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Hi...we have been charged to replace an engine after the car hit a 15kg dog on the highway. We were told the air condensor on a 1997 Subaru Legacy wagon was damaged. They said a piece of plastic got into the engine...after it had been driven for 100kms from the accident...is it possible for a car to be driven so far with this fault and did driving it cause the plastic to enter the engine or do additional damage? Thanks

The A/C condenser is mounted forward of the radiator so its highly likely it absorbed the majority of impact when you hit the dog.

The engines air induction box and piping is also situated close to the front of the engine bay. If this was damaged in some way I guess it is possible for a piece of broken plastic to be sucked into the engine and cause considerable internal damage if the vehicle was driven after the accident.

All a bit of a guess really; surely somebody connected to the actual repair can be more specific about how this damaged occurred.

Thanks..I needed a second opinion because the explanation I was given didn't sound right. I found out this afternoon that it was the timing belt casing that cracked...but there was no timing belt damage mentioned on the estimate. I'm still not really clear on how that can happen and beleive it happened during repairs.
Would you kindly give me a quick explanation in laymans terms of how that might happen. Thanks