My car bit me today!

[qsiguy]

DISCLAIMER: Well I have a disturbing story for you all. If you get squirmish easy you might not want to read!!!

Ok, so this week I've been attending a manufacturers training and this morning I pull up in my Q and I'm about 30-40 minutes early. What do to? I decide to pop the hood and take a look at things to pass some time and see if anything needs attention that I am not already aware of. I pop the hood and I'm looking around. I poke around under the hood, see a leaky power steering hose that will need to be fixed. Then I decide to take a look under the car so I'm leaning down holding the fender and all of a sudden.........WHAM!!! The hood struts fail and the hood slams down on my fingers and LATCHES!!!! It catches my pinky, ring finger and middle finger from the first joint down, so just the end's (fortunately).

Well, I'm stuck and can't get out and I'm by myself in a hotel parking lot. I manage to get out my pinky because it's smaller but the other two fingers are not budging and I'm afraid if I pull any harder I'll break something or pull them loose! Well, from the pain (physical, and mental) and the thought of being stuck there til my fingers fall off I'm about to pass out or loose my breakfast at least. Finally I decide I all I can do is reach around to my right side with my left hand and pull out my Leatherman tool and open up the pliars and shove them between the hood seem and pry up the hood to get my finger out. I manage to get out my middle finger but can't get the ring finger so I have to let it back down on my ring finger and move over the tool and pry up again to free my remaining finger. Had I not had my leatherman I have no idea how long I would have been stuck there.

Holy crap, that was one of the worst experiences I've had in a while. Needless to say I'm still in pain tonight and even typing is painful. I had to go straight into my class and suck it up all day. The pain will eventually go away and even after that I'll still have the dang small dents and chips in my paint where I had to pry it up. Over time that will bother me more than my fingers cuz they will heal.

Anyway, moral of the story....if you notice the hood struts going out REPLACE THEM IMMEDIATELY! YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED. I did already know they were iffy but after I raised the hood they seemed to be holding good. You all know what happens when we assume...........

Just telling the story again gave me anxiety about being stuck there again!

Now go out and measure the gap between your hood and fender and imagine your fingers stuck in there! (It's about 1/8" wide in case you are wondering)

[Jesda]

ROFLCOPTER. I had a Mazda 929 smack me on the top of my head a few times. I finally started keeping a broomstick in the trunk.

[lino]

Oh man! Glad you got out of that jam ok with all fingers intact and functional. That must of hurt! I hate car related injuries. I lost a piece of flesh off of one of my fingers and saw the bone, while trying to clean a metal bumper. Long story and fortunately for me it healed well. I was bleeding like crazy forever before I got through the hospital emergency lineup. That was the worst part.

[Skibane]

Good man, carrying a Leatherman!

I have a flat spot on the top of my head, from holding up the hoods of family member's vehicles while I'm checking fluids, etc. - The hair helps cushion the weight, but that'll also be gone soon enough...

[DrewQ45]

I'm always paronoid about being under the car no matter if it's on jackstands or not. I always keep a cell or home phone in my pocket or within easy reach.

[louiegz]

Well, I'm glad you didn't break a finger or something. I had bad hood struts when I first had my 86 Porsche 944 Turbo. Before I had changed the struts, I kept a set of locking pliers in the trunk that I'd lock on the piston. That worked fine as a temporary fix.

[lino]

What brand hood struts has anyone bought as replacements for their Q? I've only ever bought for German cars and it was oem or Stabilus.