Rear-ended hard, yet no damage.

So I got hit hard from behind (by a previous body style Outback Wagon no less) at a red light and could not identify any obvious damage. The collision was bad enough that it made a really loud noise and hurt my teeth and lower back all day. I really expected to see a whole lot of damage when I got out but was incredibly relieved to see none at all, save for some scratches to the surface of the bumper.

 

I checked to make sure the bumper structure itself was in fine shape, that all body panels were aligned perfectly, and that the bumper brackets were straight. Car drives fine on streets and on the urban highways here (have not really driven it on a fast highway yet, but don't expect anything different).

 

Is there anything else I should make sure to check out to guaranty that there is no damage?

 

On a side note, the bumper is all scratched up from this and from the animals that park on my street using "touch" as their primary sense when parking. It really does not look pretty and will only get worse with age. Besides the woefully inadequate corner bumper moldings, anyone found any ok-looking and effective bumper guards. 'Cause my poor car needs good protection when taking in the rear.

 

By the way... maybe our 5mph bumpers aren't so bad after all?

By the way... maybe our 5mph bumpers aren't so bad after all?

 

BAN!!!11!!!!!11

NYC-

Absolutely you should take the car to a body shop asap and have them examine the car.

I have been rear-ended twice in the last 7 years- and both times the bumper held onto the car and there was no cracking just BIG scratches and what not.

 

However when the body shop took off the bumper to have a closer look, they noticed bent framing and other damage- in both instances.

 

The more expensive repair cost me about 1800.00 which was only 200.00 under me having to resister a declaration on the car being involved in a 'major' accident.

This would have shot the re-sale value into the toilet.

The second less extensive accident cost just over 1000.00 in repairs.

All were covered 100% by my insurance of course with no penalty to me, as rear-enders are always 100% the fault of the person who hits you (at least in BC law).

 

In the end, I had a car that needed big repairs from accidents that appeared to be very minor.

i'd second the body-shop check-up. besides you might get the other person to cough up some $$ to paint that bumper.

Get it checked pronto. After an accident you NEVER see the things you will notice later. I think it has something to do with adrenaline. You go to sleep wake up and then you're like WTF I didn't see that !!!!??!

BAN!!!11!!!!!11 ME!!!1

In for drama!

one day i was crusing on a street, seeing the car infront of me, reducing its speed and break and stop suddenly. i was unable to stop completely and sort of bumped him from the rear. My car shaked a bit and so did his..... but as soon as the green light goes on, he continue driving forward away from me!! WTF was that about LOL, i was amused by that

BAN!!!11!!!!!11

 

Well, guess I'll go get it checked out. Do I really need to take the bumper off?

 

Thank you all very much for the responses.

yah u gotta take the bumper off, these bumpers pop back out after an accident.. happened when my legacy got in a head-on

don't do it yourself. Call your insurance company and tell them you got rear ended really hard. They'll set you up with a check up.

 

If you start poking around too much on your own, they may not cover anything you find.

i didnt mean that HE had to take it off:munch:

I just hope u got the details from the other car, because I think yr going to need them. If the accident hurt u that badly, there is going to be some damage. The bumper is no doubt hiding the damage, hence if flexed back into shape.

Hope the report goes ok.

Ada///M.

So I took the car to two body shops. The first one said these bumpers are made to take quite a hit and sustain no damage at all. He got under car and saw nothing, said it was totally unecessary to remove bumper.

 

Just for the sake of a second opinion I took it to another shop in the neighborhood. The guy there looked even more carefully and agreed that there was no need to remove bumper.

 

I guess insurance companies have put a whole lot of pressure on manufacturers to build these strong bumpers. This was a hard hit that in any of my older cars would have probably made for expensive repairs.