A RX thought it would be fun to ram into my parked LX, and I caught it on video!

[radman]

Happy new year! And the one day I decide to park on the street, an RX (not drunk driver) decided it would be fun to ram into my rig.

The lady was fine, but I was surprised her airbags didn’t deploy. I’m inside grilling steaks while she waits for the cops & tow truck to arrive. Oh well.

The impact managed to push me up onto the curb. And it looks like my hatch, wheels, exhaust,rear quarter panel have damage. And obviously the dissent rear.

I’m starting to make a list of things I want checked like alignment and frame damage…

I have a few questions:
1) anyone know if the park pawl or transmission would get jacked by getting moved like that while in park?
2) what other things would you be picky about?
Frame damage?
Axle damage?
Wheel bearings?
3) any engineers out there want to explain how she sideswiped me and then ended up BEHIND my rig? Obvious answer is just a “big bounce”

Edit: looks like the RX stayed in place after the impact and then my rig flew forward a few feet

 

[Suebarr]

Uggh, that’s a huge bummer but glad she’s okay and your rig can be repaired. Those are good questions you listed.

 

[hoot504]

That person shouldn’t be allowed to drive again.

 

[TheIcemanCometh]

Damn, I hope the driver is issued a citation. Looking at their phone? Hopefully your rig will be fully restored.

Similar happened this time last year to a friends rig. But it was initially a hit and run. The next evening the little s*** comes back and admits it. He was probably drunk. Come to learn he lives three blocks down the street.

 

[prharper]

Wow. WTF. Nice you got video footage. That's crazy her airbags didn't deploy considering the impact moved your heavy truck. Seeing is believing.
Glad everyone is ok.

 

[ryanCA]

typical RX owner - jealous, couldn’t afford an LX

 

[slipkid13]

Was she over 65? That seems to be the RX demographic.

 

[Fisher23]

Likely ring & Pinion damaged.
Possible trans damage.
Possible u-joint damage.

 

[radman]

Was she over 65? That seems to be the RX demographic.

82

 

[slipkid13]

82

82 checks out.

Sorry this happened, it sucks. Thankfully no one was injured.

 

[TeCKis300]

Sorry to see this Amir! I know the amount of TLC you and the rest of us put into our rigs.

It's a good sign the airbags didn't go off. They trigger on higher impulse forces, so this suggests a lot of the energy was dissipated through deformation of softer parts. Notably the softer bumper/fender of the RX against your structural Dissent bumper. Looks like the RX tire likely hit your rear tire as well, with the hope that the far weaker RX structure will have absorbed more of the hit.

Can you tell if the Dissent bumper got tweaked or bent at all? Is your rear door showing any gap changes?

I'm hoping the RX is like a pillow hitting your tank and it'll mostly be cosmetic damage, but do check out the mechanicals and alignment.

 

[radman]

The cops and tow truck showed up 9 hours after they were called

I’m still baffled at how much damage the RX sustained compared to the LX. The dissent bumper definitely took the brunt of the force, and the swingarm still works like butter!

I’m starting to get worried that the lady’s insurance company is going to try and total my rig. If they do, and assuming there’s no frame damage, I’ll just buy her back and get the salvage title.

We took it for a quick drive around the neighborhood and didn’t notice any weird sounds or vibrations, but didn’t get above 20mph…

 

[Artie]

Ouch!

As a a felllow Dissent owner it’s good to know they can be used as an industrial strength can opener. It looks like the majority of impact happened right on that corner.

 

[bloc]

It’s also possible much of the movement was from the left rear tire being picked up off the ground by the impact.

Personally I’d expect twisted drivelines before bad joints.. that’s easy enough to check by a competent driveshaft shop.

As for the disparity in damage between cruiser and any other vehicle in an accident.. I go to a lot of accidents. Real Landcruisers are tanks. (which to me includes the LX but not the Prado)

 

[rexington14]

That sucks! This is always somewhere in the back of my mind a little bit when my LC is on the street.

Basically a minor overlap front collision for the RX. The small overlap front is now pretty much a standard crash test - where the RX ranks highly. The RX handled it well. The RX likely saw minimal to no frame rail involvement so it's external damage isn't really surprising as the "softer" components absorbed the impact. Of course occupant safety is the only thing that truly matters - glad to hear the driver was fine.

 

[ryanCA]

Real Landcruisers are tanks. (which to me includes the LX but not the Prado)

hallelulaj

 

[coleAK]

I’m starting to get worried that the lady’s insurance company is going to try and total my rig. If they do, and assuming there’s no frame damage, I’ll just buy her back and get the salvage title.

Unfortunately, I would guess they will total it out.

 

[KLF]

I would be surprised if they DIDN'T total it. That quarter panel is whacked, and likely the doors won't fit right anymore. I'd also be concerned the rear axle housing is bent. That's a hard hit.

#3 is because of the off-center impact, which caused the RX to rotate like that.

 

[radman]

#3 is because of the off-center impact, which caused the RX to rotate like that.

the rotation wasn't the interesting part. Most of her car ended up behind me... I measured the skid marks from where I was parked to where I ended up and it was just over 6 feet.

Personally I’d expect twisted drivelines before bad joints.

What do you mean by twisted drivelines?



Is anyone familiar with specifics on how to deal with this? Her insurance called me today and basically told me that I can go to any shop I wasnt, but they have "in network" shops they can recomment. I'll be dealing with Liberty Mutual, and as mentioned earlier, I'm more concerned about the mechanical components vs aesthetics. A collision shop would handle the hatch/tailgate, quarterpanels/paint/ Frame, but would they have the mechanical knowlege for the drivelines/trans/bearings/joinmts?

Door gaps are good, hatch ant tailgate open normally. Rear quarter panel has signs of bondo from previous owner (which never showed up on any carfax reports).

Here's my list so far:
1) Make sure the frame is not bent.
2) needs an alignment
3) exhaust after the cat needs to be replaced.
4) I can pull the Dissent bumper on my own when the time comes for that. current replacement cost for bumper is $4500 including the tire carrier.
5) wheel bearings
6) Axle housing
7) driveline / driveshafts

 

[coleAK]

the rotation wasn't the interesting part. Most of her car ended up behind me... I measured the skid marks from where I was parked to where I ended up and it was just over 6 feet.


What do you mean by twisted drivelines?



Is anyone familiar with specifics on how to deal with this? Her insurance called me today and basically told me that I can go to any shop I wasnt, but they have "in network" shops they can recomment. I'll be dealing with Liberty Mutual, and as mentioned earlier, I'm more concerned about the mechanical components vs aesthetics. A collision shop would handle the hatch/tailgate, quarterpanels/paint/ Frame, but would they have the mechanical knowlege for the drivelines/trans/bearings/joinmts?

Door gaps are good, hatch ant tailgate open normally. Rear quarter panel has signs of bondo from previous owner (which never showed up on any carfax reports).

Here's my list so far:
1) Make sure the frame is not bent.
2) needs an alignment
3) exhaust after the cat needs to be replaced.
4) I can pull the Dissent bumper on my own when the time comes for that. current replacement cost for bumper is $4500 including the tire carrier.
5) wheel bearings
6) Axle housing
7) driveline / driveshafts

I would start by seeing what shops near you are in network. Possibly one that is good with cruisers? If none seem good I’d take it to where you think is best.

Unfortunately most insurance just total things these days. Even more so if the vehicle is >5 years old. Almost certainly if >10 years old.