I had just left work not 10 minutes earlier and was approaching an intersection where the east/west traffic had to stop and north/south traffic did not. I was heading south. As I approached the intersection an F250 crossed the road, heading west, and I observed a black Thunderbird, heading east, approach and stop. Behind the F250 was a little Hyundai. The woman driving the Hyundai rolled the stop sign and gunned it when I was probably 20 or 30 feet from the intersection. I didn't have time to react, swear, or even slam it down a gear -- I hit her at 45mph. I veered off to the right and nailed her car in the right front quarter. Next thing I know, both airbags were out and there was dust from the bags everywhere which stinks. I heard two more bags and realized, "Oh crap, I can't see" and prayed I wouldn't hit a utility pole. I ended up going into the ditch in the southwest corner of the intersection where the car finally stopped. I was dazed for a few and popped open the car door. Thankfully, there were about 5 vehicles at every location of the intersection, so I had plenty of witnesses. I had to search the floor for my glasses as they flew off of my face, and then I realized my neck and shoulders were sore as hell. Fire and ambulance arrived within a matter of minutes and neither I, the woman I hit, nor her baby was injured.
So, I called a friend to come get me and to bring his camera and I waited in one of the police cruisers to keep warm. It was bitter cold, but the gentleman who came to my car to see if I was OK said, "At least it isn't raining". The only question either police officer asked was which car was mine and which way I was traveling. No one asked any details which I guess was due to the number of witnesses. When the wrecker driver arrived, I told him I wanted the car hauled home. Hell, I just filled the tank with gas the day before plus I have to scrape off the FAA sticker on the windshield and turn it in to security. Failure to do so can lead to a $300 fine and termination. So, he had to fish my car out after loading hers onto the flatbed.
The officer writing up the accident report had at last had me sit in his car while he finished the paperwork. He asked if I was OK and told me that her insurance would cover everything as she was at fault. I asked what had happened according to the witnesses, and he stated that I had nailed her, spun her around, and she hit the black Thunderbird that was heading eastbound. The Thunderbird didn't suffer any damage, and it turns out she was telling everyone she thought it was a 4-way stop. The officer didn't hold back in his disdain for her stupidity on that one.
The wrecker driver was able to put my car back into the garage for me. My son was amazed and pointed out that we had *just* replaced the brakes, struts, ball-joints, and tie-rods. Yeah, but I told him that the driver pointed out I could have been dead. So now I get to deal with the insurance to have the adjusters look at the car and some trips to the chiropractor for my neck.
I got 147,122 miles out of the old gal. Great car and NEVER a lick of trouble.
"Beer is proof that God wants us to be happy" - Benjamin Franklin
That sucks, its good your ok. Hopefully the dumb broad totaled hers too. Any ideas on whats going to replace the cavy?
wow almost 150k on a 02 cavi ? glad your ok though .. and no one was hurt.
I am not going to replace the car. That car was one of the best cars I ever owned in terms of reliability, driving, and ease of maintenance. Here is some of what I went through:
Decklid: Dented it backing into something in the garage one day. Couldn't find one for less than $200 searching junkyards either in OKC or online, much less the same color as mine. During a trip to Illinois two years ago, I found an EXACT MATCH in a boneyard owned by a friend of my dad's. Total cost: $65 and I swapped it out in the parking lot.
Reverse light switch: Burned out about 2004. My dad, being a retired engineer was curious about it so I let him keep it. He popped it open and saw how the inside disc was made of nickel, which is cheaper than copper, hence the reason they fail. He installed a copper disc and reassembled it using high grade epoxy. He stated that the switch would now outlast the car. To date, it is still good.
Brakes: I change them out around 140,000. That was the original set of brakes. I do all highway driving, so no need to constantly stop and go. Although I had worn the pads down to metal, I still got a lot of miles out of them.
Battery: The original battery died in August 2007. Longer than most people said a battery should last. Thankfully, being a standard, I was able to jump start the car during periods when the battery couldn't crank it over.
Mileage: This car got the best mileage. On one trip from Oklahoma to Illinois (Rockford), I gassed up west of the Mississippi and made it all the way to Rockford on that tank of gas. The night air was just cool enough, with enough visible mist, that combustion was at an optimum. It was just me, my son, and some light luggage. I got 435 miles out of that tank of gas! That's no bull@!#$. For the first 100 miles, I was panicking, thinking something happened to the fuel gauge as it wasn't moving.
The insurance company is pissing me off right now on what they are going to give me for it. I have pulled the gas tank so I can drain it. I think I'm either going to tell them to pay me their pittance and keep the car to part out or else I'll strip it clean before the tow truck arrives. I have some quality Monroe struts on that thing with less than 1,500 miles on them. I am hoping some J-Body people in OKC hit me up for parts, because it has a lot of good stuff on it.
I was intent on selling the car so I can get back into my classic Volkswagen hobby. I hated to sell it as it was such a good car. My original intent was to drive that car until the wheels fell off, but I guess since I drove it off of the showroom floor it was a fitting end.
"Beer is proof that God wants us to be happy" - Benjamin Franklin
It is totalled. Hate to say it. looks like its time to move on from it. Time to upgrade.
you might be able to buy it back cheap. sell the parts and get your gas out of it too
