So cruising around Tripoli today, my car and another guy's barely connected as I was trying to avoid a van opening its door that I would have swiped. I pulled over to apologize and discuss what to do, and the guy wanted way more than the damage was worth. I said to call an inspector and he didn't want to, so I said I'm not going to pay his exorbitant sum.

Next thing you know, he gets in his ****ty Mazda, puts it in reverse, and slams the gas. I was pulling out from behind him so his rear left bumper connected with my passenger door and he kept on flooring it till my car's weight stopped his.

End result: Front right fender damaged, both right doors totaled, rear right fender damaged. I filed a police report, and he's now obligated to fix the entire car.

My soon to be fiancee was sitting in the passenger seat where the window shattered and he plowed into, but the good old faithful Benz handled it beautifully. The safety glass split into a million places, didn't so much as scratch my girl, and the inner door panel didn't even bulge. Doors are the weakest part of any accident, and the car mechanically was untouched.

I am beyond grateful it prevented any harm from coming to my loved one, and I can now fully attest to the Teutonic engineering that made that possible.

May all of you never encounter someone as small minded and retarded as the guy who rammed into me, and I'm happy to say this W124 will be back on the road soon.

I'll post pics of the crash tomorrow. On a more philosophical note, you know how you always think "Yeah, but if it was me driving, I could have avoided it."
This all happened so fast that a manual E30024V pulling away as fast as I could couldn't prevent a ****ty 90's Mazda 9 from plowing into me. I know I reacted as fast as I could, but it wasn't enough.

In other words, always take your precautions. Nobody is truly safe from maniacs on the road, no matter how high you think of yourself and your reaction speed. I wish you all the best, and I'm happy to be home, and ecstatic that I have a W124 in my life.

Cheers all, Shoomakan

 

What the hell was that ******* thinking?

 

They don't think. They just do what they feel!


Glad to hear you and yours are scratchless. I got a blood nose from broken glass once.

 

Can that guy get in trouble for almost hurting you? I feel like what he did was criminal.

 

Part of my police report was me filing an assault claim.

Major facts going against him is that:

A: he came out of the car holding a 2x4,
B: I'm twice his size and stayed calm and called the cops.
C: His mother, wife, and 2 children were WITH HIM IN THE DAMN CAR.

Darwin just facepalmed himself.

 

Brett

No law against being an A-hole...although it should carry the death penalty...
No matter where in the world you are, it's difficult to escape fools

 

What an idiot. He could have killed someone.

Truth.

 

I'm reminded more and more that I'm horribly out of place in this world

 

Brett

You're not out of place, hopefully you'll season with age and understand that the whole wide world is about

The quicker you learn not to step in the ever present daily , the more successful your life will be

Ed A.

 

I hope when I'm as old (but young at heart) as you are, RB, I'll be just as seasoned.

 

Hey Shoomakan - you're in Tripoli? Stay safe! I've a friend stuck there - how are you managing to get to the internet? LTT has his connection shut down...

 

I can see how it can confuse.. he is in tripoly Lebanon, the other tripoly is in Lybia, bless them all there..

 

Here are the pictures!

You'll notice how damaged my door is, and how it absorbed the impact and didn't so much as dent the inner door panel.

God bless these cars...

 

@UKC: Like Jay said. There are 2 Tripolis, to my knowledge. One in Lebanon, the other in Libya. I'm in Lebanon.

And as Jay said, may God help them. Never did I think in my lifetime would I see a tyrant launch jet fighters to strafe his own people. What an animal.

 

You are in the right place, the world needs favorable examples to avoid further degradation.

 

Thank you!

 

UPDATE:

Since the guy's car apparently wasn't road legal, my insurance doesn't cover me. Cost of damage is valued at around 600$.

I'm going to repaint the entire car so that the paint matches all around. Thinking of going for Midnight Purple Metallic.

 

Oh, for comparison:

Over here in Beirut, a full paint job (stripping the entire car, along with paint, re-straightening and oven treatment) costs between 800-1200$, in most cases. Paint price varies the price slightly, unless you want some diamond coated stuff.

How much does it cost over yonder? I'm curious.

 

lol upgrade ur benz dont waste ur time

 

If done by a MB certified collision center or any high end shop using the correct Glasurit system about $6-$7K

Typically removing all trim, emblems, bumpers, sometimes rear glass, sanding, minor filling/skimming, primering, block sanding, spraying paint, final color sanding.

You don't get much quality for under $3K in the USA !!!

 

Upgrade to what...a W203?
The 124 was the most over engineered Benz ever produced.
Nothing manufactured after 1995 quality build, especially the interior

 

So, do you need to pursue him through the courts to get compensation?

 

No. I made him sign an affidavit in front of witnesses that he pledge to pay for the repairs. It's a police affidavit, and if he doesn't pay I can simply throw him in jail.

RB, here in Beirut a high quality paintjob, including all the things you mentioned, does NOT run for over 1500$ with normal paint. I think the difference in price is due to cost of labor. If I recall correctly, it's something around 60$ an hour over there? We don't even HAVE a labor cost except what he tells you it will cost.

It's very common for cars here to be repainted, as well. Lots of cars are older, like mine, and the paint is faded. And here we have very few insurance write-offs. No such thing as insurance giving your car a salvage title instead of fixing it.

Things work differently here.

On another note, there are TONS upon TONS of shops that sell parts for prices that still stagger me. I bought the 2 right doors with all their trimmings, glass, and mechanisms for 60$. A later model steering wheel, such as you find on newer E-classes and C-classes go for 30-40$ without an airbag, 50-70$ with an airbag. I was flabbergasted! :P

I'm so buying it a new steering wheel.

 

Edit: According to Dad, the only case where the insurance writes-off your car is when the damage is extensive to the point that the chassis is permanently damaged.

And still, many "black market" bodyshops buy the cars, fix em up, and put em back on the market. And we don't have a salvage title; either the car passes our stupid MOT or it doesn't, only that determines its road legal status.

 

$60.00 an hour is rare today in the USA.

In major metropolitan areas it can go as high as $150/hr
Very few shops will quote a fixed price.
More an estimate and the job performed on time and material.

Even on mechanical repairs made at an authorized Merc dealer you rarely see under $100/hr !!!

Ed a.