the cleaners.
At the end of the day, I'm really p155ed off because I am a stickler for factory finish and originality and specifically bought this car from new to be sure it had no history of an accident or anything of the sort. As far as I am concerned a pristine history is priceless to me and its gone. It was going into the garage this summer as I was going to get another Mk5 GTI to do high mileage and family runs in.
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No man... I'm really sorry to hear about your accident. :cry: Especially knowing our special the Ed30 is to you.
I cant help unfortunately but I hope you and your passenger are ok.
Mike
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sorry to hear this illyun :(
I've been there (as have a few other ED30 owners recently!)
Mine is going in on Monday to have the lower rear valence taken off and realigned.
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Hi there Illyun,
Sorry to hear your news, and I hope you are ok.
As for advise, I'd let your insurance know the details straight away and put a claim in against the other guy. If you were hit up the rear it has to be his fault, so he has to be liable. Document as much as you can and get it straight to your insurer, hopefully you get free legal aid on your policy?
Get yourself checked over and make sure you don't have any injuries, and let your insurer know this as well. The guy can't say hes not liable as he has driven into you, his insurer will clearly see this and have to pay out for your damages.
If you get the car into a decent bodyshop you won't be able to tell any difference, I had a similar thing happen to my red TT. Came out perfect, and I'm fussy when it comes to bodywork! :smiley:
I hope it all works out for you.
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Thanks for the replies. I am also going to have to find out whether this will appear on the HPI records. My insurance company has said it will and if so then I will be going after the decrease in value too.
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Hi there Illyun,
Sorry to hear your news, and I hope you are ok.
As for advise, I'd let your insurance know the details straight away and put a claim in against the other guy. If you were hit up the rear it has to be his fault, so he has to be liable. Document as much as you can and get it straight to your insurer, hopefully you get free legal aid on your policy?
Get yourself checked over and make sure you don't have any injuries, and let your insurer know this as well. The guy can't say hes not liable as he has driven into you, his insurer will clearly see this and have to pay out for your damages.
If you get the car into a decent bodyshop you won't be able to tell any difference, I had a similar thing happen to my red TT. Came out perfect, and I'm fussy when it comes to bodywork! :smiley:
I hope it all works out for you.
All done already :wink: Car is booked in today and tomorrow.
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It WON'T appear on any records.
Unless they make it a CatD/C which frankly is VERY remote, it would need to be extensive damage.
If they are just replacing bumpers etc, then there will be no record unless you tell people.
The only record it may appear on is the VW record to show that a bumper has been ordered against your chassis number etc.
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Stay positive mate, you sound like you have a good case there :wink:
You'll have a pristine ED30 back before you know it.
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Sorry to hear about this fella..
Reckon i'm going to bubble wrap my ED30 now. As they seem to be targeted by other motorists at the min.. How many is that in the last few months?
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Sorry to hear about this fella..
Reckon i'm going to bubble wrap my ED30 now. As they seem to be targeted by other motorists at the min.. How many is that in the last few months?
Its the first thing I thought of when I got hit. Quite ironic really because when I was washing it the day before I was thinking how lucky I was to have an Ed30 that had not been hit or anything and that I was going to get it off normal duties asap this summer to keep it pristine. :sick:
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Not good mate, if your not happy with the workmanship get it done again, if the bodyshop is good you should not be able to tell its been done, and at least with black its an easier colour match so not an issue there
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Sorry to hear about your bump illyun. Sounds a bit dodge to me... but the best people to speak to are your insurance company. especially if you have legal cover included within your policy. Ask VW to check all alignments using their jig laser machine thingy (not sure what its called). Its a shame that your car will now be an accident repair but at the end of the day its just going to mean you loose a little of its value if the damage is listed on the cars history. The other side to this is that you should get straight onto a solicitor that can deal with your claim for compensation for the injuries you have suffered.
I would defo be taking him to the cleaners for this... but you first want to check to see if he is insured and him vehicle is above board. Also get the VW garage to estimate the approximate speed he hit you at, in addition to which details on if the seatbelt tensioners/airbag were activated (this will help you get together a stronger case for compensation). Be warned though... its not as simple as all the claims company adverts show on TV. Its a pain in the a$$ where you usually have to go see a number of specialists before the other insurance company decideds it wants to pay out. So not quite straight forward as it seems but there is light at the end of the tunnel :wink:
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Can't believe there has been another ED30 pranged.
Really glad you and your passenger are OK and hope that the ED30 can be brought back to looking new for you.
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unluck illyun, these ed30's seem to be car magnets!!! :cry:
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illyun
Really really sorry to hear your news :cry: similar thing happened to me, I'd had my Ed30 for FOUR WEEKS when a 19 yo decided to shunt my stationary car in to the car in front.
It went in yesterday ....
As far as I understand it, nothing should appear on HPI
Martin
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So sorry to hear about your loss mate :sad:
I am convinced its VW trying to get those numbers down!
Be careful out there guys...be VERY careful...maybe VW have hired Prince Phillip to coordinate the effort..... :wink:
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Bl00min' hell, another ED30 prang. That makes 3 in the last month :sick: I think I'm going to disguise mine as a jap car!
Seriously though I'm angry for you Illyun - angry that idiots like that think that just because they drive a shed, everyone else does and so "minor damage" isn't important. I also find that it is always brainless numpties who end up hitting you and then try and dodge the responsibility :angry:
From a practical point of view - I find that punching them in the face and kicking them in the nutsack whilst on the floor is very satisfactory - but highly illegal and so cannot recommend it as a course of action :rolleyes:
From the damage perspective - don't forget that the exhaust box sits directly in front of the bumper and can easily get overlooked.
Question - have you looked inside the boot for floor damage, particularly around the rear by the spare wheel well?
Hope it turns out okay for you Illyun :smiley:
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So sorry to hear the news illyan, i really do hope that the third is insured.Does sound very suspect to me, hopefully the cops will prosecute the fecker!!.
good luck getting it sorted.For him, he really has picked the wrong person to slam in the back of!!.
Take him for every penny mate :angry:
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you could always check with the online insurance database (www.askmid.co.uk I think it is) with his reg details to see if he's insured if you don't know already....
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Not another one! :cry:
I had an accidnet in my GTI aswell. Seems to be the season for GTI prangs.
Hope you get it sorted soon bud
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there will be no recorded history only if it is written off.ie 10k and more will they write it off.also most insurance will pay out full value of car when brand new if written off in first year from new and you are the first owner.a rear bumper,hatch,paint and labour is not a lot on a car starting at 22k
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let us know what the repair shop says about availability of the lower valence. as i said on an earlier thread, they arn't due into the country untill may 9th. make sure they dont give you a vectra :sick: i'd rather walk. it will have been 6 weeks when i finally get mine back, which is a joke for just the rear bumper. can't really understand why it has taken vw so long to get some replacement parts.
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make sure they dont give you a vectra :sick: i'd rather walk.
reminds me of a bumper sticker: "I'd rather push a Volkswagon than drive a Vauxhall" :grin:
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make sure they dont give you a vectra :sick: i'd rather walk.
reminds me of a bumper sticker: "I'd rather push a Volkswagon than drive a Vauxhall" :grin:
I second that! Even the name "Vectra" makes me feel ill! :sick:
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you should try driving one for 6 weeks :cry: :embarassed: :sick: :shocked: :angry:
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Bad to hear mate, hope your alright!
Are the details he gave you all legit? I reckon you should have called the police anyway to be on the safe side. DEFINITELY put a claim in with your insurance company against him. Also claim for back pain as well.
Someone reversed into my old car in a car park, luckily they left a note. I got some quotes and when she found out how much it was going to cost she stopped replying to me, and changed her phone number. Luckily I had he registration number, and she was insured. I passed that to my insurance company and it was all fixed up in no time :)
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Hey i've got a Astra 1.8 (08 plate with 1k on the clock) as a courtesy car at the moment. I've never abused a car so much in my life :grin: :grin: :wink:
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I was told it was going to be 4-6 weeks for a rear spoiler (bottom bumper) when I stupidly reversed my ED30 into a van a couple of months ago, but it turned out to only be 3 weeks. Luckily mine was just a wee crack and still drivable.
Like several people above have mentioned, it wont go down on an HPI unless its a really bad accident. I had mine checked today after reading this, and it doesnt appear - but then I only had a bumper replaced and there was no other damage.
Make sure you get your back seen to etc ASAP and get it all claimed off the guys insurance.
Hopefully at the end of it your car will be as good as new.... Mine is :wink:
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Bad luck mate - I know how it feels to have some nugget crash into your pristine motor. If you're in any pain, I'd get down to the docs and make sure there's a record of it.
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I'd get down to the docs and make sure there's a record of it.
Sorry to hear your shunt, lllyun ... another ED30 too :shocked:
I'd second the advice in quotes above ...it's very important if you intend to make a claim for whiplash, back pain etc. Even take a day or two off work if it's bad enough,as that will be recorded by your employer. A similar thing happened to my Mrs a few years ago, took about a year for the whiplash compensation to come through at around £1000. Luckily she had medical records and prescriptions etc. to support the case.
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Thanks for all the replies again... Just got back from Birmingham where the accident happenned and had backache all the way... going into the docs tomorrow - already been to A&E in Bham at what must be the nastiest A&E ward in the country. I have noticed a very faint unfamiliar noise when reversing on full lock and the car veers to the left when driving so I am going to demand a courtesy car tomorrow until it is all sorted because I don't want to aggravate any damage. Also, I'm not sure if I am being paranoid but I am sure that I am getting more jolts from the transmission than normal and the dsg seems to behaving differently.
I am wondering whether to ask for a new bumper because the current one has stress marks on it where the plastic has weakened - don't really want a damaged bumper resprayed and put back on. I've been told that i'll get a like for like courtesy car. Just hope they don't mean a black Ford Fiesta 1.6 :rolleyes:
The insurance of the other guy is legitimate as it was confirmed by my insurance company - Norwich Union. Let the blood-letting commence :angry:
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Illyun...very sorry to hear about your accident....hope everythings ok with you and hope you get that problem with your backache sorted! What a shame for such a horrendous thing to happen to such a Beautiful car.....Hope all goes well and good luck! :smiley:
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Well i'm getting a Lexus 250i - think thats what its called. Had the car inspected by Rackhams today - the local VW Approved Bodyshop. I insisted on a Geometry test. The passenger side alloys were scraped on the kerb after the shunt and will also be replaced although I would prefer them all to be done at the same time as the other side also aren't 100% perfect but thats probably not going to happen. The rear bumper will be replaced completely.
The hire company was hesitant to give the Lexus as they said that my car was still drivable but I pointed out that they would be liable for any further damage to the car if I kept driving it and excaberated any internal damage. They didn't argue after that. :grin:
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I assume once you get the car back you will send it in to another dealer/ repairer just to double check everything is ok? With regards to the DSG etc.
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I assume once you get the car back you will send it in to another dealer/ repairer just to double check everything is ok? With regards to the DSG etc.
Definetly. Its going to be checked throughly.
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Got a Lexus 250i as a temp replacement car. 2.5l V6 engine with 200bhp - nasty engine and nasty car. I realised how good the GTI is after driving this car. I should have given like for like so I am demanding a hot hatch replacement.