Yikes, glad you are both kinda okay - that you injuries are the kind you can recover from!

I have never hit a manhole that was sticking up that far, but I did once (several years ago) hit an unexpected deep pothole - are those only indigenous to the North? - and heard a loud "crunch!" The car seemed okay afterwards, so I kept driving, but the next time I was at my parents' house, my Dad looked was checking out the car, and came back into the house with half a brake shoe in one hand.

"Mind telling me where th rest of this is?" he asked.

"Um, I dunno, oh wait! Could a pothole do that?" I asked.

"Did you hit the brake as you hit the pothole?" "Yeah, I was surprised at how big it was, so was slowing down .."

My brake shoe was eaten by a Massachusetts pothole!

Again, so glad you both are okay - cars are replacable, friends are not!