When shopping carts attack!

On Friday, after arriving home from work, I decided to go and take my car for it's much overdue hand wash. I parked my car out front while I ran into the house to unload some things, and grab my shirts for the dry cleaners. It wasn't until I was ready to leave that I noticed the damage.

First reaction when I saw my passenger side fender? "Who the fuck hit my car?!?!?!" I was so pissed off, as I felt I had been a victim of a parking lot hit and run, one in which did a fine number on my car. Then, when my girlfriend came out to the car, she noticed there was also damage on the door. I then started to try and recreate the scene in my head, and I kept coming up blank. I couldn't envision any possible scenario where my car could be smashed in the manner it was, at least not by another vehicle. Plus, there was no paint from another car present. Thinking back, another possibility jumped into my mind, the Meijer parking lot last Sunday.

The weather was bitter ass cold, like 0 degrees with a a -15 to -20 degree windchill factor. In addition, there was a high wind advisory with 50 mph gusts, enough to pack a major wallop with a shopping cart. When we returned to the car after getting our groceries, I found three carts positioned against the side of my car. It was dark, my hands were burning they were so cold, and my car was filthy. At the time, I didn't see any visible damage. Yet now, I was quickly becoming more and more convinced that this was when the carnage took place.

After I hand washed the car last Friday, better revealing just how bad it was, I took a trip up to another local Meijer. I wanted to know for sure, and the best way to verify my theory was to match a cart up to the damage. It was immediately obvious, those three carts from nearly a week earlier were responsible. This being the first real good washing the car has seen in a long time revealed that it's getting to be time for a little TLC anyways. The stone chips on the rockers, wheel well, hood, and other areas are slowly giving way to rust. Right now, it's nothing extreme, but if it continues to be neglected, it will get real bad after a couple of more of our Michigan winters. The time to park it and begin a restoration is quickly approaching. With 131,000 miles on the odometer and 19 years of service, the car has already given it's fair share. Perhaps I'll shoot for 150,000 miles before I park it for both drivetrain and body improvements. It just pisses me off, as the body was very straight for the most part, and this damage is so bad that it may warrant replacing the fender altogether. If fucked up a few of the body lines pretty good.