What kind of person broadsides another person and just leaves the scene of the accident?!?!  grrr......

Today I went into the city to get some things taken care of between the neurosurgery office and work, and I was in the Philly Art Museum Circle in a lane to head out on West River Drive.  This big white van merged into my lane while blowing the horn and a woman yelling out the passenger side window and smacked right into the rear driver's side door and just above that rear tire.

The driver then sped up in front of me onto West River Drive, and at the first traffic light, turned left and was gone.  I didn't stop immediately because there is absolutely no safe place to stop in the Art Museum Circle or on the early parts of WRD, so I went through the light where the other driver went left - with my flashers on and waving them to pull over with me - and pulled into a parking lot.

I'm fine - and the car doesn't have much damage really - but STILL!!  So then I waited nearly 2 hours for the police, after 3 calls to 911!!  I had the plate number off the van, but didn't know the make and model - it was an 80s-90s big white van - one of those ones with the higher tops on it.  I told the police the plate number, which I'm almost certain was right on, and the plate number matched up with a 2007 Cadillac!  So either I was wrong on the plate or they used a bogus plate or switched their plates around.  The police officer still wrote up a report - he was very nice and gave me the info for getting the DS numbers later tonight or tomorrow.

I called my ins. company too - and I have to bring my car out to a certain garage to get it evaluated to see if the damage is higher than my deductible.  Why do I have the feeling I'm going to get screwed here?  Hit and run driver leaves the scene (if that's not redundant!), no witnesses, my word against theirs, and the plate doesn't even match the vehicle!  Hopefully though, the damage can be repaired for little cost!

My old car would have crumbled like a cookie with the force of the impact that this guy hit me at!  Fortunately my Nissan is a good, sturdy car, even if it is nearly 10 years old!

I swear I need to live in a bubble or something...!  Wish people had a little more moral conscience in this world!!

Thanks for listening to my rant!
Carrie

OMG!!!!!!!!!!
So good to hear you are ok Carrie. What is up with that other driver?????????????????????

Be safe.  
  Barry

You certainly do have streaks of bad luck honey.

Hope it gets better for you

OK so now in addition to my car being hit today...I forgot that the left taillight is out and needs replacing.  And then last week this "Service Engine Soon" light came on - I had brought the car manual in to check if this was just some routine light or what - since I've never seen a light like this.  Just read the manual and it turns out that is the same as the "Check Engine" Light!!  So now I need to take the car to the insurance company's approved garage for the accident estimate on Monday, and I also need to go to my usual car place to get a new taillight and get the engine diagnosed!

I cannot afford to spend another penny on this car right now - not with moving next month and being out of work with a reduced income!  I already spent nearly $1000 on the car this summer alone - needed new tires (was an urgent need - one tire was about to go and my tires were the wrong size from when I bought the car from auction), had to be realigned, balanced, rotated (tires) - then had the one bracket holding the exhaust pipe in place rot out and had to get a whole new exhaust.  Now all this.  And I think the brakes will not pass next inspection in October, so I'll be getting those replaced as well.

My mom keeps saying better these small, one-time payments than to have a regular car payment.  Afterall, I did get the car for a reduced price when I could NOT afford to have a car payment - my parents sold their Explorer and my old Sable and then we paid about $1500 extra to get this 2000 Maxima off auction.  It is a GREAT car - but it is costing a pretty penny lately!

I'm starting to wonder if a new car payment might be worth it....  Not yet!!

Kev,

I totally know what you mean.  Philly sucks, doesn't it?!  My old car was TRASHED by the city!  Actually, even in Narberth - this quiet perfect town - where I have to park on the street, someone actually smashed out my side-view mirror glass.  But that old Sable was a junker.  I hated that car from the  day I got it.  It got hit in parking lots on a couple different occasions.  Got hit one day parked on Chestnut St. in University City.  The car was keyed.  All the hubcaps were stolen.  It was such a shame - that car royally suffered from Philly.  Not to mention all the damn potholes.  Wasn't Mayor Street (such a great mayor he was!) supposed to fix all those city potholes?  I still play games trying to avoid all the known ones to and from work!

Jason (my bf) got a new Altima this summer, and because it gets great gas mileage, after we move to our new apt, he was suggesting maybe I take his car to work since it is about a 35 minute commute for me and a <10 minute commute for him.  I said NO WAY!!!  I would NEVER take his brand new car into Philly on a daily basis.

The cheapest parking garage for employees to park in is this valet lot near the hospital.  One kid's brand new luxury car got rammed into a wall there, and the garage claimed no responsibility.  Another coworker's car got stolen.  My old car got hit against a yellow pole there.  Needless to say, I pay a little extra, but I don't park there anymore!

I have no doubt it probably was a stolen plate off a stolen caddy.  The cop at first asked if I was sure about the plate, but I was - then he made this face.  You could tell he was thinking I was SOL with this situation...  He was nice to me, though.

Where do you live in Philly now?  Right in the city?  Our ultimate goal is to end up back out in Downingtown in a few years - which is where my parents are and where I lived from 1992 through when I left for college.  It is going to be very hard for me to leave Narberth next month, but even here on 4th of July this woman backed into my car getting out of a parking spot and got out of her car screaming at my boyfriend because he called her an a-hole for hitting my car!  No place is safe...!  We would definitely like to end up way out of the city, though!  I love my job, but I don't know if I will stay in the city hospital forever.  Yes, the clientele can be rough (some, but not all), but mainly what kills me is the driving in and out of the city and experiencing all the rude people in the city.

Another time, I was leaving the hospital parking lot, and this lady left like a whole block in front of her and the next car, and she was going nowhere.  I tapped my horn to get her to move a bit, after missing several lights.  She stopped her car, got out with arms flailing, and ran right up to my car window screaming and calling me all these swear words.  It is just not a warm and fuzzy place!

Take care,
Carrie

Man, that sux.  You would think the police would track that Caddy to see if the plates are still on it.  They might not even know they were stolen.

I am in almost the same boat as you.  I want the reliability and warranty of a new car, but I can not afford a NICE new car.  So, I am not sure if I want to get a 3 or 4 year old luxury car with potential problems, or a brand new piece of shit that I won't like driving.

Carrie as ASB said it could be much worse, thankfully YOU are OK.

A car is just a form of transport to get you from A to B. whats a few dents.  My car has aquired one or two over the years some by me some not, as long as it goes and is safe who cares.

Having a shiny unmarked and scrach free car is just something else to worry about, much more important things in life than a dent in metal to worry about.

Lizzie2 wrote on Aug 21^st, 2008 at 10:59pm:

A 2000 Maxima is a great car.  I own one too  
Take the car to an Auto Zone and ask them to pull the trouble codes.  Ask for any secondary codes too.  I'll tell you what the computer is saying.

I'm glad you are in one piece!

-Dennis-

Carrie,

I'm glad you weren't hurt and that it's only car damage.

I'm wondering - if the plates were bogus, possibly stolen, and there's a women yelling out of the passenger window - is that woman OK?  Why or what was she yelling?

Could this be something like a kidnapping of that woman?  Anything on the news about a missing person?

Sounds really creepy to me.

Sandy