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Let me start by saying there is no video for this thread, its just a crazy story of what happened to me the other day on the way down to Orlando with my gf.
We were traveling westbound on I4 toward Orlando about 20 feet behind a blue Toyota Camry in the left lane with a white VW next to it in the center lane. I was actually talking on the phone with a buddy of mine (using my nifty hands free device natch). All of a sudden the left rear tire of the Camry I was behind disintegrated and I was like "Crap he just lost a tire!"
As I swerved to avoid the tire pieces his car suddenly swerved left then right as he overcorrected and at 80+ mph he slammed into the Jetta on his right and both cars went careening off the right side of the road. When they hit the ditch both cars started rolling as they entered the tree line. This all happened just feet away from me as I was swerving to miss tire pieces and the hubcap of the VW rolling down the highway. When the Jetta hit the trees it actually flew up into the air about 20 feet, flipping, and landed behind the tree line (the Camry ended up upside down in the ditch).
The whole time my gf was screaming and my friend on the phone was like "What the hell is going on?" It was the craziest thing I've ever seen on the road thats for sure. I told my buddy I'd call him back and I called 911. I never found out what happened to the people in either car but I didn't see anyone get ejected at least. I felt worst for the people in the VW because they never even saw it coming. THey were just minding their own business in the middle lane and out of nowhere this Camry just shunts them straight off the highway at 80 mph! Anyway, just figured I'd share.
CLIFFS: Me and my gf were going to Orlando on I4 when the car in front of me lost the rear left tire and swerved into the car next to it. Both cars rolled several times off the right side of the road as I swerved to miss the disintegrated tire and hubcaps. I was only 20 feet or so away from all of this. No details on the outcome.
What everybody else said. I called the cops when I saw an accident and they asked me where I was and why didn't I stop. I was heading back to the scene but they were already people there. I am surprised the cops didn't ask the same thing.
WOW, I always vision that shit happening in front of me or around me. I look out for neglected cars on the road and stay away from them. This shit happens a lot.
You should have stopped right away and see if you could help get them out of the car if they were trapped.
Something like that happened to me a few yrs ago. I was living in NoVa (northern Virginia), and I had just finished helping a friend move into his new townhouse. I was coming from a highway entrance on to Rt66. I know this a bad spot to merge onto the highway due to the fact that the highway, right at that spot is only 2 lanes wide, and very little merge lane. I'm right behind a minivan, as we were getting onto the highway. (it had just finished with a small rain storm) well the asshat in the minivan didn't even look to see if there was anyone coming, and just jumped into the far left lane doing about 45-50 mph. As soon as he did that a girl swerved to avoid him. He saw her, and jumped back in front of me. I watched this poor girl tried to correct the steering when her tires caught traction, and she flew across both lanes, and into a barbwire fence/ treeline. (flipping onto its drivers side) I managed to hit my brakes just in time, or she would have taken me out too. I slammed on the brakes pulled off the road ,and ran to help her, and/ or to check to see if she was alive. About 10 other guys stopped and helped me out. One of them was off duty FF. She was ok minor injuries, because she was wearing her belt. But when her car flipped, it broke out all the windows, and she was covered from head to toe in mud. They took her to the hospital just to make sure everything was fine.
I felt really bad for her, because she told us that she had just came out of the hospital 2 months before,due to another MAJOR car accident. She said she was laid up for 4 months. She was only 20 years old. And now 2 months after that scary shit, her parents were going to be getting another call from her being in the hospital, due to a car accident.
The fucker driving the mini van, didn't offer any help, or even ask to see if she was ok. I told the state trooper everything, because it all happened withing 10 feet of my front bumper. The guy in the van was 1000% responsible for the crash. He didnt even seem to care he just about killed this poor girl. The most fucked up thing , was he had 3 kids, and a wife in the car.
I wish I had stopped but everything happened so fast by the time I could even think I was already waaay down the road (I was busy trying to avoid stuff in the road and at 80 mph just a few seconds put me a half a mile down the road at least). I couldn't really turn around and other people were stopping behind me so I just kept going. My gf told me I should have stopped too and I am sorry I didn't....
it is tough ,crazy accident but like everyone else said...should have stopped. Could save a life. I do speak from experience, having stopped for 3 accidents. Not that you were the only one that kept going, have been told many stories by friends, where after telling me I want to drop them to the floor for having just watched.
The police force around here actually asks people not to stop if they see a wreck. It started a couple years ago when some people that stopped were killed by oncoming traffic. I may have still stopped if I saw an accident like this, but I wouldn't blame someone for not stopping.
I know, I know. This is a -thread. Didn't want to start a new one for this.
There's this E30 that's been parked in our neighborhood for years. Suddenly, this winter, it was sitting neglected. Snow fell in winter, and nobody bothered to dig it out. Snow melted in spring, and still the car hadn't moved. The tires were flat-spotting while grass was growing and foliage was collecting underneath the car.
Then, earlier this week, we (spouse and I) saw this:
Don't know for sure, but guessing that it was a hit-and-run, although certainly the car that hit the E30 must've suffered significant damage and thus wouldn't necessarily have been able to get away.
The front-end of the E30 is damaged because there was a fairly new-looking royal blue F-150 parked in front which suffered significant damage both front and rear. The F-150, obviously, has been towed away, but it was pushed into another car in front of it, too ....
The first picture shows all the detritus that was accumulating under the E30 since last fall/winter, and the second and fourth pics show just how far the E30 was pushed forward by the collision (about one car-length).
It's a real mess, which everyone who's been taking early morning and late evening walks has been gawking at over the last few days. Too bad, because I was hoping that whoever owned it would eventually get to restoring it. Oh well.
And yet it still sits there. Why hasn't it been towed as well? Isn't there some sort of ordinance saying that undrivable vehicles must be moved? I see glass in the street, might fall under a nuisance ordinance. Maybe it's been moved since you snapped the pix....
Last edited by NBP04TL4ME; Jul 4, 2025 at 11:25 AM.
Nope. It's still sitting there. We've been waiting for the local police to tag it with a bright-orange "must be removed" sticker. Hasn't happened as of yet (July 4th holiday).
Yeah, glass from smashed driver’s side window, but not completely in the roadway. At least there don’t seem to be any fluids leaking, which is pretty amazing given the undoubtedly destroyed fuel tank. Maybe it was empty?
In any case, don’t think the local police cruise the neighborhood that frequently. Or maybe the insurance folks haven’t been out to inspect the scene?
Cars get towed all the time regardless if the owner is know or can be reached. That aside, I'm guessing it has some sort of paperwork in the glove box, a license plate, inspection sticker, etc......
Reminds me of totaling my W123 240D, but looks like that E30 got hit a lot harder
I got hit by an F150 pulling a trailer that locked the brakes up in the rain. I was slowing for a red light & he hit me going 40-50mph, I was down to about 15-20mph.
Could still open/close the back doors without issue. But it was $7k in damage on a $2k car, so it was gone & replaced with a W126 300SD.
Reminds me of totaling my W123 240D, but looks like that E30 got hit a lot harder
I got hit by an F150 pulling a trailer that locked the brakes up in the rain. I was slowing for a red light & he hit me going 40-50mph, I was down to about 15-20mph.
Could still open/close the back doors without issue. But it was $7k in damage on a $2k car, so it was gone & replaced with a W126 300SD.
I think we originally paid something like $2200 for the car.
His ins lowballed us at $900
I was 16, so my dad did all the work. But some autotrader research got them for about $1300
I was dating the daughter of a lawyer, the threat of suing got them up to $2k & we took that.
No injuries out of the accident, luckily. So I don't think we pursued anything beyond replacing the car.
How has this thing sat on the side of the road, in that condition, for almost 2 weeks now? in my city that thing wouldn't have lasted 30 minutes sitting there.
How has this thing sat on the side of the road, in that condition, for almost 2 weeks now? in my city that thing wouldn't have lasted 30 minutes sitting there.
That is/was my point. I don't know how it is still sitting there and/or why it wasn't towed after it was hit.
you would have wanted someone to stop if you were in the same situation. Which exit of I4 did this happen on?
-thread. Didn't want to start a new one for this.
Reminds me of totaling my W123 240D, but looks like that E30 got hit a lot harder
But it was $7k in damage on a $2k car, so it was gone & replaced with a W126 300SD.
