Rear ended @ 55 mph. Starting battery instant casualty, into oncoming cars WOULD airbags deploy?

Discussion in 'Gen 2 Prius Care, Maintenance and Troubleshooting' started by Scott_K, Jan 3, 2016.

  1. Scott_K

    Scott_K Junior Member

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    So I was rear ended along with my Wife, middle Daughter (I have 3!) and 19 month old Grandson at almost full highway speed on Christmas day evening 2015 after returning from visiting my oldest Daughter who is at UNC Chapel Hill Women's Hospital with a very complicated pregnancy. She is OK and I was stopped in the lane of a busy highway waiting to turn onto our road, just 600 feet from home, with heavy oncoming traffic and I seen fast approaching headlights in my rear view mirror...
    I only have enough time to yell "Hang On We're...." and I try to accelerate anything I can. We were hit hard....

    I may have made it ten feet, and the horrifying sounds of glass shattering and crunching deafen us.

    Luckily I stay in the lane because I tensed up and gripped the wheel with everything I had. The other driver veered off into a ditch beside us with airbags deployed, she was ok and immediately on her cellphone outside her vehicle.

    The reason for my post....

    Upon impact, the rear of our Prius was pushed in almost to the hybrid battery compartment, within inches of it actually. We were pushed almost 80 feet, I was able to get out and try to get to my rear seat occupants, including my Grandson.
    The rear doors are jammed shut from the impact and we have NO lights on inside at all... the car is dead. We scramble out the passenger front door after feeling our way to unbuckle my screaming Grandson from his car seat because we are literally sitting ducks on this busy highway.
    Luckily, some family members who live nearby hear the impact and are on scene trying to direct traffic within a couple minutes or so.
    My Wife has a few choice words towards the other driver after we are all out and moving away and I take someones phone and call 911. Mine was a casualty during the wreck.

    LUCKILY and I hate typing that word because if it happened differently, I would not be here to type it...Luckily we were not bumped into oncoming traffic, travelling at what is a hoped 55 MPH. We stayed within our lane and were able to walk away.

    The reason for this post is:
    My starting 12 volt battery was obliterated in the milliseconds after the impact and we had zero 12 volt power, it was dark when we finally stopped sliding forward and we had to do everything by feel to escape.

    IF I had been bumped into oncoming traffic, would my multiple airbags have deployed with no available 12 volt power? (My answer is NO)

    Update, we are all OK, the Prius did save our lives, our soreness has healed, but I have an renewed left shoulder rotator cuff injury flaring back up, probably because it took a jolt in the accident.

    I think having the starting battery that far in the rear of the car is asking for secondary injuries in a rear end collision by killing the 12 volt power almost instantly, I realized this fact could have been the end of four lives who I can not stand to lose.

    My young Grandson and other occupants seem fine, his car seat did it's job (luckily he was asleep at the time of impact) and it has been replaced with a top of the line Britax model.

    In the end I am glad we are all seemingly OK, but I may not get a replacement Prius because of what I think is an engineering flaw that compromises safety after a serious rear end collision that kills the 12 volt battery.

    Happy New Year and what say you PC?
     
    #1 Scott_K, Jan 3, 2016
    Last edited: Jan 3, 2016
  2. bisco

    bisco cookie crumbler

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    welcome! the gen IV (2016) moves the battery under the hood. glad you're all (almost) okay, that's a nightmare. all the best.(y)
     
    #2 bisco, Jan 3, 2016
  3. xliderider

    xliderider Senior Member

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    Sorry to hear about your horrendous accident. Glad to hear that everyone survived!

    Keep in mind that pain and inflammation takes a day or two to really set in, so don't assume that the worst is over.

    Regarding the battery placement, who's to say rear placement is worse than front placement? It just depends on the situation. I don't know if your front airbags would've deployed had you gotten into a secondary head on collision after the 12v battery was disabled from the primary impact.

    SCH-I535 ?
     
    #3 xliderider, Jan 3, 2016
  4. xliderider

    xliderider Senior Member

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    I found this article regarding your question about whether airbags remain functional if the battery is destroyed in a collision, see the second to last paragraph:

    Crash sensors

    SCH-I535 ?
     
    #4 xliderider, Jan 3, 2016
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  5. ChapmanF

    ChapmanF Senior Member

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    Whoa ... glad you made it through that.

    Your repair manual instructions for any work on the airbag system should have very clear notices (at least mine do, assuming they weren't taken out for your generation) about the need to disconnect the 12 volt battery at least a couple of minutes before any fiddling with the airbags, to be sure the storage capacitors have time to discharge ... which I guess would offer an indirect answer to your question.

    -Chap
     
    #5 ChapmanF, Jan 4, 2016
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  6. Scott_K

    Scott_K Junior Member

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    Thanks everyone, we all survived and it is good to know the airbags have secondary power in case the starting battery gets it. Hope that is the standard for all cars, because it should be. I will look into getting another Prius.
     
    #6 Scott_K, Jan 4, 2016
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  7. johnnyb588

    johnnyb588 Member

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    1. Glad you and yours are fine.

    2. Getting into any confrontation after an accident ("choice words") is a terrible idea on all fronts.

    3. Most cars that I know of store a charge temporarily to allow airbags to deploy even in the event that the battery has been disconnected.
     
    #7 johnnyb588, Jan 4, 2016
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  8. RobH

    RobH Senior Member

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    Wow! A 55 mph crash and everybody got out OK.

    If I had been in a similar crash in my Ford Pinto, the differential would have be thrust into the gas tank, and I'd be a crispy critter.

    The old VW Beetle had a horn ring frequently described as a "cookie cutter". If you got thrown into the steering wheel, well, you get the idea.

    Your Prius did an amazing job of controlling the crash forces and protecting the occupants. The 200 volt traction battery didn't injure anybody, and the gas tank seems to have survived as well. I'd say job well done Toyota!
     
    #8 RobH, Jan 4, 2016
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  9. Dino33ca

    Dino33ca Member

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    Thanks Scott, glad you're all fine. This thread has instilled in me a great deal of confidence in the Priis ability to absorb a rear end collision. One of the deciding factors in choosing a Prius over a small econo car. I was rear ended a few years back while driving an Echo and it was also a pretty scary incident, though the other driver was only going about twenty miles per hour at the time, my head still took a nice snap, enough to leave me momentarily shocked. I can't even imagine what would of happened if it got hit like Scott's Prius did. I drive 30K miles a year so this is certainly an important factor over other fuel efficient econo cars...
     
    #9 Dino33ca, Jan 4, 2016
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  10. CooCooCaChoo

    CooCooCaChoo Senior Member

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    Just from reading your post, didn't the airbags go off already? I'd be more scared of getting hit in the front or side after the bags went off after being hit in the rear.
     
    #10 CooCooCaChoo, Jan 5, 2016
  11. xliderider

    xliderider Senior Member

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    Why would you expect front airbags to go off when hit from the rear? :confused:
     
    #11 xliderider, Jan 6, 2016
  12. johnnyb588

    johnnyb588 Member

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    ...it's stated in the op and subsequent posts.

    Because rear end collisions can result in secondary front end collisions.
     
    #12 johnnyb588, Jan 6, 2016
  13. xliderider

    xliderider Senior Member

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    Can, but didn't... see next post for clarification.
     
    #13 xliderider, Jan 6, 2016
    Last edited: Jan 6, 2016
  14. xliderider

    xliderider Senior Member

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    The first quoted message said that they would have expected the airbags to have deployed in a rear end collision, then concerned that they wouldn't be available for secondary collisions. Or am I misinterpreting what was posted?
     
    #14 xliderider, Jan 6, 2016
  15. johnnyb588

    johnnyb588 Member

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    Sorry, I see now that you were replying to CooCooCaChoo, while I originally thought you were replying to the OP.
     
    #15 johnnyb588, Jan 6, 2016
  16. The Limey

    The Limey New Member

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    Airbags are unlikely to deploy anyway when my rear ended - the deceleration is in the wrong direction to trigger the sensors. Can't see how airbags flying out the dash will help someone being suddenly rammed back in their seats and away from dash.
     
    #16 The Limey, Jan 7, 2016
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