[foxtail]

Oh, Christine, ouch! So sorry!

I know I bitched about my first ding, but at least I didn't get one for a month, and it's not that big! Sounds like it's time for one of those dent repair guys so your baby can look like new.

I begin to understand those people (whom I've previously called very uncomplimentary names) who park across 2 parking spaces so no one can park beside them.

Kristi

 

[MatT3T4]

You know what's funny...this is actually my second ding. My first one happened 6 days after getting the car. However, the tragically ironic part of it is, the second ding landed DIRECTLY atop the first one...just went on a lot harder.

Is that luck? Or is it just a nasty coincidence?

 

[ShaneS]

I know what it feels like, so far all is good with my "E" but I had this beutiful Jetta VR6 and it was only 2 weeks old and some @$$# put a nast crease across the side. I had it fixed and it was all good $900 later because I didnt want to let my insurance go up. As for my "E" and parking since the incident with the VW I have been very cautious as to where I park. In fact there was one time I decided to park far away where no one else was. Well my girlfriend an I came out from the mall and I could not believe it. there was another car parked next to me and I got ripped on so badly lol

 

[CorvetteArchives.com]

You're right on about the microcosom of society thing!
I think part of the problem may also be the amount of people who lease cars.....since they dont OWN the car and figure they probably wont get their security deposit back anyway...they dont give a hoot about their stuff because it really isnt their's anyway so why care about YOUR's?
As for walking from far away.....hey its good for you isnt it? We actually call it parking in "Vetteville"...guess its could be "ElementLand" in this community?

 

[Jonathan Babiak]

[quote:f388191ed4="dinggos"](that is what i do for a living) I'm a dent elementer! LOL[/quote:f388191ed4]

http://www.dentnetwork.com/g_camry.htm

. . . on that Camry!

 

[GYPSYTDA]

I think people think there is this bright neon sign over a car that is park all isolated that says "I am lonely park next to me" really, it happens all the time... not just parking.. go some place to eat (this happens to me and my husband too often) it can be empty.. yet every person who will come in after us, must sit next to us.. (this would be a seat yourself place obviously) there is is this freakish attraction people have, goes with the empty lane in traffic, must be something wrong with it lets all pile in the same lane.. etc.. you know the lemming principal (they all jump off a cliff together)

Ahh and I must make statements on the Saturn issue.. if it were possible the "dent resistant" doors of the Saturn were so superior would it not be likely all vehicles would have this now? Item two, sure a vehicle that has the life span of a typical Saturn will have to have some good point (Key point look at the one posting of people who traded their saturn for an element, note how many of them talk about their constant oil refills.. some per every gas fill up, this is a common problem with saturns) saturns are not well known for their reliability. Aside from general perception we could simply view Consumer reports who rates Saturn at the bottom barrel.

The "wonderful exterior" does not fair well when you look at the reliability records for Saturns.. paint trim and rust rate the same on saturn as they do on hondas (which in both cases rates very well), the integrity and hardware rate far better on Honda, as well as other facets like engine, electrical, brakes, etc etc..

I also read that funny report about the Saturn and the traffic cone ... funny!!

I too also was dinged right after getting my element, brought it home saturday evening, that monday my hubbie had to take it and show it off.. he was en-route to work.. stopped in a traffic jam a vehicle riding the shoulder knocked something into the drivers side back door and gashed and scraped the door in several places. He was a wreck, and I was ill over it too.. it has since been remedied.. my dealer covered it for us, since we had such a long long wait for my accessories to arrive.

There is more to a car though then the ignorant people out there, and merely parking on pluto will not prevent it.. in fact for some reason i see more damage happen to vehicles who do park in the outer banks, so just use normal caution, yet don't fret.. things will happen unless you stand guard, just try and deal the best you can, and of course there is EOC for moral support!

GOOD LUCK!!

 

[foxtail]

I really have to spring to the defense of Saturn, at least the mid-90's ones. My '95 SL1 was a super car. The bounce-back sides were one of the reasons that the car looked almost new when I sold it last month. I do not understand why more cars don't have them. Maybe the doors don't make the solid thunk that people want? But even when my Saturn was new, I didn't have to stress about parking spaces.

Mechanically, my Saturn was still getting 33-35 mpg (all driving, not just highway). I had virtually no repairs in 9 years beyond normal maintenance. It was gulping oil the last few years (maybe a quart every 750 miles). Anyway, I guess what I'm saying is that the early Saturns were reliable, low maintenance cars.

From Consumers and other posts here, it seems that the more recent Saturns haven't moved with the times. I know I felt that way when I drove a Vue. Actually, the Vue is the reason I now have my E. I was planning to buy a car this fall, but when I saw the 0% financing that Saturn was offering, I thought I should look around, rather than wait. I looked at the Rav4, but the dealer didn't have any like what I wanted in stock. So, on impulse I drove across the street to look at the Element, which I'd seen in Consumer Reports auto issue. Drove it and pretty much decided that day.

But I went to Saturn to drive the Vue, and after the E, there was no way that I would have bought a Vue. It was noisier, more cramped, more expensive, and it did not have the pep of the E. Plus, the instrument panel was identical to the one I had in my '95 SL1!

 

[GYPSYTDA]

Fox tail I respect your defense. . but a 95 that was gulping oil at only 8 years old that is wrong... my Integra (Acura.. which is also Honda) is over 7 years old and I have only had normal oil changes, replaced the tires and brakes.. So this is what I am saying... it is not right to have to deal with mechanical problems... and i see this too often from American car owners seems to become an accepted fact of owning one.. That mechanical problems are the norm... and they think that there is nothing wrong with that... but there is. Saturn’s have had a bad track record from day one, from day one they suffered from spontaneous engine fires and other wonderful anomalies.

My husband also suffered from thinking normal mechanial failures were normal.. when we met I had a prelude.. i had it till it was over 10 years old and then I replaced it with the integra.. he had several vehicles in that span of time, all were american and all were younger then my vehicles.. and the shop was a frequent place to visit with those vehicles. When he noticed with the hondas how you drive the car day and out and don't have to stop by the shop on a regular basis he was amazed.. and grew respect for how incredible hondas are and how incredible it is that you do not need to fix and repair youre vehicle so often or at all for that matter.

 

[Staggie]

A little more defense of Saturn. I have a '97 SL that has never had a mechanical problem. It was $2500 less than the Civic hatch the same year. I runs well and has never needed additional oil between changes; I'd never heard anything about people having trouble with Saturns consuming oil. Thanks to the dent-proof panels, the car looks almost new still. I have the complete maintenance history and it's just the routine stuff. They are fairly reliable but somewhat bland vehicles. Saturn seats aren't too comfy though, and the new Ion's interior is awful. I think the VUE is attractive, but the interior materials aren't very nice and it's pretty expensive.

My E, however, is an object of love.

 

[GYPSYTDA]

Staggie cool glad you love your E, that makes all the difference when you are happy with what you have...

but for the Saturns.. I am glad you got lucky and and have not experience problems with the 97, 5 years of age that is how it should be, but that also is a rarity for the GM line.. especially Saturn. As far as the oil consumption, it is a common problem Saturn owners have had.. you were one of the lucky ones.

 

[cratE]

Sorry... just wanted to voice another Saturn opinion. My wife and I have owned 4 Saturns and had only minor problems with them. When the problems occurred the dealer quickly and efficiently corrected them. I bought my first Saturn back in '91 and it was one of the most solid cars I've owned. My wife once backed out of the garage and caught the edge of a 4 x 8 sheet of plywood under the front body panel. After we moved the car forward and removed the board the panel snapped back into place with no damage at all. We currently own a 300L with no complaints. One of the reasons we purchased an Element was the same feeling we got when we acquired our first Saturn. It was something different and promised a high level of quality. I see that same spirit in most of the post on this web site. My main reservation concerning Saturn these days is its absorption back into the GM fold, which I've already experienced first hand the change in attitude at the dealership.

 

[GYPSYTDA]

minor problems, like??

that is the thing what is minor to most people with GMs really should be considered more then minor.

Saturn was the best you had, what did you have before the saturns??

 

[fastlane]

I read these ding stories with a mere 1200 miles and dingless doors on my E, and I'm just cringing....It's time for drastic measures.....What if you had a 5' x 2" x 2" piece of styrofoam with little magnets in it. Place them on the doors when you park your car. Or, like boats just tie on some long skinny fenders hanging by string from the windows...

 

[fastlane]

I read these ding stories with a mere 1200 miles and dingless doors on my E, and I'm just cringing....It's time for drastic measures.....What if you had a 5' x 2" x 2" piece of styrofoam with little magnets in it. Place them on the doors when you park your car. Or, like boats just tie on some long skinny fenders hanging by string from the windows...

 

[E-Devil]

You want dents and dings??
3 weeks after I had my Element there was a hail storm here in NJ the likes I have never seen before. Hell, I thought Dorothy and Auntie Em were going to fall from the sky next. :shock:
I couldn't see any damage at the time, but the next morning when I took a look at my E , I almost cried. There were over 200 dents! The hood took the most damage. It looked like someone had droped 100's of golfballs on my car form about 30 feet. Every metal panel had at least one dent.
Al the cars around my E seemed fine. I thought "Damn Japenese metal" When I went to the bodyshop I saw every make and model with similar damage. Made me feel a little better. Misery does love company. The first day after the hail storm the bodyshop had over 50 people come in for estimates.
At this rate it will be Thanksgiving before they get to me. I thought about going to a paintless dent removal place, but I gave concerns about rust down the road. I remember reading years ago the rust proofing becomes ineffective after receivng heavey impact. The other thing is none of these paintless dent removal places were in this area untill after the storm. If I go the old fashion way they will repaint the entire car....

 

[tigernumber6]

Don't want to beat the Saturn thing to death, but I think the orignal point that it would be nice if Honda had dent resistant panels like Saturn is a solid one.

As I mentioned on this board before, I sold my Saturn to buy my Element. It was the best car I ever owned (next to my Element!) having over 275,000 miles on it. And the body (short of a couple surface scratches) was immaculate - no dents, no rust. Worst car I ever owned? My wife's 95 Honda Accord, LEMON!

Gotta give some parting props to the Element's exterior durability, though. The composite panels that I was so worried about back in Feb when I got my Element have proven pretty tough after-all (knock on wood).

 

[cratE]

minor problems, like??

that is the thing what is minor to most people with GMs really should be considered more then minor.

Saturn was the best you had, what did you have before the saturns??

Most of the things were so minor I don't remember them (really). The only dramatic thing was some oil consumption @ 38K miles on the first one we owned. I think it was the rings. The dealer fixed it for free even though it was out of warranty. We didn't have to beg or threaten they just fixed it. Do I think an engine should start to consume oil @ 38K miles? No, but when your dealer takes care of things without any hassle then it makes the problems seem minor. I hope when I go to the Honda dealer with any issues it will be that smooth. However, I don't feel that Saturn is the same company now as it was then. Although I don't have any mechanical issues with the current car we own, our sales experience was horrible. In the early days of Saturn I think they did a good job of staying seperate from GM (I'm not a fan of GM either). Now I would be hesitant to buy a Saturn again. Which I guess is one reason I own an Element and not a Vue.

The cars we had previously were either cheap used cars (Honda, Subaru, Toyota) or classic Mopars ('67 Coronet, 63 Valiant). So any new car was an improvement in reliability.

 

[SteveO]

Wow, sorry to hear of so many ding stories. I've had my E two days; today I parked in the nether regions of a Home Depot lot and sure enough, a Mitsu SUV was right next to me when I came out. I also have an S2000 -- which I also take great pains to park. Doesn't matter -- I was at an Einstein's, parked on the edge of the end spot, as far to right as possible -- five OPEN spots next to me -- and some, um, PERSON, parked so close to me that I could barely open my door. Arrrggg. I have seen little notes placed on bad parkers' windshields that say: I hope you don't (bleep) like you park -- you'll never get in! Ha, we should all carry those around! :shock: :wink:

Also makes me want to get the rocker panels. For anybody wanting a little free extra protection, see your Honda dealer for discarded door guards that ship on the E -- they are fluorescent colored, but might be useful in bad parking lots. They attach to the side of the door.

Steve

 

[LittleDogBox]

[quote:45cab4dfb4="bush555"]RANT:

I will never, if I live three lifetimes, understand the mindset of people to whom denting the door of a neighboring vehicle is "okay."

Nor, ever, will I understand why the majority of lot spaces in Los Angeles are sized "compact," in a city where the majority of vehicles aren't.

Nor do I see how it is possible to park in distant, isolated peripheries and still -- still -- be subject to receiving a dent (as I have).

Albeit it's "only a car," and one must accept certain realities of ownership. But it's also a major investment, which one spends money, time and effort to maintain. It's unfortunate -- and reflective, I think, of the general zeitgeist -- that such a large contingent of the public is not more basically considerate.[/quote:45cab4dfb4]

One day I went into a shop and parked waaaaay far away under a tree. Not a car near it. When I returned a large white van parked soooo close you could barely put a finger between the 2 vehicles. I was so angry. It was obvious that my intention was not to be parked near anyone. I think this guy wanted under the tree to keep cool and read his paper. Thank goodness he backed in and no one was on the passenger side because if they had been that could have torn the crap out of my door. There is no ESCAPE from idiots. We are surrounded.

LittleDogBox
Arlington, Va.

 

[mreis171]

I also think sometimes people will park close to you in isolated areas SPECIFICALLY to mess with you. I had someone do this to me recently at the gym. I took the very last end spot (which was also extremely wide), and I found some jerk in an old beater parked a couple of inches from me when I came out. With the way they circulate traffic in this lot, this meant that he had to bypass many vacant closer spots AND he had to encroach way over the painted line just to get that close to me. I can't see how that was a coincidence. :evil:

He didn't ding me, but I serious thought about letting the air out of his tires, like in that scene from "Curb Your Enthusiasm" (I didn't).