# What caused this mysterious car damage? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [April 3, 2013, 9:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-caused-this-mysterious-car-damage/654775 "2013-04-03T21:38:39Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 6\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![andrea\_green](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ecccb3/32.png) [@andrea\_green](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/andrea_green)\ **Post date:** [April 3, 2013, 9:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-caused-this-mysterious-car-damage/654775/1 "2013-04-03T21:38:39Z")
I took my car to the mechanic yesterday to have the winter tires switched (it turns out my brake pads needed to be replaced too) and although I did not do a thorough inspection onsite, as soon as I got it home I noticed [this damage](http://imgur.com/a/sH0cs). There is a large scratch under the right headlamp and then a thin vertical scratch following down from the initial one. The vertical scratch also includes some round indentations/perforations. Based on the very limited amount I have been driving in the last few days and the places I parked, I think somehow this damage was caused by an accident at the mechanic but it’s such an unusual pattern that I really can’t imagine what might have caused it. So what do you think is most likely responsible? If you need any more photos/different angles please let me know. Thank you all very much in advance! ---
**Author:** ![Disheavel](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e274bd/32.png) [@Disheavel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Disheavel)\ **Post date:** [April 3, 2013, 10:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-caused-this-mysterious-car-damage/654775/2 "2013-04-03T22:26:11Z")
The slope at the top of the bumper is really messing all of my theories up. But it looks like the in and out motion are both present. My guess: 1. Pickup or truck backed up 2. some thing on the bumper (like a hitch or a verticle bumper like a cop car has- or maybe a tow truck?) drags on the top of the bumper causing the white diagonal swipe 3. the truck bumper (specifically a linear vertical part- perhaps some sort of a welded corner? or a chain? to explain the serrated look) hits the face of the bumper and stops? the truck forcing the bumper down 4. truck drives forward dragging the hitch forward and off the bumper If you can find the responsible tow truck, pickup, etc. at the mechanic you might have a case- the serrated/chain vertical aspect will be the most obvious thing to look for. It may be a decoration around a license plate. But as far as I can figure, there is nothing to me that says, “it happened at the shop”. ---
**Author:** ![andrea\_green](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ecccb3/32.png) [@andrea\_green](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/andrea_green)\ **Post date:** [April 3, 2013, 10:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-caused-this-mysterious-car-damage/654775/3 "2013-04-03T22:34:57Z")
Thanks Disheavel, that was all very helpful! ---
**Author:** ![Inigo\_Montoya](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/inigo_montoya/32/124_2.png) [@Inigo\_Montoya](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Inigo_Montoya)\ **Post date:** [April 3, 2013, 10:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-caused-this-mysterious-car-damage/654775/4 "2013-04-03T22:41:19Z")
I have crap like that all over my cars. I also have kids with missing rubber on their bicycle handlebars and perhaps an underdeveloped sense of caution. But it sure looks like something heavy dropped onto the top of the bumper ad then pulled away while rubbing down the front. If it were a machine of some kind falling onto the car I’d expect it to etch more of a semicircular pattern after it munched the top and spun the rest of the way to the ground. Unless it fell onto the bumper and pushed the car back as it continued to fall. Should buff out alright. … ---
**Author:** ![Yeticus\_Rex](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/y/a698b9/32.png) [@Yeticus\_Rex](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Yeticus_Rex)\ **Post date:** [April 3, 2013, 10:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-caused-this-mysterious-car-damage/654775/5 "2013-04-03T22:53:42Z")
Vertical damage could be from an automatic garage door going up or down (vertically) and your vehicle wasn’t clear from its path…heck, I guess it doesn’t have to be automatic either. ---
**Author:** ![casdave](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/c6cbf5/32.png) [@casdave](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/casdave)\ **Post date:** [April 4, 2013, 5:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-caused-this-mysterious-car-damage/654775/6 "2013-04-04T17:54:02Z")
Looks like something spinning like the chuck of a disc polisher.