Hit a monster pothole....anyway to check for problems??

[GordonJ]

So I was driving to the store with my brother today, and unfortunately the only road there is this dinky little two-lane road thats about as wide as your typical neigborhood street, yet has as much traffic as a major road.

So as I'm driving I see this big ass pothole coming up fast on the right of the car, and with oncoming traffic on my left, a metal guard rail on my right, and some asshole right on my tail, I basically have no choice but to hit it...at roughly 40mph, head on.

My right front tires slams into it, there's a thud (as would be expected from hitting a 6 inch hole in the pavement), and lots of loud, vulgar explitives used frequently by myself in the driver seat.

I let go of the wheel on a straight-a-way to see if the car drifts to one side or the other, but it seems pretty dead on straight.
I also pulled over and looked over the wheel and tire, and couldnt see anything obvious, although admitedly I really don't know what to look for.
So that brings me to my question: Is there any way to really check for damage to the tire, wheel, suspension, or alignment?? The only thing I could think of was letting the wheel go as I was going straight and seeing if the car went off to one side, but like I said, it still seems normal. Do you think its ok? Have you guys ever had problems hitting potholes in your P5s?

 

[MazdaDriverChic]

Yeesh, sounds like what happened to me during the summer. I hit a monster random hole in the road in a construction area. WTF they left it there I have no idea, but I couldnt swerve either...too many cars.

First thing. Check your tire...make sure its not bubbled...if you have the low riders on there it probably is.
Second. Take your tire and rim off and check to see if the rim is bent. I have the alloy rims and mine was bent so bad my car vibrated.
Definitely get it checked and aligned. Even if it doesnt seem off...with a hit like that it most likely is. Have your struts and everything checked if it was that big of a hole. Its amazing the damage they can do.

All in all my fiasco cost me over $800. I needed a rim, a new tire, alignment and stuff. I made the state pay for it. No reason to have a random hole in the road...thats bs.

Goodluck with it!! Hope everything checks out ok!!

 

[nonameheroes]

take the tire to any tire shop and ask them what happened and ask them to check it out. they can tell you what kind of damage to the tire if any and whether or not the rim was bent/cracked/warped. and then if anything is wrong, go to the city and ask to speak to someone bout the road condition and show them the estimate of repair for hitting a pothole.

 

[GordonJ]

Great, thanks for the replies guys! No way I'm going to front the bill for something like this, if there is some damage.

So would there be any noticeable problems though? Mazda chick, you mentioned sometihng about vibration? How bad was that? And was the bending of the rim visible?

Thanks guys!

 

[MazdaDriverChic]

Oh definitely dont take the hit of the $ on this. No reason why they shouldnt pay for this. I got my check after millions of phone calls, going through a million people and about 4 weeks time lol. But it was SO worth it....

The vibration was REALLY bad...like bad enough where I didnt feel safe driving the car at anything more then 30mph...40 max.

Oh yea, trust me, the bent rim was SUPER visible.... see for yourself... (boom01)

 

[GordonJ]

Well, I drove the car last night again and to and from work today, and honestly don't notice any vibration or driving irregularities, and I was being pretty paranoid about it too.
Also, my rim and tire show absolutely no signs of any damage or wear of any kind either, certainly not nearly as bad as those pics you have, Mazda chick! Wow, are you sure you hit a pothole and not a landmine?

I seriously don't think anything was damaged, but damn, that was a scary feeling. I'll keep an eye on it for the next few days, but I think it's ok...

Thank you very much for the replies though guys. And take it easy out there, especially if you live around columbus... (notcool)

 

[Brian MP5T]

Lucky!

 

[Cloudland]

hit one too, yesterday, the size is about 2/3 of the tire, 3 inches deep(?) i was running at 55 KM/h and nowhere to manoeuver to avoid it. bang! it's really loud. although no sign on rim/tyre and didn't feel a thing when driving, i'm really worried.

the hole is in front of a cement factory, i can imagine their big arse trucks caused that. at least they should put a sign there!

 

[Murda]

I went through the same thing in October.

Construction left a nice long deep hole in the middle of the road after they were done. Obviously, didn't do a good job of filling it if at all.

Total damage: two bent wheels, two irrepairable tires, bad alignment.
Total cost: $1200CDN.

City covered just over $1000CDN after adjusting for depreciation over 5 months.

Good luck!

FYI, I got my dealership and my alignment shop to check all parts (incl undercarriage, struts and suspension parts). No damage luckily, just the alignment was off.

 

[MazdaDriverChic]

Well, I drove the car last night again and to and from work today, and honestly don't notice any vibration or driving irregularities, and I was being pretty paranoid about it too.
Also, my rim and tire show absolutely no signs of any damage or wear of any kind either, certainly not nearly as bad as those pics you have, Mazda chick! Wow, are you sure you hit a pothole and not a landmine?

I seriously don't think anything was damaged, but damn, that was a scary feeling. I'll keep an eye on it for the next few days, but I think it's ok...

Thank you very much for the replies though guys. And take it easy out there, especially if you live around columbus... (notcool)

Glad to hear you dont seem to have any damage! Thats great.... You might still want to get it checked out by your dealer or mechanic though just in case there is damage that you cant see. If you let it go and then find the damage done later you wont be able to be reimbursed. It may be worth your time to do it now to ensure you wont be paying out of your pocket in the future.
LOL no I didnt hit a land mine ...just a massive hole left by construction idiots. (eek2)

 

[MazdaDriverChic]

I went through the same thing in October.

Construction left a nice long deep hole in the middle of the road after they were done. Obviously, didn't do a good job of filling it if at all.

Total damage: two bent wheels, two irrepairable tires, bad alignment.
Total cost: $1200CDN.

City covered just over $1000CDN after adjusting for depreciation over 5 months.

Good luck!

FYI, I got my dealership and my alignment shop to check all parts (incl undercarriage, struts and suspension parts). No damage luckily, just the alignment was off.

Damn, you sound like you had the same thing happen to you as I did. Except I only had to replace one tire and rim. Did it take you 5 months to get it fixed?! Thats insane!

 

[GordonJ]

What's the deal with warranty/dealership repairs after you move? I bought my car nearly 2 years ago in Salt Lake City, UT, and have since moved to Ohio. Can I just take it to a Mazda dealer of my choosing around here?

Also, a little sidenote, because I'm such a paranoid loser, and happen to adore my car I went out to check it one last time last night in the garage with the utility lamp right up close. I did notice, for the first time, a small (about the lenth of your thumbnail, and about as deep as the width) "chip" in the rim, and directly below, an equally sized chunk of the rubber of the tire gone. I'm thinking that must have been where my tire and rim actually hit the pothole. Again, at about the size and width of your thumbnail, so it's pretty superficial, but its obvious something hit it there, and I'm thinking that must be the mark of the pothole.

 

[MazdaDriverChic]

What's the deal with warranty/dealership repairs after you move? I bought my car nearly 2 years ago in Salt Lake City, UT, and have since moved to Ohio. Can I just take it to a Mazda dealer of my choosing around here?

Also, a little sidenote, because I'm such a paranoid loser, and happen to adore my car I went out to check it one last time last night in the garage with the utility lamp right up close. I did notice, for the first time, a small (about the lenth of your thumbnail, and about as deep as the width) "chip" in the rim, and directly below, an equally sized chunk of the rubber of the tire gone. I'm thinking that must have been where my tire and rim actually hit the pothole. Again, at about the size and width of your thumbnail, so it's pretty superficial, but its obvious something hit it there, and I'm thinking that must be the mark of the pothole.

Absolutely, as long as its still under warranty...any Mazda dealership will do the work. Even if its not under warranty they'll still do it. Im having issues with my dealership so Im taking my car to another one. Doesnt matter where you go.

Yup that probably is "the mark of the pothole". fun fun....