I was struck from behind on the way to work yesterday. I was surprised by how well the vehicle handled it. The only exterior damage was to the rear bumper -- and it looked very small -- if not for a small crack, the bumper could just be rubbed out. However, with the crack in the plastic, it appears it will need to be replaced.

The only other obvious problem was in the right rear -- sufficient force had been transferred to the vehicle to cause some component to drive the fabric wheel well skirt in towards the wheel and interfere with its rotation. (A "bump bump" sound and transferred vibration with movement forward or reverse.) Handling does not seem be effected, though I limped it home and then to a local body shop at low speed and avoiding any additional stress to the vehicle and it's underbody tackle.

I do not yet know the extent of damage to chassis, body, or suspension. There may not be any, but something traveled beyond design limits to drive the skirt towards the wheel.

When I think of the amount of energy -- weight x velocity -- transferred from the vehicle that struck me, and that I was stopped with brakes depressed at the time ... I am impressed with the ability of this vehicle to take this kind of licking.

 

There are two plastic brackets that you can only
see with the bumper removed. Those are now broken.
Also, there is a metal bracket near the middle, under
the car that should now be pushed in 1/2 - 1 inch.
The heat shield on your muffler is now dented in.
The muffler may be slightly out of whack also.

This is just what I am sure about. There could be other stuff.

Do not accept the $400 estimate for a new bumper cover
and paint. You will be WAY short.

 

Insist on the car being measured on the BMW approved frame measuring and repair platform by Celette:

http://www.celette-na.com/

I would not accept any substitutes. There is a reason why Celette is the only platform approved by both BMW and Mercedes.

 

Thank you both. Hopefully, the plastic brackets acted as the shock absorbers they were intended to be, and the frame needs no adjustment to realign.

I'll post once I hear back from the body shop.

 

Talked with the shop's admin this morning:

• they are awaiting parts -- the clips/brackets behind the bumper were crushed. She could not confirm if these were the only parts needed; the work order is with the vehicle, she just knew that the clips are on order and en route
• the plastic bumper was repairable and has been repaired
• she does not know if any frame alignment was tested or needed -- she'll have the technician call me

 

She just called me to tell me she talked to the tech. The car was placed on their frame alignment platform -- she doesn't know the brand, sorry Ian -- and there were no anomalies.

There was no damage to exhaust, suspension, axle, body (other than the bumper and mounting hardware).

 

Sounds to me like you are looking at over $2,000 worth of damage.

 

Did you go through insurance? In BC, you can take back work to the shop for up to 2 years if they did not sufficiently fit it.

 

Yes, it's through insurance, and there is a life-of-the-vehicle warranty on the service.

 

My wife just picked it up from the body shop.

1. Under $500, Robin, and the insurance co. waived the deductible.
2. The reason the exhaust wasn't damaged -- this was an MC; the collision was in the middle of the bumper and the MC's exhaust runs along the passenger side. An MCS would have sustained more damage.
3. Whatever they did to repair the plastic bumper will take time to cure -- I'm under orders: do not wash for one week, do not wax for one month.