I'm living proof the Model S is the safest car ever made!

[jdovi]

Here are a few more pictures. For those of you not in New York State, check out the plate for a clever one my wife came up with. The car hit me with such force I cannot describe the G's I felt, but miraculously the other car literally bounced off, spun around, and hit me AGAIN in the rear. My car slid into a grass median while the other one wound up on the other side of the road facing the opposite direction. They had no chance against the Model S, it's was remarkable. I was a bit surprised that the air bags did not deploy in my car (the other car's did). Then again, my body made no contact with the interior of the car so apparently the air bags were not needed. Tesla called my home shortly afterwards saying that they received multiple alarms from the car and wanted to make sure I was ok. They picked up my car free of charge and transported it 50 miles to the nearest service center. They are also arranging a loaner Model S. Can I ask for more? Here is a picture of the Hyundai Elantra that hit me (looks totaled?). Thank you everyone for the well wishes. We have a great support structure between us. For those of you considering to make the purchase, let this be another reason to make it reality. Best regards, Joe

 

[gaswalla]

Great to see a fellow owner walk away from that accident. Glad you are ok, and glad you shared your experience.

How did the people in the other car fare?

 

[texex91]

Here are a few more pictures. For those of you not in New York State, check out the plate for a clever one my wife came up with. The car hit me with such force I cannot describe the G's I felt, but miraculously the other car literally bounced off, spun around, and hit me AGAIN in the rear. My car slid into a grass median while the other one wound up on the other side of the road facing the opposite direction. They had no chance against the Model S, it's was remarkable. I was a bit surprised that the air bags did not deploy in my car (the other car's did). Then again, my body made no contact with the interior of the car so apparently the air bags were not needed. Tesla called my home shortly afterwards saying that they received multiple alarms from the car and wanted to make sure I was ok. They picked up my car free of charge and transported it 50 miles to the nearest service center. They are also arranging a loaner Model S. Can I ask for more? Here is a picture of the Hyundai Elantra that hit me (looks totaled?). Thank you everyone for the well wishes. We have a great support structure between us. For those of you considering to make the purchase, let this be another reason to make it reality. Best regards, Joe

Wow, those cars are totaled. The ICE looks like it leaked all kinds of nasty fluid all over the place.

Your airbags didn't deploy?? That seems strange doesn't it--that kind of impact should have deployed all of them?

You think you will order exact same features, or change some things up on your new S?

If anyone asks me about safety of S--they are getting the link to this thread--enough said.

 

[ausdma]

So glad you are safe! Hope the other driver is ok as well.

 

[Doug_G]

I'm not surprised the airbags didn't deploy, because they should not have. The front airbags were not needed because there was impact from that direction. Since the impact missed the door there was no need to deploy the side airbags. The side airbags deploy based on sudden compression of the doors, not G forces.

 

[lolachampcar]

I second the MS being totaled..... You may want to get an order placed for the replacement.

Thank you so much for posting!

 

[robballan]

Absolutely astonishing. You are one very lucky driver. Thank God for the safety of this car.

BTW, has anybody noticed that in all the crash pictures we have seen, the windshield never breaks?

 

[yobigd20]

Is it me, or does anyone else feel that the Model S is a "magnet" for major accidents (that all seem to be the other person's fault too)?

I feel like I see posts like this every week on here.

They all seem to be the same too -

1) other persons fault

2) MS is totaled (regardless of it was a small or large accident, as the slightest dent to battery that needs replacement costs $45k thus most insurance companies deem it as "totaled")

3) all occupants of the MS are totally unscathed even in massive accident

I mean seriously. And this is just a small sample of all MS owners (sample size limited to TMC users).

Plus the fact that body shops have tons of smashed up Tesla's per owners that are dropping their cars off for body repairs.

I mean I have no data to back any of this up. Any real data would have to be analyzed and compared to regular ICE car accident rates. This is all just based on "how I feel" since I come across these posts weekly.

Anywho just wondering if others felt the same - if accident rate "seems" to be higher in MS vs other cars, even though these accidents have nothing to do with us as it's always the other people's fault.

Either that or it seems that the rest of the world just loves to run red lights and stop signs and smash into Tesla's GTA style for fun. Maybe they should start using railroad crossing gates at all the lights to stop ppl from running them

Oh btw glad you were safe lol

 

[yobigd20]

Absolutely astonishing. You are one very lucky driver. Thank God for the safety of this car.

BTW, has anybody noticed that in all the crash pictures we have seen, the windshield never breaks?

Yea I noticed that too. The windows in the model S' never seem to smash. I guess that's just because of the ridiculously rigid body structure that doesn't warp enough to cause the windows to break (aka the same rigid structure that broke the NHSTA's machine for the crush test).

 

[SwedishAdvocate]

I am of course also happy to read that you are ok. And I also of course hope that the driver of the other car will make it without any permanent injuries.

…/ If anyone asks me about safety of S--they are getting the link to this thread--enough said.

As I understand it, the S also seems to have performed exceptionally well in these two accidents. I think I would attach those as well.

The front of the model S:

Image credit: Unknown.

Image credit: Unknown.

Source: Tesla head on collision with a Honda (Some pictures in post #159.)

Image Credit: MPD Arrest Report #13-16172

Image Credit: MPD Arrest Report #13-16172

Source: Model S Pole Crash. (Pictures in the link in the original post.)

 

[Doug_G]

Is it me, or does anyone else feel that the Model S is a "magnet" for major accidents (that all seem to be the other person's fault too)?

I suspect you are underestimating the amount of carnage on our highways. I'm sure all vehicles have similar collision rates.

 

[texex91]

I suspect you are underestimating the amount of carnage on our highways. I'm sure all vehicles have similar collision rates.

According to the National Safety Council, an estimated 36,200 people died in traffic accidents in 2012.

 

[polyphase]

"Tesla called my home shortly afterwards saying that they received multiple alarms from the car and wanted to make sure I was ok."

An impressive car, all around.

 

[mknox]

"Tesla called my home shortly afterwards saying that they received multiple alarms from the car and wanted to make sure I was ok."

An impressive car, all around.

I am intrigued by this as well. OnStar was one of the features in my last few cars that I really miss and I had wondered why, with such a connected car, Tesla couldn't offer something similar to OnStar's crash detection and response. It looks like they can. I for one would be willing to pay a subscription fee if Tesla could offer OnStar-like services.

 

[NoMoGas]

First--glad you are okay!...
Third--The media and press can kiss my a**. Step up and make a big deal about the S saving a life--ohh, no. Can't do that--not sensational enough.

+1 AMEN

- - - Updated - - -

...any dashcam video like GasDoc? I am really wondering if I need to install one...Glad you are OK.

I ABSOLUTELY not only recommend them, They are installed in ALL of my vehicles after my son was the victim of a Hit and Run (we eventually caught the guy).

There are many available, we have one that films inside AND outside the car, logs speed and gps coordinates etc. Auto-saves 20 seconds before impact and costs about $60 bucks on Amazon (+SD card)

(I do recommend using Ram Mount and 3m mounting tape to windshield for a cleaner, more solid but easily removable install)

TIP: If the accident is their fault, you have video. If it's yours... what camera? :biggrin:

 

[NoMoDinos]

Wow, glad you were ok. I hope the other driver was alright as well.

It's just stunning to see the difference between the Model S and "the other car" in each case. I wonder how many of the drivers of "the other car" will be getting an MS as their next car?

 

[lolachampcar]

WRT the MS being a crash magnet, I've been keeping an eye on one part of MS driving that has me worried. This point has nothing to do with this particular accident but I am continually worried that I have a habit of being the first one into the intersection after the light turns green. MS just lends itself to hovering the foot over the accelerator (creep off) and moving the instant you press the accelerator. There are none of the inherent delays of ICE which means your the first one in the intersection to meet up with anyone running the light. Again, there is no indication that this occurred here. I'm just pointing it out as one of my concerns WRT my own driving.

 

[Crispix]

I've only had my S for ~40 days and I've encountered prolly half a dozen red-light running near-misses already, where my light went green, I started to pull out, saw some moron approaching the intersection at full speed, slammed on my brakes, and watched said moron sail through their red light into the intersection and right past the nose of my S. I'm to the point where I assume someone will run a light or stop sign. (This is in San Diego.)

brianstorms, have you noticed certain intersections prone to such idiocy? I'm a local, curious to know where it's happened.

 

[brianman]

WRT the MS being a crash magnet, I've been keeping an eye on one part of MS driving that has me worried. This point has nothing to do with this particular accident but I am continually worried that I have a habit of being the first one into the intersection after the light turns green. MS just lends itself to hovering the foot over the accelerator (creep off) and moving the instant you press the accelerator. There are none of the inherent delays of ICE which means your the first one in the intersection to meet up with anyone running the light. Again, there is no indication that this occurred here. I'm just pointing it out as one of my concerns WRT my own driving.

Agreed. In fact, I've started to try to force myself to wait for someone else to enter intersections first.

 

[brianstorms]

brianstorms, have you noticed certain intersections prone to such idiocy? I'm a local, curious to know where it's happened.

All over. Downtown, in OB, PB, La Jolla, UTC, Encinitas....