Oh boy! The details are quite amazing; however, I must say the MB is the car to have an accident with. The details. I was driving in NJ in 10F weather. I went around a turn at normal speed. Then it happened. The rear end started to come around on me. I correct, but the car kept sliding on me. The next thing I knew, I was facing the wrong direction. However, I was doing well. I thought I was about to stop when I hit the median which was a curb of standard height. I never applied the brakes, I tried to gas my way out of it. Unfortunately I hit the curb which jumped the car around. The body damage is minimal, but the entire rear end and right front tire were badly damage. In fact, the right rear had the spring and most of the suspension components hanging. The car would not engage a gear. I don't know if this was from the left wheel being forced into the quarter panel or a broken drive shaft. Also, the impact was so hard, that my cd magazine would not eject from the cd player. Nevertheless, my biggest concern now is that Allstate is going to total the car. I had it towed to H&Z Body Shop in Fort Lee, NJ--If anyone can comment on those guys I would appreciate it. I spoke to Zuri, who is the shop owner, and he assured me if Allstate gives the go ahead, the car will be as new--he does the body work for Benzel Busch in Englewood.
Needless to say, I am broken hearted. I never drive this car in the cold, as I have an old Ford for that reason. However, I have not driven the car in about a month due to the weather, and I felt like drivng it.
In short, can any one tell me how the insurance deals with a car with such damage. What are the requirments to total the car. Also, should I be worried about driving the car once I get it back. Will it be as new. One final comment, I must say, I did not even realize how bad the accident was until I got out of the car. I actually put the car in gear expecting to drive off. I did not even feel the impact in the ****pit. They do build them well. I will try to post some photos tomorrow as I need to go to the body shop. Any comments or suggestions would be appreciate. My first accident, in twelve years. It stinks. Why could it not have been my twelve year old Ford. I would have left that on the side of the road. Oh if any one feels like donating money to my cause, please email me if if it is only a dollar each. Any sympathy money would be greatly appreciated.

A sad and depressed MB owner
John Cappuccilli

PS. If the car is repairable, can I have a different suspension put on the car, I would like to have it lowered. Does anyone have any suggestions on what I should go with. I would like something that is good for daily driving, but just adds enough lowering for better handling and a meaner look. Any suggestions?

 

For the rear, make sure you add either AMG or Eibach sways, and either Vogtland or Eibach springs are cheap and provide a good ride/handling compromise. You can also go with a full AMG shock/spring set (you can get it Euro spec from MBenzNL), but its close to $1000 USD.

Good luck in getting your car repaired, hopefully it wont be as bad as you think.

 

I'm really sorry to hear this, John. A good shop can make it drive like it was never damaged. I believe the insurance company will only total it, if the damage exceeds book value. I have a friend who had a car that was $6 short of being totaled. The insurance company made him have it rebuilt. If the unibody isn't tweaked, it shouldn't have enough damage to be totaled, and it would be easier to fix. Remember, timmy got hit in the back by a tanker truck and they didn't total his car. And if it is a total, there are still a few 2002 and a lot of 2003 C230k's available, and maybe a C320 coupe might make up for the loss.

 

The insurance company will pay for all parts that need to be replaced. You can tell the body shop to substitute different parts if you want to. However, if you only have one spring that needs to be replaced, you will be paying for the other three and the labor charge to install them. This is usually how it works.

I had a 325is last year that needed a new front bumper, and I was going to put on an M3 bumper. I just had to pay the difference in price. But the body shop never got back to me on the price, and they had already put the car back together. That's okay. I sold it soon after and bought my coupe.

 

Sorry to hear about your accident. How did you lose control of your car? Was there ice or snow on the road? Shouldn't ESP kick in and prevent this sort of thing from happening?

 

Thats what I was thinking?

Erik

 

ESP can only do so much...at some point ice and inertia will kick in. John must have hit a paticularly slippery spot.

 

The first snow storm we got after I got my car I went to the local mall and "learned" how the car reacts to ice/snow. With ESP on, I could hardly spin the car, even when cutting the wheel at 35mph. I know ESP can't stop everything, but I thought it would have done a bit more in this case.

Erik

 

I have yet to hear from the body shop as to the damage. However, after driving for 17 years and going through several EVAC course with the sheriff's department I used to work with, I have never had a car act so crazy. I did everything I could to regain conrol; however, my input was useless. There have been many times when I have taken that car to a parking lot to test its limits, and not once have I ever even come close to spinning the car. I have even tried fooled around with the traction control off. Additionally, I have been replying the situation over and over in my mind. I even went back to the accident site to do some investigation--yes I also had to go through accident investigation school. Needless to say, there were no skid marks.
Honestly, this will drive me crazy until a come up with a logical solution as to what happened. I am begining to think that something broke causing the car to act the way it did. Overall, I am completely impressed the way the car held together. With two people in the ****pit, neither one of us felt the impact. As I said before, I actually tried to drive the car out of the oncoming lane. If it weren't for the median, all would be well.
In short, thank you for all of you feedback. Oh!, I am still waiting for the charity money

Regards,
John Cappuccilli

 

Well, if your engine seized up and the wheels locked, this might happen. But you would probably be somewhat aware of this happening. Maybe not.

 

A broken ring gear in the diff could cause the rear wheels to lock, also, but it doesn't sound like that happened since there are no skid marks. Perhaps it was some sort of BAS/ESP failure. Just guessing.

 

I stopped at the body shop today, and I must admit the damage is not as bad as I thought. The majority is to the rear right wheel--the spring pop out, and the suspension was hanging. Also, three of the four wheels have been damage. However, upon looking under the car everything looks good. The body damage is mostly scuff marks and scratches. There are not dents. I told the shop owner what had happened, and he could not believe how little the damage was. I will know on Thursday what the total is, and I will pass it along to the group members.
As far as upgrading the suspension, I was told that they could not do that since they had to follow Allstates rules. Finally, the shop owner figures I hit a patch of black ice. He told me even with the traction control, the car would just continue to slide. That is exactly what happened. Boy, I wish I lived in Florida again!

Regards,
John

 

Yeah, ESP and BAS can only work if there is some traction to work with, and black ice doesnt give it much. Like they say "no system, however complex, can defy the laws of physics".

 

Let me tell you one thing, after having my car tossed and turned and bounced around, I would not want to have been in any other car. Both of us had our seatbelts on, and neither one of us so much as hit a knee. This is by far one of the safest cars I have ever driven. Thinking about it know, it was kind of fun to be tossed around like that. I wish I could do it again to see what I could have done differently.

Regards,
John Cappuccilli

 

Black ice would explain the lack of skid marks. I kinda assumed ice from the beginning, since it was so cold out and you said you were going normal speed.

And while ESP can't stop you from skidding on ice, I would hope it could at least make an attempt to point you in the right direction. It knows which way you are trying to go from the steering angle sensor. And unless all four wheels are on some really slippery ice, ESP should be able to do something to help you out. Maybe it would have been much worse without it.