Aarrgghh! Front end damage! (Updated with pictures on Post #8)

I got off work in Reston around 5:15 and decided to make a quick stop over at the Costco in Fairfax for some last minute Christmas shopping. I was driving down West Ox Road towards Fairfax. The light was green and I was going around 40 mph on the left/inner lane when I come up to an intersection. All of a sudden a yellow Nissan Pathfinder hangs a U-turn in front of me! When the Pathfinder driver realized his mistake he stopped mid-turn , like a deer caught in headlights, blocking both lanes (West Ox has 4 lanes, 2 in each direction.) I had no escape path and I knew I couldn't brake in time to avoid T-boning the Pathfinder. I checked my left and saw no oncoming cars on the opposite lanes so I quickly swerved left. I missed hitting the Pathfinder but I clipped the median. I finally came to a stop on the outer lane on the other side of the road facing the wrong direction. I looked around and saw the Pathfinder making a hasty getaway. I hang a U-turn (to get my car pointed the right direction) and get all the way over to the left lane to hang another U-turn and give chase but by that time there were other cars and I couldn't get a break in the traffic. This was when I noticed the temp warning light blinking. Yup, I cracked the radiator. I called Fairfax County 911 but they said they couldn't do anything because it was a single car collision and there were no other witnesses. Had an officer witnessed the accident they could've cited the Pathfinder with making an improper U-turn but as it stands I was out of luck. This totally sucks. I save the Pathfinder from getting T-boned and he repays me by fleeing the scene. Anway, I limped the car to the nearest gas station (it was nearly overheating at this point) and call AAA to get it flatbedded to Intersport in Tysons. They'll put it up on the lift tomorrow morning and we'll assess the damage. I guess I am lucky -- the damage could have been a lot worse if I T-boned the Pathfinder. I am glad no one was hurt but damn that Pathfinder driver for fleeing the scene of the accident.

P, Sorry to hear about your unfortunate incident. Like you said, things could have gone much worse. Sure hope that a$$wipe get's what they deserve in some fashion. You did the right thing by eluding safely! They were typical jerks, uncaring of your safety and situation, even though they caused it! I'm sure the shop will get you back going, good as new. Good Luck, RB

Damn, that really sucks! What's with these cowards that high-tail responsibilities???!! Hope that driver gets his/hers in due time. That reminds me of a similar incidence a few years ago. I was returning home from work one night in a rental and got rear-ended by a Camaro while sitting at a red light. It wasn't a severe impact, so I got out to inspect the damage. Just then, the driver of the Camaro backed up and took off past me. Angered, I jumped back into my rental and chased after him. Luckily there weren't many cars on the road, so I caught up easily. I called the police on my cell phone while in pursuit to report the hit-and-run and provide the license plate, but guess what the dispatcher's response was? That they won't be able to come out since I had left the scene! So what, I was supposed to just sit there like an idiot and watch the offender vanish into the night, just so the police can respond but with no license plate? I had never been so furious with LEOs until that night. The dispatcher told me feel free to file a complaint at the local station. Situations like these really chap my hide!

Glad you were not hurt. Hopefully the damage isn't too bad. Good job on the quick reaction avoidance maneuver. Too bad the median clipped you.

That sucks. Sometime its best to just hit the car instead of trying to dodge it but I know our instincts kick right in for us to swerve out of an accident. Hope you get your baby back on the road soon. PM me if you need a good shop to take it to. This reminds me of my last accident with my 964. I saved the guys life by taking him out of his damaged car and he repays me by lieing to the insurance company....lol. You gottah love people.

G....same thing happened to me back in my college days. Some eldery lady ran me off the road and I hit the median and a couple barrels in my new 325is. I was fuming! I called the cops since the lady fled the scene and when the guy came to my apartment (since I told them it was a hit in run) he told me that since she made ZERO contact with me it is viewed in the law as that she is just a bad driver. Sad as it sounds he told me to hit her next time. He did give me her name and home address (which I am sure he wasn't supposed to do) so I could try and NEGOTIATE a settlement with her but I just threw it away since that could have gotten very ugly. Now I know what to do in the future is damage is imminent. Sorry to hear about it. Hope she's all fixed up new soon

This happens all the time. I was riding my motorcycle down Park Ave in NYC with my father and a woman ran a red light in front of me. When she noticed that I was coming right for her, she stopped cold (the aforementioned dear in the headlights routine...what is it with these schmucks? Once you commit, NEVER HESITATE). Anyway, I high-ended it while very hard on the brakes to keep from hitting her (which I did) but ended up tumbling head over head while the bike slid through the intersection (egad, my scratched fairing and clip-ons). What did that peach of a driver do? Yep, she immediately sped out of there. I was shocked (from the crash, though unhurt because I was fully geared) and shocked (that she drove off). Unlucky for her, my father gave chase on his bike and stopped in front of her at the next light. She finally realized her goose was cooked and walked back to where I was (she had said that she would drive around the block to me but my father had nothing doing with that lame attempt). Long story short, there were tons of witnesses because of pedestrians and doormen and other drivers, and the little hit and runner was forced to come clean. Her insurance paid me in full. So a happy ending, but not because she actually tried to act like a decent human being. What's wrong with people?!

I swung by Intersport this morning on my way to work and took some pictures. The damage doesn't look that bad. The radiator and bumper could be replaced. It will just take time since I am sure the good body shops are busy. We'll find out more once the insurance adjuster swings by and the car is put on a lift.

That could have been a lot worse. Would have scared me to death. At least you get a perfect new bumper out of it and there is no damage to the car which is not easily repairable.

Sucks dude. The guy probably thought "oh shoot, it's a porsche and it's going to cost me if I stick around."

Sorry about that P. At least you have no sheet metal damage. Front clip and new paint there and you are good to go perhaps. Nice evasive maneuver. People like that really **** me off. Terrible driver pulls a bone head move, you save their bacon and now what do you get? Increased insurance. Frustrating. I have a similar deal going I may post about. Good luck to you.

Doesnt look too bad- you lucked out! Ross

Sorry to hear about your misfortune... From the pics. does not look too bad, just the bumper and the rad. Dude, you already have a nice bumper, (sucks), if not you could have upgraded to one I have an OEM bumper and cannot wait for an upgrade to a "Turbo" look, heh heh. Good luck with the repairs, it will come out new again in no time. Cheers,

Sorry to hear about this.... at least you didn't get hurt. Dell, sad as it sounds, I've taken the same tactic in recent years. If a bad drivers wants to cause an accident, I'll let them - I know that it will be their insurance paying for the damage, as opposed to coming out of my pocket in a circumstance like this. Some people don't get how bad their driving is until they get into an accident, as they spend thier life driving around oblivious of the accidents that they leave in their wake. Sadly, they don't even get it after they cause an accident, but that's a different matter.

But instinct takes over and you try to protect your car as best as possible.

The damage doesnt look that bad.. I would buy the parts myself and fix the car without getting my insurance company involved, if you let them pay, your insurance will go up for 5 years..

Huh? That is several thousand dollars.

yeah, I know - very true. I've never had an accident yet with one of those bozos, but it has come close. I guess I should clarify that I'll take evasive manouvers whereever I can to avoid damage to the car, but if it's obvious that's not possible I'd rather let them cause the damage than me.

yeah, i can understand that... bumper replacement alone will cost a couple of thousand to have painted and installed, then the radiator on top of that.

if all the car need is a bumper and 1 radiator is should not cost more than $2k to fix. A radiator costs $240 http://www.pelicanparts.com/catalog/...WATrad_pg1.htm and the bumper probably around $1k.. I rather spend $2k than rise my insurance costs, in my case it would really suck since I have other cars in the policy so they would all go up...

Unfortunately, the bumper in question is an aftermarket RUF RGT bumper -- $1,800 + shipping + prep + paint + install.

I would go with the insurance. Technically, this is a "not at fault" or "hit and run" collision, so it should be covered by the "un- / under- insured driver coverage". The insurance company should not raise your rate, since you were not at fault (In fact you avoided a bigger collision and saved them serious dough). Anyway, I believe one buys insurance coverage for such occasions. And if they are adamant on raising your rate, switch companies.

Look at the bright side, no more rock chips with the new bumper.

doesn't look to bad, you need a new bumper cover every once a while in DC any way.

it's a single-car accident. no witness.

Good news. I just talked to the insurance adjuster. He said that they will handle this like an uninsured motorist/hit and run case. I would not be at fault.

Thats great news!! did you ask if they will cover you aftermarket bumper?? I know for sure that Geico does not pay for aftermarket stuff unless you insure it with them..

great news! u don't have to pay detectable either?

No, I have to pay the deductible. Hopefully the insurance company pays for the RUF replacement bumper otherwise I would need to cover the difference between the stock bumper and the RUF bumper. We'll cross that bridge when we get there.

I think that if you have the receipt for the bumper and the professional install, the insurance should cover the replacement. If you did the install yourself, then I believe that it gets dicey on them covering the full cost.

I thought tyhat bumper looked familiar. I'm glad to hear that the insurance will cover it.

LOL! That's true! From now on you shall be called "Vove the Optimist!" What's really ironic is I just paid to get the car detailed (buff and wax) the day before the accident.

You should be ashamed of yourself for allowing an SUV to out run you!

I know, I know, but I had a cracked radiator and the car was overheating. I would have loved to chase him down but doing so could've caused more damage to the car. Once I got the car to a gas station, I called AAA and then called one of my buddies. His first questions was "Are you alright?" followed by "Should we round up a posse?" It's nice to know your boys got your back. I wish I got a license plate number!

Oh yeah, I forgot about the radiator.. You are excused.

Hi Guys, The insurance adjuster came by the shop this morning and cut a check for the damage. They are paying for a new radiator and a new RUF RGT bumper (I was worried they wouldn't cover the aftermarket bumper) so all is well. They're also doing a 4-wheel alignment afterwards. While the bumper and right radiator are off I figure now is the time to get a third radiator installed -- I can save some labor costs doing it now rather than later. My question is: where is the best place to get the third radiator kit? How much do they usually cost? Thanks, -G

just a newbie here.... but can you add mant radiators to our cars? and why? i know it keeps the car cool, but doesn't keeping it too cool is a bad thing? Oh btw, sorry about your misfortune, that Nissan will get what's coming to him later on...... KARMA man..... and your car is pretty sweet looking......love the ocean blue color....

Thanks, Porsche_Smile. All I can say is I sleep well at night with a clear conscience. I am not sure I can say the same for the Nissan driver. I am afraid I don't know what you mean by "mant radiators". The third radiator kit is part of the X51 package but can be installed seperately. While you probably don't need it in everyday driving, it can be quite beneficial on the track -- lowering temps about 10 degrees. I have never heard of cars having problems running too cool. Anyway, it looks like I can't put it on now anyway. We checked with 5 suppliers and they're all out of stock. They would need to order it from Germany which is too late since my car would be out of the shop by then. I think I will put this upgrade off until the sping/DE season.

which ins. comp. you use? they are great! good luck! u may want to consider clear film for your new bumper?

did you try www.pelicanparts.com they do have a center radiator for a 996TT, I dont know if it works on a regular 996. http://www.pelicanparts.com/catalog/..._pg1.htm#item0 Hope it helps,