Sonics and Animals on highway don't mix

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stimpy2301

New member
Southbound I-95, concrete barricade divider. Early dawn, northbound vehicles' lights shining brightly. I'm in the left lane. Suddenly, with no time to react, a dog-sized animal darts into my lane from the BARRIER-side. (It must have tried to cross but was impeded by the barrier and had no choice but to go back the way it came. I couldn't see it in the shadow if the barrier and/or the glare of the northbound headlights. ) I only saw it for a moment - just long enough to get a glimpse of brown fur and approximate size, let out a gasp and hang on - and into the front and under the wheel it went. Absolutely awful. The heap in the road behind me, silhouetted by the next car's lights, confirmed the animal was history... and the bits of debris tumbling about confirmed I had some damage.

Here are the results, below. Aside from the smashed bumper and torn off foglight, the headlight assembly is also broken/cracked. Awesome start to the week. Worse one for the animal, about which I feel awful.

IMG_20130128_074902.jpg


IMG_20130128_074746.jpg


IMG_20130128_074734.jpg
 
turbooh12

turbooh12

New member
Man that sucks! I've only hit an animal once and it was indeed a dog running across the highway in morning rush hour and I couldn't stop or i'd cause a pileup in the bumper-to-bumper traffic. Had to hit it :/
Also, it was in driver's ed when I was 15 and the 3 classmates in the back were all screaming and then the teacher told me I had done the right thing, even though I got crap for the next few weeks from my classmates.

Sidenote, is it me, or does the sonic still look like a good car even with its bumper missing?
 
Gsrdude

Gsrdude

New member
Glad you are ok.

Looks to be an easy fix with just a new bumper and headlight assy. Simple comp insurance claim

And yes always hit the animal, cause if you swerve and hit the tree, guard rail, etc.. Then it becomes a collision claim. Rates could potentially increase and collision deductibles are higher (Or should be anyway)
 
rdss

rdss

Junior Member
Glad you're okay, and it looks like it could have been a lot worse. I would see what it would cost to toss on the RS bumper cover instead.
 
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stimpy2301

New member
rdss said:
Glad you're okay, and it looks like it could have been a lot worse.
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Gsrdude said:
Glad you are ok.
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dvn said:
At least you're OK.
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Thanks all, me too!


rdss said:
I would see what it would cost to toss on the RS bumper cover instead.
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ThatTmoGuy said:
The RS bumper cover wouldn't be worth it IMHO, Why buy the ugly parts :p
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I couldn't follow the link directly (work filter it seems), but this does make me wonder -- would this be an opportunity to get an RS bumper? Do they fit? I'd have to replace the other foglight though, too, right...? So is the one you're trying to link to made to look like RS but fits the LTZ fogs?
 
ThatTmoGuy

ThatTmoGuy

New member
I think the link you're referring to is an ad-sense link so it would have taken you to some garbage page anyway. Another member pointed out in another thread that the RS bumper wouldn't likely fit a non RS car but I doubt they made a whole new mounting system for a bumper cover. Your best bet would be to place a few calls and see if you can even find an RS bumper to begin with.
 
rdss

rdss

Junior Member
I didn't link anything. The forum did that off of key words. You'll have to do the leg work at your dealer to get the parts and yes, you'll need the whole dog light kit and you will also need to figure out if there are any extra brackets for the RS bumper.
 
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stimpy2301

New member
Contacted the parts department at my dealership to research the RS bumper/fogs idea. Their reply:
"The 2013 Sonic RS has not been put into production as of yet. They are not taking orders for the vehicles, and as of right now there are no parts listed specifically for the RS. I can see the difference in the sales brochure, but until it becomes a production vehicle there are no part numbers or catalog information that we can get from General Motors. In the meantime all that is available is identical to what is on your vehicle at this time. It could be days, weeks, or a month or more before we could get this information from Chevrolet for you."

Bummer. So unless I want to drive around with a smashed up from corner for an indefinite duration, then I'll have to go back to stock.
 
MrSnuggles

MrSnuggles

New member
stimpy2301 said:
Contacted the parts department at my dealership to research the RS bumper/fogs idea. Their reply:
"The 2013 Sonic RS has not been put into production as of yet. They are not taking orders for the vehicles, and as of right now there are no parts listed specifically for the RS. I can see the difference in the sales brochure, but until it becomes a production vehicle there are no part numbers or catalog information that we can get from General Motors. In the meantime all that is available is identical to what is on your vehicle at this time. It could be days, weeks, or a month or more before we could get this information from Chevrolet for you."

Bummer. So unless I want to drive around with a smashed up from corner for an indefinite duration, then I'll have to go back to stock.
Click to expand...

Hmm.... Duct tape?? Or how about jerry rig a ramming bumper for now?
 
S

stimpy2301

New member
MrSnuggles said:
Hmm.... Duct tape?? Or how about jerry rig a ramming bumper for now?
Click to expand...

No, no, that wouldn't even be necessary. I've cut away most of the loose parts (e.g., the deflector dragging on the ground), so basically I'd be driving around with this big hole in the front left corner. If only I knew how long it would take to get RS parts...

Email sent to GMpartsdirect about the RS parts, we'll see what they come back with.
 
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