Say auf wiedersehen to Fahrvergnügen: REBORN

majspud

majspud

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My 20 month old Passat was totaled Tuesday. I was knocked out for a while and have a concussion. Unfortunately the airbags did not deploy. According to my body man, this was a 'soft' impact (missed the frame) and not enough deceleration to trigger the airbags. I'm having VW look into it. I find it hard to understand that I can hit something hard enough to be knocked out but not deploy the airbags. In fact the right side air bag sensor and mount were torn off the frame by the impact. I my dazed state I remember hearing the paramedic say "Why didn't the airbags go off? Is it safe to go in there?" Go figure. The loose piece of metal next to the power steering pump and alternator has the air bag sensor on the other side.

This will not affect my MilSurp collecting. It will, however, affect my shooting for a while as I'm currently seeing two targets; do I aim at the left one or the right?

T
 
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Yikes! Glad to hear you're OK Tim. Was this on your trip to NH??

I think I'd be getting a good shyster lawyer on contingency for the non-deployment of those airbags. You could probably get enough of a settlement to add some really nice milsurps to the collection.
 
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Glad to hear you are ok. Seems senseless to have airbags that do not deploy due to a soft impact, yet hard enough to put you out as you said. Was the accident your fault.
 
majspud said:
This will not affect my MilSurp collecting. It will, however, affect my shooting for a while as I'm currently seeing two targets; do I aim at the left one or the right?

T
Click to expand...

Double tap to both... Just to be safe.


jpm said:
I think I'd be getting a good shyster lawyer on retainer for the non-deployment of those airbags. You could probably get enough of a settlement to add some really nice milsurps to the collection.
Click to expand...

Not going to respond to that.
 
In the auto repair business, I see a lot of crashes. From the evidence, it does not surprise me that the air bags did not deploy. The deceleration rate is the major factor. Obviously not enough to trip the sensor.

Glad you're OK!
 
what were the details of the accident? I think you are certainly correct on the airbag issue and would like to hear what VW has to say about it.
 
OP:
How tall are you?
How much do you weigh?
What was the relative and absolute velocity at time of impact?
Seatbelt on or off?
All these factors effect whether the airbags will deploy.
 
jtnf said:
OP:
How tall are you?
How much do you weigh?
What was the relative and absolute velocity at time of impact?
Seatbelt on or off?
All these factors effect whether the airbags will deploy.
Click to expand...

6'1"
234
50-55mph
Yes

I hit another car from the rear, so I am legally at fault. The left side damage was me putting the car into the guard rail to try to avoid impact. That was what knocked me out - hitting the C pillar seat belt mount. As I ground along the rail, I stopped counting at nine times my head hitting the window or pillar every time the car bounced off a new section of railing.

Traffic was slowing. The VW pedals are too close together; my foot hit the brake at an angle, slipped off, and got trapped on the floor between the brake and clutch. A weird helpless feeling with your feet stuck to the floor thinking here it comes...My feet aren't that big...11EE.

T
 
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Traffic was still moving at a good clip, I think. So the relative speed of impact would be lower, say 30? The first impact rattled my cage as well, but as you see from the nose damage on the right I came close to avoiding the first collision.

T
 
I can see your bumper is nearly intact. looks like the classic over-under collision. person in front of you brakes, their rear bumper goes up and then you brake and your bumper goes down, then you slide right under them. Maybe that lessened the impact--no crumpling whatsoever.

How did you whack your melon, steering wheel or window?

I was in a head on, relatively slow on the ice, and the air bag deployed. I'm larger than you and the bag hit me more in the chest and I still bent the steering wheel over at nearly a 45 degree angle. didn't get knocked out but was really sore for a couple days.
 
I was knocked out on the C pillar seat belt bracket when I hit the guard rail at a 15 degree angle or so. There must have been enough clearance for me to slide under without braking, as my right foot was trapped on the floor under the brake and clutch.

T
 
majspud said:
I was knocked out on the C pillar seat belt bracket when I hit the guard rail at a 15 degree angle or so. There must have been enough clearance for me to slide under without braking, as my right foot was trapped on the floor under the brake and clutch.

T
Click to expand...

ouch, glad you're okay

that's what you get for washing the car--looks nice and clean!
 
There are other factors at play, such as whether the Passat submarined under the car in front (which would cause some of your kinetic energy to be transferred into the act of lifting the other car vertically while simultaneously compressing your suspension... Vertical component of deceleration should not have much impact on the airbag sensor.)

I'm tall and fat, meaning I would carry more kinetic energy into an accident than somebody who is shorter and lighter. Whether an airbag fires, and with how much force (yes, they are actually variable force now) are all determined by those factors I mention above.

On one hand, you are a little heavy for your height (substantially less so than me [smile].)
On the other, there are many contributors to the sensors triggering the bag... Straight-line deceleration of the car in the X axis is the ultimate trigger for airbags in a front-end hit, but you successfully converted some substantial part of the deceleration to Y axis by swerving (and any potential submarining of your car under the other.)
I'm kind of on the fence about whether this accident should have resulted in an airbag deployment. If you do lawyer up, you'll need the advice of a professional witness / Practicing Engineer... I assure VW will have a hundred engineers to your one.
 
Wow that is a very scary sounding scenario! Good thinking going into the guard rail.
 
Regardless of the engineering exercise, I'm glad you're mostly OK.
Take care of your noggin, and consult with a lawyer that has real experience... A marginal non-deployment is a tough sell. (This would be a MUCH different story if you hit a brick wall, or a parked semi truck while doing 60 and had a non-deploy.)


.gov has some very general information here: http://www.safercar.gov/Vehicle+Shoppers/Air+Bags/General+FAQ
FAQ #1 lists the speed of NHTSAs definition of moderate to severe front-end accident.
.gov said:
What is meant by a "moderate or severe" crash?
Frontal air bags are generally designed to deploy in "moderate to severe" frontal or near-frontal crashes, which are defined as crashes that are equivalent to hitting a solid, fixed barrier at 8 to 14 mph or higher. (This would be equivalent to striking a parked car of similar size at about 16 to 28 mph or higher.)
Click to expand...
 
Like jtnf stated it takes certain factors to come into play for the bag to deploy,but it's also a good idea to look into the history of the car if you picked it up used.The air bag should be deploy to make sure the system is working.Good thing your ok, God bless.
 
The Fight Club Car Recall

theformula.jpg



Glad to hear you are (relatively) OK.
 
PATRON said:
Like jtnf stated it takes certain factors to come into play for the bag to deploy,but it's also a good idea to look into the history of the car if you picked it up used.The air bag should be deploy to make sure the system is working.Good thing your ok, God bless.
Click to expand...

Car was bought brand new in July of '12; had just over 29,000 miles on it.

T
 
Ok is a good start.
As for the air bags. It looks more as if you swiped the right side 1st? No passenger right side bag will not activate if no one in the seat. The other impact look more like what you rolled along or into after you got knocked out.
Depending on your speed air bag deployment might have hurt you more. Think getting hit with a basket ball going a few hundred MPH.

Eve after I read your post I still wrote my post ass backwards...duh

If your L side air bag deployed when you hit the guard rail you most likely would have been nocked out anyway and possibly injured more. Depending where your side air bag is could break your arm as do stearing wheel air bags can/do. The side air bag could have easily pushed right into the R side also.
Air bags are designed for abrupt deceleration as thats what gets you hurt... The sudden stop.
 
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majspud said:
I was knocked out on the C pillar seat belt bracket when I hit the guard rail at a 15 degree angle or so. There must have been enough clearance for me to slide under without braking, as my right foot was trapped on the floor under the brake and clutch.

T
Click to expand...

Also, the C pilar is in the back. A pillar is between the front windshield and the front door. Then B is between the front and rear doors.

So I assume you mean the B pillar, which would sort of collaborate the front airbag not deploying since you went sideways. Side airbags are even more tricky in how they deploy but those are the one's I'd be questioning.

Maybe you hit the car first off center then pivoted into the guardrail, which are a LOT more resistant than any vehicle, and would be a hard impact. That would explain the lateral movement and being knocked out.

The side hits to the head are what causes damage as the brain sections flop side to side. Be careful not to put yourself at risk to another head injury anytime soon, like I'd avoid playing sports and such for a while (ask your dr how long) because a second hit on top of the first is what causes permanent injury--just ask pro football players.
 
damn dude that SUCKS. it's good that you're okay though, sounds like you took a decent hit, but you're alive and taking nutrients, it's a good day.
 
majspud said:
This will not affect my MilSurp collecting. It will, however, affect my shooting for a while as I'm currently seeing two targets; do I aim at the left one or the right?

T
Click to expand...

Sorry to hear about the crash but glad to hear that you are going to be okay. It's much cheaper (and easier) to replace a Passat than a majspud.

As far as seeing two targets, take an old gunfighter's solution:

 
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Car was officially totaled last week. Air bags are designed to go off based on deceleration or frontal impacts of <30 degrees. My impact was 40 degrees from trying to get out of the way. Case closed.

I missed a week of work with a concussion. My head as pretty well cleared up, but I'm still a little forgetful with light intermittent headaches. My left face and jaw still pain me from impacting the B pillar and window.

Fahrvergnügen was reborn last night as I moved sideways in the VW line up from my Passat with the delivery of my silver 2014 Jetta GLI Autobahn edition. I added an Ingen intake system on top of a 2.0L 210 HP turbo engine. You need a spare pair of underwear in this car!

T





 
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