Ouch! Scuffed my Charger!

[RD]

is there a difference between the 68 and 69 valance?  if not, then I know where i can pick one up for you for $75 i believe.  pm me if you are interested.

sorry about your car jim.. let me know if I can help out with the valance.

[MoparManJim]

hey Jim, whats wrong with the bumper? I don't see anything wrong with it bud, or is it the other side that is damage?

[Mike DC]

 
I'd vote not to throw away that crumpled right-side fender even if you end up having it replaced on this car. 

Knowing of your car, I'm guessing it's probably a low-rust panel.  I have a feeling the price of those Charger fenders will eventually climb to the point where that's cost-effective to fix that one before we see any reproductions. 

 

[8WHEELER]

Sorry about your damaged charger, boy you just can't be safe enough these days.

Well if it had to happen at least its in the winter, you should be able to get it ready for the spring.

And speaking from my experience be glad you don't have  Progressive  my   

Dan

[JimShine]

Thanks guys. Mike, I should be back in a few days. Maybe if you are free we will meet up.

Here is an update. The insurance company is sending an adjuster down likely tomorrow. Hanover seems to be very cool about all this. Dwayne (body guy) says they are easy tp work with, so I should be good.

Dwayne says the pushbar really saved alot. He feels it saved the hood and grille center. The inner fender is bent along the mounting edge, but is ofcourse saveable.

Miked, I will keep everything left over. The fender looks kind of authentic now huh?   Jim, my bumper is bent. That was a NOS bumper from old time racer Jim Hylton. Now it will just be an ornament.

RD, I will let you know on that valence. I am somewhat fortunate to have access to many parts here and I still have some parts home. The only thing I know I wont have is the fender(s) if they are not repaireable. I also amd fairly sure I don't have the side marker housing (we had to scrape up a set for Lee1).

My uncles truck did not fair well. The bed is toast, two frame rails are bent, and the drivers side front wheel toes in a weird angle and has worn the tire significantly in the few hours it was driven since the crash.

[THE COLONEL]

I'm glad to hear everyone is OK Jim, but that news is not good.  With that lake effect snow thay have off of I-90, and I-79, it gets real bad up there.  Good luck with the insurance, and getting it fixed.

[bull]

Ouch. Sorry that happened but like you said it could have been a lot worse. Glad everyone is ok and the damage is repairable.

[MoparManJim]

man, Jim, I'm sorry to hear about you charger getting scuff like that, it looks like it slam into the trailer that it was on from the photos. Hows the driver side of the charger? just glad that no one got hurt is all.

[JimShine]

The trailer didn't touch the car. What happened was the trailer hitch broke away from the truck and the whole deal slid down in a V formation. The passenger side fender entered into the rear end of the truck just to the rear of the wheel well, breaking the plastic extension that makes it a dually fender, and hitting the metal underneath. It looks like the valence hit the tire itself. My brother said the truck and car were stuck togetherand they pulled the truck off the car. It dropped as they pulled it away, and that is when the fender was pulled downward, bending the inner fender.

The drivers side fender is twisted up with tears where the valence meets it. As I said, the middle mount that attaches to the center brace had the spot weld break, so the impact affected the other side. It may be repairable though.

[472 R/T SE]

Damn, that sucks!  Gotta hand it to ya', you took it better than most, myself included.  As has been said, it could have been worse.

I hope insurance is a breeze. 

[General_01]

Sorry to hear about your car Jim. Hope everything get repaired with no hassles.

[69charger2002]

same for me jim. that sucks bad and i hope for it's speedy recovery. i HATE seeing a charger get damaged. messed up some serious $$$ parts too. keep your head up it will get better
trav

[JimShine]

My passenger side fender is gone. Driver side can be saved. I posted a WTB post in classifieds. Hopefully it wont take my car out of commission for too long.

[Brock Samson]

when my clip was crunched in '99 it took nearly two years for me to find and repair the bumper, bumper brackets, grill, hood, trim and paint...
i didn't have this site then and i was forced to find my own parts, i was lucky to get the grill and hood from the same guy within a few  weeks but the bumper guards,  the high kind?.. took well over a year...     from Hemmings.
   My insurance Zurich/J.C. Taylor were wonderful... the shop that did the work was awful..
i'm sure your repair will go smoother, you've gotta have better sources then I had and, what a great time to upgrade. 

[Mean 318]

It Could Be Worse!

[SRT-440]

I think I'd just have told everyone I jumped it ..sounds more like a General story. 

Glad no one was hurt. 

[JimShine]

Okay, here is an update:

The insurance company has a guy working for them trying to source the parts. Yesterday he called me (first time I even knew what was going on) and he told me he had been looking high and low for the passenger side fender (he is starting with the worst and working his way through) and expressed he needs my help as he is very discouraged. I told him I would help, but its going to be a tough thing to get.

[SeattleCharger]

         sry about that,    Jackknifing the trailer in the ice and totalling a dually, surprised things didn't get worse for the car, glad everyone is alright,

             

[MoparManJim]

well Jim, if I can be of any help just let me know man. I hope you the best of luck finding the parts you'll need.

[Charger Aficionado]

Good to hear you didn't Loose anyone! 

This is really simple to convert:  http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/68-dodge-charger-right-front-fender_W0QQcmdZViewItemQQcategoryZ140703QQihZ015QQitemZ250081281848QQrdZ1

[JimShine]

         sry about that,    Jackknifing the trailer in the ice and totalling a dually, surprised things didn't get worse for the car, glad everyone is alright,

             

I agree. The pushbar saved my hood and grille center. I heard Dukes fans knocking these small ones, but my bar saved a fair amount of my front clip here and it just needs a new paint job.

dads, I sent a PM. I don't want to hold you up. The fender mod may have to happen. But if I go that road I have tons of options. It is up to the insurance company right now. To them buying an actual 69 for a few bucks more makes more sense than paying for hours of bodywork to convert a 68.

[wLc]

Damn Jim. That sucks. But like others have said it could have been a lot worse. Glad no one was hurt and that it is fixable.

[JimShine]

Alright, my car is just about done (finally). The insurance company realy came through. But I believe it was the fact that the body shop didn't touch it for 5 months made them ansy to settle. On a huge plus note, my entire front clip and doors were redone. The shop didn't want to chase around a paint fade, so they painted all the panels and cowl. The negative side to this is there is an obvious difference between the old paint and new. The front looks so clean and fresh, so this fall I will have the rest done elsewhere.

Some things I learned: Be prepared to hunt down and buy the hard to find parts yourself. If you put it in the garage or insurance companies hands, they will never get it done. Go with someone like Hagerty. They pay out promptly with no question.

[JimShine]

Here is a pic of the damaged area now fixed. What a pain in the ass. But its done and I am not too upset. OEM parts used all around. I still need that taco looking thing that goes with the antenna to mount it. Not too bad to deal with. BTW, I am with Haggerty now.

[69bronzeT5]

Looks great!!