Flying plywood

[seeh2o]

I was driving to work on the Hollywood freeway and a truck in front of me kicked up a 24" x 24" x 1" piece of plywood (I initially thought it was thick cardboard when I first saw it) that came flying straight at my car. I couldn't swerve to dodge it as I had a car on one side of me and a cube truck on the other side. The plywood hit my left front quarter panel, then went up and hit the driver's side rear view mirror, skittered along the side of my car and then on to the vehicle behind me.

While I was driving I noticed that the force of the impact had caused my mirror to fold in. When I got to work I saw that a perfect one inch chunk matching the size of the plywood was missing from the bottom edge of the colored part of my mirror and the black part of the housing was cracked. The body of the car was scuffed, I think I can buff out the scuffs.

I was sooooo upset at the driving and plywood gods, but then I realized if the wood had not hit my mirror it would have shot right into the window and hit me in the head. Perspective kicked in, I am grateful to not have been hurt or killed. Mea culpa to the driving gods!

On a pragmatic note, can the piece of the exterior mirror which houses the actual mirror, not the arm coming from the car, be replaced by the likes of me without special tools or requiring a trip to a body shop? I am sure the dealership will tell me that only they or a body shop should replace it, but I am fairly handy and am wondering if anyone here has any experience with this?

[hyo silver]

The very same thing happened to me last summer, only it was a chunk of wood from a logging truck, not a piece of plywood. Luckily, I saw it coming and managed to swerve just enough that it hit the mirror and not my face. The coloured piece of the mirror housing can be replaced easily enough, though it's easier to see how to do it once you have the replacement part in hand. If you squeeze the plastic housing with both hands, it will bend enough for the little holding pins to release. It's a 5 minute job, 4 of which is getting the old part off. The body shop wanted about $150, but I did it myself for about $30. If you can live with the crack in the black part, (make sure there's no serious damage inside once you get the housing off) that will be much easier and cheaper than replacing the entire housing, mirror and all.

[Tempus]

That's nothing

Flying Cow Leaves Two Police Cars in Flames

[seeh2o]

Originally posted by hyo silver@Mar 17 2006, 01:30 PM
The very same thing happened to me last summer, only it was a chunk of wood from a logging truck, not a piece of plywood. Luckily, I saw it coming and managed to swerve just enough that it hit the mirror and not my face. The coloured piece of the mirror housing can be replaced easily enough, though it's easier to see how to do it once you have the replacement part in hand. If you squeeze the plastic housing with both hands, it will bend enough for the little holding pins to release. It's a 5 minute job, 4 of which is getting the old part off. The body shop wanted about $150, but I did it myself for about $30. If you can live with the crack in the black part, (make sure there's no serious damage inside once you get the housing off) that will be much easier and cheaper than replacing the entire housing, mirror and all.

[snapback]225979[/snapback]

Thanks so much, your post is very encouraging! Where did you order the housing, from the dealership? Do they come prepainted?

[seeh2o]

Originally posted by Tempus@Mar 17 2006, 01:44 PM
That's nothing

Flying Cow Leaves Two Police Cars in Flames

[snapback]225988[/snapback]

LOL, I read about that this morning! It's a wonder no people were killed and only one was killed.

[Oxo]

Originally posted by seeh2o@Mar 17 2006, 01:02 PM
I was driving to work on the Hollywood freeway and a truck in front of me kicked up a 24" x 24" x 1" piece of plywood (I initially thought it was thick cardboard when I first saw it) that came flying straight at my car. 

[snapback]225960[/snapback]

There's a limit to the distance plywood will fly. So were you too close to the vehicle in front?
In my experience most people drive far too close. Years ago I was in a car behind a truck when the truck's gearbox exploded, scattering large steel bits and pieces all over the highway. We were far enough back to avoid the biggest pieces but since then I always imagine remote possibilities happening when I'm behind another vehicle.

[hyo silver]

Originally posted by seeh2o@Mar 17 2006, 01:49 PM
Thanks so much, your post is very encouraging!  Where did you order the housing, from the dealership?  Do they come prepainted?

[snapback]225994[/snapback]

Yes, and yes. Be sure to order the correct year and colour, and specify if it's left or right. I was greatly relieved to find I could order just that housing part, and not the whole mirror assembly. Even the parts manager didn't think I could until he looked it up.

[IsrAmeriPrius]

Originally posted by Oxo@Mar 17 2006, 11:35 AM
There's a limit to the distance plywood will fly. So were you too close to the vehicle in front?

[snapback]226031[/snapback]

Oxo,

Have you ever driven on any Southern California freeway during the rush hour?

[moonbeam]

You are lucky.

see...

Blinded Woman's Tragedy Leads To New Law
http://www.komotv.com/news/story.asp?ID=36835

Woman Nearly Killed By Flying Piece Of Plywood
http://www.komotv.com/news/story.asp?ID=41840

[Rancid13]

Aw, man, I'm sorry to hear that!

One morning during my commute from El Segundo to Huntington Beach while in my former car, a Saturn, I was driving merrily along in the left lane when a car just ahead of me in the carpool lane ran over something I call 'random freeway shrapnel' because I'm not quite sure what it was. Anyways, this shrapnel then becomes airborne and headed directly at the driver's side of my car, scraping every panel from the frontmost to the rearmost about 8" below the windows. Looked like an angry cat had taken a sharp claw to the side of my car, etching a deep scratch down the length of it. Sounded like it too, when it happened I cringed then nearly wept upon arriving at my destination and seeing the damage. Buffing did nothing, the scratch was too deep.