It's been a brutal winter on the east coast. We've had over a dozen snow storms which has birthed hundreds of potholes/craters on local roads. Driving a lowered vehicle, I have been aware and pretty good at avoiding major potholes and snow/ice. However, the other day I was entering the turnpike when I encountered something unexpected: a driveshaft from an 18 wheeler.
Apparently, this drive shaft had just fallen out of the truck and rolled into the entrance ramp. It was night time, and I had just passed an overpass when I saw the drive shaft last second. There was no swerving/avoiding it. I centered up and braced for the worst.
It is like a drill bit they use to drill holes in the ground
Amazingly, I cleared the front bumper without damage, but the undercarriage was not so lucky. It hit just about everything underneath the vehicle, I got air, and when I landed, saw sparks coming out from all directions under my car. Immediately the car began to pull to the right hard until I slid into the concrete side wall (thank god they are designed to only damage the wheels). As soon as I came to a complete stop, I shut off the motor, flipped the hazards on, and got out to inspect the damage.
Circled around the back of the car to see this,
Let out a few choice words and circled to the front,
At this point, my car is literally bleeding out. It's pouring out. More choice words followed. Thank god I was alright though... I was just mad that this wasn't my fault and I did all this.
I got into my car and called the police. Upon arrival, he said I needed to move my car out of the way since I was on the side of an entrance ramp and in a dangerous spot (I was). He asked me to start the car and move it, I said no way, there is no oil in it. He then said, "ok, I'll push it." Alright, that's fine with me... so I get in the car, hand brake down, and wait for him to start pushing. No push... ok, what is he doing? I can't see him. All of a sudden, the lights on his cruiser start getting bigger and then a loud THUNK! He used his cruiser to push my car off to the shoulder. Whyyyyyyy?!
He chewed up my rear license plate and scuffed up the rear bumper. This was the sound from inside,
Tow truck arrives 30 minutes later and after we get it loaded, literally 10 seconds down the highway, I see the 18 wheeler on the side of the road. We pull over, and sure enough, this truck was missing a drive shaft.
The officer included the truck in the police report, so hopefully good for my insurance.
I had the car towed to RSW's new shop. I stopped by yesterday to look at the damage first hand. The new shop looks great by the way:
Onto the damage,
This wheel should be pointing straight
Oil pan, axle/cv boot, subframe damage
Missing subframe bolts (multiple bolts snapped--as designed I suppose),
Frame dented where the subframe connects to the frame,
Frame damage (driver side; likely done from the spline of the drive shaft)
There is additional damage that I am waiting information on. But as of now, thing's aren't looking too pretty for my GTI On a positive note, I am perfectly okay and at the end of the day, it's just a car.
UPDATE: It's totaled
Apparently, this drive shaft had just fallen out of the truck and rolled into the entrance ramp. It was night time, and I had just passed an overpass when I saw the drive shaft last second. There was no swerving/avoiding it. I centered up and braced for the worst.
It is like a drill bit they use to drill holes in the ground
Amazingly, I cleared the front bumper without damage, but the undercarriage was not so lucky. It hit just about everything underneath the vehicle, I got air, and when I landed, saw sparks coming out from all directions under my car. Immediately the car began to pull to the right hard until I slid into the concrete side wall (thank god they are designed to only damage the wheels). As soon as I came to a complete stop, I shut off the motor, flipped the hazards on, and got out to inspect the damage.
Circled around the back of the car to see this,
Let out a few choice words and circled to the front,
At this point, my car is literally bleeding out. It's pouring out. More choice words followed. Thank god I was alright though... I was just mad that this wasn't my fault and I did all this.
I got into my car and called the police. Upon arrival, he said I needed to move my car out of the way since I was on the side of an entrance ramp and in a dangerous spot (I was). He asked me to start the car and move it, I said no way, there is no oil in it. He then said, "ok, I'll push it." Alright, that's fine with me... so I get in the car, hand brake down, and wait for him to start pushing. No push... ok, what is he doing? I can't see him. All of a sudden, the lights on his cruiser start getting bigger and then a loud THUNK! He used his cruiser to push my car off to the shoulder. Whyyyyyyy?!
He chewed up my rear license plate and scuffed up the rear bumper. This was the sound from inside,
Tow truck arrives 30 minutes later and after we get it loaded, literally 10 seconds down the highway, I see the 18 wheeler on the side of the road. We pull over, and sure enough, this truck was missing a drive shaft.
The officer included the truck in the police report, so hopefully good for my insurance.
I had the car towed to RSW's new shop. I stopped by yesterday to look at the damage first hand. The new shop looks great by the way:
Onto the damage,
This wheel should be pointing straight
Oil pan, axle/cv boot, subframe damage
Missing subframe bolts (multiple bolts snapped--as designed I suppose),
Frame dented where the subframe connects to the frame,
Frame damage (driver side; likely done from the spline of the drive shaft)
There is additional damage that I am waiting information on. But as of now, thing's aren't looking too pretty for my GTI On a positive note, I am perfectly okay and at the end of the day, it's just a car.
UPDATE: It's totaled
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