I hit a deer (now I need some help)

waferdog · Post by **waferdog** » Sun Nov 26, 2006 10:15 pm

Driving up Highway 61 (the same one that Dylan revisited) last Monday evening, I had the audacity to try and share the road with a 200+ lb 8 point buck. This is the result:

Unfortunately, I did not take any pics of the deer, although when we went back to cut off the rack an hour after getting towed out, we found that someone had already gotten it.

The insurance company totalled out the van so now I am looking for a new vehicle. Along those lines, I have two small questions:

1. I am looking at a 2001 Jeep Grand Cherokee Laredo with 66K miles. It's loaded. Does anyone know anything about these?

2. Could anyone run a Carfax report on that Jeep? I have the VIN if you can.

Thanks.

Waferdog

Humboldt · Post by **Humboldt** » Sun Nov 26, 2006 10:22 pm

Glad you're ok

How fast were you going?

YARDofSTUF · Post by **YARDofSTUF** » Sun Nov 26, 2006 10:23 pm

Its much less damage when the deer hits you!

My buddy's sister has a 2000 cherokee, she loves the thing.

waferdog · Post by **waferdog** » Sun Nov 26, 2006 10:27 pm

Humboldt wrote:Glad you're ok

How fast were you going?

I was doing 60 (in a 65) and being quite diligent about watching out for a deer. It was a dark, moonless evening which did not help but this buck was on a dead run going across the road when I hit him. There was no chance to avoid him. Driving this stretch of road from Duluth north is a bit like playing russian roulette.

waferdog · Post by **waferdog** » Sun Nov 26, 2006 11:00 pm

BTW - those two holes that you see in the right front fender are actually where a couple of the tines from the antler punctured through. They looked like bullet holes.

blacklab · Post by **blacklab** » Sun Nov 26, 2006 11:13 pm

waferdog wrote:I was doing 60 (in a 65) and being quite diligent about watching out for a deer. It was a dark, moonless evening which did not help but this buck was on a dead run going across the road when I hit him. There was no chance to avoid him. Driving this stretch of road from Duluth north is a bit like playing russian roulette.

HI waferdog

Just curious, will this be covered under comprehensive or collision?

Up here if you hit an animal and stay on the road it is covered under comprehensive insurance with no collision record against you. If you try and avoid the animal and go into the ditch it goes against your driving record.

blacklab

waferdog · Post by **waferdog** » Sun Nov 26, 2006 11:20 pm

blacklab wrote:HI waferdog

Just curious, will this be covered under comprehensive or collision?

Up here if you hit an animal and stay on the road it is covered under comprehensive insurance with no collision record against you. If you try and avoid the animal and go into the ditch it goes against your driving record.

blacklab

This is covered by the comprehensive plan in that it will not affect my premiums at all, which is nice. Even nicer is that the insurance company is giving me almost double what I could have gotten on the open market for that vehicle.

Cerberus1027 · Post by **Cerberus1027** » Sun Nov 26, 2006 11:55 pm

If the jeep has an automatic transmission it is an AW4 tranny which has a history of overheating but is fine for the engine attached to it.

waferdog · Post by **waferdog** » Sun Nov 26, 2006 11:56 pm

Cerberus1027 wrote:If the jeep has an automatic transmission it is an AW4 tranny which has a history of overheating but is fine for the engine attached to it.

This is the V6 engine. That's a decent engine-tranny combo?

minir · Post by **minir** » Mon Nov 27, 2006 1:42 am

Hi waferdog

Glad your okay.

--

minir

Lefty · Post by **Lefty** » Mon Nov 27, 2006 1:44 am

Glad your OK too.

Sava700 · Post by **Sava700** » Mon Nov 27, 2006 2:01 am

The deer unless you hit it just in the head would be worthless cause the meat is pretty much so bruised up it wouldn't be any good...I've seen this many times from people hitting deer and thinking they could save something from it. Now for the rack if its in good shape I would have saved that and mounted it!

Not much I can tell ya about the car though

blacklab · Post by **blacklab** » Mon Nov 27, 2006 2:09 am

waferdog wrote:This is covered by the comprehensive plan in that it will not affect my premiums at all, which is nice. Even nicer is that the insurance company is giving me almost double what I could have gotten on the open market for that vehicle.

Wow, someone beat an insurance company legally. My hat is off to you.

blacklab

Far-N-Wide · Post by **Far-N-Wide** » Mon Nov 27, 2006 3:34 am

My brother hit a Deer and it came through the windshield and landed in his back seat. It had 4 broken legs and shreaded his upolstry like in the movie Tommy Boy. The grill and windshield were cheap enough... but the mess inside the car, that was something else.

Post by **YeOldeStonecat** » Mon Nov 27, 2006 6:43 am

waferdog wrote:This is the V6 engine. That's a decent engine-tranny combo?

If it's a six cyl....it should be the 4.0 liter inline six.
<===on my 3rd Jeep, and my mom had a Grand Cherokee (with the 318 engine)

The 4.0 is a good strong engine, good bottom end torque (great in the lighter Wrangle, adequate in the Cherokees). Long lasting engine...the only major weakpoint with them is the rear main seals will sometimes go after 100k miles.

Only other complaint I have about Jeeps is the fan speed controller for the AC/Heater blower....all 3x Jeeps that I've had, including current one that I purchased brand new, the fan speed control has failed. Resulting it having it either off, or on high. But the low, medium, medium high speeds just...disappear.

Roody · Post by **Roody** » Mon Nov 27, 2006 8:30 am

Glad to hear you are okay.