Mark and I took Bosley to Hot Springs today to visit Mark's mom and enjoy the trip. Well, the trip down was great, even if it did involve pulling over several times on 7 to let rather impatient vehicles pass. When we got here, we decided we wanted to enjoy the gorgeous day and go hiking, so we had to make a run to Wal-Mart for some collars and leashes for the dogs (forgot them at home).

Mark, his mom and I all piled into the Mini and headed into town. We were sitting at the stop light on 7 under the bypass and I heard someone nearby rev an engine. It did it again, and then wham, someone hits our rear end. I turn around (I was sitting in the back seat, Mark was driving, his mom was in the front passenger seat) and see some guy sitting behind us in his old pickup. I mouthed something to the effect of "wtf?" and pointed to the side of the road, saying "Pull over." He didn't really acknowledge my existence, and when we got into the outside lane (in the very heavy traffic!) he just passed by! So all three of us memorized his plate number while I called 911 and we proceeded to follow him down Central. I described our location to the guy on the phone, continuously updating him since the guy in the truck, who was now a few cars ahead of us, obviously had no intention of stopping. As it turns out, he had a very good reason, but I jump ahead.

So the 911 guy said he had a couple officers eating lunch nearby and he dispatched them. Very shortly thereafter a cop car enters the road with all three of us cueing him wildly toward the truck a few cars ahead, and they turn on their lights, fly out behind us, drive up the turn lane, and get behind him. They both pulled into the Sears/Dillards parking lot, so we pulled in behind them. Three very nice people on bikes pulled in as well since they were right by us when the whole incident occured.

When we stopped and the police had surrounded the guy's truck and the bikers were in between his vehicle and ours (safety first!) we got out and inspected the damage, consisting of roughly a 4-5" dent just to the left of the Euro license plate. Keep in mind, we JUST PICKED THE CAR UP FROM MAACO YESTERDAY!!!!

Now for the best part: The guy had no insurance, no license, and his plate wasn't even registered to that truck. He was also intoxicated and failed various sobriety tests they did on him. So they cuffed him and hauled his butt to jail. Figures that we'd have to get in front of the one looser in Hot Springs that thought he'd scare the little car in front of him by revving his engine and, probably by accidentally letting off the clutch due to his alcohol and whatever else hazed mind, rammed into it.

So, we're now waiting to hear back from our insurance company about whether our antique insurance covers uninsured motorists and if they'll fix/replace/repaint the boot lid. I'm hoping a body shop can just suction the dent out and it won't even need repainted, but I'm doubtful.

In the end, no one was injured and that's one less low-life removed from the road before he could kill someone. Considering the safety features of the car (read: none) and the fact that where he hit us is just a mere 2 or 3" away from the fuel tank, it could've been much worse.

Anyway, I just wanted to relay the story of my first Mini incident.

 

Man, this sucks! Sorry Bosley got banged! Hope you can get it fixed ok. R U still going to drive it in the parade?

 

Oh no! What a bizarre accident! I always tense up when somebody pulls up too close behind my MINI. Sorry to hear this happened! I hope all the patching and repairing goes well and is not extensive.

 

People are unbelievable at times. I wasn't even there and it irritates me that the guy was just going to drive off! That's just so mean!

It's good that witnesses stopped though.
Sorry to hear about the damage and it's great that nobody got hurt!

 

So this was the Austin Mini that got hit?

I'd call this a attempted vehicular homicide as the driver in the truck was being hostile towards you guys with this truck by revving his engine. I'll bet he's probably got a huge rapsheet.

 

Yeah, it was in the Austin. That guy was probably strung out on who knows what, and the cops were talking to him like they knew of him.

Never fear though, Bosley will still make his debut in the St. Patrick's Day parade (hopefully he won't overheat! he's having some warmth issues right now...).

Tomorrow, once we hear the [hopefully good] news from the insurance company, we're going to take it around and see what some body shops in Russellville can do for us. Hopefully it'll only involve a suction-type dent removal and light repainting. Really hoping to avoid having to buy a new boot lid and have the entire thing repainted.

 

If Arkansas has UM coverage, you should have it, even though you have the Mini insured as an antique/classic vehicle.

Don't forget though, that UM coverage also comes with a deductible that you'll have to pay and that varies by State. So I can't tell you how much it is in Arkansas (if I was at work today, I could look it up).

Your insurance company will then ATTEMPT to collect directly from the idiot driver (good luck to them on that endeavor). If successful, they'll also attempt to get your out-of-pocket expenses back, including your UM deductible.

Good luck and glad you were not hurt, especially sitting in the back seat of that Mini during a rear end collision !

 

i feel bad for bosley. it could have been worse though, with a truck easily able to climb on top of a mini.

 

Fortuntely, it was a very small truck and a very slow rate of speed. He was already stopped behind us and bumped into the car going maybe a couple mph. The truly scary part is the fact that the dent was made right behind where the gas tank is. The exterior metal seems to be able to warp rather easily, so it's kind of worrisome that if someone were to rear-end me going more than 5 or 10 mph, it would easily compromise the fuel tank and that would be all kinds of dangerous. Hopefully I'll never have to experience that, but rear-endings have to be the most common (and usually least worried-about!) types of accidents out there. CR&PW&JB, any thoughts?

Also, anyone know a way I could better insulate that exposed tank to protect it from an impact?

 

+1 ...and thanks for your perseverance in scraping that other dirt bag off the road for the safety of everyone.

 

Maaco - home of the overspray/run/orange peel paintjob

 

Heh, maybe so, but I'm happy with their work so far.

 

Did you turn this claim in to your insurance company ? Have they performed an estimate on the damage ? If not, when they do, make sure they take a good look behind the bumper for hidden damage. If they miss anything, they'll have to go out to the shop for a supplemental estimate during the repair and that will make the process take longer.

Yeah, rear-end collisions are the most common we deal with. I would say about 40% of the accidents we handle are your basic rear-end collisions.

 

Who is your classic car carrier? I have Hagerty but work as an underwriter (thank god I am out of claims) for collector car here at AMIG. Just curious and sorry to hear about your accident!

 

I use Farmer's. I'm waiting to hear from them today about what they can do. Fortunately, the damage is extremely minor (about a 3-4" dent), though unfortunately it is over a crease in the panel so I don't think it'll be able to be suctioned out.

 

The shop might be able to pop that dent out from the back but then they are still going to have to use conventional repair methods because of the location of the dent. And because it's on a joint, they are going to have to paint at least two panels. That repair job is going to cost more than you're imagining, I would bet.

 

Oh no! What a terrible thing to happen. Sorry to hear about the damage. And I hope everything works out!

 

I would have been furious!! But, I can't say I'm surprised. People are constantly trying to race me, ride my butt or pass me up and cut in front of me.
It must be those insecure drivers, you know.. how some people are so insecure they have to do whatever it takes to get attention, same concept I think.
Our little hot cars intimidate them, make them think they have something to prove. Weird.

Anybody else have any insight on why people do this.. I know its not just me.