The End of Week One...

So... a week today since the crash.  And the saying that life goes on couldn't be any truer.  Saturday saw me working 8 hours up in Brisbane, Tuesday was out in Toowoomba, Thursday was a full 14 hour day, plus working around a trip to Sydney this weekend for my lovely sister's 21st Birthday Party.  Coming up is a full week of work, followed by a weekend of work, and a 2 week work trip to Germany... But I digress.  There's also some saying about making time for the things you love so I'm going to go with that :)

This week has seen some good progress in spite of everything.  The main aim here was to get the shell rolling so we can at least start getting things back to normal at our house, and get some garage space back.

The first step was to cut out the damaged guard.  Due to how far back it had been pushed, it was impossible for the wheel to fit without damaging it.  Just getting it out in the first place was hard enough, and required us to pretty much deflate it completely.

The damaged guard was a bastard to cut out, and required some creative grinding/crowbaring due to the amount of creases in the guard, as well as the multiple layers of metal that had to be cut simultaneously.  

This was the cut out section... Crazy to see that much metal compressed in such a manner!! Definitely gives new meaning to the term 'compact car' =P.


Suspension wise, this was the only thing that I could visually find.  One hell of a bent tie rod!!!  For those that don't know what a tie rod it, it connects your steering rack to the wheel hub, and explains why the wheels were pointing in opposite directions.

$130 for some new steering rack ends and tie rods, some more getting covered in grease and other crap, and the result?  A rolling car :)  After piecing her back together though, worked out there is a little bit more damage to the front right then I'd thought, but hopefully a new front end will sort that out.  For the time being though, both front wheels fit and roll easily, so I'll take that for what its worth.

In the process of moving her, I found this little gem inside the car... Kinda like it, reminds me of just what she's been through.

Love this last shot I managed to get right before the sun set.  Kinda looks rat-rod-ish =D 

After having a full week to properly look at things and suss everything out, I've managed to start sorting a list of needs, wants, and ways to rape my bank account...  However in order to get her at least drivable again?

Whole new front shell inc. straightening of the chassis, windscreen, front fenders, reo, headlights, front bar, radiator, intercooler, battery, pod filter, fusebox and alignment!!

Not too much to ask I don't think :) 

... and New Beginnings

After a fun weekend of waiting for monday (why can't smash repairers be open on Saturday/Sunday SERIOUSLY!!) Finally got her back to my place.  Always fun moving a car whose front wheels are pointing in opposite directions, with the front right not moving at all (got crushed behind the wheel well).  Theo the towy did a very good job of getting her properly in the garage so that we could still shut it!!  Someone purposefully backing into you in order to push your car back?  Yeh why not :)

This was the first time I could properly see what the extent of the damage was.  Couldn't really see a lot on Friday night, and to be honest I was in too much shock to take anything in.  Pretty sorry sight I'm sure you'll agree...

Whats left of my electronics... REALLY not looking forward to sorting all this out.  To add insult to injury, the battery itself is only 3 weeks old, same with the carbon diffuser.  Goodbye $350 that I didn't get to appreciate properly (sigh)

This pretty much just sums everything up.  So much stuff broken, so much damage that its truly depressing to look at.

BUT, couldn't let this stop me.  Wanted to assess just how bad the damage was.  Began with removing as much stuff as I could, with the angle grinder making an appearance here and there.  After a fair bit of crap had been removed, it was time to take stock and see where I was at.

Suspension wise, this is the only thing wrong with her!!!  One bent steering arm.  No idea if there's more damage elsewhere, but visually this was the only real problem I could find.  The front right chassis rail is obviously in dire need of attention, however all damage to it is in front of the axle, so got off lucky there.

What I'd achieved in 5 hours...  It's a pity the bonnet came off last, because it really does hide how many brackets, supports, and many other metallic items such as the cooler core and radiator are under there.  Should hopefully get at least something for all that destroyed metal.

From the left... damage here isn't too bad all things considered

From the right - here you can definitely see just how bad it is.  However the damage is more or less limited to in front of the strut towers.  The engine itself is fine too, so thats another win!

Verdict?  She will live once again... I'm not going to leave her in such a state when she can be fixed, and at a price that would probably be similar to reshelling what I've got currently.  While yes, there is a lot that needs doing, keep this in mind.  In the coming week I was already looking at a new bonnet, a new radiator, and a few other goodies.  However this now is a perfect opportunity to do a few other things such as an engine & turbo rebuild, throw on some wider fenders, get a new front bar etc etc.  Plus the wheels, suspension (for the most part), interior and drivetrain is all good - so the motivation is really not there to part her out or reshell her.

That said, this will be long and drawn out.  The next month and a half is already taken up with prior engagements, and getting the money to do all this will also take some time.  Still not going to take out a loan - no, this will be all my hard earned money, and my previous time going into her.  

Cannot wait to see where this takes me :)

Unexpected Endings...

So had a bit of a bingle on the way back from tennis on Friday night... It was my fault, on the intersection of Dreamworld Parkway and Hope Island Rd.  For those that know the intersection, you'll understand the next bit 100%.  For those that don't, the intersection has 3 sets of traffic lights all within 100m of each other.  Long story short, I wasn't focused, saw a set of green lights (unfortunately not mine) and went - right into an oncoming car.  It was an honest mistake, both the cops and towy confirming it.  I honestly believed right up until my car came to a stand still and I was able to look at the lights that the other car was running a red light... so much for that.  Here's the damages...

You would not believe, looking at the photos of these 2 cars, that they were involved in the same accident.  Pretty sure though that because my car was so low, it's bypassed all of their front end and just collided solely with their front tyre.  I've only got 3rd party property, so at least they're covered...

Fluked this shot on Sunday.  Autofocus fail, however photo win.  Really sums up everything.