BMW 330 ZHP Ran off the road at 75 MPH the other night.

[romanred62]

Well I was trying to have too much fun the other night. Well at 1:30 AM Dec. 20th I was driving on one of the roads I know like the back of my hand and was going a little faster than I usually go. I was holding the left hand turn around 80 ish and was going for the switchback to the right and took it too sharp. I wasn't able to see it cause it was slightly uphill enough to block the view until too late. (Yes I know I'm about to get thrashed because of this but I effed up and there's nothing I can do now except not do it again.)

Well unfortunately there was a massive rock right where I ran off the road and my car completely launched into the air and the drivers side tires slammed down first and set off the drivers door and side head airbags. Then the passenger side slammed down still on the shoulder and I had the clutch slammed to the ground and managed to hold control and get it back to the road without losing it into one of the MANY trees near the road.

I was in such shock I just sat there with the clutch in and coasted 1/4 mile down the road while my cousin (in the passenger seat) was telling me to pull into a driveway and stop. To our amazement neither of us were injured. Both a little dazed though. None of the passenger airbags when off even though thats what side I hit the rock with.

We then proceeded to walk back to the scene to check it all out and give myself time to calm down and let the adrenaline level drop. Well once back to the car we checked everything out to find leaks, broken important stuff (shocks, control arms, rims, etc.) once we realized there was nothing "Critical" I decided to start it back up and it turned over just like it did before the wreck. Then I tried to drive it and it was almost like nothing had happened. Well there was no way I could file this as an accident cause I'm 20 and can't have my rates skyrocket. So we drove back to my cousins house.

During the drive back it did want to pull left a little and got kinda shaky at 60 mph.

Well today I took it to my car guy that does the stuff to my car I can't do and he checked it out and my my front passenger shock mount was mushroomed and there was some sheet metal/frame damage. He sent me to a body shop and they quoted me $500 to fix the frame stuff (7 hours labor/2 hours setup). Problem was they didn't have the right part for the frame puller to work on a BMW. So I'm going to go to a couple more shops and get quotes and if they have the part possibly get it fixed. I did cut out the airbags so they arent in my way anymore.

Current cost of the wreck.
Driver's door airbag module $165.29 Ticher
Driver's side head airbag $253.46 Ticher
Front bumper complete with fogs and trim PRIMED $399.95 TMS
Paint for bumper $300? I think that was my quote prior to the wreck
Frame work $500 (Estimate)

... Here are the pics

Me staring at where I ran off the road.
http://i873.photobucket.com/albums/ab293/bensammons/BMW%20330i%20ZHP/_DSC0961.jpg

Damage to front bumper.
http://i873.photobucket.com/albums/ab293/bensammons/BMW%20330i%20ZHP/_DSC0964.jpg

Airbags (deflated)
http://i873.photobucket.com/albums/ab293/bensammons/BMW%20330i%20ZHP/_DSC0982.jpg

Pretty sure I either ran it over with my tire or my control arm.
http://i873.photobucket.com/albums/ab293/bensammons/BMW%20330i%20ZHP/_DSC0966.jpg

Sorry for such a long post but I figured I'd tell the whole story. Not the project I want right before Christmas.

[az3579]

Damn dude. I would have been a lot more cautious because of deer. You hit one of those bad boys and that car would've been toast.

[pyreguy]

I'm glad you and your friend are okay. Could have been much, much worse. It sounds like you have learned something though, so just think of it as an expensive lesson and a growing experience. I think many of us have had these. I know I did. My total was almost $10k so I claimed it, but I was fortunate cause I was able to say it was a faulty tire and it went under comp. I took my lesson and moved on, and have been a much better driver cause of it. That was over ten years ago.

[az3579]

I took my lesson and moved on, and have been a much better driver cause of it. That was over ten years ago.

The thing is, you don't need experiences like this to teach you something.
I would highly recommend joining your local BMW CCA chapter (if you aren't already a member) and attending one of their Driver Schools at a racetrack near you. This will teach you invaluable skills at high speed. I also highly recommend autocross to teach you proper car control.

There's nothing like motorsport to provide the experience you need to be confident. Since I started going, I'm a lot more confident and know what the car can and cannot do. It's a lot of money to attend Driver's Schools (depending on the track) but it is the most valuable mod money you'll ever spend, because modding the driver is the best mod of all. :)

[Alphatek45]

Just learn from this one. We ALL drive like assholes from time to time. Sometimes we get caught.
15 years ago,When I was 20 I coasted through a 4 way intersection ( no stop signs) in my 79 Z28 and was T- boned by a 1953 Pontiac!

Almost killed myself and my 2 passengers. Definitely learned from that one. Crazy what it takes sometimes lol.

[danewilson77]

:jawdrop

I thank the Lord you are alive. I think of my 18 year old anytime I hear of one of these. Fella's gotta slow down.

Were close (here on the forum), and it would hurt to lose someone.

Glad the damage was limited, though I would have said "total loss" before reading the end.

The price to fix is way, way low.....and in the end I would be surprised if thats all you paid.

[kayger12]

Glad you're ok. Plenty of times in my younger days that I came close to stuff like this, but just got lucky.

Reminds me of my favorite exchange between a new guy and an old sergeant-

Sgt: Staying safe and being successful takes good judgement.

Noob: How do you develop good judgement?

Sgt: Experience.

Noob: How do you get experience?

Sgt: By using bad judgement...

[johnnye23]

Scary stuff !! Not always a good idea to post this kind of stuff on a public forum you never know whos reading it .Good luck with the repairs and glad you and your passenger are ok.

[danewilson77]

^Naaa....I don't think anyone is going to waste their time. Somewhat valid point though...you never know.

[Jon D]

As the others have said glad everyone is OK. If you can echoing the suggestions enroll in some real drivers training. Going fast correctly is much harder then pushing the peddle down. It's all about entry angles, preload, chassis loading etc. Once you learn what happens as you do certain things [using accelerator/brake to give you over/under steer etc.] it's amazing at how much car control you can have. Getting the opportunity to spend some coached time on a track and ideally a performance driving school is well worth it.

As others have said we have all done some 'dumb' things.. key is not to repeat them

[mimalmo]

Damn dude.

[danewilson77]

Damn dude.

^Speechless

:rofl

[zhp43867]

That sucks dude. Any pictures of the shock tower area? I might be able to help assess because my car's in the shop with a mushroomed strut tower atm as well.

[Marcus-SanDiego]

Wow. Glad you guys are OK, RR62. Be careful out there.

Good luck with the repair bills. Hopefully they stay on the low side.

Again, glad you lived to post another day.

[Smilez]

DAMN, sorry to hear. That's why you should take it to the track.

[gr330zhp]

Dammn dude! Glad you and your passenger are fine....

The ZHP took a hit, I'm surprised airbag costs arent more. Lucky for you though :)

Hope everything turns out. I must say though, just from what I see, that road does look quite interesting

[SC4ME]

Be careful out there!
Definitely try to get to a Car Control Clinic and then possibly a real track day to get that speed thing tamed (and find a great outlet that is legal and much safer!).

Just learn and the lesson will be worth it.