Tip: Don't Hit A Rock
This did not rock.
April 21st, 2006, 6:00PM: Driving at ... normal freeway speeds (80mph?) on I-205 in Tracy, CA... A softball sized rock appears in front of my car, stationary on the road, in front of my left tire path (no idea where it came from... I honestly don't even know if there was a truck in front of me). Too late to avoid it so I just grabbed onto the wheel tight.
BAM BAM BAM
The car was uber squirreley... I managed to slow and bring it off of the road (in the center median) safely.
I can hardly breathe, I'm screaming at Fara making sure she's OK... I look over and both the RIGHT side curtain and door airbags deployed.
She crawls over my seat and out of the car... Both left tires blown.
Called BMW roadside assistance... flatbed showed up. The left rear wheel wouldn't move. Perhaps the caliper was seized because I came to a quick stop (heating up the brakes) then *maybe* pulled the ebrake? I don't remember. It all happened pretty fast.
Why the left side tires blew yet the right side airbags blew is a mystery to me.
Fara's got a bruise on her arm and her leg... we're guessing that the side airbag flap coming down shoved her arm into her leg, dunno. fuckin'a. The car was towed to (and repaired by) East Bay BMW in Pleasanton, CA.
May 16th, 2006: I got the car back. 4 rims replaced (the rock only hit the left rims... so... extra bonus, 4 new rims!), 4 new tires (Michelin Pilot Sports), right door airbag/airbag module/cover, right curtain airbag/airbag module/cover. Alignment performed.
Total repair price: $7300!!
Total out of pocket was $742 ($500 deductable + 20% of the tire cost [tread pro rating]).
She's all better now.
Comments
Excellent job!!! I had a
Excellent job!!!
I had a similar thing happen to my old car,1999 323 cic,but the airbag exploded by it self without hitting anything......i called BMW headquarters and they did send out investigator,they took care of the hole repair for me,no cost .
almost the same thing
this morning I was crusing at about 60 mph and ran over a large curved piece of heavy steel .. this thing went under the right front tire, then got flipped up and tore a hole in the bottom of the car, then flipped over and scraped the muffler and tore a big hole in my left rear tire.... the right side airbag deployed .. looks the same as yours ...
after the airbag went off .. the 4-way emergency flashers started going on their own, and the car lost power ... wierd bmw safety features kicking in ?
net result -- one blown tire, one hole under the passenger seat, one air bag, one PISSEd off beemer owner .. grrrrrr
now off to deal with my insurance .. crap
your deductable is possibly too high
You might want to ask your insurance person to quote you a lower "collision" deductible. There is a ton of confusion about the cost of "collision" and "comprehensive" deductibles. The collision can be really low for a very low cost. It is the comprehensive that costs a ton if the deductible is too low.
My 02 5 Series (rather heavily modded by Dinan) carries a 100 dollar deductible for collision for a very reasonable cost. I keep the comprehensive deductible at 500.
FYI - not trying to be know it all, I just find this specific issue is often glossed by the people selling insurance.
picking up the bits
My adventure began quite similarly to yours Kris. My e36 M3 and I were on 101 South heading for Monterey and the Festorics in August 2004. As the car immediately in front of me left the lane, I saw something sitting on the road. Unable to change lanes with cars on either side of me and the object much too close to brake in time and potentially collect someone behind me, I hit and ran over what looked like the remains of an aluminum beach chair. turned out to be scaffolding. At least 2 heavy steel poles. I pulled over at the closest exit and surveyed the damage. I pulled out a bent piece of scaffolding about 4 feet long that had punched through from the lower front air dam to the LF wheel well. The dam had several gashes and penetrating cuts. My LF fog lamp was dangling. No visible damage to the transmission cooler or radiator but I had a steady drip from my transmission. I towed to my shop Bavarian Professionals in Albany where they promptly assessed the damages. My transmission oil pan had received a nasty dent allowing the expensive "lifetime" fluid to leak out. They were able to hammer out the dents and with a new gasket acheived a tight seal. The air dam and fender would need body work later. I was very thankful for the mechanics at Bavarian Professionals, at least one of whom worked overtime, who slavaged my trip. (I had called BMW dealers in San Francisco and San Mateo from the Sotuh San Francisco exit where I was stranded. Neither had any interest in even looking at the car that day or offering any assistance.) Total cost of this incident was $2000 including the towing, mechanical and body repair. Not too happy about the contractor or trash hauler that simply left their droppings in the middle of the highway.
happened to me...
Hey man...Nice site you have here. I read all about your accident...and have a similar experience to share. I was on I-70 headed to Denver from KC. It was about 7PM and getting dark and I was I guess doing 90 in the left lane. Out of blue I see a Tire...A F*NG tire in the lane and I sewered to avoid hitting it...but it was too late and I crashed into it.... it F*D up the whole underside. Cost to repair..about 7Gs. But the fun side is I did a 360 or 780 on the interstate after hitting the tire and was amazed that the car did not flip over. My girl friend owe our lifes to the excellent BMW engineering....I guess. I was looking for some directions in making mods to my car and I have hit gold here on your site. I hope you don't mind. Thanks and take care, Zafar
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