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This serves as a PSA to avoid straddling the new fangled "armadillo" (I discovered that this is what they are called upon subsequent research) bumps that are used to form/separate bike lanes in roads. A grocery store near my house decided to use one of these on a ramp going up to a parking garage. I was coming down the ramp in my 2013 S and straddled the bump to avoid hitting some debris on the ramp. I misjudged the height of the bump and took a hit to the lower portion of my radiator which then resulted in a coolant leak. Almost $2,800 in repairs later, I have a new radiator and a very expensive lesson on avoiding these (and indeed any sort of road debris) these bumps. Thought it would be of benefit to the forum members to share this experience and to avoid these bumps!
Underside view of damage Front view of damage Broken radiator frame. Frame damage Armadillo bump on ramp Close up of bump
I would contact the management company for the store and file a claim with them. That is completely irresponsible and a hazard to vehicles. I had a similar issue with a parking structure and filed a claim for wheel damage and they paid me $2300.00 for a new wheel.
Armadillo? Wonder why they put such a nasty obstruction there. Try a skunk here in California that I once hit. Middle of the night in a turn and I barely saw it when it darted out into my path. Heard a nasty clunk, sound like a meat grinder coming from my wheel well. Then that smell filled the cabin and I knew right there and then even my fido won't ride with me for a long while. That car, my daily driver, has never been inside the garage since and now 6 months later, the smell is still there.
I did call the grocery store and complained to them about the positioning of the bump and that they should do something about it before other cars get damaged. I argued that the bump does nothing to separate lanes is it is a lone bump along a long ramp. I got the banal "well, no one has complained before" response from the rep I spoke with on the phone. She did tell me that she would bring it up with "leadership" and that they would let me know of their decision. I am still waiting after 3 weeks. At any rate, I am glad I did not hit a real armadillo or a skunk a la Henry!
Tell them to submit it to their insurance company or file a claim with your insurance company and have them go back to the stores insurance company for payment. If that fails, take them to small claims court
Ciaka: this is in Houston; Bellaire specifically. Scott: good idea; I will follow up with them. Thanks.
I’d do it in writing to the parent company. Google the executive leadership email addresses and blast them all with your formal complaint. No sense in dealing with local store staff...they’ll just ignore it because dealing with this is a nuisance and above their pay grade. There’s always an executive customer service dept. in every company. You can also contact the property owner/manager where that store is located. Something like this is such a hazard and so unnecessary.
Thank you for sharing this! I’m typically naive when it comes to road debris and obstacles, always thinking that my cars are like armor trucks. This will make make me think twice before going over things like this.
