# Puzzling Damage **URL:** \ **Category:** Maintenance/Repairs\ **Tags:** impreza, subaru\ **Created:** [July 20, 2010, 9:04pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/puzzling-damage/52197 "2010-07-20T21:04:11Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 14\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![cruff78](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/13edae/32.png) [@cruff78](https://community.cartalk.com/u/cruff78)\ **Post date:** [July 20, 2010, 9:04pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/puzzling-damage/52197/1 "2010-07-20T21:04:11Z")
My sister found some puzzling damage to the rear bumper of her car. It looks like a shark bit into it! Its a series of triangular shaped holes and scratches. Any idea what could have caused it? PS: Unfortunately, it doesn’t seem that I can upload the picture here. ---
**Author:** ![the\_same\_mountainbike](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/c89c15/32.png) [@the\_same\_mountainbike](https://community.cartalk.com/u/the_same_mountainbike)\ **Post date:** [July 20, 2010, 9:09pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/puzzling-damage/52197/2 "2010-07-20T21:09:03Z")
Was she chased by a big dog letely? Did it catch her? Seriously, without seeing the damage it’s pretty much impossible to think of what it might be. Although of you live in Florida it might have gotten chomped by an alligator. ---
**Author:** ![cruff78](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/13edae/32.png) [@cruff78](https://community.cartalk.com/u/cruff78)\ **Post date:** [July 20, 2010, 9:19pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/puzzling-damage/52197/3 "2010-07-20T21:19:46Z")
we’re in ny, so no alligators here. i’ve tried to attach the pics here, let’s see how it goes. ---
**Author:** ![PvtPublic](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/user_avatar/community.cartalk.com/pvtpublic/32/13089_2.png) [@PvtPublic](https://community.cartalk.com/u/PvtPublic)\ **Post date:** [July 20, 2010, 9:20pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/puzzling-damage/52197/4 "2010-07-20T21:20:17Z")
Looks like possibly someone scrubbed her and this was done maybe by a licence plate frame? Any other guesses ---
**Author:** ![texases](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/user_avatar/community.cartalk.com/texases/32/862_2.png) [@texases](https://community.cartalk.com/u/texases)\ **Post date:** [July 20, 2010, 9:22pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/puzzling-damage/52197/5 "2010-07-20T21:22:45Z")
Looks either like she backed into something while turning, or that something hit her (parking lot?) while turning. ---
**Author:** ![Bladecutter](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/aeb1de/32.png) [@Bladecutter](https://community.cartalk.com/u/Bladecutter)\ **Post date:** [July 20, 2010, 9:27pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/puzzling-damage/52197/6 "2010-07-20T21:27:33Z")
Your sister’s car got whacked by another car. Probably an SUV with a metal bumper guard, or a taxi with the same. Probably happened in a parking lot, or while parked on the street, since it’s in NYC. Does she park in the same place every day? Look for an SUV that park nearby all the time, and see if you can see paint on their bumper guard that matches the paint on her car. BC. ---
**Author:** ![Rod-Knox](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/a183cd/32.png) [@Rod-Knox](https://community.cartalk.com/u/Rod-Knox)\ **Post date:** [July 20, 2010, 9:36pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/puzzling-damage/52197/7 "2010-07-20T21:36:00Z")
Maybe a truck/SUV needed more room to exit from a parallel parking spot and pushed the car forward. If their wheel was turned slightly it would cause the row of ‘tooth’ marks. ---
**Author:** ![cruff78](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/13edae/32.png) [@cruff78](https://community.cartalk.com/u/cruff78)\ **Post date:** [July 20, 2010, 9:36pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/puzzling-damage/52197/8 "2010-07-20T21:36:46Z")
This damage happened in the parking lot of a catering hall while we were attending a party. The car was fine when she parked, and when we came out of the party, we saw the damage. ---
**Author:** ![the\_same\_mountainbike](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/c89c15/32.png) [@the\_same\_mountainbike](https://community.cartalk.com/u/the_same_mountainbike)\ **Post date:** [July 20, 2010, 9:47pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/puzzling-damage/52197/9 "2010-07-20T21:47:00Z")
It could be the side of a large truck tire rubbing the bumper’s surface as it crossed the back of the bumper. I’ve seen a tire create very similar marks. ---
**Author:** ![VDCdriver](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/user_avatar/community.cartalk.com/vdcdriver/32/48514_2.png) [@VDCdriver](https://community.cartalk.com/u/VDCdriver)\ **Post date:** [July 20, 2010, 10:43pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/puzzling-damage/52197/10 "2010-07-20T22:43:40Z")
I agree. The black scuff marks, coupled with the type of damage, make this look like a large tire–from a truck or an SUV–caused the damage. Most likely, someone thought that he had “just enough” clearance as he turned sharply in back of the car, but he miscalculated his clearance. ---
**Author:** ![waterboy](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/user_avatar/community.cartalk.com/waterboy/32/764_2.png) [@waterboy](https://community.cartalk.com/u/waterboy)\ **Post date:** [July 20, 2010, 10:51pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/puzzling-damage/52197/11 "2010-07-20T22:51:15Z")
I think it is a 4wd truck and the hub bolts caused the damage the tire left the block marks. ---
**Author:** ![meaneyedcatz](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/user_avatar/community.cartalk.com/meaneyedcatz/32/692_2.png) [@meaneyedcatz](https://community.cartalk.com/u/meaneyedcatz)\ **Post date:** [July 21, 2010, 2:06am UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/puzzling-damage/52197/12 "2010-07-21T02:06:49Z")
This is an easy one. It’s from another vehicles tire. The material transfer is from a tire and the semi circular marks are from tire rotation. The jagged tears could be from the wheel or a real hard sidewall digging in. Someone got to close and left a senior citizen racing stripe. ---
**Author:** ![pleasedodgevan2](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/ad7895/32.png) [@pleasedodgevan2](https://community.cartalk.com/u/pleasedodgevan2)\ **Post date:** [July 21, 2010, 5:51am UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/puzzling-damage/52197/13 "2010-07-21T05:51:32Z")
Standard issue parking lot rip. ---
**Author:** ![PvtPublic](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/user_avatar/community.cartalk.com/pvtpublic/32/13089_2.png) [@PvtPublic](https://community.cartalk.com/u/PvtPublic)\ **Post date:** [July 21, 2010, 12:28pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/puzzling-damage/52197/14 "2010-07-21T12:28:45Z")
LAND SHARK !