So, I just moved into my brand new house and The garage was full of furniture and such, so I had to park my car on the road. Now I moved to a small development where there is'nt to much traffic. It took me about 3 days to get the whole house situated and make room for my 92 GTA.

So, I finally got to move my car into the garage when I noticed that my driver side headlight was what I thought was burned out. I also noticed that when I opened my driver door it rubbed against the front quarter panel. At this i was really confused. Upon further inspection I found that the top of my headlight (which the motors burnt out and I have left in the up position) was dented, along with my hood where the headlight bent backwards. I popped the hood and noticed that the whole headlight assembly has broken in half. Its rather apparent that somebody in a large truck backed into my headlight causing all the damage. Its also rather amusing that the guy who lives diagonal from my new house has a large Dodge 4x4 with a dent in the bumper. I can't prove anything, I could have been hit by anyone, but it looks like the asshat backed into my car, snapped the headlight and then placed it back so I wouldn't notice.


Anyways ... I can more then likely find the headlight assembly in a junk yard. My main concern is how do I make that front quarter panel and the door stop rubbing, its chipping the hell out of my paint and making a horrible popping noise.

 

Actually you might be able to prove he did, Get a close look at his truck and see if there is paint from your car where his dent is. If so call the cops and they can match that paint to your car and his *** will be charged with hit and run.

 

Yea, I more then likely could, but I just moved here and I didn't want to make enemies right off the bat. Although I obviously did'nt make a new friend with that guy. Its not major damage, So i figured that I would just fix it and not be stuck with WWIII in my new neighborhood.

 

first things first. Loosen the bolts holding the fender on and slide it forward to keep the door from beating the hell out of it. Its probably going to be a PITA to get it lined up so i wouldnt worry about that until you can find out if you can charge the guy for hitting your car.

 

no paint on his bumper ?

hmm


thats bad,,,,
id be so pissed

damn,

 

It hit the plastic peice that surrounds the headlight itself. I dont think any paint transfered. But like I said, I own this house so I dont what to be in a constant war with the neighbors allready.


I really just need to know how to move that panel foward again.

 

Sorry to hear about this. I suppose it's possible that it was the neighbor. But I doubt the solid bumper of a truck would get a dent from backing into the front of a thirdgen(let alone just the headlight bucket), unless he hit the car REAL HARD. So his dent is prolly from tagging someone/something else or getting tagged himself.

Also, I don't think tagging the headlight bucket alone would be enough to cause misalignment of the fender and hood. I'd think it would take a lower hit to do that. And if that were the case it would mean there should be paint on someone's vehicle. Of course, if you're really sure there's no new damage at all anywhere to the front, then apparently tagging the headlight must've done all that.

Go meet your new neighbor, talk about the neighborhood, etc., and at some point casually mention someone hitting your car. If it wasn't him(not that he'd admit it anyway), maybe he or someone from his family might recall having seen someone close to your car in such a way that it might've happened. Might be worth a try.

 

Yeah. I'd go judge his reaction, by asking what he knows about the neighborhood, how people are around there, etc. Could be interesting.

As for paint transfer on a bumper, that's easy to take care of. A little acetone will clean it right off.

 

You can jack the fender around loosening the bolts but if he bent it it's never going to be right again without replacing it or having a body guy straighten it out.

 

If the bolt at the bottom of the fender is loose, or gone, it'll "sag" and close the gap to the door. Mine does that. Jack it up and put the bolt in nice and tight, that'll force it to bow back out and match the door.
It might be that it's too far forward as others have mentioned, but check my advice as well, see if the fender matches the door as far as how far OUTWARDS the curve is. If not, jack it up and make it bow correctly.

 

Thank you sir, Luckily this is'nt my only vehicle. So ill have to check that out tomarrow when I get home from work. As for now im driving the car "dukes of hazard" style.

 

hmmm, im not sure exacttly which bolt that would be, maybe you can give me an idea? Sorry I'm a gearhead in training! haha

 

If you haven't yet, call your insurance company. Depending on the laws in your state you may be covered for some of the damage.

 

what an ***, yea they insurance should cover that

 

bummer dude

my friends 86 bird got hit in a similiar situation by a mail lady, i dunno wtf is wrong with people, or how they can sleep at night after stuff like that ...

good luck to you in everything ...