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A driver ran red light at high speed and smashed our 2018 S63 2day ;o(
Was driving home tonight through a green light and another driver smashed into our car going about 40+ mph coming sideways at us, they ran the red light, I couldn't believe it, my baby, I tenderly cared for for almost 7 years now, all smashed in the drivers rear door and rear quarter panel. Is there any chance they couldn't easily fix this car and it could be totaled or it will be fine again one day? I planned to keep it forever and ever. So so bummed, I obsessively clean the car all the time and garage it all the time. Damn bad luck... The other drive did stop and we both have the same insurance company, Geico, and she clearly admitted it's her fault and she was screwing around with her phone and just messed up. We have a witness too. Our backs, neck and feet ache a bit while we'll be fine I think.
Could have been worse, we could have been ... severely hurt or ... Also, do you think it would be fine to drive 35 minutes away from our house to the dealer "as is"? It rode ok coming up, 10 min drive but... does it look like it needs to be towed to the dealer to be repaired or just drive it there?
Her car....
Last edited by stever500; Nov 3, 2024 at 09:35 PM.
There is a very good chance that car will never be straight again. Not for nothing, but even when you have a green light, it doesn’t hurt to scan left and right for traffic that may be running the red light. Keep acceleration, and steering inputs as options for avoiding or minimizing any potential collisions. Don’t limit yourself to braking only. There is no requirement for you to be going the speed limit going into an intersection. You can go slower than the speed limit as an extra precaution. Slower speeds allow more time to scan for crossing traffic, reaction time, and more effective stopping if needed. I learned in drivers ed, to have one foot hovering over the brake pedal, to reduce reaction time if braking is the best option. Same for railroad crossings. Don’t rely only train crossing warning lights and bells. Also scan left and right. Bus drivers are also trained to open the bus door prior to crossing a train track, as a final precaution, presumably to make any warning or whistle more easily heard. That’s the nice thing about convertibles, if the top is down, which mine always is(I don’t drive it if rain is in the forecast), you can easily hear every sound around you.
There is a very good chance that car will never be straight again. Not for nothing, but even when you have a green light, it doesn’t hurt to scan left and right for traffic that may be running the red light. Keep acceleration, and steering inputs as options for avoiding or minimizing any potential collisions. Don’t limit yourself to braking only. There is no requirement for you to be going the speed limit going into an intersection. You can go slower than the speed limit as an extra precaution. Slower speeds allow more time to scan for crossing traffic, reaction time, and more effective stopping if needed. I learned in drivers ed, to have one foot hovering over the brake pedal, to reduce reaction time if braking is the best option. Same for railroad crossings. Don’t rely only train crossing warning lights and bells. Also scan left and right. Bus drivers are also trained to open the bus door prior to crossing a train track, as a final precaution, presumably to make any warning or whistle more easily heard. That’s the nice thing about convertibles, if the top is down, which mine always is(I don’t drive it if rain is in the forecast), you can easily hear every sound around you.
Thanks. The light had been green for a long time, lots of people in front of us going through it, out of the blue, a woman goes straight through her red light at full speed. She was a distracted driver. I ALWAYS wait when the light turns green in other circumstances though. I trust no one... on the road.
Thanks. The light had been green for a long time, lots of people in front of us going through it, out of the blue, a woman goes straight through her red light at full speed. She was a distracted driver. I ALWAYS wait when the light turns green in other circumstances though. I trust no one... on the road.
I'm sorry to hear about your baby but I'm glad that the car kept you safe with very minimal injuries. This is one of the reasons why I drive a Mercedes. Cars are replaceable, you're not.
Just curious, during the incident, did you notice any presafe functions that took place? I'm sure it happened fast but some things that should have activated:
Seat belt tensioning
Pink noise
Side Bolster inflation to push you away from the impact
I can't believe the minimal visual damage your car sustained with an SUV going 40mph.
I'm sorry to hear about your baby but I'm glad that the car kept you safe with very minimal injuries. This is one of the reasons why I drive a Mercedes. Cars are replaceable, you're not.
Just curious, during the incident, did you notice any presafe functions that took place? I'm sure it happened fast but some things that should have activated:
Seat belt tensioning
Pink noise
Side Bolster inflation to push you away from the impact
I can't believe the minimal damage your car sustained with an SUV going 40mph.
Thanks... yeah, we didn't notice anything at all other than I saw a car going through a red light 1/2 a minute or more into our light being green and other cars going through and out of the corner of my eye I saw an errant car and it totally freaked me/us out and then it hit us. Didn't notice any of the things you mentioned, seat belt, pink noise, side bolster inflation, nothing... just totally scared. I broke my neck in a freak accident 2 1/2 years ago and was in a cervical collar for 10 weeks and had neck surgery to save my life. This accident flipped me out wondering if anything went wrong in my body... again.
The importance of defensive driving cannot be overstated. Most every other driver is distracted, and the few that aren't are busy committing traffic infractions. Some drivers find both the ultimate challenge. Smartphones are the scourge of contemporary society -- people are addicted to machines spewing out nothing but annoying and meaningless notifications, and think nothing of divorcing themselves from reality with this high tech conduit into cyberspace. Hopefully the bozo who crashed into the OP will get hammered with citations, a license suspension, a huge repair bill and dropped by her insurer.
The importance of defensive driving cannot be overstated. Most every other driver is distracted, and the few that aren't are busy committing traffic infractions. Some drivers find both the ultimate challenge. Smartphones are the scourge of contemporary society -- people are addicted to machines spewing out nothing but annoying and meaningless notifications, and think nothing of divorcing themselves from reality with this high tech conduit into cyberspace. Hopefully the bozo who crashed into the OP will get hammered with citations, a license suspension, a huge repair bill and dropped by her insurer.
It also doesn't help with so many touch screens in cars.
Was driving home tonight through a green light and another driver smashed into our car going about 40+ mph coming sideways at us, they ran the red light, I couldn't believe it, my baby, I tenderly cared for for almost 7 years now, all smashed in the drivers rear door and rear quarter panel. Is there any chance they couldn't easily fix this car and it could be totaled or it will be fine again one day? I planned to keep it forever and ever. So so bummed, I obsessively clean the car all the time and garage it all the time. Damn bad luck... The other drive did stop and we both have the same insurance company, Geico, and she clearly admitted it's her fault and she was screwing around with her phone and just messed up. We have a witness too. Our backs, neck and feet ache a bit while we'll be fine I think.
I highly doubt your car is totaled. A competent body shop can make your car look as good as new. I would guess it will cost around 25K to fix and the car is certainly worth a lot more than that. Biggest issue will be getting everything lined up and back to factory spec so it can take a proper alignment. Glad everyone is OK. The other fight you will have will be around diminished value. A repair of this magnitude will certainly have some effect on the value of the car. Probably doesn't matter if you plan on keeping it for a long time but this should be negotiated with your insurance company.
It also doesn't help with so many touch screens in cars.
I traded my Lexus LX mainly for this reason. It had an impossible to control screen cursor that required drlling down 3 layers just to turn the AC on/off. Every owner complained to dealers about the cursor control, but Lexus refused to desensitize it. Did I mention I traded it for a BMW?
Sorry to hear and see that. Sucks to be hit when you did everything right but accidents do happen and you guys came out alright. I don't think the car would be the same either. 40+ hit is pretty big and I'm surprised the car held so well too.
Thanks... yeah, we didn't notice anything at all other than I saw a car going through a red light 1/2 a minute or more into our light being green and other cars going through and out of the corner of my eye I saw an errant car and it totally freaked me/us out and then it hit us. Didn't notice any of the things you mentioned, seat belt, pink noise, side bolster inflation, nothing... just totally scared. I broke my neck in a freak accident 2 1/2 years ago and was in a cervical collar for 10 weeks and had neck surgery to save my life. This accident flipped me out wondering if anything went wrong in my body... again.
Thanks for letting us know.
Your other accident sounds crazy. Glad you're better and nothing major happened in this recent crash.
I traded my Lexus LX mainly for this reason. It had an impossible to control screen cursor that required drlling down 3 layers just to turn the AC on/off. Every owner complained to dealers about the cursor control, but Lexus refused to desensitize it. Did I mention I traded it for a BMW?
Did you? Ya sadly MB and bmw both also are putting screens everywhere. Actually all German brands, audi too with their latest a5 and stuff.
Update... the estimate from the auto body place (my MB dealers place that is right next to them and owned by them - Mile One) was $11606. Surprising low so far. Now they ship it off to Baltimore to their other repair shop that's "better" and they'll probably have it for months I guess. Enterprise Rental Car said the best car I could get was a Dodge Durango so after arguing with them and Geico about it for an hour I just accepted it. They had an Audi Q7 but it was $25 more per day and even though my car was considered a luxury car, they wouldn't pay for the difference and neither would I. All good though, a 2023 with 41k miles and smells like urine and perfume inside but hey, it's free so, yeah. The Geico insurance lady said after taking pics and inspecting the damage, she thought no way would this be bent frame damage.
Last edited by stever500; Nov 6, 2024 at 06:14 PM.
The way your front left bumper, fender and tire were damaged, and the hood was crumpled on the left side, everything attached to that front left tire is in question, by my estimation.
Mercedes automobiles are heavier than just about all cars in their respective classes. So instead of force being attenuated by displacing the car, that is lighter, the heavier Mercedes, will tend to dig in and hold its ground, and absorb all the energy of the crash into the structure. It just doesn’t take much impact side force to damage suspension, axle, connecting rods, and the frame/ unibody that supports it.
I never really needed to own a car until I moved out of NYC. It took me about three or four years of daily commuting to realize that daylight savings time always resulted in more traffic and car crashes during that week.
A quick Google search confirmed that there are indeed more car crashes because of the time change. Ever since then, I have always tried to limit my driving during that week. I would leave home later in the spring (avoid the sleep-deprivation spike in car crashes in the morning) and leave work earlier in the fall (while it was still very bright out) just to avoid the increased traffic and the higher chances of getting into an accident.
In addition to this thread, there was another thread about a GLE getting into a crash this week. If you have a flexible schedule, do try to avoid driving at night just during this week or be extra cautious. Remember to do the same in the spring time change but extra caution should be in the morning.
The way your front left bumper, fender and tire were damaged, and the hood was crumpled on the left side, everything attached to that front left tire is in question, by my estimation.
Mercedes automobiles are heavier than just about all cars in their respective classes. So instead of force being attenuated by displacing the car, that is lighter, the heavier Mercedes, will tend to dig in and hold its ground, and absorb all the energy of the crash into the structure. It just doesn’t take much impact side force to damage suspension, axle, connecting rods, and the frame/ unibody that supports it.
Update... the estimate from the auto body place (my MB dealers place that is right next to them and owned by them - Mile One) was $11606. Surprising low so far. Now they ship it off to Baltimore to their other repair shop that's "better" and they'll probably have it for months I guess. Enterprise Rental Car said the best car I could get was a Dodge Durango so after arguing with them and Geico about it for an hour I just accepted it. They had an Audi Q7 but it was $25 more per day and even though my car was considered a luxury car, they wouldn't pay for the difference and neither would I. All good though, a 2023 with 41k miles and smells like urine and perfume inside but hey, it's free so, yeah. The Geico insurance lady said after taking pics and inspecting the damage, she thought no way would this be bent frame damage.
Doesn't look like there would be any frame damage to me either. Looks like the wheel absorbed part of the impact. Hopefully the estimate included suspension work too. Bushing damage might be difficult to detct since they're flexible. The other part is the door jamb; that can di difficult to do properly; they might cut in new sheet metal, which is much easier than trying to straightne things out. Otherwise your damage looks straightforward. The estimate amount seem spot on to me.
Doesn't look like there would be any frame damage to me either. Looks like the wheel absorbed part of the impact. Hopefully the estimate included suspension work too. Bushing damage might be difficult to detct since they're flexible. The other part is the door jamb; that can di difficult to do properly; they might cut in new sheet metal, which is much easier than trying to straightne things out. Otherwise your damage looks straightforward. The estimate amount seem spot on to me.
My God...jet lag is a terrible thing!!! Please forgive the dizziying number of typos in this post
Geico is totalling my car, I am so upset about this. It's irreplaceable in my eyes. A 1 of 1 in color... the only one made in this color in 2018. But in the end, it's just a car, I guess, to others at least. Just found out a minute ago. Thought I'd come back on this board to commiserate. I mean, what can I really buy with what they're going to give me? What would they give me? $60K? $65k? Ughhhh... My wife said to buy something fun next time... with $65k or $70K? I mean, what would that be? Another 2018 S63? A 2019 or 2020 S63? A S65? But I live in a snow zone so an S65 wouldn't be smart. Dang nabbit.
Geico is totalling my car, I am so upset about this. It's irreplaceable in my eyes. A 1 of 1 in color... the only one made in this color in 2018. But in the end, it's just a car, I guess, to others at least. Just found out a minute ago. Thought I'd come back on this board to commiserate. I mean, what can I really buy with what they're going to give me? What would they give me? $60K? $65k? Ughhhh... My wife said to buy something fun next time... with $65k or $70K? I mean, what would that be? Another 2018 S63? A 2019 or 2020 S63? A S65? But I live in a snow zone so an S65 wouldn't be smart. Dang nabbit.
so sorry to hear that Steve but with that kinda damage, it's better to just move on
Just make sure you get a cheque for a comparable car and nothing less especially considering the prices have gone up
Geico would try to low ball you but you need to find cars with similar specs, mileage and condition for them to make you an offer.
For this very reason why i don't have a nice daily, can't help other ignorant drivers
Anyway, I think that's good news for you---happy hunting and try something different
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