Alright here is a picture of my xb... The circle on the picture is the area to focus on as I tell you what happened to my xb.

I was driving down to a friends house when an owl flew out into the road and my box hit it as it passed over it. The red circle indicates where the impact happened. There doesn't appear to be any external damage. The damage is BEHIND the lower grill (driver side)



Here is a close up of the bent up area which is behind the grill



and here is one more photo of the damage



My question is this ... what is the silver color part that sits right behind the lower black grill (the piece that is bent up in the right side of the photo behind the black grill)? Is it the radiator support? Is it an expensive part to replace/repair?

Thanks

 

It is hard to tell from the pictures, but I am pretty sure it is the aluminum tubing which goes to the air conditioning condenser. If it has not ruptured and leaked out all of the refrigerant, it is fine. It does not look severely bent or kinked. Try out your AC and if it cools OK, you probably did not hurt anything.

 

i think SP is right, i noticed this on my brand new, Non-Owl Impacted XB and thought it looked kind of odd and out of place, so i think you're fine

 

I will add my confirmation.My 06 has the same tubing.I plan on painting it as I think it stands out like a sore thumb

 

so everyone's xb looks bent like it?

 

Yes it is normal and I have a 2004. If the impact was significant, the damage would have been worse on the lower grille inserts or front air spoiler/front lip.

 

For your future reference, many insurance companies have a zero deductable on live animal hits with your car. That means you pay nothing and the car gets fixed. Be sure to check with your insurance provider if this ever happens again.

-Alex

 

I thought it looked obnoxious as well, and I used electrical tape to cover it up.

If you tape it sideways, the edges of the tape wrap nicely around to the back of the tubing. The only slightly tricky part is as it bends up and in on the passy side, but i think it took all of two minutes.

 

I was going to paint mine but I like the tape trick. I'm going to slice some hose lengthwise and slip it over the aluminum line.

 

good to know!

 

yes.

 

mine's looks the same...

 

What'd it do to the owl???

WW

 

Wish mine had that, back when I hit the deer I had to pay my deductible.. so make sure you check with your insurance before assuming the above.....

 

It split it in two down the middle. To be honest now that I think about it ... it only made a little thud..but when I hit it, people behind me were swerving anywhere to get out of the way of the owl guts