LZH

Perhaps if it were your nice CLS55 that was destroyed you would think differently. Accidents happen, but they CAN be avoided by someone with quick reflexes and good car control. There is no arguing that both of those decrease with old age.

I avoid accidents on a weekly basis simply because I'm a good driver. And remember, driving is a PRIVILEGE, not a RIGHT. When you become a liability behind the wheel, you should no longer be able to drive. Sure, he could have worded it differently...I fell sorry for both parties involved, but there is no denying who is at fault here.

emoving

Im pretty sure no one is arguing who is at fault here. But these stupid comments are why this country is the way it is anymore. Insensitive morons spouting off crap. We all agree who was at fault. Are you going to go ban women from driving as well since you think they suck at it.

jpohl402

Correct, as I said at bottom of 2nd page...

wally AMG

jmsod

Your worst fear is losing your E55 to an accident? Is that what you mean? If so.... are you serious?

jmsod

Are you seriously suggesting that all accidents can be avoided? The fact of the matter is there are a ton of bad drivers and no matter how good of a driver you are, some accidents are completely unavoidable.

jmsod

The damage looks significant esp on a 5 yr old car. Even if it is repaired properly, you will likely have future issues with it relating to this accident.
If I were you, I would be praying that they total it.
You can get a CPO 2005 or 2006 E55 for low $30s.

waxking1

Thanks guys,
I at least have a bit of hope that it will be fixable. The drivers door was hard to open as I believe the front fender was pushed back a bit. The impact was all at the front and the fluid on the ground is antifreeze. I just worry that the frame may be bent. If the estimate comes in close to the value I may still press them to fix it if it is only a money issue.

As far as old folks driving I would agree that everyone should be tested after a certain age every 5 years or so. This would get a lot of unsafe older drivers off the road. I consider myself a very good driver but I'm sure my reflexes are much slower than a 20 year old. I make up for it with experience. I saw the guy but I felt he saw me. He pulled out quickly like he never saw me at the worst possible instant.

You couldn't help but feel sorry for this guy, 94 years old, shook up pretty good and standing in the cold. He was coming from the hospital to visit his wife and he was very concerned that he wouldn't be able to drive again. I hope he was right about this.

rich644

I have a 93 year old father, we just took the keys away from (My sister lied and told him that we had problems getting him insurance ) thankfully before he hurt anybody.

I'm glad you're OK and showed restraint. I believe these things happen for a reason because it will probaby be the wake up call his kids need to take away his keys.

As an earlier poster suggested it could have been a minivan full of kids, now he's likely off the road for good, Your brused knee may have saved someone else's life

jmsod

I am curious.... why would you not want them to total it? Very good used E55s are on the market now. You can pick one up for a very fair price and have no concerns.
My last car was a 2008 BMW 535i. I had to order it because I wanted a manual transmission. It took a little over 2 months to get the car. After having it for only 6 weeks, a teenage kid ran a red light and nearly took off the front end of my car. I was praying that they would total it but the initial estimate for repairs came in at mid-20s. They needed the estimate to exceed 65% of the car's value. Since my car was basically brand new, the estimate fell short. After 3.5 months of repairs, I finally got my car back. The final bill came in at $41,000 !!!! The car had some minot issue afterwards... nothing major. that being said, I was always concerned that something would happen to the car. Thankfully, it was leased and I turned it back in before getting this beast.

LILBENZ230

I agree.. I wouldn't want it back after that. No worries, it is most definitely totaled. There are lots of good E55s, as someone else pointed out, on the market. People who buy the E55 are probably much more likely to care for it properly than those who buy more pedestrian cars. If you can't find one of those that meet your needs, the E63 would do fine!

E-Ridium 63

I baby my car, but I've owned bikes and cars and have friends who own these as well. And while we care for our cars, having that much power means we push them and I know a lot of people push their cars before its warmed up which is probably the worst sin you can commit on these cars! So not sure that it is the case that these cars are cared for more because i think they are pushed far more than a regular sedan. Just my opinion tho.

Cheers

06E55

I think I would rather be behind some "old guy" holding up traffic by driving slow than be anywhere near some teenager texting, putting on her lipstick, and combing her hair all while driving 75MPH on a highway!!! While it is true that reflexes do generally decline with age, there are MANY 65+ people out there that are probably in better shape than a majority of 20 year olds are today. Although technology is a great thing, it has taken many fundamental ideologies that used to exist among society and thrown them down the crapper. Too many people in a hurry and too many people feel entitled to anything and everything. Driving is certainly a privilege, not a right. Although I generally do not agree with discrimination, I do agree that once you reach a certain age, the length of the license should decrease and you should have to pass mandatory on-the-road driving tests as well as vision tests to get your license renewed. Make it a points type system and depending on how many demerits you receive during the renewal period of the license, then the number of years the license is issued for is decreased. I also think that physicians can help to reduce the number of people that shouldn't be driving off the roads. That being said, I still think the people talking on their cell phone/texting/combing hair/shaving/putting on lipstick/etc. are much more of a risk.

And, as others have stated, it's just a car. It is repairable. I had someone run a red light and t-bone me and 50+MPH. I had spent a great deal of time customizing this car (paint, stereo, engine, suspension, exhaust, etc.) moding this car and here I am looking at it (dazed and confused) and it is demolished. The front wheels are literally ripped from the car and the front of the car is lying on the ground, fluids pouring out, steam coming from the engine, etc. and all I am concerned with was the safety of myself, my passenger's, and the two kid's (who were incidentally talking on their cell phones when they ran the red light) that hit me safety. I could have started yelling at them about totaling my car, but they were visibly shaking and didn't need that (not to mention the police called their parent's who were on the way). In the end, the car was totaled and I lost a pretty good amount of money (I didn't know you could negotiate with them by the way! I will remember this for the future); however, no one was seriously injured and I ended up getting a newer and better vehicle anyway. Cars are replaceable. While it sucks that his vehicle was hit, it isn't the end of the world. He's okay and the person that hit him are okay...

waxking1

I guess the reason I wouldn't want them to total it is because I think they would try to give me $22K and I would have to fight with them to make them pay more. Also my Renntech mods wouldn't be on another E55 and if they were, I probably would feel like the car had been run hard. You also have to travel to see the good ones because there aren't many for sale near me if any.
If they use all new parts and fix the car correctly I would just as soon have it back. I also have the 100,000 mile Chrysler warranty and most likely I wouldn't get that on a used one.

Try finding one with most every option and the Renntech mods that has been very well maintained with fairly low mileage. Will I be able to get this for what the insurance company will pay and how long will it take me to find in the right colors outside and inside. I might be flexible on the color but I think it would still be hard to find.

LZH

I wouldn't lump all women into the bad drivers category, nor would I lump the elderly - that's a pretty stereotypical comment. If your a bad driver you shouldn't be allowed on the road. It's a simple as that. Ever driven in Germany ? They take the privilege VERY seriously and it shows. If you get caught overtaking someone on the right you loose your license. Perhaps if we had similar laws these types of things wouldn't happen.
And insensitive morons are the least of our problems nowdays, dude.

emoving

Talk about stereotypical!

LZH

A stereotype is a commonly held public belief about specific social groups, or types of individuals that is formed with little or no basis in reality. The problem with your argument is that when I SEE WITH MY OWN EYES, women routinely talking on the phone, not paying attention, blocking multiple lanes of traffic...well, that is a basis founded IN REALITY and does not fit the definition of a stereotype. Sure, plenty of other people do it too...but in my experience the vast number of cases that I witness are women. YMMV.
And if you wanna know what the real problem we have in the world today...it's oversensitive people like you who take everything way too seriously.

emoving

Whatever dude! You need a huge shovel to get out of that hole.

jpohl402

Again, LZH is right.
Driving in Germany is quite serious. You get in more trouble for passing on right or flipping someone off then driving 100mph.

jpohl402

Please read my post from bottom of 2nd page. Why do these people need tests to drive anyway? Who cares if they put on lipstick? Let's throw em all out in cars & see how things go, while watching the anarchy that develops!!

06E55

Isn't that what we more or less do anyway? You don't need any form of test to get a learner's permit in most states (that I know of)... And the "responsible adult" that is teaching them how to drive is probably preoccupied anyway, so what is the difference?

LZH

Not really. I provided you with real life data and as I said, YMMV. And furthermore, others seem to agree with me. Take care.

Vader13

The new society will be like logans run the movie, hit 65 and no money, or SS and death panels. So ppl above 65 are gonna be f&%ked no matter what.

SMP

It already starts with the driving test. Besides the different requirements in actual driving itself, which include a minimum amount of hours driving on the Autobahn, they also emphasize on technical understanding. For instance, you need to explain how a split circuit braking system works in detail - no matter what your gender or age might be. You fail the driving test twice, and before you can take it a third time, you'll need to see a psychiatrist first making sure your firing order in the head is correct. In comparison, to obtain a US license is quite easy. Also, if you're 18 and just got your license, no matter how much money your mommy or daddy has, you can't drive/buy a high performance car for several years until you demonstrated to be a safe driver. My dad is in his seventy's and a few years ago had to take a test again. You get caught being on the phone, texting, putting on your make up or what ever else that distracts your concentration while driving, you're in serious trouble. Same for aftermarket equipment without TUV certified ABE, bald tires, wheels that stick out 4 inches past the fenders, limo tint all around .......

When I go home to visit my family in Germany, I fly into Munich and than rent a car for the 270KM drive to my parents house. That drive is less stressful and feels safer than being 5 min. on the 405 FWY in LA

To OP: Sorry about what happened to you! Most important, you're OK.

wally AMG

Agree... !!

• COMPASSION (noun)
The noun COMPASSION has 2 senses:

1. a deep awareness of and sympathy for another's suffering
2. the humane quality of understanding the suffering of others and wanting to do something about it

Sympathy

1. harmony of or agreement in feeling, as between persons or on the part of one person with respect to another.
2. the harmony of feeling naturally existing between persons of like tastes or opinion or of congenial dispositions.
3. the fact or power of sharing the feelings of another, esp. in sorrow or trouble; fellow feeling, compassion, or commiseration.
5. favorable or approving accord; favor or approval: He viewed the plan with sympathy and publicly backed it.
6. agreement, consonance, or accord.

My Father have 80 years old, he still driving, I like to ride with him when I visit him... why people blame old people? because they drive at 65MPH in the Freway? when people want to drive 80 MPH (speed limit is 65MPH) some people flashligts or honk...???, because they drive 25MPH school zone when you wanna go 45-50, speed limit is 25 !! because they use to complete stop at the stop sign, 1,000, 2,000 3,000 and then go..?? people race the hands asking what happend... hurry up...., when they are in front of the shopping mall stop every time to let people walk in front of them, is not old people fault that you are in a hurry... if you are in a hurry just wake up early... a few can mention accidents starting from old people... what about teen's or people driving at 160 MPH like many on this forum? of course when freeway is clear... still... people here probably made a mistake driving... maybe stop sing? maybe red light? change line and your side car have to honk? thank God you didn't have an accident.... but happend... if you never have a experience like this one you are a perfect driver and have maybe less than 5 years with your license, when you have 15-20 years + with your license and never have an experice like this one's you are a lier....