[Astrowoman]

It finally happened. 5 months of handwashing and nick-free parking and dusting the dashboard constantly and my pristine vehicle is no longer pristine. I didn't even have to resort to using the key on it.

I had just gotten home after 10 days in England, a week-long meeting in Cambridge and a weekend of sightseeing in London. Only saw about 3 Prii during the entire time! So... I figure after 10 days the car probably ought to be driven and we needed milk and something microwaveable for dinner, so I VERY CAREFULLY, mindful of being tired and jet-lagged, took the Pod out for a drive to the store.

I had just loaded the groceries up into the cargo net, got into the car, turned it on and was preparing to back out, when I noticed the person crossing behind my car to hers look up suddenly. So I glanced in the same direction she was looking and much to my horror saw a lone shopping cart acccelerating as it rolled downhill. All I could do was watch as it banged into the right side of my beautiful Prius and the slid along the doors until it came to a stop. I didn't actually burst into tears until I got home, but I sure felt like it. The cart came from the area where the carts are supposed to be returned... it's on a significant slope and the woman who also saw it, said it just broke loose from the pack and took off. The store took a report and sent it in to the parent company, but I have little hope they will pay for it... I'm going to get a couple of estimates and see if it's worth making a claim on my comprehensive insurance. There is a dent in the panel just above the right rear wheel where the panel has a slight contour, and scratches along both right doors. The dent is an inch or two in diameter and fairly deep -- You can see it from across a parking lot and to me it looks like the grand canyon. My S.O. thinks it will probably pull out OK and the scratches are superficial enough to buff out. I'm bummed. Any suggestions on the repair work? I figured I'd get quotes from the dealer and from a local body shop that does good work.

 

[GreyMud]

Contrary to the stores belief, the sign does not absolve them of responsibility - in the US, anyway.

 

[Hep]

I had just loaded the groceries up into the cargo net, got into the car, turned it on and was preparing to back out, when I noticed the person crossing behind my car to hers look up suddenly.

pum-pum...pum-pum (Jaws music)

I glanced in the same direction she was looking and much to my horror saw a lone shopping cart acccelerating as it rolled downhill.

Dont' just stand there lady, throw yourself in front of the damn cart!!!

All I could do was watch as it banged into the right side of my beautiful Prius and the slid along the doors until it came to a stop.

Aaeeeiii!

I didn't actually burst into tears until I got home, but I sure felt like it. .

So do we. Two for one margarittas at the local Mexican place?

 

[gasik1417]

I know the feeling. I'm exactly the same way as you with all of my cars. Even our truck which is starting to rust because of salt out here and it's so old. I treat the vehicles like children. Your event is just like them scraping their knee. You know it's going to happen, and can't prevent it forever.

Just take her to the doctor, and she'll be fine.

 

[galaxee]

we have a door ding too... i was very upset about it and the perpetrator left the scene with no "i'm sorry" note or insurance info.

hubby is going to try to take the door apart and push out the dent from the inside. however, i imagine this is a big job and you may not feel comfortable doing that. when it cools off to less than surface-of-the-sun temperatures around here i will report on how it went.

 

[BIF]

I feel for you Astrowoman. Mine was attacked on Friday the 13th last August. Hurricane Charley teamed up with a tree to dent the hood and front passenger doors.

I never liked that tree. It doesn't provide much shade, and all of the "poopy birds" roost in it. :x

One of these days, another hurricane will show that tree "who's your daddy." I hope that my Prius and I will be in Atlanta on that day. :shock:

 

[tbaxter]

Door ding prevention?

Are there any door ding strips one can add to prevent the door dings? I suppose that would alter the mileage, but those dings..wah. I can't stand the wait..5 more weeks just might kill me.

 

[kirby]

You are lucky you have a wittness! The stores insurance will pay for it. If they refuse just take them to small claims court. As someone else said, you cannot escape liability by putting up a sign. If you could I would paste one on the hood of my car and give up on liability insurance

I once had a problem like this and went to the store manager and told him what happened. He told me to bring him an estimate from the dealer. I did that the next day and he handed me the money for a new tail assembly in cash.

 

[Astrowoman]

Death to evil trees and shopping carts! All the members of the injured Prius club should go out and have margaritas (actually, I think I'd prefer a martini -- or some hand-drawn ale -- but I like Hep's style anyway.)

Suing the store is really not on my agenda, although I'd be delighted if the company wants to offer compensation. My S.O. thinks this won't cost too much to fix and it wasn't really the store's FAULT per se. Not my style to sue for effects of gravity and customers not carefully stowing used carts.

We'll see if I still feel that way when I get the estimate...

It does make me continue to wish that US grocery stores would use the system that Spanish (and I suspect most European) markets do -- the carts are all chained together in the cart storage area and you have to put a coin (of ~$1 value, enough that you probably don't want to throw it away) in the handle to pop the tongue the connects the cart to the chain out. When you are done shopping, you have to hook the cart back up to get your coin back. Not only would it prevent runaway carts, but it provides just enough incentive that you don't see carts strewn all over the parking lot...

The ding is on the rear panel above the wheel behind the rear door. I can't really feel it on the underside by reaching up into the wheel well, so I think it will need to be pulled out from the outside. I have "door ding" strips on my doors, but that mostly protects the MR2 that shares our garage... I doubt they affect my mileage substantially. They are just basically clear tubing with a slit that you press over the door edges.

Should I continue to look for nick-free parking or figure statistically I'm done for a while?

 

[kirby]

Some stores have that system here, most people hate using those stores. Most major supermarket chains will not allow a store to be built in anything but an almost flat lot just to prevent this sort of accident.

 

[mrv]

Re: Door ding prevention?

Are there any door ding strips one can add to prevent the door dings? I suppose that would alter the mileage, but those dings..wah. I can't stand the wait..5 more weeks just might kill me.

You can have your dealer install some, or call up an independent auto detail shop.

Or, you could order some and do it yourself if you're so inclined. I often hear of http://www.jcwhitney.com/
I know I've seen some here, but their database appears down at the moment: http://www.metrotpn.com/ProductCollecti ... ctionID=25

 

[evander]

So sorry Astrowoman. Just today I almost lost control of my own moving cart as it started inching towards my car. It's so easy to happen in a grocery lot. But watching one steamroll into one's car must be very upsetting. Good luck on repairs whether paid for through store or insurance company. (My husband's car was damaged yesterday by a hit and run driver who honked and then proceeded to sideswipe as it passed his Saturn.)

 

[Astrowoman]

I got my first estimate -- $854!!! Almost makes me want to learn to love the dent (which is actually just about exactly the size of my thumb, exaggerated when I think about it). Most of the cost is to repaint the rear panel and the rear door. Apparently, the mouldings around the windows are not easy to mask and need to be reomoved and reinstalled. It may be possible to buff out the scratches, but he wrote the estimate assuming the door would need to be painted. Apparently with this type of paint, the entire panel must be painted. I'll get a couple more estimates, but it almost made me cry again. :shock:

 

[Sanny]

Dont' just stand there lady, throw yourself in front of the damn cart!!!

I think the witness lady shoulda sacrificed herself for the good of the Prius. She emits too much, anyway. Who cares about her manicure? Ooooh, the PRIUSITY!

 

[Thomme]

Argh. My condolences.

I noticed a big vertical scratch down the center of my rear bumper a few days after using a valet where I know they tightly stack-park the cars (House of Blues - and it wasn't even a good concert!). No way to prove it, but it stinks losing the virginal quality of a pretty paint job.

I said something like this when I saw it (turn your sound up):
http://vaderfortune.ytmnd.com

 

[Hep]

When we had our recent Minnesota Madness Prius gathering, I had no sooner stepped out of my car when John (john1701a ) looks at my car and remarks on my "serious door dings!". I have three of them, all on the passenger side. I wish they weren't there, but they don't bother me enough to have them fixed. Cover your ears now...

...it's just a car.

Can I say that? :shock:

 

[Astrowoman]

...it's just a car.

Can I say that? :shock:

:shock: :shock: indeed! How could you, Hep? How could you!

 

[evander]

Argh. My condolences.

I noticed a big vertical scratch down the center of my rear bumper a few days after using a valet where I know they tightly stack-park the cars (House of Blues - and it wasn't even a good concert!). No way to prove it, but it stinks losing the virginal quality of a pretty paint job.

I said something like this when I saw it (turn your sound up):
http://vaderfortune.ytmnd.com

Exactly. That first ding or scratch hurts. Let's you know your car isn't brand new any longer.

 

[Hep]

...it's just a car.

Can I say that? :shock:

:shock: :shock: indeed! How could you, Hep? How could you!

I've been through the polar bear's program. "it's just a car" is step 8.

 

[BIF]

Argh. My condolences.

I noticed a big vertical scratch down the center of my rear bumper a few days after using a valet where I know they tightly stack-park the cars (House of Blues - and it wasn't even a good concert!). No way to prove it, but it stinks losing the virginal quality of a pretty paint job.

I said something like this when I saw it (turn your sound up):
http://vaderfortune.ytmnd.com

I didn't get it. :?