In the middle of the night WHOOMFA!!!!

[Lance B]

A few Saturday nights ago, I was watching a movie on TV late at night and WHOOMFA!!, big crash from out the front of our house. Even before I got to the front door, I knew what had happened, a car, the silver Mazda 2, had smashed into the back of my daughter's car, the green Accent. What I didn't realise until I got out there was that it had pushed one daughter's car, the Accent, about 6mts into the back of my other daughter's car, the white one!! The Accent was parked one one side of the driveway and the force of the impact pushed it into the rear of the my other daughter's car which was parked on the other side of the driveway and then pushed it about 2.5mts as well!!! No one was injured in the offending car, thankfully. Young girl driver was not paying attention (you can guess what she may have been doing) and ran into the my daughter's green car which then was shunted into my other daughter's white car. Green car written off, white car was repaired and good as new. We had the green car from new, which my wife drove until my wife got a new car and then we handed it down to my youngest to drive until she could afford her own car. It was still in good shape and worth more than it's written off value, so now my daughter has to buy a car. :angry0:

I really felt sorry for the poor young girl as she was so upset and so apologetic. I was just happy that she wasn't injured, just her pride. What was alarming was that her air bag didn't deploy.

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[WhoDo]

Oooh, that's alarming Lance! A Mazda 2 and the airbag didn't deploy? My wife was looking buying one of those too! Glad there were no injuries but someone always pays and it looks like your innocent victim daughter is having to foot at least part of the bill. :angry0:

[Lance B]

Oooh, that's alarming Lance! A Mazda 2 and the airbag didn't deploy? My wife was looking buying one of those too! Glad there were no injuries but someone always pays and it looks like your innocent victim daughter is having to foot at least part of the bill. :angry0:

Thank you very much for your concerns, Waz. The most important thing is that no one was injured, other than a slight pain in the hip pocket!

[Allie]

I'm also glad no-one was hurt. For such a small car to do so much damage, even in view of the crumple factor of these type of cars, she certainly must have been travelling. I hope she has learnt to be more careful if nothing else.

[Lance B]

I'm also glad no-one was hurt. For such a small car to do so much damage, even in view of the crumple factor of these type of cars, she certainly must have been travelling. I hope she has learnt to be more careful if nothing else.

Thank you for your concerns. I believe she didn't brake as she was doing something else at the time and not watching the road (read into that what you will) and probably hit at about 50kmh.

[Bennymiata]

The Mazda doesn't look like it has all that much damage, which is probably why the airbag did not deploy.
If the bag did go off, then her car would have been written off too.

Glad no-one was injured, and I hope the driver has learned an expensive lesson from this.

[Lance B]

The Mazda doesn't look like it has all that much damage, which is probably why the airbag did not deploy.
If the bag did go off, then her car would have been written off too.

Actually, we fund out later that it was written of, too. Bent the chassis, apparently! :eek:


Glad no-one was injured, and I hope the driver has learned an expensive lesson from this.

Thanks for the concerns and I am sure the young girl has learnt he lesson! :)

[Mark L]

Many moons ago we were watching an F.A. Cup final late at night when we also heard WHOOMFA!!!! (as Lance describes it).
I'd forgotten to bring our car off the roadside that night. It was hit so hard that it was a write off. And it was written off by a drunken, unlicensed, uninsured idiot!
Our insurance company's problem, as (thankfully) my wife always insisted on full comprehensive.
As you say Lance, at least no one was injured. Material things can be fixed or replaced.

[Cage]

Mate, I feel your pain, and your confusion.

Shouldn't happen, but it does, and you can't help but wonder why.

I also have two daughters, and have taken steps to equip them to be better drivers, such as advanced driver courses, and you can't help but wonder why any caring parent does not do the same.

I guess the bottom line is that, as far as your girls are concerned, it was a non-participation incident, and for that you can be thankful.

Hopefully, the unfortunate young ladies parents are concerned enough to ask the pertinent questions, and counsel her to ensure this sort of occurrence does not become a habit.

[arthurking83]

I'm sure the airbags will only deploy if the speed is appropriate for them to do so, otherwise the occupant is exposed to unnecessary injury from the airbag itself.

What I can't fathom is the physics of the impact.
Was your daughter in the green car at the time of the accident?
Was the green car parked.
If the cars haven't been moved from the time of the accident, it looks as tho the perpetrator was driving on the nature strip just prior to the accident!!

Main thing was that no one was injured, and hopefully the girl that caused the accident has learned a valuable lesson.

[Lance B]

Mate, I feel your pain, and your confusion.

Shouldn't happen, but it does, and you can't help but wonder why.

I also have two daughters, and have taken steps to equip them to be better drivers, such as advanced driver courses, and you can't help but wonder why any caring parent does not do the same.

I guess the bottom line is that, as far as your girls are concerned, it was a non-participation incident, and for that you can be thankful.

Hopefully, the unfortunate young ladies parents are concerned enough to ask the pertinent questions, and counsel her to ensure this sort of occurrence does not become a habit.

Thank you for your nice post, Kevin.

[Lance B]

I'm sure the airbags will only deploy if the speed is appropriate for them to do so, otherwise the occupant is exposed to unnecessary injury from the airbag itself.

What I can't fathom is the physics of the impact.
Was your daughter in the green car at the time of the accident?

No, thankfully!


Was the green car parked.

Yes.


If the cars haven't been moved from the time of the accident, it looks as tho the perpetrator was driving on the nature strip just prior to the accident!!

Yes, it looks that way, but they were all on the road.


Main thing was that no one was injured, and hopefully the girl that caused the accident has learned a valuable lesson.

I am sure she has. Nice young girl and very remorseful.

[I @ M]

Main thing was that no one was injured, and hopefully the girl that caused the accident has learned a valuable lesson.

Likewise good to hear that no one was injured.


I am sure she has. Nice young girl and very remorseful.

A major part of her remorse is that in all probability her brand new IPhone shot out of her hand and smashed into pieces on the dashboard -----

[ricktas]

Must say Lance you are a calmer person than I. She would have copped the biggest earful from me.

[WhoDo]

Air bags are designed to deploy in any impact greater than 5km/hr. The fact that these didn't in an impact that "bent the chassis" and resulted in such severe damage tells me the airbag is faulty. I hope her family has the presence of mind to ask Mazda WHY that happened and get it fixed or the next time it certainly could cost her serious injury at best, or her life at worst. :eek:

[SirLozalot]

I hope your daughters cars were insured!

[Duane Pipe]

Grrr I'm with Rick re: a mouth full. Good to see that now one was injured Lance, its also lucky that there were no pedestrians around at the time too.
We have had a big influx of 3rd world immigrants to the Latrobe Valley that have probably never seen a car let alone drive one and are they a bloody menace on our streets!, they don't need distractions to drive bad:action:

[Lance B]

Must say Lance you are a calmer person than I. She would have copped the biggest earful from me.

LOL. I was a little cranky at the time but in the end there's no point in getting upset as it was done and the girl was very upset and apologetic.

[Lance B]

Air bags are designed to deploy in any impact greater than 5km/hr. The fact that these didn't in an impact that "bent the chassis" and resulted in such severe damage tells me the airbag is faulty. I hope her family has the presence of mind to ask Mazda WHY that happened and get it fixed or the next time it certainly could cost her serious injury at best, or her life at worst. :eek:

Yes, that is what I think they should be doing, too. Quite concerning that it didn't go off!

[Lance B]

I hope your daughters cars were insured!

Thank you for your concern, yes they were all insured, thankfully.

[Lance B]

Grrr I'm with Rick re: a mouth full. Good to see that now one was injured Lance, its also lucky that there were no pedestrians around at the time too.

As I said to Rick, I was a little cranky at the time, but the girl was so upset and apologetic it was difficult to be mad at her. I was just happy she was ok and not drunk! Thank you for your concerns.


We have had a big influx of 3rd world immigrants to the Latrobe Valley that have probably never seen a car let alone drive one and are they a bloody menace on our streets!, they don't need distractions to drive bad:action:

I know what you mean!

[Lance B]

Likewise good to hear that no one was injured.

Thank you for your concerns, Andrew.


A major part of her remorse is that in all probability her brand new IPhone shot out of her hand and smashed into pieces on the dashboard -----

LOL. I think you hit the nail on the head with that thought. ;)

[Duane Pipe]

re: the Phone! spot on I recon too. It would have been way to dark for her to be looking at herself in the mirror :lol: Sorry:lol2:
I drove a Maxi Taxi for 1 year with nearly 1.000.000.00 kmh on the clock, the owner kept promising me a new vehicle and one day my dream came true. Would you believe before I had had it for a week it was almost written off. I was working a night shift and had just picked up a young falla about 16 and while traveling on a main rd in a 60 zone a stupid Idiot in a Van with his young son drove straight threw a Giveway sign at a T intersection and we T Boned his Van at about 50k, Whooo pull up Nelly I thought as we caved the side of his van in.
I could see his face as I approached the intersection, he was looking straight ahead and did not hesitate to go straight threw a Giveway sign :action: I was in a Toyota High Ace Van and no deployment of the Air Bags either :eek:. The poor young Falla crapped his dack's, I knew we were going to crash so I braced the passenger with my left arm and held on tight.
I only suffered with bruised knees and shins, and thank God the young bloke walked away:th3:
Man was I angry

[Duane Pipe]

I listen to radio talk backs and there is a lot of talk about Rd safety lately and how to improve it and my Bloody Blood Pressure Boils.
We Need More Police:th3:

What do you think of this.
Every driver should sit for a Rd rule revision test every 12 months. Whether it be online or in person, What ever. Fail and Your Out!!!

I watched on a country road a P plater hold up an Ambulance and actually slow down, Shit, they had no Idea what to do:action:
How many P Platers have you seen not obeying the rd rules through not knowing them, when I got my ticket I learned that you have to travel in the left lane if you were going slow! Hmff Every Body breaks that one! Not me though.
Dont you hate it when on a freeway that has a clear lane with no traffic that some one will still tailgate.

[Lance B]

re: the Phone! spot on I recon too. It would have been way to dark for her to be looking at herself in the mirror :lol: Sorry:lol2:
I drove a Maxi Taxi for 1 year with nearly 1.000.000.00 kmh on the clock, the owner kept promising me a new vehicle and one day my dream came true. Would you believe before I had had it for a week it was almost written off. I was working a night shift and had just picked up a young falla about 16 and while traveling on a main rd in a 60 zone a stupid Idiot in a Van with his young son drove straight threw a Giveway sign at a T intersection and we T Boned his Van at about 50k, Whooo pull up Nelly I thought as we caved the side of his van in.
I could see his face as I approached the intersection, he was looking straight ahead and did not hesitate to go straight threw a Giveway sign :action: I was in a Toyota High Ace Van and no deployment of the Air Bags either :eek:. The poor young Falla crapped his dack's, I knew we were going to crash so I braced the passenger with my left arm and held on tight.
I only suffered with bruised knees and shins, and thank God the young bloke walked away:th3:
Man was I angry

Glad you were all ok. I like your idea of more tests.

[Duane Pipe]

Glad you were all ok. I like your idea of more tests.

What else can be done.
I listen to my Scanner most nights when I cant sleep.
I can pick up as far as Cann River to Cowes/to South east Gippy, and man are the cops busy.

Here is a good bullshit story from the Police or the media.
Listening to my scanner there was a high speed chase in progress and the cops said over the scanner that they had lost the car in blahh blaa street, I know exactly where they lost it
Next day in the local rag the paper said that the police gave up the pursuit due to high speed.. Hmff, what dose that say!

[arthurking83]

Air bags are designed to deploy in any impact greater than 5km/hr. .....

Nah! I think they deploy at greater speeds, like about 15 or 20km/h when a solid immovable object is hit.
As the object hit will absorb some of the impact and provide a cushioning effect the actual speed when hitting a softer target is higher again.

[Duane Pipe]

Its activated bye a Pressure point. It has too be, well maybe :confused013
Is it activated by a Gyro:confused013 or maybe a when your head smashes the windscreen it is activated:lol2:

[Mark L]

Nah! I think they deploy at greater speeds, like about 15 or 20km/h when a solid immovable object is hit.
As the object hit will absorb some of the impact and provide a cushioning effect the actual speed when hitting a softer target is higher again.

It seems to vary. For an over simple explanation, see point 2 here........http://www.nhtsa.gov/people/injury/airbags/airbags03/page2.html