[Rubyfree]

Backing out of my driveway to go to the barn, my drivers side front tire exploded.

Befuddled and shocked, I managed to get the car off of the slope of my driveway and onto the street to change the tire. Of course the nuts were too tight (and I am no lightweight), so I couldn't do anything but leave it half in the street waiting for the man with the big guns to get home.

When my white knight arrived, he loosened the nuts to jack it up, whereupon we observed that the wheel well and fender had been blown completely off of their moorings by the pressure. Awesome. I got on the horn with the insurance company to file a claim.

While I was on the phone, Mr. RF got the tire off. The coil spring on that tire had SHEARED IN HALF, and the razor edge sliced the wall of my tire off. There have been no signs of suspension problems. This was completely out of the blue.

The only times I drive these days are to go to the barn; it's an hour away and I drive like a bat out of hell down the thruway to get there. Literally 95% of my driving time is spent on the highway, going fastfastfast.

The last time I drove was tuesday, and I was going a gazillion miles an hour. Within 30 seconds of starting the car today, this happened. If that had happened after I got on the expressway, I would be very dead.

Small blessings. Or big blessings, I guess.

So yeah. I'm a little shaky.

The last few months have been a comedy of small dramas; nothing huge and life shattering, just little crap that cumulatively screws up ones mood and life view. I'm thanking whatever higher power decided to give me this gift today.

So. If the car is salvageable, do I have all of the springs replaced, assuming this metal fatigue is not unique? And what should I drink tonight to toast my guardian angel?

[Louise]

Oh my gosh! I'm so glad that you're OK. I can certainly understand why you're shaken. You are one very lucky young woman!

((((((((((Hugs)))))))))))

[Paige777]

Someone was looking out for you. Wow. And personally, yes, I would replace all of the springs - might never have another problem with any of them, but I wouldn't need that hint of worry in my mind while I was driving down the freeway.

[Rubyfree]

Thanks guys. I have moved on from "sort of near death experience" freak out to "It's going to cost how much?" freak out.

The adjuster who i'm working with will not be able to get to the car until Monday but he said it sounds like the body work & tire will be covered if they were damaged as a result of the mechanical failure. Of course, I JUST changed insurance companies and hadn't looked over the policy yet, and the deductible is $500, not $250, which is what I'd asked Mr. RF to put it at. Ah well. So.. $500 deductible, plus whatever the springs are going to cost... maybe shocks too... and I better hope they determine that the body damage was caused by the spring going. This is what I get for doing the budget yesterday afternoon and determining that there was going to be a little extra in the coffers this month.