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Disaster! Buggy wrecked last night.
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Q-Dog
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PostPosted: Fri Jun 18, 2010 1:05 pm    Post subject: Disaster! Buggy wrecked last night. Reply with quote

After 3 months of driving the buggy almost every day, disaster struck last night. I went out for a late night drive, just to enjoy some cool night air and came across an accident. A young man drove off the interstate and rolled his SUV. I was the first person on the scene and immediately called 911. While still on the phone with 911 and waiting for help, another vehicle hit my buggy as it sat next to the accident scene. The road had no shoulder so I had pulled off as far as I could.

The driver that hit me was arrested for DUI. Troopers wanted to ticket me for obstructing traffic, but I convinced them there was really nowhere else for me to stop and they decided not to cite me.

The buggy was hit in the left rear wheel. I really expected to see shattered fiberglass everywhere, but the body has only minor damage ... a couple of cracks and some damage near the left torsion cover. The pan however may be unsalvageable. The torsion arm is severely bent and the torsion housing also has a bend in it. The wheel is broken and at least one CV came apart. The transmission mounts sheared off and the trans ground strap broke loose. The pan does not look it buckled and the frame horns seem OK, but I won't know until I can get the thing apart and do some measurements. All welds in the pan where it was shortened seem to have held, but this is just from a quick look over. I'm too upset to really give it a good going over.

I'm so disappointed in what happened, because I just wanted this car to be a driver and not have it turn into a long-term project. I'm lucky no one else was hurt, but this just sucks.

I just got the car into my storage shed and talked to my insurance agent. He says he'll help as much as he can, whatever that means.

So, can I straighten a torsion housing?

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phillipmurrieta
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PostPosted: Fri Jun 18, 2010 1:08 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

That is such a bummer dude. No, i dont think i'd attempt straightening a torsion housing.

And to try to give you a ticket for obstructing (drunk) traffic, geez. That stuff pisses me off.
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LouisB
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PostPosted: Fri Jun 18, 2010 1:14 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

That sucks man. While I am sure it could be fixed I am not sure I would try it. You could maybe get away with just back-halfing your current pan instead of doing a while new one. Until you get the body off and can really measure to see how far things are out of whack you won't really know.

--louis
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Baja68
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PostPosted: Fri Jun 18, 2010 1:27 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

I can't belive they wanted to ticket you for trying to fallow the LAW to stop and render aid total BS.

So sorry your car got hit I switched my rear from swing to IRS was a faily easy job and the IRS rear section cost me 100.00 so not that big of a deal in my opinion.

Just sucks you have to tear it all down again.

Good luck
Shawn
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TC/TeamEvil
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PostPosted: Fri Jun 18, 2010 1:31 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

"A young man drove off the interstate and rolled his SUV."

Why on earth would you stop ? ! ? !
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phillipmurrieta
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PostPosted: Fri Jun 18, 2010 1:36 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

TC/TeamEvil wrote:
"A young man drove off the interstate and rolled his SUV."

Why on earth would you stop ? ! ? !


Wait, don't tell me, you're from Brooklyn.
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GTBRADLEY
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PostPosted: Fri Jun 18, 2010 1:37 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Put you a Berrien Frame under it. There is a dealer in Mississippi.
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kustoms
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PostPosted: Fri Jun 18, 2010 1:39 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Every one here at Tijuana Kustoms send our best wishes and we feel your pain.
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phillipmurrieta
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PostPosted: Fri Jun 18, 2010 1:53 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Maybe just try and find something like this.

http://www.thesamba.com/vw/classifieds/detail.php?id=821199

although obviously not type 3
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Q-Dog
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PostPosted: Fri Jun 18, 2010 2:14 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

TC/TeamEvil wrote:
"A young man drove off the interstate and rolled his SUV."

Why on earth would you stop ? ! ? !


He was in the long grass off the service road. Couldn't see him from the interstate. I heard the guy screaming for help as I drove by ... he had probably been there 10 or 15 minutes and I was the first person on the scene.

I would do it again, as I hope someone would stop and help me if I ever needed it.
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Derek Cobb
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PostPosted: Fri Jun 18, 2010 2:38 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

"let no act of kindness go unpunished"

I always stop for people in trouble. Flat tires, out of gas, stuck in a ditch, etc. I'd say about half the time I regret it, but the other half makes me feel good about myself.
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LeeVW
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PostPosted: Fri Jun 18, 2010 2:46 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Suddenly, the little problem I had last year seems very minor!

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I'm VERY glad no one was in the buggy when it got hit. At least the body escaped the brunt of the damage. I'm sure you'll get her back together, when you're ready.

Lee
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greenmanx
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PostPosted: Fri Jun 18, 2010 2:57 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Just be glad you weren't in the buggy when the drunk hit it.

give Hawkeye Buggies a shout http://www.hawkeyebuggies.com
I have one of his chassis, they're awesome. A year or so ago, we wanted to see if we could switch my completed-running buggy from my pan to one of his chassis in a weekend....we made it.
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Q-Dog
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PostPosted: Fri Jun 18, 2010 3:04 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

A closer view. Hard to see in this picture, but something from the other vehicle went through the tire and punched a hole in the wheel.

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phillipmurrieta
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PostPosted: Fri Jun 18, 2010 3:06 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Man, that must have been a horrendous impact. How far from the buggy were you standing? That must have been heart stopping.
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Q-Dog
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PostPosted: Fri Jun 18, 2010 3:24 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

phillipmurrieta wrote:
Man, that must have been a horrendous impact. How far from the buggy were you standing? That must have been heart stopping.


I was about 12 feet away, on the phone with 911. Sounded like a small explosion to my left, then I saw my buggy take a hard right turn and run down into the ditch. Other car's passenger side air bag went off.
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phillipmurrieta
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PostPosted: Fri Jun 18, 2010 3:31 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Well, i'm glad you came out unscathed anyway.
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hottarod
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PostPosted: Fri Jun 18, 2010 3:34 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

I have a 65 mustang fastback and I'm doing a very extensive re-build on it right now. Before I started this it looked really nice and I drove it around quite a bit and I also drag raced it.

I had an incident where some punk juvenile threw a brick through the back glass at the movie theatre. Cops said he did it because his dad had one and he hated his dad. I drove my car with plastic taped over the back glass. They generally run about $600 and are all originals. At that time nobody sold a repop rear glass for a 65 fastback. Nobody would ship one either. You had to go in person to pick it up. I found one in Kansas City once. It and it took me 6 months to find one within driving distance.

Another time I came out of a place and somebody had pulled all the lug nuts but the last 4 off my Magnum 500 wheels. They were just about to take them. Those wheels, center caps and tires together go for over $1750.

Another time I was in the video rental store and somebody came in and said hey is that your black mustang because somebody is doing something under the hood. I ran out and they had left. About 4 miles later I discovered they had loosened the distributor hold down and were about to steal my MSD distributor. When it spun it snapped the roll pin off the gear. Fortunately nothing was destroyed that time.

2 other times I had drunks try to goad me into lighting up the tires for them or race them and when I wouldn't do it they threw empty beer bottles at my car driving down the road trying to bust out some glass.

After all that I decided my car was safer going from inside my shop to my trailer to the drag strip and then back home. I've been drag racing it ever since.

I've read many cases of vandalism on the mustang forums. After my car is done I won't be able to drive it and leave it anywhere unattended for even 5 minutes because it will get spray painted or keyed, stolen, have the glass busted out, something.

I fear for my buggy in almost the same way. I'm putting a lot into it and it would be a bit devastating to have some nut brain out there ruin it all. No amount of money would replace all the stuff I'm doing to it not to mention that it appears so far to be 1 of the last 2 in existence.

You put your heart and soul into building something nice like that just to have somebody tear it up. Words aren't enough but I'm sorry to see your car like that. Hopefully its not quite as bad as it looks.
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1966dunebuggy
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PostPosted: Fri Jun 18, 2010 3:53 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Man that sucks!
But it could have been a whole lot worse, imagine he rear-ended it, then the whole thing woulda been gone. To me the most valuable thing in a fiberglass buggy it the body, cage and interior pieces. The pan and rear torsion area can be replaced, it bites since everything has to come apart but at least it's repairable. I hope you at least get something from the insurance company.
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Manx102
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PostPosted: Fri Jun 18, 2010 4:31 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Q-Dog wrote:
He was in the long grass off the service road. Couldn't see him from the interstate. I heard the guy screaming for help as I drove by ... he had probably been there 10 or 15 minutes and I was the first person on the scene.

I would do it again, as I hope someone would stop and help me if I ever needed it.

I commend you for your actions Q-Dog. Sorry that overall it turn into a such a mess for you.
Randy
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