%$#@! Crashed my Neon!

supercommuter · Post by **supercommuter** » Wed Apr 06, 2011 3:10 pm

Well, only after a couple weeks of owning my beautiful 2000 Neon, I rearended someone on my way home from work last night. Not hard at all, but my car is pretty messed up. It was one of those instances when you're at a light making a right turn, and you look left and it's all clear, the car in front of you starts to go, you look left again and start to go, but the car in front of you for some reason just stopped! So from a dead stop and only a couple feet away I hit the gas and ran right into the back of a stopped car. I know, I'm a dumbass.

The funny thing is, they just drove away. It was like a RAV4 or some other small SUV. There was definitely damage to their back bumper cover, but that's about it. They stopped for a second, and then just drove off. I limped it into a parking lot on the other side of the intersection and waited for them for about a half hour, but they never came back. I assesed the damage and figured I could make it home, so I drove it the rest of the way home.

So here's the damage: Hood, passenger fender, front bumper cover, grill, passenger headlight, and the upper radiator support is pushed in about an inch on the passenger side. As a result, the AC tubing was pushed into the power steering resevoir and shattered it.

The radiator seems to be fine, the only fluid loss was from the power steering. Needless to say I was pretty pissed at myself.

The kicker is, I don't have collison or comprehensive for this car, just the wife's Durango. So I'm completely screwed.

I can replace the hood, fender bumper cover and headlight myself, that's no problem. It's the upper radiator support that I'm wondering about. The hood still latches, but only because it's buckled so badly. The rad support is going to have to come out at least an inch on the pass side for a new hood to line up and latch properly. Any ideas or tips on pulling it out? I've got a real long steel breaker bar, but there isn't really anything inside the engine compartment I can use to get leverage.

Also, is the power steering pump and resevoir all one peice? Or can I just replace the resevoir? From what I could tell the pump itself is fine.

I'll post some pics tonight.

Also, anyone have a cheap hood or passenger headlight?

alsey_seven · Post by **alsey_seven** » Wed Apr 06, 2011 3:28 pm

another one.....
DAMN
This should be called
The Year of Hell
for neons

supercommuter · Post by **supercommuter** » Wed Apr 06, 2011 3:34 pm

Will parts from an 03 SXT fit on my 2000?

bstc00 · Post by **bstc00** » Wed Apr 06, 2011 4:05 pm

Yes they will

r/tguy02 · Post by **r/tguy02** » Wed Apr 06, 2011 4:23 pm

for the rad support you'll probably need to put it on a frame puller to get it back into the correct position. If its too bad it'll need replaced. I'm sure if you post a pic someone could give you a better idea.

supercommuter · Post by **supercommuter** » Wed Apr 06, 2011 7:07 pm

Here a the pics. Sorry there's so many of them. So you can see the upper radiator mount is pushed in about exactly one inch. I measured from the center of the strut stud to the center of the headlight mount hole, and the difference from lef to right is about one inch. I know that's not very scientific.

Anyway, do yoiu think this is easily repairable? My biggest concern is the radiator support. I was thinking of tyeing a rope around it and seeing if I could pull it out a little bit.

Everything else is bolt on, so I'm not too worried. I've already found a hood and possibly a passenger fender.

So what do you think?

Haganracing · Post by **Haganracing** » Wed Apr 06, 2011 7:32 pm

It wasn't looking too bad until I saw the underhood shots

supercommuter · Post by **supercommuter** » Wed Apr 06, 2011 7:35 pm

Haganracing wrote:It wasn't looking too bad until I saw the underhood shots

Damn, is it that bad?

Haganracing · Post by **Haganracing** » Wed Apr 06, 2011 7:40 pm

I mean, from the top you could get it fixed but I can't see the whole damage from the accident (down into the engine bay and whatnot) but it really depends on insurance.. These cars get totaled over the most simple accidents..

supercommuter · Post by **supercommuter** » Wed Apr 06, 2011 7:43 pm

Haganracing wrote:I mean, from the top you could get it fixed but I can't see the whole damage from the accident (down into the engine bay and whatnot) but it really depends on insurance.. These cars get totaled over the most simple accidents..

Insurance isn't covering it. I don't have collision and comprehensive, so I'm on my own. I'm hoping I can get away with pulling the support out a little on the left side, bolting on a new hood, fender, bumper and headlight, and replacing the power steering resevoir. That's the extent of the damage, from what I could tell.

Post by **racer12306** » Wed Apr 06, 2011 7:48 pm

You definitely need to get it on a frame machine to make sure it's straight. If it isn't, it will never track right again.

supercommuter · Post by **supercommuter** » Wed Apr 06, 2011 8:35 pm

Could I have ruined anything by driving the 18 miles home with no power steering fluid?

Trappy · Post by **Trappy** » Wed Apr 06, 2011 9:02 pm

Link

There's what you need...

Link shortened by od

k-b-s-neon02 · Post by **k-b-s-neon02** » Wed Apr 06, 2011 9:05 pm

alsey_seven wrote:another one.....
DAMN
This should be called
The Year of Hell
for neons

INVUJerry · Post by **INVUJerry** » Wed Apr 06, 2011 9:39 pm

Was the belt spinning the PS pump? It's a possibility it got hurt while pumping dry. Did the car track straight, or did it pull to one side?

Honestly, if you don't have a lot of money into it, I'd just tie a rope around it, tie the other end to something sturdy (like that durango) and bump it straight. Then, find a new hood (crazy rays in MD always has 2gn neons) and let it ride. A PS hose can be found in a junkyard too, if not a PS delete is in order!

supercommuter · Post by **supercommuter** » Wed Apr 06, 2011 9:49 pm

INVUJerry wrote:Was the belt spinning the PS pump? It's a possibility it got hurt while pumping dry. Did the car track straight, or did it pull to one side?

Honestly, if you don't have a lot of money into it, I'd just tie a rope around it, tie the other end to something sturdy (like that durango) and bump it straight. Then, find a new hood (crazy rays in MD always has 2gn neons) and let it ride. A PS hose can be found in a junkyard too, if not a PS delete is in order!

You know, it seemed to ride just fine on the way home. No power steering, but it tracked just fine and didn't pull at all to either side.

What did you mean when you said "It's a possibility it got hurt while pumping dry." Did you mean the power steering pump might be ruined? Yeah, the belt was still on and spinning the whole time.

I might try that tomorrow, wrapping a rope around the rad support and backing the car up a little to see if I can pull it out. I'm going to check out a hood tomorrow for $30.

I found a perfect fender for $40, but it is for an SRT4. Will that fit? The guy said it might not work because the headlights might be different.

Thanks for the advice so far guys. I'm super pissed about this because I really loved this car. I'm definitely on a budget, and at the moment I just don't have the money to get it fixed properly.

INVUJerry · Post by **INVUJerry** » Wed Apr 06, 2011 10:01 pm

It might or might not be ruined, it's possible either way. I'd replace the line first, and if it starts making noise, just take the belt off until you can afford to replace the pump with one from a j-yard. THe fender will fit even though the headlights are different shaped.

Don't go overboard pulling it out. Do a tiny pull, check it, do a tiny pull, check it, repeat until you're okay, or just close. Get the new hood, put it on, and see how far off your latch really is, and see how close you can get it.

I'd offer to come up and help any way I can, but I'm going to be really busy for quite some time.

Post by **occasional demons** » Wed Apr 06, 2011 10:02 pm

INVUJerry wrote: Honestly, if you don't have a lot of money into it, I'd just tie a rope around it, tie the other end to something sturdy (like that durango) and bump it straight.

You need to hit it harder than that to mess up the frame. Mine was much worse, and I never had it on a frame machine. Drives and aligns just fine. About 35 to 40 mph into a full size cargo van.

Get a hood, mount it, remove radiator, tie rope to Durango, put neon in neutral, keep rolling it back until the tie bar is straight enough to latch the new hood. Use your scissors jack to lift the tie bar where needed. Reinstall radiator.

Tie bar is the name for the bar across the top of the core support assy.

And '03 + head lights will require an '03+ front fascia.

Edit: If you are definitly getting this "fixed" and are posting pics, I will move it to "Exterior". Unless you want to start a Project Log. Then I can merge it with that thread.

Midnight_Rider · Post by **Midnight_Rider** » Thu Apr 07, 2011 1:58 am

Wow, your Neon looks like its "smile" now needs braces. Hope that you can fix it!

supercommuter · Post by **supercommuter** » Thu Apr 07, 2011 7:52 am

INVUJerry wrote:It might or might not be ruined, it's possible either way. I'd replace the line first, and if it starts making noise, just take the belt off until you can afford to replace the pump with one from a j-yard.

Which line exactly?

occasional demons wrote: You need to hit it harder than that to mess up the frame. Mine was much worse, and I never had it on a frame machine. Drives and aligns just fine. About 35 to 40 mph into a full size cargo van.

Get a hood, mount it, remove radiator, tie rope to Durango, put neon in neutral, keep rolling it back until the tie bar is straight enough to latch the new hood. Use your scissors jack to lift the tie bar where needed. Reinstall radiator.

Tie bar is the name for the bar across the top of the core support assy.

Awesome, thanks! That is very reassuring. I'm starting to feel a little better now.

2 more questions...

Looking at the pictures, it's clear that the impact was more towards the passenger side, and that's where the tie bar is pushed in. Also, you can see at the center where the hood latch is, it's buckled a little bit. Where exactly on the tie bar should I wrap the rope around? All the way toward the passenger side, as close to the fender as possible, or maybe center it between the fender and the hood latch? If someone could take one of my pics and actually mark the best spot, that would be great!

Also, not wanting to mess up another car, where on the Durango should I tie the rope?

Post by **occasional demons** » Thu Apr 07, 2011 9:59 am

supercommuter wrote: Looking at the pictures, it's clear that the impact was more towards the passenger side, and that's where the tie bar is pushed in. Also, you can see at the center where the hood latch is, it's buckled a little bit. Where exactly on the tie bar should I wrap the rope around? All the way toward the passenger side, as close to the fender as possible, or maybe center it between the fender and the hood latch? If someone could take one of my pics and actually mark the best spot, that would be great!

I would center it, and go from there. may need to move it to one side or another. May need to use some vise grips to get the kink out totally.

Also, not wanting to mess up another car, where on the Durango should I tie the rope?
If you do it as I posted, by just pushing it back using your body to shove, you should be able to tie it to the rear axle if you don't have a tow hitch.

supercommuter · Post by **supercommuter** » Thu Apr 07, 2011 10:06 am

I just found that I can actually get a replacement upper tie bar itself, really cheap too!

Should I just get one of these and bolt it in and not bother with trying to pull and straighten?

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/NEW-RADI ... 668wt_1165

supercommuter · Post by **supercommuter** » Fri Apr 08, 2011 8:11 am

Well it seems that upper tie bar is welded on, not bolted on. So I tried pulling it out yesterday. Wouldn't budge, kept breaking the rope. That was a heavy duty rope, too! I think maybe I have to loosen up the bolts on the left side connecting it to the fender.

Also, can anyone tell me the name of the color of my car, and if it is available at the dealership in a rattle can?

Fuzzyneon · Post by **Fuzzyneon** » Fri Apr 08, 2011 8:21 am

Haganracing wrote:It wasn't looking too bad until I saw the underhood shots

this reminds me of my 05 it didnt look to bad till you popped the hod and everything was bent the eff up

good luck glad your safe!

JeffM · Post by **JeffM** » Fri Apr 08, 2011 9:38 am

Meh. Looks about the same as my '01. Pull the radiator support out and, as long as it tracks straight, you'll be fine.

A new bumper might be a bitch to put on if it's not aligned perfect, but it'll work.

Post by **occasional demons** » Fri Apr 08, 2011 12:03 pm

Loosening the bolts won't help. You need a better rope. Pick up some cheap chain, at least 3/16", or a tow strap. I doubt you will break that just using the car's inertia.

INVUJerry · Post by **INVUJerry** » Fri Apr 08, 2011 11:45 pm

I have this rope I get from work called Mule-Tape. It's rated to 1800lbs of tension. Find something similar to it, it'll really help your situation.

sunburnedaz · Post by **sunburnedaz** » Sat Apr 09, 2011 6:20 am

Just get one of those cheap tow straps from autozone or the like.

gtxtreme19 · Post by **gtxtreme19** » Sat Apr 09, 2011 6:32 am

Or some old(not used anymore ) fire hose from your local department hack the ends off throw some stitches in that bitch and have a free and stronger tow strap than you'll ever need

supercommuter · Post by **supercommuter** » Tue Apr 12, 2011 9:07 am

All fixed, pretty much. It didn't come out as good as I'd hoped, but better then I expected. Oh well, it is what it is. It was actually a lot of work. I spent all day Saturday running around collecting parts off of craigslist, most of which ended up being in worse shape than described, so I had to do a lot of work to get the hood right. I spent Sunday pulling out the rad support, sanding and priming the hood, sanding, filling and priming the bumper. Then yesterday I replaced the power steering pump, painted the bumper, and put everything back together. I didn't have time to paint the hood. I'll do that next weekend.

Everything seems okay. It goes perfectly straight and smooth down the road. The only thing wrong now is that I have no brake lights. I can't imagine it's related to the crash, but that's exactly when I noticed they weren't working, the day of the crash. Any ideas on that one?

Thanks again everyone for all your advice! You were a big help.