I did the worst thing ever... I am a new driver and just got a Prius. The second night of having it I was trying to get into a parking spot and have the car straight. But because I still had anxiety over driving I didn't realize I had the parking brake on. I felt the car couldn't move and I still pressed the gas and I somehow landed over the cement block. At the end of the day I had the front of the car over the block and then was able to remove it from there and actually park it. It has some bad scratches underneath. The nail thing from the cement block actually got into a little manufactured hole in the front of the car. I feel terrible. Absolutely terrible. 1. I was wondering if there is something I could have messed up in the front of the car. It looks like only the plastic was hurt on two spots but other than that it looks fine. 2. Could I have made some permanent damage for driving over the cement thing with the brake on for like 2 minutes? 3. It was leaking a lot of water from the middle today but I did have the AC on for a long while.... Should I be concerned about this though? Please don't make fun of me.... And help is truly appreciated.
If the liquid leaking out of the car came from the passenger side, behind the front wheel, that's normal with AC use.
hmm.. it kind of seemed to come from the middle of the car... I looked under it as best as I could and it seemed to be coming from a little pipe
Yes, there's a drain tube from the AC evaporator. Besides, you didn't run your car up THAT far up and over the curbing did you?
IMHO if your really really really really...really worried about damage get a local mechanic or the dealer to put the car up on a lift and inspect for damage. It just might give you some additional peace of mind... Good luck...
Dear New Member, It's all relative. Nobody was injured and you didn't hit another vehicle, motorcycle, building, etc. So, it's a learning experience for you. Be careful out there. Visit a mechanic. And good move buying a Prius.
I've done this before. I felt really stupid. A few years later I did it again. It's been over a decade since I've done it. I hope I finally learned my lesson.... No wait. I did it again 3 years ago on my Prius... Crap... Anyway. No damage all three times. For you no way to know until time passes and the car still works. For me, nothing leaking equals stick my head in the sand and don't worry about it. I can ostrich but I understand others need peace of mind. Have it checked out.
The front end is to the right in this pic. If anything got hit/scraped it'd be in the circled zone. Depending on how fast you went up-and-over the concrete curb, you might not have even touched it. But yeah, I'd chime in it would be good to have a look, or have a mechanic do it. Just a floor jack on the front-central jacking point will raise it enough for a look. If you crawl under for sure put safety stands at the front scissor jack contact points (on the rocker panel pinch seam, between the two notches).
From the OP's first post, I don't think the front wheels went over the curbing, just the front end, in front of the wheels? Nothing really critical there, they were lucky they didn't leave the entire bumper cover in the parking lot after reversing off the curbing, but that's about it. Maybe?
One of our sons encountered one of those wheel stops, with the rebar (that "nails" it to the earth) not driven in properly, produding about 4~5 inches. It tore a nice chunk out of the front fairing underside, and tore up the rubber air dam. I suggested he try to go after the place for compensation, in conjunction with the insurance, but he threw in the towel. I expect that rebar is still there. Anyway, I took off the bumper and did a half decent repair, with the broken off piece back in, with special adhesive and fiberglass mesh on the back.
Don't worry too much. I agree with the others, I think the liquid is from the AC. But I did much worse when I was a kid, parking in downtown which had side walks quite high in height and slamming into it. Most of us all have our memorable newbie faux pas in our early driving years and unfortunately, there will be more. But we live and learn and knock on wood that from these experiences, it makes you smarter and more cautious!
Don't feel bad....once I drove into a full size planter box....yes I couldn't figure out why my car was stopping in the parking lot so I gave it the gas and bump....I went over this cement planter box and was stuck with both front and back wheels inside it.....I got out and was shocked to discover the cement box.....I stood staring at it and this person came over and said better get a tow truck.....I got towed out and used it as a learning lesson.....
Stuff happens. Ask the dealer if they will put it up on a lift during the New Owner Party. I suspect you'll see a scraped up plastic panel and maybe discover a missing fastener. Clear fluid should be condensation from the AC. If it is pink or red you have a real problem. Sooner or later everyone pulls a dumba$$ stunt. I believe the record is "driving it off the lot after purchase".
Yeah I'm gonna go tomorrow morning. I can't stop thinking about it even though it's been running well and it looks like it's just the plastic. I'll let you guys know what happened...
