Worst crash you have walked away from?

[Junkman]

What was story with that mess of a Marina!

 

A piano fell on it.

[sutty2006]

Probably this one.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Amen for modern cars.

 

Had this been an old shitter that I was using (one of the manta, sierra, senator, mercury fleet).... then I doubt a 60 MPH head - on crash into an Audi A4 would have been any better. Probably wouldnt have survived. 

 

Special shout out to Fordperv for coming to my aid so quickly..... getting emotional now

[New POD]

 

It was 'quite' a 'nice' car before I drove into the Willington services just by the Toyota Roundabout at the junction of the A50 and the A38, and straight into a lamp post in the middle of the access road.

 

[Lankytim]

Hey, Sutty- is that Mansfield group's yard in Chemical lane?

[New POD]

As the Cav was virtually new, the insurance company sent it for repair. With the repairs nearing completion my Dad was informed of a day to go and collect it. Unfortunately a careless mechanic doing some last minute work somehow set fire to it and it was partially burnt out. Although written off it was apparently repaired again and found it's way back on the road!

More likely it was ringed. Someone bought the identity from the insurance company, stole an identical car, "repaired" it and "jobs a goodun" as they say. Insurance companies paid out THREE times. (assuming the repairer had insurance for fire)

 

Makes the CAT C Vehicle ID check look like a good idea ?

[jonathan_dyane]

Indeed, my Uncle had a C reg Transit and he spotted the registration number of 'his' old Transit a few years after he sold it. Only trouble was it was a mk3 and his was a mk2...

[Richard]

 

Makes the CAT C Vehicle ID check look like a good idea ?

 

It's why there are VIC checks now.

[r.welfare]

VIC check is being scrapped (no pun intended) soon, apparently only 38 ringers have been identified during it's existence.

[garethj]

I did this when I was 17, it went sideways around a corner and hit a kerb, launching it into the air and coming down pretty hard.  My passenger and I didn't have a mark on us.

 

This was only a few years ago, a car crossed the dual carriageway central reservation and hit me.  It felt like head-on, but she must have hit the driver's side rear wheel.  That knocked the car sideways into the kerb (I was in the left lane) and launched it into the air, rolling over many, many times.

 

 

Obviously looks dramatic and it set off every airbag, but from a physics point of view that kind of crash is a doddle.  You loose energy and speed quite gradually as you roll down the road, shedding panels and glass.  Far better than straight into a tree where you come to a stop in 8 inches, pulling about 100g on your internal organs.

 

The result of the Mitsubishi crash was that it came to rest on its side, so I hopped down, having seen The Fall Guy do it a hundred times.  I cut my hand a little.

[New POD]

VIC check is being scrapped (no pun intended) soon, apparently only 38 ringers have been identified during it's existence.

But HOW many have been prevented ? They should be able to make it pay, as they charge enough for the service.

[New POD]

Did someone mention a Marina ?

 

As a student I was a passenger in a 1275 automatic beige marina coupe, which left the road at about 40 mph (in a 60) ploughed straight into the back of a pedestrian, hit a lamp post with it's drivers side rear wing and was flipped into the ditch about 10 foot behind the pedestrian.

 

We had a few cuts. I regret not suing my mate for 'whiplash and emotional damage' not because he did anything wrong, just because it took me 5 days to summon the courage to cross a road on my own, and my neck was sore for 3 weeks. (But no worse than a game of university rugby)

 

The poor bloke died 4 days later.

 

The inquest decided it was an accident, my mate was charged with Driving without due care, and was acquitted.

 

The beige coupe was described by the policeman who inspected the wreckage as "the best condition Marina I've ever seen, but they never had what could be called SAFE handling"

[CreepingJesus]

Worst one I walked away from, uninjured, was spinning my Midi van on black ice, and crashing it (on its' side) through a fence. It came to rest see-sawing on a ditch edge: had it slid off, it was going downhill into one of the many small rivers/burns up there in the Campsies.

I say uninjured, but I did crack myself on the head with the driver's door, while beating a hasty retreat!

 

The worst injury I've had, conversely, came from a near miss. I swerved to avoid an oncoming van, which was in the middle of the road through a notorious S-bend near here. I put the front nearside wheel in a ditch at about 40mph, and more by luck than judgement got it out again.

Went to work that night, in abject pain from my neck and shoulders, as I did for about six months. Eventually, I got it looked at, and ended up off work for 14 months, doing physio and hydrotherapy. I only escaped spinal surgery by the thickness of a fag paper, but there's still nerve damage and a 1" strip of wasted muscle at the base of my neck.

I'm eternally grateful that I'm upright, but I won't forget or forgive Fife Police's involvement. I reported the van's reg number and operator to them, which they did less than nothing with. I was told in no uncertain terms by the desk sergeant 'not to be an ambulance-chasing scrounger'. I wasn't after money. I just wanted five minutes with the driver, in a closed room, with my baseball bat. Once I was all healed up of course.

[Herts van Rental]

Whilst riding my Honda 125 Scooter through the Traffic Lights at Kirkliston, Scotland (soon to be a foreign country) 

A car turned right and hit me head on, writing off the Scoot, the ladies standing in the Co-op doorway held up 8.5 for my Summersaults. 

The Paramedics arrived and cut off all my clothes in the middle of the road, they held up 10s all round.

 

Aged 71 I walked it home unscathed from Hospital next day apart from bruised feet where I landed.

 

[londonm]

Hmm, let me think. Bent a Volvo 480 turbo over a raised concrete central reservation after pirouetting a few times when my mate decided to stick the handbrake on for a laugh. Literally bent it over with both sets of wheels touching the floor but the sill about 18 inches higher than it should have been. Ruptured the fuel tank and bathed the surrounding area with a fair bit of fuel. Walked away but suffered a bruised hand afterwards.

Slid a National into a flat bed artic while simultaneously demolishing the surrounding wall to Walsall arboretum. The back corner of the flat bed sliced into the cab and stopped about 1/2 an inch away from my right knee. Change of trousers for that one. Bus was finished.

Had a joy rider hit the side of the national I was driving side on and bent the structure of the bus. No injuries but killed the bus. (Ex Manchester SWB one too - was a good 'un)

The most frightening was clipping (literally was just a tap at below 1mph) a cast iron column in the garage with the back of a Metrobus. The column shattered and the rather substantial wood and glass roof of the garage landed on top of the bus with me inside. Crushed the upper deck flat and it took the fire and ambulance a while to get me to move. The cab was free but I just couldn't move a muscle. No real injuries but I won't work in bus garages again doing what I like doing and I still have flashbacks.

3/10 must be more careful.

Is your name Frank Spencer?

[Station]

Only had one crash and that was driving my old astra Gsi onto a roundabout and had a new Focus lamp me on the front corner. The bumper was torn off, a slight dent on the wing, and the obligatory indicator lens departed from the light unit (they do this in a brisk wind anyway).

The bloke blamed me through his insurers and made a claim so I counter claimed.

 

Worst one didn't involve another car. Car in front hit a cat crossing the road. Saw it twitching but alive in my headlights, aimed to get it under the centre of my Volvo 440, but something caught it, and then spent the next ten seconds banging and thumping underneath my car and wheel arches before seeing it 'cascade' into the road behind me very dead. I remember about five minutes later I said to my mate 'I really didn't need that!' Glad I wasn't in the mr2 as it would've spread the cat evenly for about ten miles.

 

My mate told me one where he was a passenger in a Sierra which hit a tr7 head on, went straight over the top and decapitated all occupants.

[Semi-C]

Hard to pick one rotter of a crash out of my port-faux-lio, I'm an idiot.

 

Here goes.

 

Easter Holiday 1995,

With our nutritional foundations comprising solely of Chocolate Eggshells, my 2 cousins and I did venture out on a day of bicycling. We had travelled close to 100 metres from my house when we happened upon a discarded MFI chest of drawers. Seeing this as an ideal source of ramp building materials, we carefully kicked it to pieces leaving one long side intactish. Further hedge scouring unearthed a 2ft cube of brick and cement which was duly placed part way down a downhill footpath. Our chipboard launch plank was positioned against the hardcore block creating a respectable launch ramp.

The three of us spent the next hour tanking it at this ramp, launching ever further and further (even convinced some feral kids to let us jump over them Matt Coulter style). In all the excitement, I hadn't noticed my front tyre had taken on a thorn. Upon realising my Bastardised Raleigh Burner would soon be out of commission, I made the mistake of uttering the words "one last time" and took to the top of the hill.

Cranks ablur and air bound, all was well...until the chipboard ceased to comply with our demands.

According to eyewitness statements I hit the block of lump full chat which spat me over my bars and onto my head. After my lights had been turned out by the head/sidewalk disagreement, I apparently flailed and fractured my way beyond the distance I had acheived aboard my bike.

When I regained consciousness it was apparent that I had bust myself wholesale. I had broken my right collarbone (again), my left upper arm (in to 3 pieces no less) and I had broken my jaw. My legs were fine and after being pulled up by my arms (cheers Uncle...) I walked away from the scene.

My Dad reluctantly took me to hospital in his 2CV, where I was stripped to my red briefs and exhibited in the waiting area of the X-ray dept. No further action was taken as my local hospital were/are dismal.

I can look back on that time fondly as my mind is failing. The logistics of having both arms in slings and the necessity of personal hygiene caused me to develop a method for ass wiping that involved double sided tape, the side of the bath, toilet roll and *no loss of dignity.

 

My apologies for the length of this waffle, I have been left unattended.

[inconsistant]

I did this when I was 17, it went sideways around a corner and hit a kerb, launching it into the air and coming down pretty hard.  My passenger and I didn't have a mark on us.

 

 

If you'd had the foresight to equip this with a suitably attired roofrack, you could have walked away enjoying a refreshing pineapple smoothie.

[dollywobbler]

Amazingly, I've only properly crashed one car - a Subaru Impreza. Classic lift-off oversteer moment for the 21-year old me who was more used to 2CVs. Almost caught it, but hit a tree on the opposite side of the road, skidded sidewards on two wheels and came to a rest facing the way we'd come. My girlfriend never got over that really. I was just incredibly thankful that there was no-one coming the other way. Stoved the front panel in a bit. My tame mechanic repaired it by tying it to a very strong bit of metal in the ground with a chain, and reversing a few times.

 

Have had plenty of near misses, including almost running a friend of mine over at a 2CV camp because of ANTICS. I was hanging out of the door for some reason, with my left foot on the throttle. While aiming straight at my mate who was pegging down his tent. Putting my left foot down didn't improve the situation. Fortunately, I had the presence of mind to stamp on the brake pedal, forcing a stall. Disaster avoided. Friend gave me a curious look. I told myself not to be such a twat in future and took that message on board too!

 

Most spectacular moment of recent years was driving a bit quickly on a local mountain road in the 2CV. Came over a crest to find a very sharp bend. Hit the brakes hard, just as the rear wheels topped the crest. I actually performed a stoppie! That was quite alarming. 

[sutty2006]

Hey, Sutty- is that Mansfield group's yard in Chemical lane?

 

Yes mate it sure is. Know a few blokes that work there, they let me into the Fuzz lock up to empty the remains of my tat and take some piccies.