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A little good from the bad!

Discussion in 'Gen 3 Prius Main Forum' started by David Beale, Dec 25, 2012.

  1. David Beale

    David Beale Senior Member

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    Dec. 23 was driving on a local main road (Yellowhead Trail in Edmonton) and had stopped at a light, surrounded by other cars. Pearl S is sleeping in the garage and I was driving the FJ Cruiser (Bruiser). Looked in the rear view mirror only to see an 18 wheeler approaching at a speed WAY to fast to stop on the icy road. All I could do was brace for the impact. What a feeling of dread seeing that monster coming at me. Bang and it was over. No injuries!! I always try to leave lots of space in front of me in those conditions "just in case" and it paid off - I was not driven into any other vehicle. The FJ weighs about 5000 lbs and the truck was moving about 20-30 km/hr when it hit me. What do those things weigh, 20,000 - 30,000 lbs loaded? I lost! The current estimate is $5000 damage.
    The truck was being driven by a woman from St. George Utah, who admitted she didn't know how to drive on ice and snow (and it showed!).

    That FJ is amazing! In a different way than Pearl S.

    If I had been in Pearl S, well I don't want to think about what would have happened to her! I'm sure she would have protected me though.

    So as the title says, a little good from the bad.

    Merry Christmas and happy New Year to all. Something to be thankful for in my case!
     
    #1 David Beale, Dec 25, 2012
  2. jdcollins5

    jdcollins5 Senior Member

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    Glad to hear everyone is fine. I would not want to see that 18 Wheeler in my rear view mirror !
     
    #2 jdcollins5, Dec 25, 2012
  3. spiderman

    spiderman wretched

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    A little good? I would say a lot good! You are still vertical and breathing. Sorry to hear about the fj though
     
    #3 spiderman, Dec 25, 2012
    sdtundra likes this.
  4. xliderider

    xliderider Senior Member

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    Glad to hear you are ok. Hopefully, everything turns out alright for your FJ as well.

    Every time I drive the Camry and sit in traffic I think to myself that the Prius would get twice as many mpgs. In your case, it must be close to triple the mpgs
     
    #4 xliderider, Dec 25, 2012
  5. Jonny Zero

    Jonny Zero Giggidy

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    Glad you are okay!

    That's odd, Utah is snow country too, maybe not as bad as Canada. I would be concerned with a truck driver from Mexico who has never seen snow in his native land...
     
    #5 Jonny Zero, Dec 25, 2012
  6. Prius Envy

    Prius Envy F U R Y

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    Glad everyone is fine.
     
    #6 Prius Envy, Dec 25, 2012
  7. ny_rob

    ny_rob Senior Member

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    We had a similar situation here last week involving (by all accounts) a speeding 18 wheeler where it plowed into the line of cars ahead of it that had stopped for a construction delay. One person dead, 37 vehicles damaged, multiple casualties and the LIE was closed in both directions for 15hrs.

    You came out of it exceptionally lucky/blessed, etc!

    [​IMG]

    [​IMG]
     
    #7 ny_rob, Dec 25, 2012
  8. fuzzy1

    fuzzy1 Senior Member

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    That would be lightly loaded. Full loads could be 80,000 lbs, maybe more in some jurisdictions.
    Don't sell your Prius short. When mine was hit is a chain reaction crash early this year, we were hit hard enough that the wife expected to see severe tail damage. But it had only license plate and grill impressions from the car behind. While I cannot extrapolate from this to your more severe incident, reports from other crashes indicate that it, like many of the latest car designs, protect the occupants very well.
     
    #8 fuzzy1, Dec 25, 2012
  9. mad-dog-one

    mad-dog-one Prius Enthusiast

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    I had a similar experience about 10 years ago, although it did not involve ice or snow and I didn't see it coming. The good part was how my truck, that was hit from behind while stopped at a red light, shielded the couple on a motorcycle, directly in front of me. Sometimes being in the way of an out of control driver is a good thing.
     
    #9 mad-dog-one, Dec 25, 2012
  10. Teacake

    Teacake OohShiny

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    Thank goodness you're okay! What a major, major blessing! Leaving space *does* pay off.
     
    #10 Teacake, Dec 26, 2012
  11. OceanEyes

    OceanEyes Active Member

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    Glad you are safe, hope the FJ Cruiser gets repaired quickly and that Pearl S is safely tucked in the garage.

    I cannot imagine... I was face to face with an 18 wheeler that did not turn correctly and needed to cross into oncoming traffic stopped at a light. Everyone had to back up to let the big rig through...that is as close as I ever want to be near one again. I think I could have driven under it...:rolleyes:
     
    #11 OceanEyes, Dec 26, 2012
  12. FroggyTaco

    FroggyTaco Member

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    The avg unloaded semi weighs 40,000 lbs. If it was a aluminum flatbed trailer it could be as light as 30,000 lbs. They are allowed to go up to 80,000 legally but routinely they over load to 85,000 lbs to 100,000 lbs since the extra money in freight charges outweigh the fine costs when they go through weigh stations.

    Travis
     
    #12 FroggyTaco, Dec 28, 2012
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