My poor truck...

I had a trailer at the time, and he hit the trailer square on, but he hit it hard enough that my 1800lb trailer, my truck, and me, moved 4 feet forward!

My rear bumper is screwed up (it got pushed "up" by the hitch)
Chrome molding on both sides got jared loose
A weld poped on my tailgate, splitting a seam
My oil cooler adapter (factory) got knocked, and is leaking
My brakes are now going soft on me, no ideas here
Leaking gas from top of rear tank, I think he must have jared the pickup assemble loose!

And I had a Chevy 350 in the bed for my boat that busted out of it's straps and took out the front of the bed (behind the cab)!

And thats just what I noticed, it's hasn't even been "officially" looked over by either my shop (auto repair) or the body shop next door!

The trailer was TWEAKED. This is a 8,000lb equipment trailer, nice sturdy one, and while the ramps are toast, and the trailer looks ok, the socket for the ball on the tongue is toast, the side got shoved into a fender and bent the fender, and the frame twisted so much it busted welds on the crossmember the jack bolts too and all up and down the sheetmetal sides!

Oh, and did I mention my back and neck are killing me, and that this guy had let his insurance lapse by ONE WEEK!

 

Oh, I forgot to say, the Chevy motor suffered some damage, and I had thank god just unloaded my 1969 Mustang about 20 minutes prior.

He was driving a '97 Ford Aerostar... down a very steep hill and his brakes failed (really).

Down that same hill, I usually find myself easily coasting past 55 (limit is 40) so I imagine with no brakes he probably hit me at 65 or 70...

I was at a dead stop in a turn lane, waiting for the light...

 

Got a lawyer yet?????

 

I have a meeting for later today

It's going to suck to be him. My dad owned the trailer, and is going after him, I've got a ~$3500ish Dr bill from getting checked out because a place they poked me near my spine hurt or didn't hurt or something, so they decided I needed a scan of some sort... Not to mention my truck (just adding up some parts from LMC can easily qualify for free shipping at over $1k)

Beyond that, my friend was riding shotgun, and he took a beating too. His medical insurance is covering him, but they are going to go after the guy who hit me for reimbursement I guess.

I feel sorry for the guy, his van was toast and he was a little shaken too (he had airbags at least) but he choose to hit me (his words) so I'm not going to feel that bad about it. The guy in the Mercedes next to me probably had UnderInsured Motorist insurance, which I didn't....

Yeah, that was the best part. He said his brakes failed up the hill, so he had time to think about what to hit. There was on coming traffic, and the lane next to me had a Mercedes stopped at the light, so he choose me. Never mind that the guy in the Mercedes also had all the safety equipment one could ask for, and all I had to stop my head was the rear window...

 

Unfortumately, there's no good ending for anyone in this story....

 

Well, I'm sure a few people will be happy to find some low-mileage Aerostar parts at the junk yard

 

Lessee, he had e brake, and downshift the motor options (doesn't always work with an automatic though...) but without knowing the layout, hard to say where he could have gone. He still should have had some brakes anyway....

 

I wholeheartedly agree that the ebrake (e for EMERGENCY) and downshifting would have been wonderful options... if nothing else, they would have reduced his speed at the time he hit me...

I do believe that he had no brakes (as opposed to using it as a excuse) because when they asked us to move our vehicles if safe, he drove into a Chevron parking lot, and did a lap or two while avoiding people because he couldn't stop again until he lost his momentum...

Hey, he could have hit the horn too!

 

Been reading the news about the Toyota recalls because of floor mats? I can't believe people weren't intelligent enough to figure out that they can step on the brakes, put the car in neutral, move that floor mat, turn the ignition off without locking the wheel, etc. But they died instead. Never underestimate the capacity of people to be stupid in situations that require a split second of thought.

 

Amazing, isn't it? I remember seeing a story on the news several years ago about a lady who was driving south on I-95 through Virginia when her cruise control went haywire and opened the throttle all the way and held it there. She called 911 on her cell phone while going 90-100 MPH dodging in and out of traffic. The 911 operator repeatedly told her to turn off the ignition key. She screamed that she had tried it but it wouldn't turn. The 911 operator told her repeatedly to shift the transmission into neutral. She screamed that she tried it and it wouldn't move. She spent something like 45 minutes flying down I-95 narrowly avoiding numerous collisions, driving out of the jurisdiction of the first 911 center she called, having to be transferred to another jurisdiction. The 911 operator from the second jurisdiction told her again to turn off the ignition key, and after the lady screamed that she had already tried it, she turned the key and the engine shut off (go figure!). The car coasted safely to a stop. After it stopped, a State Trooper got in and tested the shifter - it worked fine, moving smoothly between gears. He turned the key and fired it up, then turned if off and found no problem with the ignition switch. The only thing wrong with the car was the idiot behind the wheel and the burnt brakes.
As Ron White says, "You can't fix stupid".

 

here's you sign.LOL.i can't believe he chose to hit you.your more of a man than me ,cause i would have chosen to hit him (multiple times)LOL.i hate idiots.good luck

 

Ohh your lucky that cheby engine didn't go though the cab!! I seen a wreck once but the truck hit head on a car, the engine in the pickup bed went through the cab and that was not good..

Hope you get better, last week my Wife got rear ended! Nothing but jerks on the road now days using cell phones texting...., that guy tossed his insurance card and name and address at her and left saying he's late for chemo!!! Lawyer time!

 

That's pretty ****ty. Sue the guy for all he has got. I'd like to see pictures if you got them. Most people are retarded they freak out instead of stay calm. I hate that. If the roads are slick take your foot off the gas don't slam on the brakes. I live in Colorado and see this all the time. I never understood how people could be so naive. If the brakes fail downshift or use the e brake. Screw it hit the Mercedes who needs those anyways. Sorry about your truck hope your pain goes away. Its easy to replace vehicles than you or your friend.

 

Quote:

Originally Posted by Handegard

I wholeheartedly agree that the ebrake (e for EMERGENCY)...

The Owner's Manual refers to it as a Parking Brake, not an Emergency Brake. I
don't know where this "Emergency Brake" nomenclature comes from, but it's
wrong (at least in this case).

In any event, this sounds like a crappy situation for all involved. I'd be inclined to
take the thing to a frame shop and see if the frame has been tweaked.

 

They can call it what they want, it still applies the brakes on the rear, and will give some braking action, much better than the results. I have had to use such a time or two as needed...