Hit a big sharp rock, something broke, should I get it looked at?

[chris82]

So much construction in my area, and I guess some stupid dump truck driver overloaded his truck. A big sharp looking rock (about the size of a baseball) was lying in the middle of the road, and I couldn't go around or change lanes to avoid it. I had no choice but to drive straight over it. So it goes under and I hear a big noise of it hitting something. A few small black plastic pieces (1 square inch maybe) flew out from behind my car which I'm guessing was part of those panels underneath. I thought it was my bumper that got messed up, but that, and that undershield that connects to the bumper are in tact and have no scratches or anything to my surprise. I'm guessing it hit something a bit further under the car. Exhaust pipes and cats look good, no dents or anything there. I think I see a chipped part of the undershield in about the middle of the car but I can't tell. Worth getting looked at? Didn't hit my tires or anything, car feels no different.

TLDR: Hit an unavoidable rock, broke some undershielding, nothing else changed, should I get it looked at?

[Esteban]

Couldn't hurt to put it on a lift and give it the once over, if just for your peace of mind. That's what I would do.

[litebulb]

I had a similiar situation, the rock cracked a piece of the undershield in my driver side front fender. Lucky it didn't mess up anything in my wheel well.

[dtla1]

I ran over a rock and it sounded bad, looked under the car but looked fine. Few months later I go to change my DP and take the undershield off. Mid-pipes right where they connect to the DP are crushed in a bit and twisted, looks nasty. Left it like this, not affecting performance according to my Butt dyno.

[Dackelone]

This would be covered by your comprehensive insurance. Most states its a zero deductible and doesn't impact(pun intended! ) on your driving record.

The rock could have cracked your oil pan or done other suspension damage. You don't know until you remove all those panels and screws - and have a look-see.

[anglocanadian]

"This would be covered by your comprehensive insurance"
I can confirm that, my 3 series was hit by a truck tire on the highway and the insurance covered the $4000 repair bill and my good record qualified for no deductable.
They have assured me my premium will not increase.
As for running over something and getting a loud bang I would check your plastic jacking point is still there, mine was torn away !

[mr.fabulous]

I hit a big rock with my Corrado 20yrs ago and ripped out a shock tower. Have it looked at.

[Andrewcoja]

If if the plastic under trays aren't broken, that doesn't mean the rock didn't bend them up and break something behind them.

[631twentyeighteye]

I've had this happen with a rock the size of a football. It's not fun. It broke a few pieces of the undertray, bent the exhaust in a few places but nothing major and chipped off a piece of my differential cover()

Thankfully, nothing needed to be fixed from it except the under trays. Just thoroughly go over the underside and make sure there aren't any leaks or broken parts. The Diff could have been majorly broken but i sidestepped the rock to avoid it hitting the diff head on.

[chris82]

Phew, well I'm taking it in Monday to get looked at first thing in the morning. Hoping this isn't anything major, but if insurance covers it then I don't really care haha

[MotoWPK]

Originally Posted by anglocanadian

"This would be covered by your comprehensive insurance"
I can confirm that, my 3 series was hit by a truck tire on the highway and the insurance covered the $4000 repair bill and my good record qualified for no deductable.
They have assured me my premium will not increase.
As for running over something and getting a loud bang I would check your plastic jacking point is still there, mine was torn away !

This is correct but you may have to be insistent with the insurance company for it to be classified as a comprehensive claim rather than a collision claim.

We had underside damage to a vehicle a few years ago from a rock (or something) that required about $5000 to repair. While there was no question of it being covered, our insurance company was initially going to classify it as a collision claim, which does affect your rating. I argued with them that, given the conditions, there was no way the driver could have avoided this any more than a driver can avoid a rock hitting the windshield, a classic comprehensive claim. With my insistence, they yielded and classified it as a comprehensive claim (and after all the discussion is done, confirm their paperwork on the claim does indeed show it as comprehensive).

[luv135i]

Originally Posted by MotoWPK

This is correct but you may have to be insistent with the insurance company for it to be classified as a comprehensive claim rather than a collision claim.

We had underside damage to a vehicle a few years ago from a rock (or something) that required about $5000 to repair. While there was no question of it being covered, our insurance company was initially going to classify it as a collision claim, which does affect your rating. I argued with them that, given the conditions, there was no way the driver could have avoided this any more than a driver can avoid a rock hitting the windshield, a classic comprehensive claim. With my insistence, they yielded and classified it as a comprehensive claim (and after all the discussion is done, confirm their paperwork on the claim does indeed show it as comprehensive).

This. If you describe it as just an object laying in the road, they sometimes like to file it under collision and you may have a rate increase. Its sometimes better to "see" the object fall off a truck and is bouncing in the road.

[Ghent]

in the early 90's I was driving down the hiway and a trucks tailgate fell... he had a bowling ball in the back that I hit at 70mph... that will give you a shock. damage was viewable though... totaled the car

[chris82]

Originally Posted by luv135i

This. If you describe it as just an object laying in the road, they sometimes like to file it under collision and you may have a rate increase. Its sometimes better to "see" the object fall off a truck and is bouncing in the road.

Thnaks for the tip!

Originally Posted by Ghent

in the early 90's I was driving down the hiway and a trucks tailgate fell... he had a bowling ball in the back that I hit at 70mph... that will give you a shock. damage was viewable though... totaled the car

Wow, that's bad.


All, got my car looked at, and I personally took a look as well when it was on the lift. Very minor underpanel damage, hard to even find really. a tiny piece here gone, tiny piece there, etc. There was a small scratch on the catalytic converter, and one further up the exhaust pipe, but only scratches, no dents. Looks like I got lucky! So I'm going to let it be.

Thanks for help