tsjoel

No disposable camera yet but I do pack a pair of stormtrooper boots for my own independent crush protection test. I have found that the geo metro passenger door gets an "unacceptable rating" for protection after contact with one of my cars.

Just kidding before I get flamed by the way-too-serious, no-sense-of-humor types.

Mark in Baltimore

If the offending owner hit your car, that's accident damage. Years ago, I had to prove that a neighbor whacked the fender of my car with the door of his station wagon. The insurance company made me prove that the car did the damage. I went to a car dealer, found a similar model and took photos to show how the door from the same model as the insured's could inflict damage in the exact spot on my car. When presented with such evidence, the insurance company immediately paid the claim.

Wilder

Sorry to hear about your incident...that really does suck! I used to be **** about stuff like this and all though I'm still very mindful and care for my cars far more than the average joe, I've come to accept that things like door dings, bumper scrapes etc are a part of life that I need to expect will happen at some point. It's just maddening when it happens despite that you've taken so much care to avoid it.

As for fixing it, I'd get a paintless guy and do a very surgical paint touch up (pick up a very fine paint brush from an art store) on the ding before you decide to respray the whole door. To respray the door properly, you'll have to blend to the fender and rear quarter, which means you're pretty much painting a third of the car to repair a little ding.

mr_bock

I just don't get it.... a parking lot with many, many open spaces and the DingBat has to park right next to our nice car. IMHO many people are A$$holes these days and it does not seem to be getting any better....

g_murray

Ya know, this type of thing really and truly gets my goat ...and, having been there, it IS SOOO MADDENING !!!

I know, I know, in your mind's eye you are reliving 'what you could have / should have done' -- over and over again. Been there too.

FWIW, I would have the area repaired and keep the receipts. If ****-for-brains ever does contact you -- you have a) your car repaired regardless and b) paperwork for him/her to ponder. Don't expect any miracles tho'.

If it makes you feel better, if u ever see that car parked somewhere ever again, you have my permission to deep-key that POS.

G.

jnx

Since you have his plates, could you get his name/address and call or visit him?

Jastx

Drivers today can be so oblivious, this idiot may not have even realized they did it.

Regarding handicapped spaces...
I had a BMW M Roadster a few years ago and arrived at a client for an early morning meeting. I was the first car in a small guest lot on the side of the building with spaces for maybe eight cars and a couple of handicapped spaces at one end. I first parked in the end space but it left my passenger side exposed to the driver side of the next space. That worried me so I moved to the space next to the last handicap space leaving my driver side exposed to the next car's passenger side -- safer I thought, probably no passenger.

I'm sitting in my car waiting for the building to open when a large truck (boiler repair with amour plate all over the back) pulls in, realizes he is in the wrong place and decides to turn around. I'm still the ONLY car in the whole lot. I'm reading when I hear the beep-beep of a backing vehicle. I look in my mirror to see this truck heading for my car. I jump out and I'm yelling Hey! Hey! STOP! STOP!!!! The corner of his amour plated truck smashes into my pristine M Roadster as I'm standing there. $3,500 damage. If only I had stayed in the first space instead of moving my car to protect it!

John H

I would have called the cops and waited for him to come back out. I guarantee if he saw the cops standing there with you, he would have loitered like Castanza when he parked his father's car in the handicapped spot.

grmnxtc

Ding by mindless idiot? = air removed from all four tires

No damage done Just waste their time..... and repay their mindless act.

brucec59

That's why I never park far away in the middle of open spaces. I get as close as I can to storefronts, and if possible, at the end of the bank of spaces or next to a hc space.

TheOtherEric

I would have waited. Calling the cops (then or now) might not help since in many states cops won't cite people or get involved in parking lots (private property). And taking pics and suing him later is obviously a waste for a $200 repair.

But if I didn't have time to wait, I would have left an angry note and keyed his car to teach him a lesson and release my anger. Yeah yeah, i'm just kidding. maybe

ZombiePorsche44

+1
I have done this exact thing to someone who just put a door ding in my Mercedes.

Had it been my 993, I can't honestly say what i'd have done but it would not have been nice!

ZP44

gonzilla

Almost identical situation happened to me only a couple months after getting my car. I parked in a really remote part of the mall parking lot, end spot. Come back and a Maxima is backed in next to me, with a little kid playing outside the car. When I approached my car, the guy told his kid to get in and took off in what seemed like a hurry. This peaked my interest, so I looked and sure enough, a nice crease in my passenger door. Nice. Nothing I could do but get mad. Luckily it was something a PDR guy could pull out.

I figure it sucks, but as long as we're going to allow our cars to leave our garages and actually drive them, stuff like this is inevitable. There's always ways to fix it, and usually a lot less involved than you initially think. My advice would be to chalk it up to a little bad luck, get it pulled out, move on and keep having fun driving it.

PS - my wife drives an A4 and I actually like it.

jimq

wow 28 post on a door ding

GG Allin

Since you didn't see him do it but you know he did. The only recourse is to kick a dent in his car for taking that space, when there was 50 other spaces to choose from. Maybe that's wrong but that type of thing really pisses me off.