Wollfen
Old Man with a Hat
High pressure washer and blow the red off....
It's Official: 1966 Crown Convertible Coming This Way
- Thread starter Boomer
- Start date
Boomer
Active Member
Not a bad idea - it flakes off pretty easily around that area.
So the car is here, but a bit worse for wear. We unloaded one street over into a small park & ride area. As the guy was unloading it from the three car trailer, I'm not sure what happened. I think he missed reverse and slipped it into neutral or somehow between gears. He rolled straight back at a good clip and was stopped by a tree. Caved in the rear bumper, put a dent in the trunk lid, and likely bent up the rear trunk area behind the bumper. Limbs falling from the tree poked holes in the top which was tired looking anyhow. Sure made a helluva bang. He said his insurance will take care of it without question and gave me back $100 from the towing cost.
But hey - it's here, it's mine, and no one got hurt. It could've been worse: it could've been a Prius, in which case it would now be totaled. I'm going to check with a shop nearby tomorrow about doing all the fluids and getting it roadworthy again. Once his insurance people figure out their end, we'll look at fixing that.
Hey Robert - got a spare rear bumper, by chance? ;)
65sporty
Old Man with a Hat
Well that sucks, but sounds like your making the best out of a bad situation. I guess you wont be recommending the car hauler.
78Brougham
"Chump"
what was it, his first day? The car was still on his trailer when this happened? A hundred bucks?.. how about half off.
I don't mean to get you wound up, but c'mon. Was any of this accident documented with pictures for his insurance company?
Sorry for your troubles, I hope he's a stand-up guy and makes good on it.
Now cracking on her.
I agree it would be better to not have hurt her, but if the insurance comes through... Tri city for a nice new bumper, Murray for a trunk lid, a good paint shop for the back half repaint (might get the entire car if they're convinced it can't be matched) and a new top...
On an worn collectable, the insurance claim should become a win of sorts. Find your painter now, and see if they will help you handle the adjuster. These companies know many folks will pocket the cash, so they often try to get you to settle for less than it would take to actually make the car "as was".
On an worn collectable, the insurance claim should become a win of sorts. Find your painter now, and see if they will help you handle the adjuster. These companies know many folks will pocket the cash, so they often try to get you to settle for less than it would take to actually make the car "as was".
Ripinator
Old Man with a Hat
W T F ?!? I am stunned at the stupidity of all this. I just don't know what to think. Maybe in the end, this "accident" will be a blessing. Take the car to a real restoration shop and get a true estimate of the cost of all the repairs - including the top and the paint. And don't settle for any amount less than what it will take to make the car right. You may just come out ahead on this. What a goat-phuck!
commando1
Old Man with a Hat
The driver does not know how lucky he was that this was not my car.
Boomer
Active Member
The driver was young and inexperienced for sure, and quick to want to blame someone or something else. But there's plenty of blame on me as well for choosing them. You don't see many younger folks interested in cars or older cars these days so I wanted to encourage this. I had at least one cheaper price from a bigger company, but they wouldn't answer simple questions.
For the driver's part, he should have winched it off the trailer and not tried to back it down. I think he missed reverse and went to neutral or ?, who knows now. I do know there is no brake pedal now so maybe low fluid drained back from the angle it was sitting on? When I asked him why he didn't winch it off, he showed me a cable that had parted all but 2 strands. I suggested he not move anymore big, heavy cars or cars with carburetors.
He also should have waited until daylight as we agreed if he was going to arrive after 8, because of darkness and the issues involved with a 5000 lb car coming out of 30 yr storage. His refusal was based on having lost an hour when he couldn't get the Imp to start back up after unloading earlier (which went well, other than the starting issue).
I made a bad choice, plain and simple, hiring someone over the phone like this. My last car haul was flawless, excellent care and handling. This one, not so much. But there's a silver lining....
For the driver's part, he should have winched it off the trailer and not tried to back it down. I think he missed reverse and went to neutral or ?, who knows now. I do know there is no brake pedal now so maybe low fluid drained back from the angle it was sitting on? When I asked him why he didn't winch it off, he showed me a cable that had parted all but 2 strands. I suggested he not move anymore big, heavy cars or cars with carburetors.
He also should have waited until daylight as we agreed if he was going to arrive after 8, because of darkness and the issues involved with a 5000 lb car coming out of 30 yr storage. His refusal was based on having lost an hour when he couldn't get the Imp to start back up after unloading earlier (which went well, other than the starting issue).
I made a bad choice, plain and simple, hiring someone over the phone like this. My last car haul was flawless, excellent care and handling. This one, not so much. But there's a silver lining....
Boomer
Active Member
Didn't want to write a War & Peace novel so here's the silver lining part.
After feeling sorry for myself last night and this morning, I removed my head from that proverbial dark place it sometimes migrates to, packed up the daughter and went to survey the damage (literally). It's amazing what a night's sleep makes, and some bright sunlight.
First off, I cleaned all the leaves and sticks off the car that fell on it from the near-dead tree it struck. Only one small hole in an already-tired and dried out top. Not so bad, it needed replacing anyhow.
Brought along jumper cables, gas, starting fluid and got the old girl fired up in short order. Took a few tries, and she ran rough (4-6 cylinders) at first, but once she stayed running she went to idle and smoothed right out nicely. The battery seemed to take a charge, so I'm guessing the doom-and-gloom report from the driver that it was junk really had more to do with him flattening it trying to start it before.
While it was running I took the opportunity to re-adjust the driver's seat (previously set for the 5'6" hauler) and test other things. Good news here: the non-working rear window actually works, just in 'down' mode only. Switches in the door are reversed which is how I found out. So the motor is good at least. Also checked gauges, everything but gas gauge was working well. Headlights, taillights, wipers, horn, seats work. Even tried the power vent on the passenger's side for deMatt, he's right - they're cool as hell.
Decided to put the top back on the breather. At that moment, the car sputtered and died. Did I suffocate it? Nope. Since it's running off a lawn mower tank for gas, it sucked the tank dry. *whew* An easy explanation for a change.
My 4 yr old daughter likes the car a lot, but wasn't impressed with the dual Cherry Bomb mufflers when it fired off. Good thing I got her to pose first.
Overall the car still looks great, even at rest.
After feeling sorry for myself last night and this morning, I removed my head from that proverbial dark place it sometimes migrates to, packed up the daughter and went to survey the damage (literally). It's amazing what a night's sleep makes, and some bright sunlight.
First off, I cleaned all the leaves and sticks off the car that fell on it from the near-dead tree it struck. Only one small hole in an already-tired and dried out top. Not so bad, it needed replacing anyhow.
Brought along jumper cables, gas, starting fluid and got the old girl fired up in short order. Took a few tries, and she ran rough (4-6 cylinders) at first, but once she stayed running she went to idle and smoothed right out nicely. The battery seemed to take a charge, so I'm guessing the doom-and-gloom report from the driver that it was junk really had more to do with him flattening it trying to start it before.
While it was running I took the opportunity to re-adjust the driver's seat (previously set for the 5'6" hauler) and test other things. Good news here: the non-working rear window actually works, just in 'down' mode only. Switches in the door are reversed which is how I found out. So the motor is good at least. Also checked gauges, everything but gas gauge was working well. Headlights, taillights, wipers, horn, seats work. Even tried the power vent on the passenger's side for deMatt, he's right - they're cool as hell.
Decided to put the top back on the breather. At that moment, the car sputtered and died. Did I suffocate it? Nope. Since it's running off a lawn mower tank for gas, it sucked the tank dry. *whew* An easy explanation for a change.
My 4 yr old daughter likes the car a lot, but wasn't impressed with the dual Cherry Bomb mufflers when it fired off. Good thing I got her to pose first.
Overall the car still looks great, even at rest.
Boomer
Active Member
So...on to the actual damage. Sure, it sucks that there is any damage at all, this car made it for 5 decades then when I get it, all hell breaks loose. Well, it's not as bad as all that after all.
Here are some shots:
And a couple more, including the tree:
Here are some shots:
And a couple more, including the tree:
Ripinator
Old Man with a Hat
Didn't want to write a War & Peace novel so here's the silver lining part.
After feeling sorry for myself last night and this morning, I removed my head from that proverbial dark place it sometimes migrates to, packed up the daughter and went to survey the damage (literally). It's amazing what a night's sleep makes, and some bright sunlight.
First off, I cleaned all the leaves and sticks off the car that fell on it from the near-dead tree it struck. Only one small hole in an already-tired and dried out top. Not so bad, it needed replacing anyhow.
Brought along jumper cables, gas, starting fluid and got the old girl fired up in short order. Took a few tries, and she ran rough (4-6 cylinders) at first, but once she stayed running she went to idle and smoothed right out nicely. The battery seemed to take a charge, so I'm guessing the doom-and-gloom report from the driver that it was junk really had more to do with him flattening it trying to start it before.
While it was running I took the opportunity to re-adjust the driver's seat (previously set for the 5'6" hauler) and test other things. Good news here: the non-working rear window actually works, just in 'down' mode only. Switches in the door are reversed which is how I found out. So the motor is good at least. Also checked gauges, everything but gas gauge was working well. Headlights, taillights, wipers, horn, seats work. Even tried the power vent on the passenger's side for deMatt, he's right - they're cool as hell.
Decided to put the top back on the breather. At that moment, the car sputtered and died. Did I suffocate it? Nope. Since it's running off a lawn mower tank for gas, it sucked the tank dry. *whew* An easy explanation for a change.
My 4 yr old daughter likes the car a lot, but wasn't impressed with the dual Cherry Bomb mufflers when it fired off. Good thing I got her to pose first.
View attachment 139612
Overall the car still looks great, even at rest.
View attachment 139614
View attachment 139615
View attachment 139616
Boomer: You are a very patient and forgiving person. . . We should all follow your lead.
Boomer
Active Member
Now for the 'silver lining', if you can call it that.
What you see for damage is pretty much it. I know the trunk is pushed in some as well because the lid is jammed and won't open. But from underneath, you can't tell it's been hit. No damage to the rear frame or anything else along there, even the trunk.
All the light brackets and lenses are intact with no apparent new damage. Some typical crazing on the back lenses.
The gas cover and trim are fine. The tank neck still sticks straight out despite the surrounding damage. So it didn't bend much beyond the bumper.
It looks like a trunk lid and two bumper pieces should put me back in pretty good shape, along with some pulling and straightening directly behind. Nothing that should impact moving forward with the project or even driving the car - it just looks ugly as hell, like someone backed into a tree.
Unfortunately Gary, it didn't know anymore paint off the side. Though it looks like you could peel more off easily enough!
That's enough for now. Off to forage for brake fluid then to the garage across town that works on older cars (thanks Jim & Chris for the tip).
Here's the weirdest part of all: after being thoroughly disgusted last night and hoping the earth would open up and swallow the car, me, etc, I now find myself determined to move forward more than ever. I went from liking the car to falling in love with it this morning, it's just that cool of a car. It's in far better shape overall than I expected, and it looks so good even in its current state.
Onward...!
What you see for damage is pretty much it. I know the trunk is pushed in some as well because the lid is jammed and won't open. But from underneath, you can't tell it's been hit. No damage to the rear frame or anything else along there, even the trunk.
All the light brackets and lenses are intact with no apparent new damage. Some typical crazing on the back lenses.
The gas cover and trim are fine. The tank neck still sticks straight out despite the surrounding damage. So it didn't bend much beyond the bumper.
It looks like a trunk lid and two bumper pieces should put me back in pretty good shape, along with some pulling and straightening directly behind. Nothing that should impact moving forward with the project or even driving the car - it just looks ugly as hell, like someone backed into a tree.
Unfortunately Gary, it didn't know anymore paint off the side. Though it looks like you could peel more off easily enough!
That's enough for now. Off to forage for brake fluid then to the garage across town that works on older cars (thanks Jim & Chris for the tip).
Here's the weirdest part of all: after being thoroughly disgusted last night and hoping the earth would open up and swallow the car, me, etc, I now find myself determined to move forward more than ever. I went from liking the car to falling in love with it this morning, it's just that cool of a car. It's in far better shape overall than I expected, and it looks so good even in its current state.
Onward...!
Boomer
Active Member
I didn't used to be, Rip. The first thing that softened me was meeting my wife. The second was having our daughter. Recently I had some rather scary medical news that has turned out okay (so far) which really made me take a longer look at my life, my family, and my stuff.
In the end, as cool as it is, it's just a car. A 'thing', more stuff, whatever you want to call it. Would've been hard to prove it by me last night, but it's a new day and it's all back in perspective.
If you let it, the 'other stuff' will run your life. Slow and subtly, so you don't notice it. No fun. It's taking a lot of discipline on my part, but I'm regaining control. Most days. ;)
Wollfen
Old Man with a Hat
I would be so pissed and wouldnt look at the car for a week. Plus I would be onto his insurance company first thing and making sure they got all the requisite info on what happened and the aftermath. But I digress, looking at that patch of black paint, is the black shiny? If so then I think it won't be too hard at all to get that red paint off. 1750PSI water blaster and a plastic spatula, slowly work away.
Ripinator
Old Man with a Hat
Like I said, Boomer. . .
Boomer
Active Member
Stopped at the garage this afternoon, he can't fit me in for another week at least, so it looks like the old girl needs to come home tonight instead of going there. Picked up some brake fluid to see if I can get enough pedal to drive it home. Probably less than a quarter mile, but a short downhill piece that requires brakes. If not, I'll call a flatbed. Didn't think to look for wet wheels.
I'll check out the paint once it's here, Gary. It is thick paint and indeed shiny underneath but there's also a little filler on the quarters and probably rockers. Undersides are better than I expected based on the repairs seen.
Called the insurance company, they seemed very nonchalant about it all, said fill out the forms and email them in. The driver said they generally just pay. I'm guessing that's based on how high the 'estimate' is. Page 2 actually asks me to estimate the damage.
I have to say, the urge to beat the driver with a tire iron was pretty strong initially - especially when he tried to blame *me* for removing a 4x4 wooden chock under the rear wheel that he rolled over. Yeah, I'm Superman and can pull a block of wood from beneath 5000+ lbs of downward pressure. But the guy just had his first kid Sunday and was in a hurry to get home today for the first Drs checkup at noon. His new daughter also shares her name with my 4 yr old, right down to the spelling. It was as if someone was giving me a friendly reminder - calm down, it's just 'stuff'.
Right now I just want to get it off the side street park-n-ride and home where it belongs. Even if all I can do is vacuum the dirt out of the carpets or wash the dash and windows. Just a little paranoid something will happen to it over there.
I'll check out the paint once it's here, Gary. It is thick paint and indeed shiny underneath but there's also a little filler on the quarters and probably rockers. Undersides are better than I expected based on the repairs seen.
Called the insurance company, they seemed very nonchalant about it all, said fill out the forms and email them in. The driver said they generally just pay. I'm guessing that's based on how high the 'estimate' is. Page 2 actually asks me to estimate the damage.
I have to say, the urge to beat the driver with a tire iron was pretty strong initially - especially when he tried to blame *me* for removing a 4x4 wooden chock under the rear wheel that he rolled over. Yeah, I'm Superman and can pull a block of wood from beneath 5000+ lbs of downward pressure. But the guy just had his first kid Sunday and was in a hurry to get home today for the first Drs checkup at noon. His new daughter also shares her name with my 4 yr old, right down to the spelling. It was as if someone was giving me a friendly reminder - calm down, it's just 'stuff'.
Right now I just want to get it off the side street park-n-ride and home where it belongs. Even if all I can do is vacuum the dirt out of the carpets or wash the dash and windows. Just a little paranoid something will happen to it over there.
Glad you got the car and good for you that you understand it's just "stuff".
Usual advice applies here, get a solid estimate from a reputable shop and document everything that happened. The insurance company being "nonchalant" is typical. They don't care... In fact, you may need to be proactive to keep your name on their radar. Being persistent, yet still professional and polite will go a long way. You don't want them to dodge your calls, but you also want them to want to get the case closed. Take notes and names with every call.
Insurance companies drag their feet with the hope that you will either accept whatever they offer or even just give up and not bother with it.
Usual advice applies here, get a solid estimate from a reputable shop and document everything that happened. The insurance company being "nonchalant" is typical. They don't care... In fact, you may need to be proactive to keep your name on their radar. Being persistent, yet still professional and polite will go a long way. You don't want them to dodge your calls, but you also want them to want to get the case closed. Take notes and names with every call.
Insurance companies drag their feet with the hope that you will either accept whatever they offer or even just give up and not bother with it.
saylor
Senior Member
be careful about discussing the damage assessment until you get paid. it could be totaled.
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Here's the weirdest part of all: after being thoroughly disgusted last night and hoping the earth would open up and swallow the car, me, etc, I now find myself determined to move forward more than ever. I went from liking the car to falling in love with it this morning, it's just that cool of a car. It's in far better shape overall than I expected, and it looks so good even in its current state.
Onward...![/QUOTE]
It's the power vents.
Onward...![/QUOTE]
It's the power vents.
What hauler did you use?
