tchockie

I haven't posted here or even logged in for years, but I just felt I had to share. I originally had 2009 C350 on a lease and then leased a 2012 E350 and have been driving that since. And I loved my baby. My lease was actually going to up in a few months...

On Friday, I was on my way out to meet up with some friends. I was by myself and my wife was was with her friends that night. There I was, going down the road that I've been down 1000+ times, just thinking about something else...

There's a section of the road where the center median curb juts out into the road, and forces you to slow down and go around. It's not lit, and there aren't any signs or reflectors near there. I've driven through here so many times, but this night, for that second, my mind forgot.

My car slammed into the curb on the left side, bounced off and slammed into the curb on the other side, jumping that curb. It was happening so quickly, by this time the right half the car was now on the curb on the right side, and what (i think) happened was the impact was so severe it actually pushed the accelerator pedal down so my speed didn't decrease at all. The car slammed straight head-on into a concrete light post, the car lifted in the air and landed facing 90 degrees the other way, and the pole fell on top of the car. The few moments I remember is my leg hitting the steering wheel and the airbag punching my face and chest.

I walked out. Called my wife, called the cops. My leg hurts, but I'm ok. It was a stupid accident, and bad luck, and nobody to blame but myself. But it was surreal looking at the wreckage, and I felt my life flashed before my eyes. But I give credit to the car's amazing safety profile that left me with just aches and pains instead of, you know, dead.

Thank you, Kayla (my car's name, also the name of the my first love, pls don't tell my wife). You sacrificed yourself and protected me. I will always remember you.

And to all of you, my fellow MB owners, please always be safe and remember that it just takes one second to make a mistake.

BM2BZ

wow ! glad to hear you are ok and good to know our car is rock solid. look at the bright side,time to shop for a 2014 .

BenzV12

+ W212

Happy safe driving and it's a solid testimony how these German cars are built , I don't wanna open a can of warms neither do I intend to flame Teutons (namely MB ) vs Asians but if it was a lexus would-be a trouble free car by many crowd you would have not walked away that easily

Nuru

Glad you are ok, hopefully nothing crops up and bothers you later.

hyperion667

wow, that's bad!

glad to hear you made it out; I feel very safe in my cars too, sounds like you'll
be able to forgive yourself and move on..........forgiving one's self is usually the hard part, getting a new car is the easy part

good luck

GabrielNov

Glad you are safe! Shows the quality of the build.

However I am skeptical of the "warning/self braking" features. There have been many close calls when it had 0 time to react and I had to avoid a collision. And when someone casually turns in front of me it goes haywire.


Wish I could disable all the features but the build the car is def. superior! Stay safe everyone

GregTR

It'll buff out. Glad to hear you're OK. I totaled a minivan in August, I know how you're feeling.

faz999

Glad you are safe one thing we can all learn from this is -

Car is replaceable but life is not - Love your family as we all know what can happen..

C280 Sport

Glad to hear you are ok! Once again Mercedes does its job! A major part of the reason why I drive them. They take it hit so we can stay alive!

C280 Sport

The BAS Plus system saved me one time after about 3 weeks into ownership. Heading down a back road and a dump truck came out and to be honest if I was not in a car like the E Class the chances are I would of totaled the car. I could never get away with that in our Van or old W126 MB.

thenew3

Glad to hear you're ok. Take some time to rest. You'll feel soreness and headaches for a few weeks. Coming from a similar accident earlier this year, This is one of the main reason my family spends so much money to purchase german cars and put up with the little issues that come up every now and then. They are built like tanks. My parents and grandmother would not be alive today had they not been in an Audi when they were hit by two other cars. They walked away with bruises and scratches while the occupants of the other two cars either died or ended up with permanent brain damage. (yes the other cars were not german). I walked away earlier this year from being T-boned by a speeding mother yelling at her kids in the back and not paying attention to the road. Everyone was surprised to see me walk away with just bruises after seeing what was left of my car.

I always tell people, don't trust crash tests 100%, they are done in controlled environments, real accidents don't happen in controlled environments. When I used to do 50k to 60k miles a year for work, I saw way too many accidents, and most of the people in german cars fare a lot better than other vehicle brands.

Get some rest, then it's time to find a new Kayla!

tchockie

Thanks for all the comments, I definitely feel lucky! Definitely also feel soreness and bodyaches for the last couple days. Anybody have experiences with acupuncture and/or chiropractics helping with post-accident body issues?

So yea, I'm looking for a new car now. I had thought about a CLA45 AMG, not sure I'm really comfortable going down to a much smaller car now. Haven't test driven though. Wouldn't get a C with the new model coming out next year. 2014 E is top of my list, as well as a 2014 ML350. I've always liked SUVs (had a FX35 several years ago before it turned all shark looking and I loved it's road presence). Thoughts??

Electric Lizard

Glad you're OK. This is why my wife and kids have only driven Mercs through the years.

hyperion667

ooh, get ready for slew of 'this is what you should get...'

the CLA looks great! not had a chance to sit in or drive one, the dealer sold out! something like 30 cars were sold! but they do look great: a BIG factor in car buying for me

Extreme Dimensions

In regards to Chiropractic care Post-Accident, After my accident (T-boned by a freight truck) I started seeking chiropractic care, and I can honestly say It helped so much. I went for about half a year to an actual chiropractor, followed by weekly visits to a faster paced version (The Joint chiropractic care) where you just walk in, get a quick adjustment, and are on your way.

as per a new car, I'm going to go ahead and pick the E Class, with the ML coming in a close second.

thenew3

acupuncture does wonders! Give it a shot! Most insurance will not cover it though.

As far as replacement, with the 20% "sale" going on, you might as well take advantage of it and get another E class. Terrific pricing on them right now. It's almost cheaper to get a new one with 20% off MSRP then to get a 1 or 2 year CPO model.

PeterUbers

glad you're ok -- a benz saved my best friend's life too, that's a big part in why I bought one as well.

leapingpoint

thanks a lot of sharing your story, and great to hear you're okay.

my W212 is the 3rd E-class in my family. i still own W211 and W212 right now. and my mother crashed my W124 on the freeway on a rainy night with 4 passengers (due to a blown tire). all 5 of them walked out fine. a family friend later took the car on a salvaged title and rebuilt it for 3 months and it's still up and running. E-class, unbelievable.

had a W140 S-class for 8 years but only drove 18000 miles. yeah, you read it right. 18000 freaking miles only. the dude bought it was a happy man.

E-class is just such a well rounded car for any occasions. its da bomb.

mleskovar

Glad you are OK. Soreness after an accident is common but if it continues or gets worse see a doctor. Mercedes Benz safety is renown for a reason.

alexunlv

Wow! Scary! but glad you are ok! Mercedes has a great safety reputation! I'm glad I drive one. Best wishes.

BACnMercedes

Even more proof of why I've got another E class on order for my wife to drive and daughter to ride in. (Get the new E. It looks a lot classier. IMO)
Glad your doing well after that.

DigitalMink

Glad YOU are OK. You can always buy things but not life.

I was in an accident this past august in my E550. Car was totaled, but not me. I walked out unscathed. As soon as I got my insurance money(Igot more than what I paid for my CPO ), I went ahead and bought another E-class(550 again). And then my parents bought another one too (E550 again) as they were impressed by how safe the car really is.

ghstudio

If you are in florida, make sure you see a doctor within 14 days of the accident or your insurance may not pay for medical costs. It's one of the ugly Florida laws.

tchockie

Thanks again for all the messages. I'm feeling much better now, but my whole body was in pain the last couple days. Thank god for Norco. I'm gonna go see a chiropractor also soon.

I'm in California, I wonder if there's any rule like that here? I guess it must be pretty easy to get a doctor's appointment in Florida. Most docs here schedule several weeks out here.

I'm gonna go take a close look at the 2014 E next week. But I just built a steel grey 2014 ML350 with lighting package and sport package and it looks preeeeetty nice!

I should've known I'd get a strong opinion for the 2014E being in the W212 forum and all...

BACnMercedes

Is that why there are lawyer ads on I 95, what seems like every 100 feet? We just drove down and back to the lazy jazzy riding, child tantrum, family arguing, dream killing capital of the east coast (Disney) and saw lawyer signs everywhere.