Gsilk

since i've been told i don't have a legal case anymore, i can finally talk about my close call. go grab some cuz it is long.

Last october i was out with friends getting a bite to eat late at night. my max had been running fine when we pulled into the restaurant but when i started her after we finished i got the SES light. the car was shaking like crazy but i made it back to school no problem. the next day i took it into the dealer. he told me i had an ignition coil misfiring and my rotors were warped. i let him fix it and i left with no problems.

the next weekend was fall break so my friend and i drove to CT from SC for my little vacation. when i was driving CT i heard a slight whirring noise. i didnt think much of it so i just had the car inspected. when the vacation was up we started the long drive back. the noise started to increase on the interstate. i was going about 70 mph and keeping pace with traffic. while in NJ the noise and vibrations in the steering wheel got so bad it sounded like helicopter gunships were in the cabin. i pulled off at the closest exit and called my dad so he could find a dealer close by. he found one and started to give my friend directions when there was a loud BANG! and i see my front drivers side wheel bounding down the road, hop over the jersey barrier into oncoming traffic. thankfully the street i was on was not crowded and i was already in the right lane so we pulled over. i had only been going 40mph. if i was on the interstate we would have been killed. traffic was very busy on that day and going 70 mph would have spelled disaster.

The dealer i had brought it to the week before said they weren't at fault for not tightning the lugs nuts. the lug nut actually snapped in half because it wasn't secure. they said someone tried to jack my rim. thats BS because my wheels had been dirty beforehand and i would have noticed fingermarks or whatever. my lawyer said since nobody was hurt/killed i dont have a case against the dealer. the dealer did pay my insurance company for the 3k to fix it.

sorry its so long but i'm so pissed that they can get away with it.

KCMC582

iTrader: (4)

thats insane man. the exact same thing happened to me, but thankfully we caught it before hand, i just wont go back to that shop. even though its a commonly missed thing, we should all check our lugs anytime the wheel comes off. whether a shop does it, or we do it ourselves, check the lugs when u first put it down, and then after a day of driving.

glad your ok man.

UGAd13

So the dealer paid for the damage? I doesn't sound like they got away with it if they had to pay. Either way it seems like a royal PITA to deal with the dealer and the insurance company.

Ferbs02SMMax

scary story. glad nobody was hurt. for what its worth, most tire service places suggest you come back in after 50 miles, so they can re-tighten the lugnuts. that way if you don't do it, and you have an accident like this, they have an easier job of putting the liability back on you. glad it was taken care of man.

Mr. Peabody

Very similar thing happened to my wife driving down the Jersy Turnpike back in 1977. She was driving her 71 superbeatle just after having the rear brakes replaced. On a VW back then the wheel was secured to the axel by a center castel nut with a cotter pin through it.

The *** never put the cotter pin in and her rear wheel came flying off at 60 mph. Fortunately no one was hurt.

Peabody

jreddington3

On the contrary it sounds like you had a legal case and won and nobody got away with anything. You're insurance company paid the claim for the damage to your car and subrogated against the dealer. One advantage of this system is they provide the lawyer for this at their own expense.

With what they recover you get back part or all of your deductible (or you should).

I don't know what additional money you were expecting. Maybe just the cleaning bill for your shorts when the wheel let go?

I hope you weren't hoping to hit the litigation jackpot. Everyone hears about the millions for hot coffee in the lap and all but these are really the exception, thank goodness.

It looks like the shop was negligent. With pressure from your insurance company they accepted liability and you were made whole financially. Yes there are hassles involved but the legal system doesn't automatically take this into account.

† ErV †

Post dealer checklist:

- Check drain nuts and caps (coolant, steering, oil, brake)
- Check lug nuts
- check hadlight alignment/operation
- check spare tire and accessories
- check to see if hood is closed (if you did 1 above that should be taken care of)
- check for any missing paperwork
- check seat operation
- inspect for any itneriour stains/tears
- check battery terminals
- listen for any noises

etc

Ferbs02SMMax

Hello. As an insurance adjuster, I can't tell you how many people try to strong-arm me on punitive, up and over indemnity payments. Its like I paid your claim, what else do you want now? It looks like the author was trying to go after punitive damages as well. Maybe his attorney recognized the fact that without a BI case attached, its small(er) potatoes...

Gsilk

because nobody's arm was ripped off we couldn't sue. i hate to think that negilegence=pay my insurance company and its case closed. why does someone have to die for any legal action to begin. i know the word pain and suffering means nothing but it WAS a pain not having a car that i depended on to get to my classes. i got the car back in nov. i bought one of those E-tickets for 150$ and flew up to NJ and drove back in the same day. that was a long day but i was so glad to get my car back. i haven't been to that shop since but i pass by them all the time. i feel bad for whoever's car they screw up next. that person may not be as lucky as me.

irish44j

iTrader: (38)

I will 2nd the note above, though, that ANYTIME you or anyone else (dealer) removes the wheels, you should make sure the lugs are still tight after about 50 miles tops......when they are first tightened, there's always the chance that the wheel was not flush on, and it's hard to tell. I once had this happen on my triumph, where I almost lost the back right wheel due to not tightening up the lugs a 2nd time (I'm SURE I tightened them when I put the wheel on)....luckily i stopped before all the lugs broke, and managed to limp home with 1 snapped-off lug (out of 4).....

one good word of advice is that when the car sounds like "helicopter gunships were in the cabin." don't go to the nearest exit, pull over IMMEDIATELY.

And no, not trying to blame you - it's obviously the dealer's fault, but you gotta watch your own back, cuz nobody else will!

jreddington3

Guess what? That's what the deal is. That's what insurance and legal liability claims are. The shop was negligent which resulted in damage to your car. They paid. No one's arm was torn off. They can't be expected to pay for damages that may have happened but didn't. The good part about this is you did not have to incurr any legal costs. That's one of the benefits of your insurance policy.

Hope you're not planning on entering the legal profession after finishing school.

nailz420

Check they actually took the wheels off. Especially if you have wheel locks, and you didn't give them the wheel lock keys yet...

Gsilk

yea im sure they took the wheels off since my brakes stopped squealing and the car stopped shuddering when the brake was applied.

Gsilk

i wouldn't be able to become a lawyer, i have a soul.

-Red-

iTrader: (2)

I agree with your frustration but, much like others have already said, aside from scaring the hell out of you, thankfully no one was hurt. The dealership forked over 3k for their part in this. I'm sure whoever it was that worked on your car has been "made aware" of what happened.
As a courtesy, do I think the dealership should offer you something (such as free routine maintenance for a certain time frame) to keep you as a customer? Absolutely! However, expecting them to write another check beyond the one they have already written is a bit unreasonable.

kieranlavin

I'd be delighted with 3k to my insurance company. I wouldn't be mad at all at the dealer... they done right in my eyes... fixed their mistake by picking up the tab.

On a side note, for those who don't know... if you feel a vibration in the steering wheel and it seems to get worse, chance are it's a loose lugnut. You can test this by tapping the brakes and if it goes away, it's more likely than not your lugs. Pull over and tighten them! Happened to me twice... once when I was an idiot after working on the car and picked it up on the highway at speed. Another time was on track at Watkins Glen going 100 or so down the front straight passing someone else and went to brake for T1 and wound up getting a horrible vibration and I knew immediately what it was and pulled off. (incidentally, I was ONLY going 100 because it was the end of my first lap/first session and I was taking it easy on a green track with green pads and a green brain

Gsilk

you're right. i should be happy with what i got. they did not offer me any kind offer to keep me as a customer. i dont take my car to dealerships anymore anyways.

Triple8Sol

iTrader: (29)

They paid for the damage. You got your car fixed. Luckily you guys are all okay and it wasn't worse...bottom line...

jreddington3

But it appears you're very willing to have one of these "soulless" devils try to extract some extra cash for you.

Gsilk

thats their job. most of us are good at something and making money off accidents is something they can do.