Disasterous First Day

[AZDan]

Well I picked up my 2002 Boxster S this morning. This is my first Porsche and I was so thrilled. It was a 40 mile drive home on the freeway, which felt great. When I got closer to home and hit the city streets I was amazed at how smooth the tranny is. The engine purs and the car just feels right.

I stopped on the way home to pick up a few things when it happend...

As I made a left hand turn out of the shopping center I I slammed the left rear tire into the curb .

I pulled over immediatly. I was in a state of panic, as you can imagine, but was so relieved that there was no body damage that I didn't even consider the wheel itself. It ripped some paint off the wheel but I decided to drive home and take a closer look.

Right away I could tell something was wrong. I stopped again and the left rear wheel is leaning outward about a 3/8 inch I am so furious at my self right now. The car made it home ok, but anything over 45 is all over the lane.

Should I have this towed or am I ok to drive this at low speed to the shop?

What a way to start...

[TriGem2k]

AZDan - Congrats on the purchase............Sorry about the mishap.

I had a similar thing happen to me about a year ago.

I suggest you tow the car so you don’t risk any more damage.

First thing first, have the shop do an alignment to determine if you have any suspension damage. Hopefully not.

I'm certain your alignment is all out of wack and if that’s the worst case you are in good shape. About $150 and your right back on your feet.

What kind of wheels are on the car? If the wheel is in bad shape you could possibly look at a new set of Replica wheels that will set you back only about $900 including tires.

Good luck. Keep us posted.

James

Depending on the severity it may not need alignment but a check is a good idea. There is no doubt that the wheel itself is bent, you can send them to be retrued and painted or just find a new wheel. Don't sweat it in either case, could have been way worse.

[Perfectlap]

post a pic of the wheel and tire. If its just curbing it can be touched up to look new. If its cracked well time to buy a new one and ditto for the tire if there is sidewall tearing.

Wow you must have really hit that curb hard! I did the same thing on an unlit driveway one night. Brand new RA-1's and pinch! time to order a new left rear. $250 and a week to wait. grr....

Don't kick yourself about the alignment, its probably a good idea to do one as soon as you get the car. I doubt the previous owner had it done if he knew he was selling...oh and let us know how much they charge you for the alignment.
They should not charge you more than $200. Aligning a Boxster is no more difficult than aligning a Honda S2000. Try to find a speed shop with a good reputation if they hit you with one of those $350 quotes.

[2000SoCalBoxsterS]

Speaking of a Speed Shop. Does anybody know of any in NY,CT, or NJ where I can visit and try the Recaro or Sparco seats before buying them?

Thanks

[AZDan]

Tow truck is on the way

Don't feel so bad. A few years ago I bought a Lincoln for my old man. I took it out for the first test drive on the highway, hit black ice, then the concrete guardrail, costing $15,000 dollars in damage. I towed it back to the dealer at night time and left it in the lot.

Originally Posted by AZDan

Well I picked up my 2002 Boxster S this morning. This is my first Porsche and I was so thrilled. It was a 40 mile drive home on the freeway, which felt great. When I got closer to home and hit the city streets I was amazed at how smooth the tranny is. The engine purs and the car just feels right.

I stopped on the way home to pick up a few things when it happend...

As I made a left hand turn out of the shopping center I I slammed the left rear tire into the curb .

I pulled over immediatly. I was in a state of panic, as you can imagine, but was so relieved that there was no body damage that I didn't even consider the wheel itself. It ripped some paint off the wheel but I decided to drive home and take a closer look.

Right away I could tell something was wrong. I stopped again and the left rear wheel is leaning outward about a 3/8 inch I am so furious at my self right now. The car made it home ok, but anything over 45 is all over the lane.

Should I have this towed or am I ok to drive this at low speed to the shop?

What a way to start...

[AZDan]

Well the flatbed just left. I didn't have a chance to take any pictures of the wheel but it still looks solid. There is a 180 degree arc of paint scraped off the edge but no clearly visable warping (I sure there is though).

It's headed to ******************************** in Tempe, AZ. I spoke to them on the phone and they said they have the machine to retrue the wheel on site. Assuming an allignment is ~$200 what could I be expecting to retrue the wheel and get it repainted?

Also, what other potential suspension damage could have been done?

Man I was really looking forward to some top down driving this weekend

[Perfectlap]

I think I paid $150 to fix a dent and repaint. But that was a small shop with low prices.
Hitting a curb should just be an alignment. I wouldn't freak out about it.

[IowaS]

Reminds me of the first day I brought my new boxster home...I left work early and decided to cruise a bit, went down a street and stopped for a railroad crossing signal and had a POS mini-van lock it's brakes up behind me to stop...thought my first trip may have been the last.....better luck next time...

[blueillusion97]

In the first few days of ownership i got hit and during all that i was forsed to run over a curb that is over a foot tall causing some damage under the car....and on top of that the guy ran away before i even steped out of a car.....i looked more or less like this :troll: