Update on my crunched Marauder

[Fourth Horseman]

Hey all,

Just thought I'd drop a quick note to give you all an update on the status of my crunched Marauder.

I'm happy to report that this morning, three months and one week after the car was involved in a T-bone wreck, the floor-pan part that my car needed arrived at my body shop. Repair work is now underway and I'm probably about 2 weeks away from having my car back.

Without getting into gorey details, it appears that the floor pan part that I needed was out of stock and replacement had not been green-lighted for build. Thanks to the efforts of my local Ford parts people, Steve Babcock and several others at Ford the part was built and shipped in just a little over a week, once the problem was discovered.

I'd really like to extend my thanks to Steve, the Ford Parts people I worked with and everybody here at mm.net for their help and support in resolving this parts nightmare.

Hopefully the car will come out of repairs in the same like-new condition it was in before the wreck. I'll snap some photos and report back here when I once again have my car.

[SouLRioT]

I'm glad your car will be back in one peace soon. I hope when you drive it again you get that huge grin on your face, despite all the heartaches you've suffered.

[Macon Marauder]

Fourth;

That's great news, man! Keep the faith.

[Petrograde]

Great! :up:

Glad to hear everything is going back together! I showed pics of your MM to buddy of mine when he asked me about the crashworthiness of the MM. Then I told him, .... He walked away!

BTW- any news on the people in the Honda? just curious.

Tom

[Paul T. Casey]

I'll bet the next few weeks will seem like the years we waited for this car to arrive! Best of luck, and happy Marauding soon!

[gonzo50]

Hey Fourth Horseman, glad to hear that you're in good spirits, :D hope you have her back in no time soon, best of luck. :rasta:

[Fourth Horseman]

Originally posted by Petrograde
BTW- any news on the people in the Honda? just curious.
Tom

Nope. I inquired with the police officer that I worked with after the crash, but he didn't know. They (the driver and occupant of the other car) lied to the police and insurance companies about how it all went down, though. I found out about that from my insurance company. Because there were no witnesses that came forward that saw the status of the traffic light it turned out to be my word against hers. So... my insurance is paying for my car, hers is paying for her car.

After that revelation I have to say that my concern for their well being after the wreck dropped considerably. Mini rant: I'm so sick of people making mistakes and then trying to avoid any responsibility for it. People make mistakes. I understand that and even expect it from time to time. But damn it, stand up and take responsibility for it when it happens. Grrrrrr.

Ok, mini rant over. :)

[Petrograde]

man....... people suck.:shake:

[JohnE]

Great to hear that your Marauder will be back to you soon.

It'll be good to see you dreamin' of mods again....

[chapel1]

Fourth Horsemen hope your Marauder comes home soon!

[merc406]

Glad to hear eveythings going better 4th.

[BlueMarauder]

Glad to hear things are doing better. Maybe the rear suspension noise will finally be fixed.

[Haggis]

Fourth Horseman,

From a new member to the board who has read many of your posts in the past, welcome back and glad to hear that you will be on the road again. :up: It is a shame when people do not take responsibility for their actions. :mad2: Hopefully they have learned a lesson!

[03SILVERSTREAK]

Originally posted by Petrograde
man....... people suck.:shake:

Not all people , just the ones that make a mistake and then lie in your face . :argue:

[sailsmen]

I suggest you consult an attorney about suing them. There is a good chance they will sue you. Your insurer will probably then settle with them and charge you for the accident.

It will drive your premiums up for 3 years min.

I work in the insurance industry and have seen this happen quite often.

You need to be sure to file a claim againest their insurer.

I have had very similar situations happen to me personally and have collected from their insurer.

[jgc61sr2002]

Forth - That's good news.:up:

[vegasmarauder]

How hard would it be to see a pic of the part that held up the repair? Is this a discontinued part, or was it just not sold a service replacement part? Just wondering if I should start stock piling these types of parts?

[Fourth Horseman]

vegasmarauder: I don't have a pic, I'm afraid, and it's probably already too late for me to run down to my body shop and get one. I'm sure it's all being carved up right now. It was actually the entire floor pan, even though I only need the side of it. The side of it has an aluminum rail and that was totally clobbered in my wreck.

Because this rail is attached to the floor pan and has some type of membrane between the two (to prevent galvanic action between the two dissimilar metals) Ford will not sell the rail alone. You need to get the entire pan.

What happened, as best as I understand it, was that there was a minor engineering change to the floor pan. Nothing that really altered the part as far as compatibility, but enough that it gave the part a new revision number. Somewhere along the line somebody was supposed to sign off on this new part and send it to manufacturing. That never happened. So, when they ran out of the floor pans that our cars were all built with they discovered that no parts were in inventory. This also explains why it took over 2 months just get a straight answer on what part number I needed. Some Ford documentation was showing one thing, some was showing another. At one point they even sent my body shop the floor pan part from the pre-2003 panther cars, which doesn't have this rail at all. All the fumbling around and miscomunication basically cost me 2 months.

To Ford and Steve Babcock's credit, once the problem was discovered they had a part built for me in seven days time. That's really pretty amazing considering all the things that had to happen, such as pieces coming in from individual suppliers, etc.

Anyway, that's the messy details. If anybody with a 2003 or newer panther car gets t-boned from now on they'll have the floor pan ready and waiting for them. :)

sailsmen: thanks for the tip. I'll contact my insurance company again for an update and see what's happening.

[Bigdogjim]

Good news Scott

Good news indeed!

[TAF]

Glad to hear things are finally coming together...I'm supposed to get mine back this Friday...it's been killing me!

I got to drive mine (briefly) last night for the 1st time in 34 days...she sounds sweet now...full report to come.

[Dr Caleb]

Originally posted by ADELG670
Not all people , just the ones that make a mistake and then lie in your face . :argue:
True, not all people. Some take responsibility for their actions.

What really sucks is no witnesses stepped forward; Fourth's who situation could have been avoided if someone who saw what happened stepped up.

Best thing that can happen in an accident like this would be the car gets moved to the left enough to hit the car beside you, IMHO. No 'witnesses' needed.

Hope you have all four on the road soon Fourth!

[jaywish]

Hi,

Well at least you are using new parts. I might have been tempted to cut up a wrecked CV rather then wait 2 months. You truly have patience.

If you were T Boned doesn't that put a higher % of the blame on the folks who hit you since they ran into the side of you rather then you running into the side of them or hitting head on 50/50%?

Maybe that is an urban legend but I'm pretty sure (darn old age) that is how an accident I was involved in was settled. I had no collision so I wound up with about 60% of my damages paid by them and I had to pick up the balance myself.

The reason I ask about % of blame is that (in my limited understanding) if they pay more then 50% of the cost your insurance rates don't go up.



Jay

[Fourth Horseman]

Honestly, I haven't spent a lot of time discussing it with the insurance company. What they told me was that the two companies were fighting about it between themselves and it looks like it's going to end up with each company paying for their customer's car.

I'm going to give them a call today, though, and see if I can get more details.

[Dr Caleb]

I'd check into that Fourth, around here, premiums only rise if Insurance companies have to pay a claim.

If it's her fault, her insurance company should cover your costs so your premiums don't rise. If your company has to pay your costs, they could.

Of course, getting her to take the blame. . . that's the tough one... :(

[mdmarauder]

Fourth,

That's a bad situation to be in. I'm an insurance agent and I can tell you that if your company pays out ANY money then it will reflect on your C.L.U.E. report as an at-fault accident.

[BODYMAN]

This is not suprising since I have seen this before. I had a 2003 expedition rear floor pan on backorder for 4 1/2 months. this stuff is a regular occurence for ford. :mad2: :mad: :mad2: :mad2:

[Heavy D.]

Fourth,
Sorry to read about your woes and hope it turns out okay. Glad nobody was injured or worse.

I thought I'd weigh in on the insurance issue.

A couple of years ago me and another driver sideswiped each other while changing lanes. The cops said we were both at fault and no ticket was issued to anyone. My insurance company paid for my car and his paid for his.

I still have that car and the same insurance policy, and my policy still and always has read "accident free" with a 15% discount.

I know it's anecdotal, but you may be okay with your rates since nobody got a ticket and each company is paying for their customers car, as was in my case.

[WolfeBros]

Hey Fourth.....good to hear from you and glad you are getting your car back soon. Keeping my fingers crossed for you that all is ok with it. Let us know. :)