The Envoy took a blow tonight

[gmcman]

Was able to leave work a little earlier tonight so I figured I would stop and grab another small gift for the 7YO turning 8 tomorrow. The Interstate was jammed so I bailed and went through the town. I was first in line to turn left and there are 2 lanes turning left across a divided road, no one next to me and a couple cars behind me.

Light turns green, I look left and proceed slowly, traffic from left is stopped in the nearest lane, nobody in the next lane to the left of them, a few in the turn lane to the far left of them, traffic to right is coming to a stop, look back left and the middle lane which was not in view at first, has an Explorer rolling full-tilt to the stop line and at that moment I knew he didn't notice the light.

From the time I turned my head back and noticed him, I hit the brakes and all this took about 2 seconds from when he came into view to impact He was rolling, prob 40 ish, he didn't swerve or swerve enough and didn't hit the brakes until about a few feet from me.

I honestly didn't believe how well the Envoy took the hit compared to his Explorer, peeled the Ford open like a can opener. This could have been ALOT worse had I not looked back left, he easily would have nailed me in the drivers door and I would be looking at a hottie nurse right now, if I was coherent anyway.

Never think for an instant it can't happen, always look back to the left and this action saved my arse. Looks like the vertical supports are OK but we will see what the adjuster says. Took out the A/C condenser but didn't leak out, crap load of plastic is shattered but the headlights still work...., looks like I will be using the headlight restorer after all.

Sorry for the bad cell pics but here's the carnage.

 

[Blckshdw]

Damn man, that's brutal, glad to see you weren't hurt. Good thing you saw him and was able to hit the brakes, or yeah this coulda been a lot worse.

 

[Envoy_04]

Glad you're okay!!

A good reminder that this kind of thing happens to everyone, cautious driving can save your life, and maybe someone else's!

Now you can go back with a Denali front end when you're rebuilding it.

 

[christo829]

Glad you're OK!

Chris

 

[dmanns67]

Not good man, glad you are OK. Hopefully the truck is salvageable.

 

[JamesL3]

That's horrible man. Glad you're ok, and hope the voy recoups as well!

 

[Playsinsnow]

Glad you're okay. Could have been a lot worse. Hope you keep the username. On a lighter note, a pic of the exploder with the voy would have been epic. In all seriousness, hope everything works out smooth for you. I'd be all over rebuilding the front end :wootwoot:

 

[meerschm]

Did you find out what the other driver was looking at on their smart phone?

Glad you did not get hurt.

 

[gmcman]

Thanks guys

a pic of the exploder with the voy would have been epic.

Oh I know...I tried with my phone but was too dark.

Did you find out what the other driver was looking at on their smart phone.

Yeah, no doubt.

KBB is right at $5K ...freaking sad but I think it will be salvageable, hope so. If not, I will just take the check and fix it.

 

[gpking]

the exploder

That's the same thing I call them.

Glad to hear nobody was hurt and the Voy is mostly ok.


Story of a Ford getting smashed:
In 2007 my family took a short road trip in my mom's 2005 Audi A4. We got lost somewhere in PA and were looking for somewhere to turn around.
We were going like 40mph and a little dirt road was coming up on the right, so we signaled, but just as we started to make the turn a 90's Ford subcompact (looked almost like a Pinto) drilled us and sent our car spinning.
We came to a stop facing 180° from where we started, nobody was hurt badly since most of the force spun us.
The Audi looked like someone shot the rear bumper, the Ford's entire front facade was destroyed and the bumper was bent down to where it was almost dragging the ground and rubbing the front tires.
I seriously couldn't believe how little damage our car had, just a little scrape and bullet-like hole.
Luckily the road was dirt, because our car easily could have rolled if it were blacktop.


Story of a VW getting smashed by a Chevy:
In 1998 my dad was driving to work in his late 80's Chevy G20.
The sun was low in the sky and he was having trouble seeing to drive through whatever city he was in.
He couldn't see it, but a stoplight was hanging at a small intersection, and he blew it.
Unfortunately, a VW bug was coming through the intersection and got t-boned in the front by the G20.
The bug took such a hard hit, the engine flew out of the hood and landed in the intersection. The G20 just busted up it's bumper.
Nobody was hurt, but the bug was totaled.
It was found that my dad wasn't at fault due to the sun's position at that time of day.
He ended up buying an Express 3500 to replace his G20.

 

[BoldAdventure]

Damn, that's brutal. Glad you weren't seriously injured.

 

[gmcman]

Now you can go back with a Denali front end when you're rebuilding it.

I spoke with the body shop today and we may be able to add the Denali front fascia. What mods need to be performed to add this fascia? Does it interfere with the cooling of the power steering?

 

[Envoy_04]

I spoke with the body shop today and we may be able to add the Denali front fascia. What mods need to be performed to add this fascia? Does it interfere with the cooling of the power steering?

I *THINK* its just a simple grille and bumper swap, and that it shouldn't affect cooling of anything. Someone who has done the swap could give you the definite answer on this though.

 

[IllogicTC]

"Look mom, no hands!"

--The text message received from the Explorer's owner seconds prior.

 

[gmcman]

She's at the mercy of the insurance company now, hopefully the wounds aren't too deep.

Not that I'm not enjoying the 2013 Tahoe LT as a rental.

 

[JerryIrons]

Scary stuff, glad to hear nobody hurt. Sure is weird how fast things can change in the blink of an eye.

 

[Envoy_04]

Any update on your Voy?

 

[Charley12]

I just had 4k in damage from a deer. Hopefully your body shop will work with you, the cost of denali parts are 3times the cost of regular. I did get a mesh style grill though!

 

[triz]

Glad your okay.

 

[gmcman]

Any update on your Voy?

Yeah.....this damn Tahoe does'nt have 4LO.

Seriously...not yet. Not going with the Denali cover...just want to get it back and keep the cost down.

 

[gmcman]

Spoke with the shop and the damage is at $3,700. Hood,grill, condenser, radiator since it was compromised....bumper cover and mounts, labor, paint. Not too bad, went with a few used parts, new grill, new condensor and radiator. Should be done by middle to end of next week.

 

[gmcman]

I get her back tomorrow, ...:wootwoot:.....I'm going to miss the remote start on the rental.

 

[Fire06]

Enjoy it while you got it .

 

[gmcman]

Well that month flew by, didn't even have time to think about relaxing.

Wifey snapped a few pics when she picked it up, came out real nice. Battery was dead on camera so I just have bad cell pics, but looks like an Envoy again.

Now I have my snowmobile back. No Polaris but gets the job done.

 

[dmanns67]

Looks good

Glad to hear everything worked out for you.

 

[TexazReece]

Nice job they did on the front end.

 

[gmcman]

The guy did a bang up job on the fitment and ensured all the body lines matched and all the gaps were even. Was the first thing I looked at and couldn't find any flaws....I am very pleased. Smaller body shop and I actually prefer that, works on them like they're his own.

 

[Fire06]

Nice job

 

[jsheahawk]

Very nice. Glad you got it back!

Jared

 

[Darkrider_LS]

Looks great man! Pity it happened but at least the truck was brought back from the brink.