Thankful

[spuntyb]

Someone out of his mind cut me off and the driver in the lane next to me on the highway Sunday, then hit his brakes, my only guess trying to make the exit we were already passing. It had just started raining unfortunately, and since he ran right in front of me, it was rear end him at over 60 mph or swerve. I swerved hard, fishtailed across the 5 lanes, and got control, but we were close enough to the concrete barrier that I couldn't quite miss it. 5 yo bit his tongue, Baby was fine. Asked my 5yo if he was okay, horrified. He said, "Yeah, that was really scary, but also kind of fun..." baby started laughing.

Of course, it happened in about 2 seconds and that driver was gone, so it will be all on me. But we're all fine.

[Lexor1704]

Glad to hear you are all ok. I cried when I saw the pick because I have the same color car and it just made me sick to see that.

There are so many terrible drivers out there. They are distracted, clueless and self important and that is a deadly combo. I have had similar situations to that happen with exits a few times and it floors me how people cannot accept they missed an exit. Also equally bad are the folks that think turn signals give them right of way regardless of speed differentials or other objects in their path. Ok end of rant.

In the immortal words of John Candy "Oh , that'll buff right out no problem" .

Best of luck on the repairs and good job on an emergency lane change in the wet.

[spuntyb]

Originally Posted by Lexor1704

Glad to hear you are all ok. I cried when I saw the pick because I have the same color car and it just made me sick to see that.

There are so many terrible drivers out there. They are distracted, clueless and self important and that is a deadly combo. I have had similar situations to that happen with exits a few times and it floors me how people cannot accept they missed an exit. Also equally bad are the folks that think turn signals give them right of way regardless of speed differentials or other objects in their path. Ok end of rant.

In the immortal words of John Candy "Oh , that'll buff right out no problem" .

Best of luck on the repairs and good job on an emergency lane change in the wet.

Thanks for the kind words. 2 days later (NYE), someone almost hit me head on as I pulled up to a red light. He turned left from the road to my right, and instead of turning into his lane, he turned into mine. I honked, swerved, and he caught himself just before nailing me.

It's been a week.

[Kooch]

Originally Posted by spuntyb

Someone out of his mind cut me off and the driver in the lane next to me on the highway Sunday, then hit his brakes, my only guess trying to make the exit we were already passing. It had just started raining unfortunately, and since he ran right in front of me, it was rear end him at over 60 mph or swerve. I swerved hard, fishtailed across the 5 lanes, and got control, but we were close enough to the concrete barrier that I couldn't quite miss it. 5 yo bit his tongue, Baby was fine. Asked my 5yo if he was okay, horrified. He said, "Yeah, that was really scary, but also kind of fun..." baby started laughing.

Of course, it happened in about 2 seconds and that driver was gone, so it will be all on me. But we're all fine.

Glad to hear everyone is safe and ok. Sorry to hear about the ride. The damage looks to be in the same area and level of my deer strike a year or so back (bent hood, fender, headlight, etc).

One thing to note if the car is going to be stored outside while waiting parts and repairs make sure to pull the four module for the headlight or otherwise seal it up. The shop left mine in and when the reassembled and tested everything they shorted out due to moisture. I had to wait 4 additional weeks for parts on backorder from Germany.

Overall was over $14k in repairs but thankfully all covered under insurance. Best of luck with the repairs and make sure to get it done at a top notch shop. I did and you can't tell there was ever an issue.

[Humdizzle]

sucks.

glad you made the right move and the family came out unscathed. I hate people like that who just stop on a busy highway to street just to make a last minute lane change... no consideration for holding up traffic behind them.

would be worth considering a dash cam. That way next time it happens you can go after the person (who probably didn't have insurance) and at least try to sue them out their house.

[SD ///M4]

So you swerved hard, lost control, and hit an immovable object after crossing 5 lanes of traffic, rather than rear-end someone who was going at a slower speed than you, but still moving in the same direction? With two pre-school kids in the car? And because you ended up not hitting him, but losing control of your car and hitting a concrete barrier, now the entire thing is on you?

You and your family were lucky that you made it across 5 lanes of traffic without nailing someone else or getting nailed by someone else, who was possibly moving faster. Your accident could have been much worse.

I'm not sure that what you did was the right move, but it was a split-second decision. But swerving hard on a rainy surface, it's not surprising what the outcome would be. I'm not trying to make you feel bad, but I think just hitting the guy would have been the better choice. You certainly wouldn't have been worse off and he wouldn't have gotten off scot-free.

[SD ///M4]

Originally Posted by Humdizzle

..would be worth considering a dash cam. That way next time it happens you can go after the person (who probably didn't have insurance) and at least try to sue them out their house.

Depends on the state...

[spuntyb]

Originally Posted by SD ///M4

So you swerved hard, lost control, and hit an immovable object after crossing 5 lanes of traffic, rather than rear-end someone who was going at a slower speed than you, but still moving in the same direction? With two pre-school kids in the car? And because you ended up not hitting him, but losing control of your car and hitting a concrete barrier, now the entire thing is on you?

You and your family were lucky that you made it across 5 lanes of traffic without nailing someone else or getting nailed by someone else, who was possibly moving faster. Your accident could have been much worse.

I'm not sure that what you did was the right move, but it was a split-second decision. But swerving hard on a rainy surface, it's not surprising what the outcome would be. I'm not trying to make you feel bad, but I think just hitting the guy would have been the better choice. You certainly wouldn't have been worse off and he wouldn't have gotten off scot-free.

Yeah I keep second guessing that. There were no cars to our left, but plenty behind us and to the right. In that split second, it just seemed less risky to swerve left, but who knows. I just have to keep telling myself it was the right move, but I hear you :

[spuntyb]

Originally Posted by Kooch

Glad to hear everyone is safe and ok. Sorry to hear about the ride. The damage looks to be in the same area and level of my deer strike a year or so back (bent hood, fender, headlight, etc).

One thing to note if the car is going to be stored outside while waiting parts and repairs make sure to pull the four module for the headlight or otherwise seal it up. The shop left mine in and when the reassembled and tested everything they shorted out due to moisture. I had to wait 4 additional weeks for parts on backorder from Germany.

Overall was over $14k in repairs but thankfully all covered under insurance. Best of luck with the repairs and make sure to get it done at a top notch shop. I did and you can't tell there was ever an issue.

That's a good thought about the exposed headlamp. I'll ask the garage about it. Thanks!

[aerostar]

Originally Posted by SD ///M4

So you swerved hard, lost control, and hit an immovable object after crossing 5 lanes of traffic, rather than rear-end someone who was going at a slower speed than you, but still moving in the same direction? With two pre-school kids in the car? And because you ended up not hitting him, but losing control of your car and hitting a concrete barrier, now the entire thing is on you?

You and your family were lucky that you made it across 5 lanes of traffic without nailing someone else or getting nailed by someone else, who was possibly moving faster. Your accident could have been much worse.

I'm not sure that what you did was the right move, but it was a split-second decision. But swerving hard on a rainy surface, it's not surprising what the outcome would be. I'm not trying to make you feel bad, but I think just hitting the guy would have been the better choice. You certainly wouldn't have been worse off and he wouldn't have gotten off scot-free.

+1.

It's always better to hit a "soft" car than to run into a concrete barrier.

Also, what if there was a semi behind you that you missed and you got plowed through and turned into a red puddle on the highway? What if you swerved and hit the concrete barrier and spun out and got plowed by some more cars?

Always hit the car if you have no choice. Those concrete barriers aren't there to protect you, they're there to protect people on the other side of the road. Those barriers can seriously fuck you up.

[TheDailyDriven]

Sorry to hear that. Glad you and your loved ones are fine. Truly blessed. Hoping your M comes back better than new.

[mike@x-ph.com]

Sucks that he ran away but glad to hear you are okay.

[dezzracer]

Originally Posted by aerostar

+1.

It's always better to hit a "soft" car than to run into a concrete barrier.

Also, what if there was a semi behind you that you missed and you got plowed through and turned into a red puddle on the highway? What if you swerved and hit the concrete barrier and spun out and got plowed by some more cars?

Always hit the car if you have no choice. Those concrete barriers aren't there to protect you, they're there to protect people on the other side of the road. Those barriers can seriously fuck you up.

As Arm chair Quarterbacks we are always the "experts" and hindsight is 20/20 but unless you were sitting in his seat at that split-second no one can judge what the right move was.

[aerostar]

Originally Posted by dezzracer

As Arm chair Quarterbacks we are always the "experts" and hindsight is 20/20 but unless you were sitting in his seat at that split-second no one can judge what the right move was.

Yeah, I'm not sure if you're really saying that it takes an expert to realize that crossing 5 lanes and hitting a wall is better than braking and hitting a car.

But you're right, clearly I'm an "arm chair quarterback", whatever the fuck that's supposed to mean.

[Tall Tom Cruise]

Glad you're OK, OP.

We all look forward to pictures of your new GTS hood

[AlpineWhite_SJ]

Originally Posted by aerostar

Yeah, I'm not sure if you're really saying that it takes an expert to realize that crossing 5 lanes and hitting a wall is better than braking and hitting a car.

But you're right, clearly I'm an "arm chair quarterback", whatever the fuck that's supposed to mean.

Yes, because I'm sure hitting the barrier was what OP thought would happen in that split second. It was more like definitely hit a car or try an emergency maneuver into open space, which caused the car to lose control and he wasn't able to fully recover in time as he described.

If he was next to the barrier and the choice was barrier or car, you'd have a good point.

OP glad everyone is ok and hope you get the car back soon.

[SYT_Shadow]

I'm glad you're safe. It's nice to have a car that handles as well as a M3 for these moments.

Active safety (= handling) is the most valuable

[SD ///M4]

Originally Posted by dezzracer

As Arm chair Quarterbacks we are always the "experts" and hindsight is 20/20 but unless you were sitting in his seat at that split-second no one can judge what the right move was.

Right, but we can discuss what might have been a better move. Discussing situations like this makes people aware that the "obvious" choice of not hitting the car in front of you is not necessarily the right one. It was a split-second decision, but it may have been the only decision that the OP thought was possible. It's perfectly fine to discuss, what in hindsight, could have been a better alternative decision and what those choices might be.

Here's a case in point. A friend of mine owns a driving school, mostly teaching driver's education to newly permitted teens so that they can get their drivers license. After I retired, I actually worked for him as a teen driving instructor for about three years. One of the things that he teaches in the classroom sessions, is that you never, ever swerve to avoid hitting an animal, which most commonly would be a dog or cat in a neighborhood. The reason is, that swerving the car is unpredictable, especially for a new teen driver, and they could hit another car, either coming the other way, or parked, run off the road, or even worse, hit a kid on the sidewalk or in a yard. As he says in his class, in this situation "Fluffy gets it.", being the best low-risk choice. The consequences of hitting the animal are far less than other options, particularly if someone (besides the animal) gets injured. If a teen learning how to drive were not to hear this advice, they would probably logically assume that they should try to avoid the animal, not realizing what the consequences might be.

Coincidentally, a couple of years ago, my neighbor who lives on the corner at the end of my block had a woman run her car into his side yard, driving up his side slope, taking down a small tree and several bushes. She was driving her daughter home (which was literally three houses down on the side street) and a cat ran across the road. She swerved to avoid the cat, drove up over the curb, across the sidewalk, and right into the tree. She and her daughter were shaken up but unhurt, The front airbags went off, the entire front end was damaged, the radiator was damaged, and she bent a wheel and popped the tire. This was at a residential street speed (although I think in her panic she also stepped on the gas). This was a very similar situation to the one that the OP experienced, except that it wasn't raining and it did happen at a much slower speed. But I'll bet that this woman wishes she had just hit the cat.

This was the reason why I made my original post because I believe that in this situation, what the OP thought was his only option was not a very good option, that there might have been a better alternative, but one that he might not have thought about. It's only in an "armchair quarterback" environment can we thoughtfully talk about alternative options. This doesn't mean that we are criticizing the OP but presenting alternatives that hopefully we can all learn from.

[dezzracer]

Originally Posted by SD ///M4

Right, but we can discuss what might have been a better move. Discussing situations like this makes people aware that the "obvious" choice of not hitting the car in front of you is not necessarily the right one. It was a split-second decision, but it may have been the only decision that the OP thought was possible. It's perfectly fine to discuss, what in hindsight, could have been a better alternative decision and what those choices might be.

Here's a case in point. A friend of mine owns a driving school, mostly teaching driver's education to newly permitted teens so that they can get their drivers license. After I retired, I actually worked for him as a teen driving instructor for about three years. One of the things that he teaches in the classroom sessions, is that you never, ever swerve to avoid hitting an animal, which most commonly would be a dog or cat in a neighborhood. The reason is, that swerving the car is unpredictable, especially for a new teen driver, and they could hit another car, either coming the other way, or parked, run off the road, or even worse, hit a kid on the sidewalk or in a yard. As he says in his class, in this situation "Fluffy gets it.", being the best low-risk choice. The consequences of hitting the animal are far less than other options, particularly if someone (besides the animal) gets injured. If a teen learning how to drive were not to hear this advice, they would probably logically assume that they should try to avoid the animal, not realizing what the consequences might be.

Coincidentally, a couple of years ago, my neighbor who lives on the corner at the end of my block had a woman run her car into his side yard, driving up his side slope, taking down a small tree and several bushes. She was driving her daughter home (which was literally three houses down on the side street) and a cat ran across the road. She swerved to avoid the cat, drove up over the curb, across the sidewalk, and right into the tree. She and her daughter were shaken up but unhurt, The front airbags went off, the entire front end was damaged, the radiator was damaged, and she bent a wheel and popped the tire. This was at a residential street speed (although I think in her panic she also stepped on the gas). This was a very similar situation to the one that the OP experienced, except that it wasn't raining and it did happen at a much slower speed. But I'll bet that this woman wishes she had just hit the cat.

This was the reason why I made my original post because I believe that in this situation, what the OP thought was his only option was not a very good option, that there might have been a better alternative, but one that he might not have thought about. It's only in an "armchair quarterback" environment can we thoughtfully talk about alternative options. This doesn't mean that we are criticizing the OP but presenting alternatives that hopefully we can all learn from.

I agree. Those are good analogies. Another is those dummies that swerve into another lane or the shoulder when the car in front of them slams on the brakes. You see it all the time. The driver would almost always be better off if they would just keep the car straight and let the brakes and antilock system do their job.

Truth be known my first thought is he should just hit the idiot and punted him into the ditch. Plus the asshat driver would have been caught. But then, I remembered...in a lot situations the driver that rear ends the other guy usually is considered at fault. Plus I didn't want to critique his decision. I'm sure he is beating himself for what he could have (and probably should have) done. Thankfully it turned out ok for him and his kids.

[RustySeatbelt]

Originally Posted by SD ///M4

Right, but we can discuss what might have been a better move. Discussing situations like this makes people aware that the "obvious" choice of not hitting the car in front of you is not necessarily the right one. It was a split-second decision, but it may have been the only decision that the OP thought was possible. It's perfectly fine to discuss, what in hindsight, could have been a better alternative decision and what those choices might be.

Here's a case in point. A friend of mine owns a driving school, mostly teaching driver's education to newly permitted teens so that they can get their drivers license. After I retired, I actually worked for him as a teen driving instructor for about three years. One of the things that he teaches in the classroom sessions, is that you never, ever swerve to avoid hitting an animal, which most commonly would be a dog or cat in a neighborhood. The reason is, that swerving the car is unpredictable, especially for a new teen driver, and they could hit another car, either coming the other way, or parked, run off the road, or even worse, hit a kid on the sidewalk or in a yard. As he says in his class, in this situation "Fluffy gets it.", being the best low-risk choice. The consequences of hitting the animal are far less than other options, particularly if someone (besides the animal) gets injured. If a teen learning how to drive were not to hear this advice, they would probably logically assume that they should try to avoid the animal, not realizing what the consequences might be.

Coincidentally, a couple of years ago, my neighbor who lives on the corner at the end of my block had a woman run her car into his side yard, driving up his side slope, taking down a small tree and several bushes. She was driving her daughter home (which was literally three houses down on the side street) and a cat ran across the road. She swerved to avoid the cat, drove up over the curb, across the sidewalk, and right into the tree. She and her daughter were shaken up but unhurt, The front airbags went off, the entire front end was damaged, the radiator was damaged, and she bent a wheel and popped the tire. This was at a residential street speed (although I think in her panic she also stepped on the gas). This was a very similar situation to the one that the OP experienced, except that it wasn't raining and it did happen at a much slower speed. But I'll bet that this woman wishes she had just hit the cat.

This was the reason why I made my original post because I believe that in this situation, what the OP thought was his only option was not a very good option, that there might have been a better alternative, but one that he might not have thought about. It's only in an "armchair quarterback" environment can we thoughtfully talk about alternative options. This doesn't mean that we are criticizing the OP but presenting alternatives that hopefully we can all learn from.

Agreed. It's always good to after action the situation when something less than ideal happens. To your point it's not only the best way for the individual it happened to to improve upon their decisions for future situations, but also the best way to collectively learn how to improve upon and prevent the same or worse situation from happening again.

And OP, glad you and your kids came out ok. Don't beat yourself up over it. End result can't be changed, so all that matters now is you all went home.

[G35POPPEDMYCHERRY]

damn man; just another day on the road. at least your family is in one piece. cars come and go.

[AlpineWhite_SJ]

Originally Posted by SD ///M4

This was the reason why I made my original post because I believe that in this situation, what the OP thought was his only option was not a very good option, that there might have been a better alternative, but one that he might not have thought about. It's only in an "armchair quarterback" environment can we thoughtfully talk about alternative options. This doesn't mean that we are criticizing the OP but presenting alternatives that hopefully we can all learn from.

As a former instructor, you have some very good points. What a lot of people could do better is how they deliver the feedback. TBH, your original feedback came off kinda harsh, but since it acknowledged it was a split second decision and was good feedback, I chose to respond to the other post that was frankly a bit rude. It’s hard to judge tone and intent from text on a forum, which can be very different from a classroom setting where everyone in the room can read body language and understand your rightful role as the educator in delivering helpful criticism as part of the learning process. Honestly, just putting your last paragraph first would have made it seem a lot more helpful instead of listing off all the things OP did wrong off the bat. Just some honest input..

And fluffy and Wile-E-coyote have both gotten it on a couple occasions..