Scraped the bottom - piece hanging down - safe to drive?

[NickSalf]

Hi all

I am staying at a hotel this weekend and I have just been reversed into a space with the aid of the hotel staff only to scrape the bottom of the car on a bollard and now there is a piece hanging down, looks like it is a protective metal piece which as it was caught backwards it has bent slightly, and come loose

Has anyone any similar experience and is it safe to drive? I live 2 hours away from home so i don’t want to get stuck half way. It looks like an easy fix, should I be chasing up the hotel to help pay any garage fees?

Cheers for any help,
Nick

 

[Z4 COUPSTER]

Hi all

I am staying at a hotel this weekend and I have just been reversed into a space with the aid of the hotel staff only to scrape the bottom of the car on a bollard and now there is a piece hanging down, looks like it is a protective metal piece which as it was caught backwards it has bent slightly, and come loose

Has anyone any similar experience and is it safe to drive? I live 2 hours away from home so i don’t want to get stuck half way. It looks like an easy fix, should I be chasing up the hotel to help pay any garage fees?

Cheers for any help,
Nick

Get a better pic mate. Use flash can't make anything out from that.
D

 

[warmasice]

Just make sure it doesn't act like a parachute while on the motorway. It may make things worse.

 

[firebobby]

Looks like the exhaust, if your on about the round piece on the right side of the photo

 

[SV8Predator]

Does this help?

 

[Chris_D]

Looks like exhaust heat shield.
Push it back up as far as you can.
U prob sheared one ore more retaining bolt caps as theyre flimsy aluminium things.
If ur lucky you should be able to relocate the hole in the corner of the shield back on to the bolt and it will hang there until u can replace the bolt retaining cap.

Did the same myself on a pesky dutch drempel.

 

[Z4 COUPSTER]

I think e as above. And if the tube on the floor is the bollard,yes get them to pay. Why did they just leave it there?
D

 

[Silverzedtom]

I think e as above. And if the tube on the floor is the bollard,yes get them to pay. Why did they just leave it there?
D

It looks like it could be one of those fold down bollards?

Hope it’s sorted soon OP. Perhaps you could get some cable ties to hold it whilst you travel home.

Is it the metal shield under the gear box with fins?

 

[Scooba_Steve]

Looks like the gearbox cover plate to me, 4 bolts to whip it off, pop it in a vice and it will straighten up easily.

Unless you can prove negligence you'll not have any luck getting any money, unless they offer some goodwill.

 

[Crazy Harry]

Hi all

I am staying at a hotel this weekend and I have just been reversed into a space with the aid of the hotel staff only to scrape the bottom of the car on a bollard and now there is a piece hanging down, looks like it is a protective metal piece which as it was caught backwards it has bent slightly, and come loose

Has anyone any similar experience and is it safe to drive? I live 2 hours away from home so i don’t want to get stuck half way. It looks like an easy fix, should I be chasing up the hotel to help pay any garage fees?

Cheers for any help,
Nick

I don't think you have a new problem here - you've just found an old one.

Assuming the car went over the bollard from right to left in the photo the scrape would have been when the bent bit hit the bollard - it couldn't have got pulled down at the back but not at not the front traveling in that direction. Of course your problem will come when you pass back over the bollard because the lower part will catch and try to rip it off. Get a broom handle / golf club / long stick / or if all else fails get on the floor and push the plate back up before you move the car.

 

[PDJ]

You could ask the hotel to help with cost for making it safe to drive, suggest a BMW garage would be Hundreds of pounds but a local garage could do it for a few pounds and you would be happy ish with that and sort it out when you get home, depending on the damage you may need a new heat shield, if the hotel are helping with cost maybe they could help with the cost of the heat shield and you have it fitted.

What ever you do you need to do a bit of home work first cost wise and call a couple of garages and calmly present the issue to the hotel and see what happens

But at the end of the day you drove over it all be it with guidance from the hotel staff.

 

[Crazy Harry]

You could ask the hotel to help with cost for making it safe to drive, suggest a BMW garage would be Hundreds of pounds but a local garage could do it for a few pounds and you would be happy ish with that and sort it out when you get home, depending on the damage you may need a new heat shield, if the hotel are helping with cost maybe they could help with the cost of the heat shield and you have it fitted.

What ever you do you need to do a bit of home work first cost wise and call a couple of garages and calmly present the issue to the hotel and see what happens

But at the end of the day you drove over it all be it with guidance from the hotel staff.

Yep but this would only hold true if you hit the bollard and then reversed with out going over it - traveling left to right in photo then reversing off it again. OP doesn't say if he car went over it or not. I still think it was bent already because even going left to right the shield looks to have enough clearance when it isn't bent which will be the normal fitting height. Of course we don't know how low the ride is with boot full and bums on seats.

 

[Silverzedtom]

I don’t think the hotel will entertain the idea of compensating.

It’s a similar thing to waving someone else on in the car, if you wave them on and they *decide* to go, and mow someone down, it was still their choice to go. Hence not being able to flash someone on, or say thanks to other road users in a driving lesson / test.

Of course in reality we all do this. My mrs lets me know when I can go if I can’t see at an awkward junction. I just don’t think you’ll get money out of the hotel.

Hopefully I’m proven wrong

 

[NickSalf]

Hi all

I am staying at a hotel this weekend and I have just been reversed into a space with the aid of the hotel staff only to scrape the bottom of the car on a bollard and now there is a piece hanging down, looks like it is a protective metal piece which as it was caught backwards it has bent slightly, and come loose

Has anyone any similar experience and is it safe to drive? I live 2 hours away from home so i don’t want to get stuck half way. It looks like an easy fix, should I be chasing up the hotel to help pay any garage fees?

Cheers for any help,
Nick

I don't think you have a new problem here - you've just found an old one.

Assuming the car went over the bollard from right to left in the photo the scrape would have been when the bent bit hit the bollard - it couldn't have got pulled down at the back but not at not the front traveling in that direction. Of course your problem will come when you pass back over the bollard because the lower part will catch and try to rip it off. Get a broom handle / golf club / long stick / or if all else fails get on the floor and push the plate back up before you move the car.

The car reversed over the bollard and scraped it whilst going backwards, I knew it had scraped as it made a big noise. The piece was then hanging down.

On other news, I managed to get a £75 refund from the hotel for the inconvenience caused.. which was half the room cost. I then took the car to a local garage who removed the bent heat shield.

I now have it in my boot and will be looking for a local garage to re-bend the heat shield and reattach.

cheers for everybodies help with this