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Another victim of being car keyed

6K views 42 replies 29 participants last post by  07 E63650i 
#1 ·
So I was spending time with my wife and daughter on New Year's day; we went to eat and then she wanted to go to the mall to check out some sales. Being paranoid as I am, I didn't want to go to the mall on a day as busy as New Year's day because I didn't want to get my car dinged up by inconsiderate mall goers. I decided what the heck, she wanted to go and I figured I could check out some things as I hardly ever shop. So I find a nice parking spot on the end of an isle where only one side of my car is in danger of being door dinged. We go in and shop and leave the mall and once I get home, I notice a 2 foot plus key mark on the passenger side door and fender. There are actually 2 marks, 1 appears to only have scratched the clear coat surface (about 18 inches in length), but the 2 foot plus scratch I described is DEEP...all the way to the metal. :mad: I can't believe these assholes roam the earth in numbers. I haven't had this car but 5 weeks and baby it like crazy, parking in the middle of no where so I don't get door dinged and some pathetic human being gets a thrill out of keying this beautiful vehicle. I will post pictures once I get a chance. I am sick to my stomach every time I walk to my car and look at it. :mad::mad::mad::mad::mad: Now I have to drop money that I would have liked to spend on getting 166 style wheels on repairing the scratches.
 
#2 ·
I feel your pain. I had this happen to me a few years ago, and you just want to lash out and retaliate, but you don't know where. Sorry to hear about this.
 
#3 ·
I hear you, brother! About 8 years ago I went to an outdoor show at Ravinia in Highland Park, IL. Once I arrived home and parked my car in my garage, I noticed a key mark running down the side of my car. After looking over my car further, I noticed the same key marks running down the side from fender to fender on both sides as well as the hood and trunk. The only place they didn't key was the roof. As it turned out, about 50 cars were keyed that night including mine. The car was brand new and only 1 month old.

Needless to say, there were flames shooting out of my eyeballs!!!

I really feel for you, brother!!!
 
#4 ·
What route did you guys go for repair? I contacted my dealer and they recommended I use the body shop they use. I contacted them and will bring it in for a quote to repair. I am just worried that it is going to be pricey due to how deep it is and wonder how long they will need the car for the repair. I would like to repair without filing a claim with insurance but if the cost is much more than my deductable, I will surely have to go that route.
 
#5 · (Edited)
I'm sure the price wouldn't be worth going through the insurance company.

I called the dealership and asked for a referral being they don't perform any bodywork. I asked for the best bodyshop in the Chicagoland area and had the work done there. My car was totally repainted with the exception of the roof.

I would think depending on the scratch, they will only paint that particular area. One thing you have in your favor is the color of your car should be easy to match and shouldn't be noticeable at all. My Acura was Nighthawk Black which is virtually the same color as BMW Carbon Black with the hint of blue and it was spot on perfect.

The repair shouldn't take more then 2, maybe 3 days the most.
 
#9 ·
Doesn't matter where you park it is going to happen. I'm one of those anal parkers that park the car as far away from the crowd as possible and it still happens.
I have had my driver side rear quarter panel keyed for 3 consecutive days..
 
#11 ·
Sounds like you might be better off just parking with the rest of the rabble. IMHO...parking all by yourself in a parking lot makes your car stand out like a sore thumb and, thus, makes for an easier target for the idiots who do these kinds of things. Door dings are a heck of a lot cheaper to fix than a 6 foot gash down both sides.
 
#12 ·
This happened amongst the "rabble" as I was parked in the end spot of an isle at the Mall in a completely full parking lot. I happened to get the end spot after circling for 10 minutes looking for a spot. Next time I will wait in the car with a bat! :mad:
 
#21 ·
Visitor from 3er forum here. Couldn't help but read this and have my blood boil. This makes me sick. I empathize man. :grouphug:

I try to do the same thing and park far away. Especially with black paint, all one has to do is look at the car the wrong way and it gets scratches... :tsk:


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#22 ·
I don't think you guys know how they think. They know they can't afford a car like a new BMW no matter what strings they try to pull. They get jealous. They want a car where they can baby and put far away. Just as you guys do. It makes their blood boil because of envy. Don't give them the opportunity to remember that and park with everyone else.
 
#27 ·
damn, that sucks, I'm sorry for the people who got their cars key'd, I feel for you....I just got a BM and I park it as far away as I can from everyone else, my logic is, the closer I am to the crowd of cars the more prone I am to someone backing up to close or turning their wheels to sharp and thus my baby gets a fender bender, but it seems now that I'm in a lose-lose situation. F'ing idiots, they just can't comprehend that fact that it was hard work that put us a BMW in the first place, but I believe in Karma.
 
#28 ·
I parked the BMW once in a crowded mall, choosing a wide SPOT with 1 side empty, when i come back, someone CRASHED (Lightly) on my 2 LEFT PASSENGER DOORS.
The scratch started almost at the beginning of the front passenger door until almost the end of the rear passenger door and it wasn't 1 single scratch, it was like a dozen scratches like in a crash. FU PEOPLE AT MALLS. :cry:
 
#29 · (Edited)
That sucks. Did you file a police report for vandalism or criminal mischief? I love having a nice car and its just something we have to deal with. What I started doing when doing to the mall is park in the most visible area to the stores. I also try not to attract too much attention. I know thats hard when you have a BMW but in my area I have seen guys with fancy tricked out Hyundais taking up 2 spots to protect their $5,000 investment lol.
I also park by the high end stores even though Im cutting through the mall to shop. Those stores always have the most security patrols, well lit areas and nice cars which bring nice people. Also dont park near the bus stop area of the mall. Hope that helps.
 
#31 ·
Sorry to hear that,man,,, and,! i always take up 2 spots if i can,but do it in the way that looks like i parked just on the line of the second spot by mistake(bad parking job) so nobody wants to squeze in the spot next to me. ps before i did that i had an angry driver of and old black limo tinted Eclass keyed, some one jumped on the hood of my car! rolled a shopping cart into my M5 parked all the way in the back of the parking lot(just on purpose!) or in the mall if i park further away from anybody some assh@le would park so close that i can't even open the door! after all that i don't even care how many spots i take:)
 
#32 ·
well, first of all I'm sorry for what happened to you. I myself own a 550i fully loaded and, from where I stand it seems that these events happen every time one buys a great car, he loves it much and, more than that, in the firs months of ownership. It sound ridiculous, but believe me it is true (we somehow project our fears to it and so **** happens). I said "we" because I bought my 550i 4 months ago, and 80 days ago a young girl cut my path while overpassing other cars (miraculously only my front right wheel was a little bit affected); 40 days ago, some guy (coincidently I first had met 10 days before) came into my office asking me about the "blue bmw" as he scratched it with his car unintentionally (he was quite an honorable one as he searched me, his victim). 2 events, none was my fault.
When I bought the last 530i, 4 years ago, 10 days after I bought it I discovered it in the parking are with rear light broken...believe me...it is true...
 
#33 ·
i concur. taking up 2 spots is a sure fire way to attract unwanted attention and convey a sense of "i'm better than you".

interesting mentality about parking and people. i will purposely park relatively far away and pretty isolated in a mall parking lot that is generally quiet yet someone will always either park next or near to you. similarly you could be sitting in a pretty empty bus or subway train and yet people will always sit near you despite having the whole bus/train empty to themselves.
 
#34 ·
i had both of my bmws keyed in the past - my 330ci and my 645ci. its painful. depending on how many panels they got it can be an expensive fix and if its deep its not cheap. i did get one fixed at maaco (the 2nd time) and they did a very good job at a very good price. at first i though my car was too high end for maaco but they do bmws all the time (its really not that difficult).
 
#37 ·
One time my car was parked at the supermarkets parking lot. When I was approaching to my car I noticed a kid like 5 years old from the other car that was parked next to mine opened his door really hard and hit my passenger door in front of me. The damage was a scratch with a small bump, I got so mad but really couldn't do or say anything, he is a kid one day I guess he will learn. :(
 
#38 ·
talking about taking 2-spots for parking it never wise eventhough sometimes the jerk-ahole who likes to key someone car may not got the whole story.

I used to work for a company where office parking lot sits next to park-n-ride, one time a co-worker came in to work on saturday; knowing no-one would be in since the office close he took 2-spot (the spots are on the office property). The overflow cars to watch college game spilled over in that afternoon to the office property, and saw what they thought was a rich guy on new Lexus LS430 and decided to do a number of it.

So I never take two spots wherever I park cause right or truth etc means nothing when dealing with people who are prejudice. even when they encroach on someone property they always though they are right.
 
#40 · (Edited)
Just last week shopping at Walmart. Parked my car away from other cars except one car two spots away. When I came back that car was not there anymore but there was a shopping cart close to my car. He/she must have moved it after letting it go and whacking my passenger door with it. Contacted my paintless dent repair guy who works at a local Bimmer dealership and he will fix it for me next week.
:banghead::banghead::banghead: Land vehicle Vehicle Car Vehicle door Automotive exterior


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#41 ·
Just last week shopping at Walmart. Parked my car away from other cars except one car two spots away. When I came back that car was not there anymore but there was a shopping cart close to my car. He/she must have moved it after letting it go and whacking my passenger door with it. Contacted my paintless dent repair guy who works at a local Bimmer dealership and he will fix it for me next week.
:banghead::banghead::banghead: View attachment 360849

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That's why I stop shopping at Walmart, for Mobil-1 0-40 that alot of times on sale for $4 over there, cause at the end I don't save money.
 
#43 ·
Sorry to hear about that. At least they didn't break into the car and steal valuables. Last year, some sick individual broke into my uncle's E90 335i and thankfully, he was in a restaurant with 4 kids instead of being robbed.
 
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