Sad Day

[tim]

Last night I crashed the e34. It was foggy and raining. I was going about 70on I 95, and I was passing a truck which kinda pushed me over a bit towards the shoulder. My left rear tire hung up on the lip between the shoulder and roadbed (there was no margin between dirt and road), and it spun me. I did two 360's, and ended up hitting the rail at about 50.

I'm OK, and i'm very happy about how the car acted, and I felt my safety was never in question. But the car don't look good folks. Spare me the "it'll buff right out", please- I think I'll get a sense of humour about it in a few days.

Wish me luck with the insurance folks.

And yes, I'll be back in an e34. Hopefully not this one though- I'm hoping for a total.

tim

[Qube]

Slowly they fall, one by one :( Glad you're okay. In a little bit, the vultures will start decending if it's a total...

[dacoyote]

... I'm hoping for a total.

I will be shocked if it isn't... It looks like you hit the wall hard enough to bend stuff on the front.....

I am glad that you are ok...

[mikell]

Ouch! And, with such low miles on the car. Sympathy.

[Dave M]

Sorry to hear about your mishap. Thankfully the car did its job and you're OK. My 525 was on the fence with half the damage yours has sustained so I would wager its a write-off.

Have fun car shopping :) (I mean that sincerely)

Dave M

[emw525E34]

Yeap. Looks like a total to me.

Get a nicer 540/6. Good luck. I am sure you are a bit shaken.
Put in HIDs this time, eh.

[Martin in Bellevue]

Here's a nice opportunity for ya:
http://www.specialtysales.com/galleria_images/3/3_main_f.jpg

http://www.specialtysales.com/inventory_detailed.php?id=0288&nhs=0&make=BMW&model=&ext_color=&stockno=&eyear=&syear=&eprice=&sprice=&keywords=&location=&type=used&specials=&rtd=&solds=&replica=&ob=&desc=&t=1991+BMW+M5

[632 Regal]

im glad your Okay, I think it might be totaled too. Start getting ads and prices together so they give you what the car was worth.

[tim]

im glad your Okay, I think it might be totaled too. Start getting ads and prices together so they give you what the car was worth.

I'm not sure I'll ever get paid back for all the knuckle skin I left in that motor. But from a guy who just did a 720 into a barrier at 70, I'm still sold. These are well made cars- anything can happen of course- but I'll take my chances in an e34 again.

There was a moment when I had a choice: after the initial drift I was going about sideways and still on pavement. I gassed it and reversed the wheel, but it fishtailed all the way over 180 deg. I'm now going sideways the other way, and I reversed the wheel again. I'm not gaining any ground and I can't get the front wheels to hook up. Gave it a quickee punch on the throttle, but no hookup at all, since I think at that point I was near 90 degrees to my vector. All in a millisecond I thought to myself, I could alternate emergency brake and full throttle, like I did at driving school. If I did it, I would have one more big fishtail, and a chance to floor it and get my front tires hooked up again. A little voice said, "full brake, let the abs slow you down a bit, and take your chances on the barrier." The other side of the road was trees. I think I made the right choice.

Thanks to all of you for your comments and well wishes. I'll keep the board updated on the saga. And yes, if you know any east coast 540's looking for a new home, feel free to post!
tim

[Gayle]

Wow! You are about the third person in a week to wreck your car. e34s are dropping like flies. I second the sympathy and especially with only 82K miles. What a heartbreaker to lose a good one. So glad you are ok. Also glad you will be getting another and staying in the community.

What you wrote about the safety reminds me of Buno's website and what he wrote about his car and his accident.

Bruno's car saves his life (http://www.bmwe34.net/e34main/other/E34_crash.htm)

[Maki]

From another 540ia owner, I too feel your pain.

I think you were right in getting on the brake too. It's easy to forget about braking when you get sideways -- the instinct is to countersteer, countersteer. And of course the kiss of death (no pun intended) is to lift off the throttle. Then the load comes off the rear wheels and the tires, already sliding, have even less bite.

I think the best technique in a RWD driver's arsenal when he or she starts fishtailing on a slippery road is left-foot braking. Apply the brake while maintaining some throttle to keep some load on the rear tires and allow the front tires to break traction, creating some understeer. When a car understeers, it wants to go in a straight line, right? Even with ABS the front wheels lock up momentarily, which is what you want to get the car to settle down.

An instructor at the winter driving school at Steamboat Springs showed me how this works, and I've used it regularly while ice autocrossing. A couple years ago I was instructing a guy in an E30 on the lake -- talk about a tail-happy car! Left-foot braking straightened it right out.

Of course I went completely catatonic myself when driving my OWN E30 about seven years ago -- lost it on a slick bridge in a fresh snowfall, smacked the guardrail. I started doing the ice trials shortly thereafter, just to feel more comfortable with low-traction conditions.

Hope your car situation turns out for the best.

[Bill R.]

whitewalls on it...:p





Here's a nice opportunity for ya:
http://www.specialtysales.com/galleria_images/3/3_main_f.jpg

http://www.specialtysales.com/inventory_detailed.php?id=0288&nhs=0&make=BMW&model=&ext_color=&stockno=&eyear=&syear=&eprice=&sprice=&keywords=&location=&type=used&specials=&rtd=&solds=&replica=&ob=&desc=&t=1991+BMW+M5

[SharkmanBMW]

whitewalls on it...:p


that wheel / tire setup is HIDEOUS!!!
sorry to any board members that have that setup!

Tim,
Glad you are ok, sometimes even small bangs can hurt, so you are fortunate!
Good luck with the car.

[tim]

Thanks Sharky,

I know what you went through, so I am calling it a "lucky" crash.

[RobPatt]

Best news is you're unharmed and will drive another day. If you checked out Bruno's site, you may have a chance to fix yours...? Else you're a much more educated E34 owner for the second time around purchase! Good luck. -Rob.

[angrypancake]

The other side of the road was trees. I think I made the right choice.

tim


Knowing first hand what it's like to bounce off 3 trees after spinning out of control for what seemed like forever; ~5 or 6 revolutions, off of the left side of the road, back on, then off the right side into tree #1... You definitely made the right decision. Trees are much less forgiving than guardrails. Everyone has said basically the same, but once more can't hurt. I'm glad you're ok. Good luck finding a replacement, I'll keep an eye out for anything in NY/NJ or so.

[Johntee540]

I love to hear that you walked away from the crash. One of the major reasons I selected my e34 was the safety record. These are really safe cars if it comes to a crash.

Glad you are okay and just count your blessings this happened while you were in an e34 - JT

[uscharalph]

I'm glad you're OK!

[Javier]

I know nothing about driving cars under stress conditions.

Javier