My Truck's A Magnet For Idiots

[Old Moparz]

Well, you can't keep your vehicle nice forever. The Dodge Ram I bought last summer was a leftover 2004 model, & now has just a hair over 6000 miles on it. You'd figure the chances of a 6000 mile vehicle staying dent & damage free would be pretty good, but not a chance. I don't even use it everyday, I don't commute, I only drive 3-1/2 miles to work when I do take it, so there should be even less of a chance that something will happen.

I had it only 2 weeks when some moron drove into the back of it at a red light. I got out to see it & was shocked when I saw the front of this idiot's Volvo destroyed. I cringed thinking the back of my truck would be bad, but I was lucky to only get a chip in the paint on the bumper. The hitch receiver took the brunt of the impact & didn't get any damage. When I asked if she was okay, she said yes, & that "She didn't see me". How can you miss a truck?

A couple of weeks ago, I parked at the far end of the lot so nobody would come near the truck when I went into the pizza shop. Another reason I do that, is because the truck is a Quad Cab with an 8 foot bed, so it overhangs the space a bit. So trying to be courteous, I don't want to hog more than one space near the store. I came out to see red paint all over the end of the bumper. What the heck was the reason to drive so close & hit the truck? Another idiot I guess.

Just over the weekend I got my first huge dent in the area just behind the rear tire. I again parked at the other end of the lot away from all potential imbeciles, but didn't take into consideration I'd be attacked by a runaway shopping cart from a lazy shopper. I guess it's too much trouble to put the cart into the cart corral, which were everywhere, or return it to the store. The dent is so big I thought someone drove into the truck.

Now I have to see if the local shop can fix it with that paint less dent repair & spend some more money as a result of too many braindead people driving & showing off how stupid they are. 

[MassCharger73]

Obviously parking at the far end of the lot gave that shopping cart room to build up plenty of steam..OUCH!!

[Dale The Bold]

I lost a headlight housing to a shopping cart a couple years ago.  And I've always been the guy who puts Lazy's cart away as I walk to the store.  They have little cart corrals, and they're really easy to use, too!  It's inexcusable.

[PocketThunder]

sucks to be you!   

i drive a 89 Ram W250 and i never lock my doors.  if someone wants to steel it then:
A) i dont want them to brake the glass or damage the doors.
B) they must want it worse than i do and i like my truck a lot so they can have it.

[Highbanked Hauler]

I am guessing that you are sure it didn't happen at the same time as the red paint on the bumper?? That dent looks way to big for a shopping cart unless it had a battering ram on it.

[Arthu®]

Oops that is some bad luck for 6k miles. I guess it became a beater sooner than you expected.

i drive a 89 Ram W250 and i never lock my doors.  if someone wants to steel it then:
A) i dont want them to brake the glass or damage the doors.

I wouldn't be so sure of that, we had our Caravan broken into on our driveway to steal a laptop with the doors unlocked and keys in the ignition just for them to smash the passenger window. Some crooks are just not that smart.

Arthur

[Blown70]

Well, I have driven my firebird convet and never ever park within 20 spaces of anyone.  HOWEVER come out and some a%% is parked right next to it.  MORON who is jealous.

I have an bravada that I drive daily.  Well,  I was washing it and all the way down the side is door dings 1 foot apart.  I just cannot believe people are that disrespectful of other peoples cars.

Tom

[Old Moparz]

sucks to be you!   

i drive a 89 Ram W250 and i never lock my doors.  if someone wants to steel it then:
A) i dont want them to brake the glass or damage the doors.
B) they must want it worse than i do and i like my truck a lot so they can have it.

I'm not always me, so when I'm busy being someone else it isn't so bad. Not that I have a whole lot to complain about anyway, just venting over the careless boobs we have to tolerate on a daily basis. With all the ones I do see, I'm surprised my truck hasn't been totalled.

I am guessing that you are sure it didn't happen at the same time as the red paint on the bumper?? That dent looks way to big for a shopping cart unless it had a battering ram on it.

I'm positive it was two different incidents, one last week & this dent Saturday. The red paint is on the passenger side on the small area of the bumper end that sticks out & wraps around to the quarter. The dent is on the drivers side & has two marks that match up with the corners on the top front of the cart that was next to my truck. That cart wasn't there when I parked & probably had a good 50 yard run on a slight downhill grade.

You can't see the mark as easy under the right arrow, but there are two that are the same. I think these will buff out if the paint doesn't come off when the dent is popped back out. There are two creases in the body lines, so I have a feeling the paintless dent repair ain't happening. There is also the possibility that some kids thought it would be fun to ride the cart into the side of the truck.  

[73rallye440magnum]

I think it's pretty amazing how disrepspectful people are of things that aren't their own. Try parking in the high school parking lot. I washed my civic the other day and looked down the side, door dings EVERYWHERE. Scratches down the sides from people walking buy and having their bags/winter jackets scrape against the side. I swear on the day of graduation I'm going to walk around with a hammer and tap everybodies car just to get even. It was less stressful driving the Ramcharger to school everyday because it was rusty and I didn't care anyways. I doubt I will ever buy a new vehicle, it just doesnt make sense to me and I'm too much of a neat freak. Sorry to hear about your truck, its too bad everyone isn't a car person with a little more respect for others vehicles.

[mustanghater]

We allways get the "that thing got a hemi" when its in a white Hockey Stick stripe on the side.

[Old Moparz]

We allways get the "that thing got a hemi" when its in a white Hockey Stick stripe on the side.

[MassCharger73]

We allways get the "that thing got a hemi" when its in a white Hockey Stick stripe on the side.

[73dodge]

I own a 2003 minivan and you should see the dings, dents and scratches in that thing. Not from strangers in a parking lot mind you but from my own KIDS. I gave up years ago trying to find out which kid put what ding or scratch in my car with all the bikes, skateboards and other junk around my house it's not worth the aggrivation.

[Johnny SixPack]

We allways get the "that thing got a hemi" when its in a white Hockey Stick stripe on the side.

Man, sorry to hear about the latest dent, OM. 

Maybe the cart was driven by those two kids with the General Lee shopping cart.

Any orange paint?

[MassCharger73]

I've done mobile service for...too long, anyways it still amazes me as I'm sitting in the van doing paperwork how many stupid Aholes slam their doors into the van and dont even seem to notice. 

[Brock Samson]

Manhatten may be worse for that stuff then San Francisco. People park here by feel. 
I got the rear bumper scrapes to prove it... I guess with the plastic bumpers on cars now, dim witted drivers feel that's the way to go... 

  Sorry man... I got a half dozen scrapes on my 300 two weeks ago, looks like it was brushed by a barbwire fence... 

[Dale The Bold]

I swear on the day of graduation I'm going to walk around with a hammer and tap everybodies car just to get even.

Sounds like someone else already beat you to that, and you're just parked between vandalism vollies.

[Duey]

OM, you need to get a birdcage like the Army has to protect Stryker LAVs from RPGs...

[yellowcuda]

Maybe it is the color of the truck...I say that because I have the same truck only the 2003 left over version.  Same exact color.  I had it two weeks and a shopping cart (I saw it happen but was too far away to get too it) actually scraped a big scratch down the passanger side of the truck.  Then about a year ago I was in karate class and came out to find a dent in the tailgate that looks like someone poked it, but with something big.  Six months ago in a huge windstorm my basketball pole fell onto my truck, thank God it landed inside the bed instead of on the roof or hood, but it left a huge dent in my truck bed railing.
I think I have given up now.  I do feel your pain.

[Charger_Fan]

I don't remember, is yours a 4x4? If so, just lift it a little higher.

[Old Moparz]

A birdcage around it, I like it.    

Don't know about the color, but maybe gray is one of those colors that's considered neutral. Neutral & close to color shades that are earthtones. The earth has gravity, so maybe gray has some kind of gravitational force that works in more directions than pulling downward. It pulls objects towards it, & the weaker resistances, like the stupidity of the people who keep hitting things, & falling or rolling objects get sucked into it. I'll have to look into that theory. But then again, my wife had a bright red mustang that attracted the same kind of morons & objects that dented it.

I still say it's way too easy to get a driver's license.  

I don't remember, is yours a 4x4? If so, just lift it a little higher.

Yeah, it's a 4x4, but I'm saving money for beer & a birdcage kit, not a lift kit.

[Shakey]

OM, you need to get a birdcage like the Army has to protect Stryker LAVs from RPGs...

Duey - do you drive those?

I saw them at the test rack in London a while back.

Looks like they would handle like a dream.

[Highbanked Hauler]

 quote,I still say its way to easy to get a drivers license!! You got that right!I took both of my kids for their drivers test when they got their licenses and the road tests were absolutely sad they were so easy.

[Duey]

OM, you need to get a birdcage like the Army has to protect Stryker LAVs from RPGs...

Duey - do you drive those?

I saw them at the test rack in London a while back.

Looks like they would handle like a dream.

Actual, Shakey, I do the stuff in the pic below...

I have ridden around in our LAV III's (made there in London) down in Khandahar, but none of ours are fitted with the birdcage (yet?)  The idea of the birdcage is to trigger the RPG's fuze setting the round off before it gets too close for the armour.

Ironically, for as heavy as the cage seems, it's faily light compared to the actual vehicle weight (although LAV/Strykers are known to have a fairly high centre og gravity)

Cheers,
Duey

[Silver R/T]

I feel you man, seems like you live in same kind of city like I do. People here dont give respect about others property. I got my car dented, scratched, broken into. I think its good idea to drive beater to commute and to have nice truck/car as weekend driver

[Charger74]

My girlfriend bought a  new car, not even 8 hours later we found a huge dent in the passenger side fender and door.  We were pissed.   So definetely fell your pain.   Have been lucky so far with my Dakota since I got it about two months ago.

[The Mad Scientist]

Back when I was a kid my dad's (now my) 74 Charger got hit by the shopping cart jockey at the grocery store.  Somehow that kid built up enough momentum with a couple of shopping carts to put a dent the size of a basketball in the front fender near the wheel.  The kid even left the shopping carts there still touching the Charger.  I don't remember exactly what the settlement was, but I remember they chipped in for a new paint job, and we ate free groceries for a while.