New driver upset about dents on his brand new car

It is the traffic, the slope-y roads and the tight spaces that are a nightmare for me.

BHPian sen2693 recently shared this with other enthusiasts.

After learning to drive for 6-7 months pre lockdown and a bit mid lockdown, I bought a Skoda Rapid in April'21 being confident on my driving skills and because there was a need to own a car now. Owning a vehicle (and that too a Skoda) is a very personal thing for me. I would so many times stop and admire how good the car looked from the front.

All was going well until this month I had to move to Bangalore. I have found it very difficult to drive in traffic here and in the 1 week since I have been here - I got brake checked by a mini truck in traffic, causing damage to my bonnet hood, bumper and grill (to be fair I was also guilty of following him closely on a slope, but the traffic from rear and the pressure to clear the traffic light junction to avoid blocking other cars was stressing me out). And then again today I got a long scratch and a dent in my rear side door after I had a squeeze through a very busy market area. This has really thrown me off a lot. Makes me question my driving skills and whether I deserve to own a car or not. It has been a very depressing few days. The very-tight-slope-with-perpendicular-turns on my way to the parking of my new apartment does not help either.

Should have started with a second hand car. Am really worried if I should carry on driving or not. It is the traffic, the slope-y roads and the tight spaces that are a nightmare for me. My 200km drive from my village to Bangalore consisting of both state and national highways was smooth. I even drove in a much smaller city in Tamil Nadu called Salem and came out damage free. But past week has dented all that confidence. Can't bear to look at my car like this.

Claimed insurance for the bonnet, bumper incident but the door incident is fresh. My SA advised me against going to the insurance again for this new dent as am only 2 months into the insurance period and if anything happens again in future in same period then i will be able to claim only 50% insurance.

Here's what BHPian am1am had to say on the matter:

Even the best and most careful driver will have small accidents in our cities, minor bumps, scratches, dings. It is inevitable. Your driving will improve with time, but city traffic will keep increasing and you cannot control other drivers. The only way to completely protect your car is to never take it out (but then it will develop other issues!) but what is the point of owning a car then.

Now you can choose to be practical and leave minor dents and scratches for some time till it makes sense to get them all removed/buffed/fixed at once, every few years. Or you can obsess about each new spot or scratch and let it affect you mentally. I'd recommend the first approach.

Here's what BHPian RavSam had to say on the matter:

To be frank I had my share of incidences too and I do stress about it. But the frequency has now lessened. If it helps you then let me share you my story.

My car is my family's first car. I wanted it to be special and went against the tide of buying used car and learning on it. I took the plunge and bought the shiny Nexa Blue Ignis Zeta AMT on 27th Dec, 2021

Here are few of my incidents:

• 31st Dec,2020 - Just when I thought 2020 was getting over, on the 4th day of my ownership at 8 am, a bike crashed onto the front right wheel cladding of my car and broke it. My car was at 5kmph and taking sharp left and he came downhill from a blind spot. None of my occupants saw him. No damage to him, only his foot peg got minor scratch. This made me so intensely depressed and I cursed myself for bringing out my car.
• I left my car covered and under observation of my family as I left for mumbai for a month for some important work. They didn't use to drive but start the car once a week. When I returned, the underbonnet insulation was eaten and a nest made inside the bonnet may be by rats or squirrel. There was a skeleton of the baby and wiper wire was chewed off and the insulation was stuffed at lots of places. Cursed myself for not taking care of the car.
• I was zooming down a ghat at reasonable speed (not fast) and a freaking tree twig protruded out of nowhere giving a long minor but visible scratch from the orvm to the rear door handle. That sound just horrified me till few days
• The day after Tauktae storm, I was taking out my car from the parking lot and everyone in my family was directing me to get it out. Usually I used to do it without any help. But since the storm created a mess they were trying to help (which made me understand "too many cooks spoil the broth") and my front bumper underside scratched a step of a house. Very few but 1-2 deep scratches, I cursed myself and was thinking about it the entire time I was driving till Ot reached home.
• Just yesterday afternoon there was a huge wind which moved my entire car cover and dumped it on the antenna bending it by curving. What could I freaking due about that! It was even tied down. If it wasn't then it would have floated away and didn't bend it
• Yesterday I saw a scratch on the rear left door which made me question the Suzuki's paint quality. My car is covered and that scratch came out of nowhere!

My friend told me, that he had his fare share of accidents and incidents on his scooter. Yes the scooter costs way less but a pain is a pain. Yet, he enjoyed every moment of riding it.

My other friend told me that if I just keep thinking about all this stuff, I won't be able to enjoy it. It's a car afterall. No matter how much attachment we have with it, it's not indestructible. We have to live with it, forget it, move on and enjoy the moment.

Yes, I am not completely beyond this and even now I do keep crying over tiny things happening to my car but I also see my family getting irritated by my behaviour regarding this.

To conclude, things beyond our control will happen. Do I doubt my driving ability? After first few incidents, no! Under very very tricky situations? Sometimes!

Should have I bought a used car? Yes. Do I regret buying a new one? Hell No! I love my car. I love looking back at it when parked. I apologize to her for giving her battle scars. I enjoy every moment with it and we both cry together while filling fuel.

So, don't be depressed. One life. Your car isn't going to be in some museum so you better enjoy the time with it. Going further more incidents happen which make us forget the past ones. Live a little!

Here's what BHPian androdev had to say on the matter:

Ha ha, reminded me of my earlier days of driving! My first real car was a black Octavia (Laura it was called back then) and I was either washing and waxing it or taking it to the workshop to get the fender benders repaired. What doesn't kill you makes you stronger!

Just enjoy and have a blast with your car. You will overcome this fear very soon and will learn to drive without such incidents. Maintain safe distance (on all sides) and always yield to other vehicles if you love your car - don't worry about fairness & right of way, etc. Enjoy some good music instead of getting frustrated about idiots on the road.

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