BYE,BYE '98 Accent Sport

[NoOne]

In 19 yrs of driving I have had my second accident, both where an older driver (this one in his 70's) had made a left hand turn while a vehicle in front of them had been blocking their view of oncoming traffic - namely me, and my view of them.

Yesterday (Oct.23/04), was the first time I had not been able to drive my car away from the accident, I will post pics of the remains of my car later in the week when I can get up to the Towing company that removed both cars.

The point of this thread is not just to get a bit of sympathy :rolleyes: , but to just comment on how amazing it is that I was actually able to walk away from the accident with only a stiff back/neck, a bit of chest pain and a mild sprain to my right wrist. Not amazing as you read this, but you'll see what I mean when I post the pics. I personally never thought much of Hyundai - as far as being a well made, safe car - but my opinion has changed drastically the more I think about the accident, I'm not going to guarantee my next car will also be a Hyundai but I will definitely not rule it out.

I feel like I'm ramblin' on ... sit tight and wait for the pics. :)

[Niko_Fx]

Even when cars don't get much damage the impact is so strong on the human body...So if you say that the car was severely damaged…. I'm glad you are ok Dave.

Looking forward for some pics.

[Rockefella]

At least you're ok, the car is replaceable, your life isn't. :o

[Esperante]

Eh, it's only a Hyundai, you'll get over it :)
I do find it amazing that you were (for the most part) unharmed.

[pimento]

It's amazing just good even relatively crappy cars are in respect to the safety aspects. If you were in a megane (lets say the sedan, so as to not have that huge bum there) you may have walked away even better off. I just hope I don't do anything like that, I'm in a '65 Mini Panel Van. If you've seen the Top Gear ep with Sir Ranulph Fiennes, you'll know that the best way to avoid harm in a head-on in a MiniVan is to leap straight into the back, as the steering wheel tends to end up where the driver was. Ain't safety features great? :)

[taz_rocks_miami]

Glad to hear you're ok Dave, sorry about your car though. Is the insurance gonna replace your car?

It's funny how a car you wouldn't talk much about could be strong enough to save your life. My dad and sis were t-boned in his 1998 Escort by another car doing about 30 mph and they both walked away from it. The Escort was a total loss but who cares, they're ok.

[Radoman]

Yeah, It's good to hear you're ok. nowadays even the lowliest of cars are made to be very tough, difficult to destroy, or at least the frame.

but it kinda makes me wonder... in the shop I work at, we recently had a brand new Hummer H2. the guy was out off-roading (foolishly), and went over a bump... breaking the suspension. he managed to limp it back to the shop.

it sat there for a couple weeks whilst parts were on order, front wheel and suspension assembly gone and the wheel holding it up, kinda. When it was all put back together, they found the frame was Bent (!), and it had to go in for frame straightening.

my point is, What's it say when a man can walk away with only minor pain from being trashed in a crappy little hyundai, when a $100,000+ Hummer's frame will bend after going over a tiny little bump? Makes you think how it would react if NoOne had been driving one of them. People say they'd feel safer in something like a hummer, and they'd never own a small import because they don't feel safe. poor fools, if only they knew...

strange stuff indeed. now on to more important stuff: shopping for a new car! ;)

[Hell_Unleashed]

For sure... Glad to hear ur alrite...

[whiteballz]

yea, good to hear that korean cars are good safety wise.

hope your alright

[Wouter Melissen]

my point is, What's it say when a man can walk away with only minor pain from being trashed in a crappy little hyundai, when a $100,000+ Hummer's frame will bend after going over a tiny little bump? Makes you think how it would react if NoOne had been driving one of them. People say they'd feel safer in something like a hummer, and they'd never own a small import because they don't feel safe. poor fools, if only they knew...

The bump was big enough to damage the suspension though. I'd rather have my frame bent than not. A bent frame means that the force of the impact of the crash was absorbed by the car and not as much the people inside it. As for NoOne, it sounds like your car took up most of the beating, just as it was designed to. Glad to hear you're ok!

[UK CARS]

to hear your not dead, is something i suppose

[Rockefella]

but it kinda makes me wonder... in the shop I work at, we recently had a brand new Hummer H2. the guy was out off-roading (foolishly), and went over a bump... breaking the suspension. he managed to limp it back to the shop.

it sat there for a couple weeks whilst parts were on order, front wheel and suspension assembly gone and the wheel holding it up, kinda. When it was all put back together, they found the frame was Bent (!), and it had to go in for frame straightening.

my point is, What's it say when a man can walk away with only minor pain from being trashed in a crappy little hyundai, when a $100,000+ Hummer's frame will bend after going over a tiny little bump?
Sidenote: A Hummer H2 only cost about 57,000, well equipped. I get you're point though. :)

[Radoman]

57,000? not in these parts...

Hell, the Chevy Dealership across the road had a 25th anniversary Corvette for sale for well over 80'000, and that's WAY more than it should be.

[crisis]

Glad you ok. A good prang is one you can walk away from.

[PerfAdv]

Glad to hear another UCPer survives crash. Did your Hyundai have airbags? Pictures will explain a lot. What type of car hit you?

The comment about the H2, wrong. Bigger cars fare better even with less safety engineering. Just imagine crashing a watermelon with an orange, what do you get? Orange juice :(

[NoOne]

No airbags in the '98 Accent (unless you include the wife or her mother :) )

Sorry it took so ong to get the pics -insurance companies suck,[rhetorical question] and what the hell is customer service if their English is so bad they must repeat themselves over and over? [/rhetorical question].

I will also apologize for the quality of the pics, take 1 bad photogragher and add a POS camera :o .

[whiteballz]

HOLY SH!T!

damn man, you lucky

[Hell_Unleashed]

damn... looks like the front half of the bonnet just... evaporated! The red car... is it the other car involved?

[henk4]

That really looks like a biggy. Glad you came out more or less undamaged. Just wondering when you decribed the accident you said that an old man made left turn coming from behind another car. Can you remember what it was, could it have been a big, view-blocking, type of car that some of us would like to see disappear from the road a quickly as possible (truck, SUV or even a Hummer) :)

[Niko_Fx]

Strong hit indeed.

All hail to the Hyundais for keeping Dave safe :)

[NoOne]

It was a full size truck that was obstructing the view, and the car I hit was a '97 Buick Regal (full-size car) according to the accident report the driver of the Buick was 74 yrs old.

He had a thick Italian accent, while at the hospital I heard his son(in his late 40's maybe 50'ish) translating to the doctor that he has had both hips replaced and cataracts both eyes. Why was he allowed to be driving????

[henk4]

It was a full size truck that was obstructing the view, and the car I hit was a '97 Buick Regal (full-size car) according to the accident report the driver of the Buick was 74 yrs old.

He had a thick Italian accent, while at the hospital I heard his son(in his late 40's maybe 50'ish) translating to the doctor that he has had both hips replaced and cataracts both eyes. Why was he allowed to be driving????

may because appropriate medical check ups do not take place when a license has to be extended?

What is a full size truck? Is that a Ram Van or a Kenworth?

[NoOne]

You may be right about the medical check-ups, I think Ontario is far too relaxed in this regard, it must be a difficult decision to finally admit its time to hang up the keys, afterall there goes so much freedom and independance.

When I mentioned a fullsize truck, I was referring to a 4X4 pickup, it may have been a Ford F150 I'm not 100% sure.

[henk4]

You may be right about the medical check-ups, I think Ontario is far too relaxed in this regard, it must be a difficult decision to finally admit its time to hang up the keys, afterall there goes so much freedom and independance.

When I mentioned a fullsize truck, I was referring to a 4X4 pickup, it may have been a Ford F150 I'm not 100% sure.

I am sure it must have been carrying something then, Canadians would not be so stupid as to drive around in empty trucks , blocking other peoples views. :)

[NoOne]

LMAO ... wish I could say it had U.S. plates on it ... but I can't be sure ;)