Sadly, gentlemen, another Buick Regal has gone the way of the salvage yard.
Last Wednesday (June 15th) I was on my way to work when a 20 year-old barely insured idiot ran a red light and nailed me. I was in the left lane of three, and she hit me hard enough in her new Chevy Cavalier that my 84 Regal crossed all three lanes and landed in the parking lot of the gas station on the corner. I managed to shear the front end of her car off (most of it's still embedded in my engine compartment) and she still tried to drive away. No, she didn't make it far. I managed to climb out of the passenger side because the driver's door is wedged shut, and I could barely stand. After I was taken to the hospital for X-rays (bad whiplash, but thank God nothing was broken!) I got a visit from one of the officers who responded to the accident, and he said it was pretty clear she ran the light and I wasn't at fault. Of course, try telling that to her insurance company. I've even got the Police report that clearly states she was at fault and cited for disregarding a traffic signal, and includes the names and phone numbers of four witnesses, and Allstate is tryin' to say that there were no witnesses and she had an arrow, so it's her word against mine. I can't wait to nail their oily hides to the wall. My dad used to be a practicing attorney, so we're already calling in favors...
If anyone is curious about the extent of the damage, you can see a few pics here:
http://www.xanga.com/foxyladybug
It's my girlfriend's blog. She went with me to the impound and snapped a few pics while we cleaned out what we could. You'll notice that my fender and radiator are not only touching, but also touching the engine block. The dingy in the Cavalier managed to physically damage the engine block!
Anyway, the point of this post isn't to complain about insurance, and it isn't to gripe about how much it sucks to not have a car (although I haven't been cleared to drive yet, anyway. I was in a neck brace for four days.), the point of this is to celebrate the life and honor the death of a car I dearly love.
My 1984 Buick Regal Limited was regarded by many to be "nothing special," but I knew better. When I bought her in 2000, she was already 16 years old, but had only seen 30,625 miles, and all of them were documented. She had never missed an oil change, only seen rain a couple of times, and despite being my little sister's age, still smelled new. I was 20, a sophomore in college, and to be honest, I had no interest in buying what had been my Grandmother's car. I had been saving up to buy a light truck, a Ranger or something, when this car came available. Grudgingly, I took it for a test drive, because I knew that if I didn't, my parents wouldn't help me find the car I really wanted. To make a long story short, I pulled out of the driveway, onto the busy street behind my house, and I made it almost down the block before turning to my mom and blurting out "I'm keeping this car. I want this car. We're buying this car!" Over the next few months I began learning everything I could about my car's engine, tranny, suspension, and history, and I first learned of the mighty Grand Nationals. Since then I have made friends with every mechanic I could find, and dozens of people in Brownwood, where I went to college, Garland and Mesquite, where I lived and worked after graduating, and DeSoto/Duncanville, where I live and work now, have spent countless hours helping me maintain my one-of-a-kind and very, very cool car.
Now, after five years, dozens of road trips, and 85,000+ miles, the era has come to an end.
God bless, y'all
alopeks <><
Last Wednesday (June 15th) I was on my way to work when a 20 year-old barely insured idiot ran a red light and nailed me. I was in the left lane of three, and she hit me hard enough in her new Chevy Cavalier that my 84 Regal crossed all three lanes and landed in the parking lot of the gas station on the corner. I managed to shear the front end of her car off (most of it's still embedded in my engine compartment) and she still tried to drive away. No, she didn't make it far. I managed to climb out of the passenger side because the driver's door is wedged shut, and I could barely stand. After I was taken to the hospital for X-rays (bad whiplash, but thank God nothing was broken!) I got a visit from one of the officers who responded to the accident, and he said it was pretty clear she ran the light and I wasn't at fault. Of course, try telling that to her insurance company. I've even got the Police report that clearly states she was at fault and cited for disregarding a traffic signal, and includes the names and phone numbers of four witnesses, and Allstate is tryin' to say that there were no witnesses and she had an arrow, so it's her word against mine. I can't wait to nail their oily hides to the wall. My dad used to be a practicing attorney, so we're already calling in favors...
If anyone is curious about the extent of the damage, you can see a few pics here:
http://www.xanga.com/foxyladybug
It's my girlfriend's blog. She went with me to the impound and snapped a few pics while we cleaned out what we could. You'll notice that my fender and radiator are not only touching, but also touching the engine block. The dingy in the Cavalier managed to physically damage the engine block!
Anyway, the point of this post isn't to complain about insurance, and it isn't to gripe about how much it sucks to not have a car (although I haven't been cleared to drive yet, anyway. I was in a neck brace for four days.), the point of this is to celebrate the life and honor the death of a car I dearly love.
My 1984 Buick Regal Limited was regarded by many to be "nothing special," but I knew better. When I bought her in 2000, she was already 16 years old, but had only seen 30,625 miles, and all of them were documented. She had never missed an oil change, only seen rain a couple of times, and despite being my little sister's age, still smelled new. I was 20, a sophomore in college, and to be honest, I had no interest in buying what had been my Grandmother's car. I had been saving up to buy a light truck, a Ranger or something, when this car came available. Grudgingly, I took it for a test drive, because I knew that if I didn't, my parents wouldn't help me find the car I really wanted. To make a long story short, I pulled out of the driveway, onto the busy street behind my house, and I made it almost down the block before turning to my mom and blurting out "I'm keeping this car. I want this car. We're buying this car!" Over the next few months I began learning everything I could about my car's engine, tranny, suspension, and history, and I first learned of the mighty Grand Nationals. Since then I have made friends with every mechanic I could find, and dozens of people in Brownwood, where I went to college, Garland and Mesquite, where I lived and worked after graduating, and DeSoto/Duncanville, where I live and work now, have spent countless hours helping me maintain my one-of-a-kind and very, very cool car.
Now, after five years, dozens of road trips, and 85,000+ miles, the era has come to an end.
"You may not have been the prettiest in town, but you were mine, and no one made fun of you for long. Together we always made the critics shut up. Thank you for being a wonderful car. Thank you for never letting me down (for long) and never once leaving me stranded by the side of the road. Thank you for hauling my crazy college buddies, sweaty soccer teammates, and immature Youth groups all over the state. Thank you very much for not letting me get hurt on Wednesday. You were an excellent car. You will be missed."
Buick Regal "Bertie"
July 16th 1984 - June 15th 2005
July 16th 1984 - June 15th 2005
God bless, y'all
alopeks <><
