[wmtunate]

I hit a giant chunk of semi truck tire on the interstate at about 50 mph. I was in the center lane, in heavy traffic, so there was no way to swerve or avoid. The vehicle in front of me hit it at a higher rate of speed. I had time to brake slightly from 70 mph, but they were in an SUV of some sort and didn't even slow down. It hit the right front corner and tore off the entire lower plastic trim such that it was dragging under the car and was only attached at the front left corner.

I pulled over, took a few photos, ripped off the dragging pieces and threw them in the hatch, and secured the remaining loose and flapping plastic with some zip ties. I didn't see any leaking fluids, and the car started normally, so I headed home, about 15 miles away. I had already depleted the battery before the collision, so I was running on gas and never saw any warnings or CELs.

When I got home, it looked like front radiator for the battery coolant is slightly bent, but no leaks and all fluid levels are normal. I drove it to work this morning and plugged it into the level 2 charging station. Light on the dash stayed yellow and I got an "Unable to charge" message on the display. Unplugged, tried to start, got a CEL and I was unable to move the car. I pulled the codes with my OBDII reader: P0AF8 and P1E00. Cleared the codes and restarted and got "Propulsion Power is Reduced" but I was able to drive it at that point.

I'm going to take it into the dealer as soon as my insurance company gets back with me.

 

[bro1999]

I hit a giant chunk of semi truck tire on the interstate at about 50 mph. I was in the center lane, in heavy traffic, so there was no way to swerve or avoid. The vehicle in front of me hit it at a higher rate of speed. I had time to brake slightly from 70 mph, but they were in an SUV of some sort and didn't even slow down. It hit the right front corner and tore off the entire lower plastic trim such that it was dragging under the car and was only attached at the front left corner.

I pulled over, took a few photos, ripped off the dragging pieces and threw them in the hatch, and secured the remaining loose and flapping plastic with some zip ties. I didn't see any leaking fluids, and the car started normally, so I headed home, about 15 miles away. I had already depleted the battery before the collision, so I was running on gas and never saw any warnings or CELs.

When I got home, it looked like front radiator for the battery coolant is slightly bent, but no leaks and all fluid levels are normal. I drove it to work this morning and plugged it into the level 2 charging station. Light on the dash stayed yellow and I got an "Unable to charge" message on the display. Unplugged, tried to start, got a CEL and I was unable to move the car. I pulled the codes with my OBDII reader: P0AF8 and P1E00. Cleared the codes and restarted and got "Propulsion Power is Reduced" but I was able to drive it at that point.

I'm going to take it into the dealer as soon as my insurance company gets back with me.

Ouch. Sorry to be the bearer of bad news, but your Volt is quite possibly totaled.

 

[Rickoshay]

Ouch. Sorry to be the bearer of bad news, but your Volt is quite possibly totaled.

Probably not. No air bag deployment. I had a similar incident and my Volt was repaired good as new. It was about $3000 to replace both radiators, body work, and everything else related to the collision with a half a dozen big highway cones that fell of a truck in front of me.

2014 Volt Premium - Safety pkg 1 and 2, Navigation

 

[Sean-a-Tron]

Ouch. The Volt has a pretty complicated radiator setup. That'll likely cost quite a bit. Will your insurance cover it?

 

[wmtunate]

USAA should cover it as a collision. I'll have to pay the $500 deductible. I also have a loan on this car through USAA, so technically, it's their car.

 

[jcanoe]

That damage should be covered by your insurance as a road hazard under your [Correction] collision, not by comprehensive coverage.

"If your vehicle is damaged from running into or running over an object in the road, then your collision coverage will pay for repairs, says Insure.com. If the object flies through the air and hits your car, then your comprehensive coverage will come into play."

 

[indyflick]

If tire manufactures can't figure out how to keep retreads from separating then they should be outlawed. For years they've caused truck accidents, spills, and fatalities. I see chunks of retread tires on the highway everyday. Sometime you see the entire tire cap covering a large portion of the lane. My neighbor has lost two cars hitting chunks of retreads. He drives at night and he told me you can't see chunks of tires until its too late. So the trucking companies save money on by using retread tires but as a result we all pay dearly.

 

[wmtunate]

That damage should be covered by your insurance as a road hazard under your comprehensive policy clause, not by collision coverage. It is the same as if your vehicle had suffered damage from hitting a deer. Collision is when two or more vehicles are involved in an accident, regardless of who was at fault.

From what I'm reading on USAA's site:

Comprehensive:
"Covers damage caused by something other than another vehicle such as hail, theft, or collision with an animal."

Collision:
"Covers damage to your vehicle caused by a collision with an object other than an animal."

I haven't talked to a live person yet, so I'm not sure whether there's a difference in classification if the object was moving vs. stationary.

Either way, I have coverage and the same deductible amount. I guess it just comes down to whether it will have an effect on my future rates. I'm paying for accident forgiveness, and I haven't made an insurance claim in probably 10 years, so hopefully not.

 

[Upper5Percent]

From what I'm reading on USAA's site:

Comprehensive:
"Covers damage caused by something other than another vehicle such as hail, theft, or collision with an animal."

Collision:
"Covers damage to your vehicle caused by a collision with an object other than an animal."

I haven't talked to a live person yet, so I'm not sure whether there's a difference in classification if the object was moving vs. stationary.

Either way, I have coverage and the same deductible amount. I guess it just comes down to whether it will have an effect on my future rates. I'm paying for accident forgiveness, and I haven't made an insurance claim in probably 10 years, so hopefully not.

Basically...If your vehicle is damaged from running into or running over an object in the road, then your collision coverage will pay for repairs. If the object flies through the air and hits your car, then your comprehensive coverage will come into play. You pay a deductible when you make a collision or comprehensive claim.

 

[bro1999]

Probably not. No air bag deployment. I had a similar incident and my Volt was repaired good as new. It was about $3000 to replace both radiators, body work, and everything else related to the collision with a half a dozen big highway cones that fell of a truck in front of me.

2014 Volt Premium - Safety pkg 1 and 2, Navigation

Guess it depends on what MY OP's Volt is and how many miles it has logged. Good excuse to get a Gen 2 if it is totaled though! Or a Bolt.

 

[jcanoe]

From what I'm reading on USAA's site:

Comprehensive:
"Covers damage caused by something other than another vehicle such as hail, theft, or collision with an animal."

Collision:
"Covers damage to your vehicle caused by a collision with an object other than an animal."

I haven't talked to a live person yet, so I'm not sure whether there's a difference in classification if the object was moving vs. stationary.

Either way, I have coverage and the same deductible amount. I guess it just comes down to whether it will have an effect on my future rates. I'm paying for accident forgiveness, and I haven't made an insurance claim in probably 10 years, so hopefully not.

Thank you for the correction.

 

[wws]

USAA is awesome. You will have no problem.

 

[voganni]

I have zero deductible with USAA for my Volt and our Camry. So many broken windshields and deer over here makes it worth it. They've replaced two windshields in the Camry over 4 years or so (last one a month ago) and have not increased our rates. It is only about $7/mo per car for zero deductible.

 

[saltsman]

If tire manufactures can't figure out how to keep retreads from separating then they should be outlawed. For years they've caused truck accidents, spills, and fatalities. I see chunks of retread tires on the highway everyday. Sometime you see the entire tire cap covering a large portion of the lane. My neighbor has lost two cars hitting chunks of retreads. He drives at night and he told me you can't see chunks of tires until its too late. So the trucking companies save money on by using retread tires but as a result we all pay dearly.

100% agree. Retread debris are everywhere along the interstates and are dangerous (as the OP can attest).

 

[siai47]

Those sections of retread tires that come off and end up in the road are sometimes called "alligators". And in areas where the road surface temperature is high, they seem to breed aggressively.

 

[bro1999]

One time I was in the left lane of a 2 lane highway, and was in the process of passing a couple of semis traveling in the right lane. As I was passing the semi trailing the first one, the first one has one of it's left rear tires blow out. Sounded like a BOMB going off. Pieces of rubber flying all over the place right in front of me. Luckily, I managed to miss the main piece of tread. Was like a scene out of a war movie or something.

Ever since then, I make sure not to stay side by side with semis for long.

 

[wmtunate]

I'm just glad I wasn't on my motorcycle at the time, although I probably would have had room to maneuver around it if I had been.

I figured out why it wasn't charging: one of the connectors on the charger unit behind the front right fender was snapped off. I was able to plug it back in, which cleared the codes and allowed me to charge, but that connector's latching mechanism is broken.

It's currently at the local independent body shop for an estimate, per USAA's standard practice. When they're done, I'm taking to the dealer to be repaired.

 

[zsk]

USAA is a GREAT company to deal with on claims.

 

[wmtunate]

Just got the estimate from the body shop: $3100. The largest portion of that is a new charger ($1300).

I suspect that when I take it to the dealer that total will go up as they dig further.

 

[Rickoshay]

Just got the estimate from the body shop: $3100. The largest portion of that is a new charger ($1300).

I suspect that when I take it to the dealer that total will go up as they dig further.

That is about what mine was. But why a new charger? I thought the onboard charger was in the back right of the car.
My car came out as good as new. Hope you have the same result.

2014 Volt Premium - Safety pkg 1 and 2, Navigation