Hit road debris

aturk · 09-30-2019, 12:12 PM

Hit a semi truck tire retread on my drive to work last week. Cracked the front bumper, broke the oil cooler, bent a wheel, lost a tire, smashed the fender, flung off the rocker, and did a number on the underbody trays.

Took a few miles of driving for the low oil pressure light to come on, and another mile of driving once the oil pressure light came on before I found a SAFE place to turn off.

Car was still running fine when I turned it off.
No visible flakes in the oil filter with a visual check.

What are my steps to ensure the engine is OK after the fix? Can the dealer do an analysis?

If the engine is damaged would they total the car?

XutvJet · 10-04-2019, 01:36 PM

Driving as long as you did with oil leaking out and the motor loosing oil pressure is not good. Ideally, you should have pulled over immediately and turned the engine off to assess damage. Any type of large debris hit on a car warrants this.

Yes, collect an oil sample now, then do an oil change, and get the car fixed. You should then do another oil sample in a month/1,000 miles and see what those numbers are. If the metals numbers look alright, then the motor should be ok. You should also apprise your insurance that you're doing this to confirm there's no internal motor damage, specifically bearing wear due to low oil. Elevated lead and copper will be indications of bearing damage.

overcoil · 10-04-2019, 03:07 PM

though: the car hold 7+ liters of oil and having the oil cooler or line go is a lot better than ripping off or holing an oil pan / crank case cover. Additionally the synthetic oil leaves a surface coating better than conventional oil.

No doubt as soon as u receive an impact you should park and shut off the car.

09-30-2019, 12:12 PM	#1
aturk Private First Class 42 Rep 115 Posts Drives: 2014 BMW M235i Join Date: Jan 2018 Location: Charlotte, NC iTrader: (0)	Hit road debris - broke oil cooler Hit a semi truck tire retread on my drive to work last week. Cracked the front bumper, broke the oil cooler, bent a wheel, lost a tire, smashed the fender, flung off the rocker, and did a number on the underbody trays. Took a few miles of driving for the low oil pressure light to come on, and another mile of driving once the oil pressure light came on before I found a SAFE place to turn off. Car was still running fine when I turned it off. No visible flakes in the oil filter with a visual check. What are my steps to ensure the engine is OK after the fix? Can the dealer do an analysis? If the engine is damaged would they total the car? __________________ 2014 M235i
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10-04-2019, 01:36 PM	#2
XutvJet Major General 5543 Rep 5,366 Posts Drives: 2011 Cayman Base, 2016 M235 Join Date: Mar 2016 Location: Kansas City iTrader: (-1)	Driving as long as you did with oil leaking out and the motor loosing oil pressure is not good. Ideally, you should have pulled over immediately and turned the engine off to assess damage. Any type of large debris hit on a car warrants this. Yes, collect an oil sample now, then do an oil change, and get the car fixed. You should then do another oil sample in a month/1,000 miles and see what those numbers are. If the metals numbers look alright, then the motor should be ok. You should also apprise your insurance that you're doing this to confirm there's no internal motor damage, specifically bearing wear due to low oil. Elevated lead and copper will be indications of bearing damage. __________________ The forest was shrinking, but the Trees kept voting for the Axe, for the Axe was clever and convinced the Trees that because his handle was made of wood, he was one of them.
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10-04-2019, 03:07 PM	#3
overcoil Major General 3074 Rep 5,577 Posts Drives: M235i 6spd Join Date: Dec 2013 Location: Mid-Atlantic iTrader: (0)	though: the car hold 7+ liters of oil and having the oil cooler or line go is a lot better than ripping off or holing an oil pan / crank case cover. Additionally the synthetic oil leaves a surface coating better than conventional oil. No doubt as soon as u receive an impact you should park and shut off the car.
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