Scared $%#&less

[PonyGal]

As I was on my way to work on Monday (1/31/11) in my little Nissan Altima (my everyday driver), I had quite a shaking experience.

There is some construction going on on my drive route, and just before the road went down to just one lane I passed an older pickup because he was driving really slow. Well, as I was passing him (?) he sped up and I just gunned it a bit to get in front of him. I guess it pissed him off because when we got clear of the construction area and the road went back to two lanes, he did a STUPID move to get back passed me. He came so close to my passenger side that I naturally pulled a bit to the left. BIG MISTAKE!!!! I immediately hit a concrete divider and went up over the top of it. Blew the front passenger tire. CRAP!!! I babied the car a block or so to get it off the road and was stuck there. Here it was, 5:30am, foggier than hell, and I'm stuck trying to change my tire before I realized that I had a bigger problem than a blown tire. There is fluid all over the ground! I immediately called Tim, Midnight Special, to let him know what happened. He calmed me down (thank you Tim) and got me through getting it towed. I then find out after I have it towed to a local shop that I tore a hole in the %^$@# transmission! I thought I had only torn the oil pan!!

If it weren't for bad luck... :sad::sad::sad:

 

[Midnight Special]

'Really sucks being "human" sometimes Renee, I know... And calming you at that hour was a no brainer - all I had to do was remind you of what you already knew. Besides, it beats the heck out of someone's fax machine that often calls me at 4 AM!

Oh, the bone-head car-bender (and near misses) I've done... It's only too bad it was too dark for him (the other driver) to get a good look at you and whatever flower you had in your hair, lest HE would've been the one who crashed ;-) But knowing you, you would've stopped, paid great concern and probably hugged him, I would've have gotten more sleep and this thread would've been another glowing example of our high-integrity "stand up" PonyGal, Renee! ....But try as we might, we can't always have it that way.

 

[Ruppstang]

Wow Renne I am very glad you are ok. It stinks when something happens that costs you $$$ but I can think of several things that could have happend with a jerk like that could have been much worse. Tari drives 37 miles to work every day and somthing like this is my worst nightmare. I am glad you are ok and Tim was there to help. Marty

 

[hookedtrout]

Thank God your Ok Renee'! Don't be messin with the Rednecks in trucks.

 

[aemoo28]

Holy crap! Glad you're ok, girl.

Were you driving the CS??

 

[PFSlim]

I am glad it was not the CS and I am glad that you are okay. Great to have good friends to help out!!

Paul

 

[franklinair]

Glad YOU'RE OK Renee. Cars can be fixed.

Neil

 

[Midnight Special]

I am glad it was not the CS and I am glad that you are okay. Great to have good friends to help out!!

Paul

No worries Paul. The CS will never be a "commuter" for Renee.... Not as long as I still have it at my house.....'Guess I better keep it indefinately just to make sure.
;-))

 

[robert campbell]

I have storage space for old Mustangs now....

 

[hookedtrout]

Me too, isn't it sweet, all I need is the lift now, you lucky dog.

 

[PonyGal]

No worries Paul. The CS will never be a "commuter" for Renee.... Not as long as I still have it at my house.....'Guess I better keep it indefinately just to make sure.
;-))

That's alright Tim. I won't ever use the CS as a "commuter", she is coming home this weekend after we get her all cleaned up and ready for AutoRama!!!

My son-in-law came over tonight to take a look at the Altima to see if it is fixable. It needs a new transmission, so all I need to do is find one for him and he will repair it for me. He is a great mechanic and it will be A LOT cheaper and probably done better than the shop I had it towed to. They wanted over $2,150 to fix it and it is probably only worth $2,500-$3,000. It is 13 years old with a litle over 140,000 miles, but it has been a great little car. Now I just need to find a transmission and a few other parts :undecided

I have been thinking a lot about the accident, and I must say it has spooked me quite a bit!! I am a bit nervous driving right now, but thank God it was not more serious than it was. That car could have easily rolled over and I could have been hurt! I had an angel watching out for me that morning for sure!!!

 

[obwan93001]

Man, glad to hear you're alright Renee'. That had to be quite the experience and we're all glad you didn't do like the song and DID walk away Renee'. :smile:

I had a similar experience and I'll try to keep it as short as I can unlike most of my posts. :wink: Almost 7 yrs ago I was working for JD Power and Associates and commuting about 35 miles each way. Well one morning on my way in to work and about 6 miles from there, I had one of them freeway dumb*%$#s who thought he'd draft off of the rear of my '95 Tbird although he was in a full sized Chevy van. So I proceeded to tap my brakes to let him know he was a little too close, enough so that I could barely see his headlights and those Tbirds don't sit too high off the ground, well he didn't like that I reminded him so he finally decides to pass to the right of me and decides to get back at me by cutting me off. He must've thought he was driving a little car cuz in the process of cutting me off he hit the RH corner of my car. That was it and I followed him flashing my highbeams and making some kind of motion w/my hands and fingers, gee can't recall what at the moment :wink:, then finally pulled up beside him and told him to pull over NOW. We finally pulled over on the side of the freeway in busy morning traffic and we both proceed to lay into each other toe to toe and as much as I wanted to lay into him w/both my fists I bit my tongue and told him I was calling the CHP to report what he did. Well he finally calmed down and agreed to exchange info w/me in order to report the incident/accident so I went to my car to get my phone and notebook and b/c I'd left it running and the passenger door was locked I accessed it from the driver's side only a few feet from the shoulder line and the traffic rushing by. (I'm sure some of yous already know where this is going.) All the time sitting in the car WITH the door open but being held in w/my foot I got my stuff and as I got back out I grabbed the door w/my left hand to keep it from opening too far and the only thing I remember was a loud crash and I was on the other side of the car well away from traffic in a flash. I never found out if I actually jumped over my car or ran my arse around it as fast as I've never run before. My poor Thunderbird's door was mangled and most of it laying over the crumbled fender, the speaker flew out and hit the other guy in his left knee (he was still standing in front of my car and behind his van) and the shattered glass sprayed him getting him in the face and one arm. He immediately started yelling and jumping around like he was on fire and it was me that had to grab ahold of him and tell him to calm down and understand what God just did to us and to sit his butt down before he passed out from hyperventilation. Told him to sit and take some deep breathes and that I'd call 911. After I hung up on the phone I then realized how much pain my arm and hand were in, I've never broken a bone, except losing teeth in a faceplant on asphalt doing wheelies and jumps on my bike doh and tearing up my knee playing football but I swore my hand and/or my arm was broken and I was pissed that we both got hurt because of something stupid this guy did. After a ride to the ER xrays proved negative so I went home just badly bruised thank God. My hand and arm hit a Suburban's mirror and side of it's door, I'm very happy my lil team of guardian angels were looking out for me as I could've easily been splattered all along the side of my car or tossed into traffic, ouch. My insurance company took care of my car and I had to take a few days off of work but man it sure was really weird driving through that stretch everyday after that, I still think of it although don't drive that route regularly anylonger. It's been almost 7 yrs and I can still remember it like it was just last week, if you all couldn't tell. :wink:

Don't mean to hijack your thread w/my story Renee', just wanted you to know this stuff happens to the best of us and you're in good company venting and talking about it w/all of us here. I'm glad you're ok and hope you get your Altima back on the road soon. You'll be a little apprehensive when you drive through the area again I'm sure but over a short time you'll feel better and some good tunes and good thoughts always help too. You'll find you'll be a lil bit more vigilant while driving now and on the defense. It'll become more natural over time but just don't let it always be on the top of your mind, enjoy your drives. Driving can still be fun and is a cool freedom we enjoy. I and I know other riders like Mr Campbell really enjoy riding a motorcycle and the feeling of freedom that brings and it's no fun when you're always thinking about what can happen rather than enjoying the ride. Can apply to life too I guess eh. :wink:

K, time for :icon_slee before my head hits this keyboard instead. Good night all.

Oscar

 

[rvrtrash]

Glad you're ok Renee', and before you spend a lot of money on a transmission, make sure your suspension isn't damaged. With an accident like that, it certainly sounds like it could've been, and the combination of tranny and suspension/steering could run more than the car is worth. Take care.

Steve

 

[PonyGal]

Well, Tim came down yesterday morning and crawled under my car to take a look. It's bad!! It tore the whole bottom of the transmission apart, bent the control arm and a piece of the frame. He thinks that it would not be a good idea for me to repair it and drive it again. So, I have decided to give the car to my son-in-law (as a project car for him) and drive our little Nissan pick-up for a while. I have been driving the PU for a few days now and I forgot how much I love driving a standard transmission. It has a 5 speed in it and it gets good gas mileage since I drive over 25 miles one way to work every day.

After a while, I may look at getting another car for myself. Not sure what yet. I am still a little spooked about driving :embarass:

 

[Midnight Special]

....After a while, I may look at getting another car for myself. Not sure what yet. I am still a little spooked about driving :embarass:

Understandably Renee. From what I saw, you got some serious "air time" judging by the massive damage to the frontal underside and not a scratch toward the rear! It would spook the hell out of anyone!

 

[Diesel Donna]

OMG Renee.....just saw this post. That could have been so much worse! Did you call the CHP? I suppose the guy didn't stop....
I am so grateful that you are alright.

One of my friends in an 18 wheeler was in the right lane next to a Jersey barrier and his right steer tire got caught in the road groove and it rode onto the bottom of the barrier that curves slightly before it goes straight up....well it sucked the tire up the barrier and the whole rig rode the rail and it rolled. Talk about Mr. Toad's wild ride...that's a lotta lettuce!
Well you gotta just get back on your horse and ride again cowgirl.

Blessings,
Donna

 

[PonyGal]

Donna, I was so pissed after it happened that all I could do was call Tim to help calm me down. I got the car towed to the shop and then just decided to take it home. My son-in-law will be picking it up today. He plans to take it on as a project and fix it since he is between projects right now and he always needs to have something to work on. He is a great mechanic and I'm glad that he will breathe life back into it. He may just sell it after he is done completely fixing it up.

Currently, I am in the process of getting a slightly newer Nissan Altima to drive back and forth to work. It is a 2001 GLE with just under 55K miles on it. It is a really nice car and it is in almost new condition. And, I am getting it for a really good price from CarMax. I should be able to pick it up on Tuesday (Feb 22nd). Here are a couple of pics...

 

[Midnight Special]

Congratulations Renee! Another Altima... I wonder if Nissan knows that it's become the official chase car (type) for hunter/killer missions on unsuspecting NorCal GT/CS owners! Maybe we should design some advertising for them ;-)

 

[rvrtrash]

Congratulations Renee! Another Altima... I wonder if Nissan knows that it's become the official chase car (type) for hunter/killer missions on unsuspecting NorCal GT/CS owners! Maybe we should design some advertising for them ;-)

I can see another Tim original in the works! I love the stuff you come up with.

Steve

 

[Diesel Donna]

Sweet ride!