Model 3 Accident, Is this car really safe to drive?

[wcorey]

Well, I'm sure Tesla has protocol concerning accidents, but this is just a standard accident thread where the car exemplified Tesla's commitment to safety.

For goodness sake...the OP was unconscious - then involved in an accident - and is fully unharmed without the need of airbags. That's phenomenal to me.

I am sure they do as well but this isn't a standard run-of-the-mill accident. It incolved ambulance and emergency surgery, It has been memorialized here so many prospective Tesla owners have/will see this. By the OPs own account he had warning he was going south. Had it been me, I'd have pulled over, put flashers on and tried to dial 911 if I had my phone.
Don't misunderstand what I am saying, I love my M3, think the software is phenomenal, use EAP auto-lane regularly, use NoA when on Interstates. I think, best case, he handled this whole thing poorly. And, yes, I understand that's my opinion. We don't actually know much about OP, age, experience driving etc. What we do know is not only did (s)he start the thread, (s)he kept it going. I believe I've said all I can/want to on this thread!

 

[Garlan Garner]

An unconscious man - crashes into 2 poles - unharmed - And questions the safety of the car?

I don't get it.

 

[Garlan Garner]

I am sure they do as well but this isn't a standard run-of-the-mill accident. It incolved ambulance and emergency surgery, It has been memorialized here so many prospective Tesla owners have/will see this. By the OPs own account he had warning he was going south. Had it been me, I'd have pulled over, put flashers on and tried to dial 911 if I had my phone.
Don't misunderstand what I am saying, I love my M3, think the software is phenomenal, use EAP auto-lane regularly, use NoA when on Interstates. I think, best case, he handled this whole thing poorly. And, yes, I understand that's my opinion. We don't actually know much about OP, age, experience driving etc. What we do know is not only did (s)he start the thread, (s)he kept it going. I believe I've said all I can/want to on this thread!

His surgery wasn't due to the accident or the Model 3. Its quite possible that if he wasn't in a Model 3...he would have needed even MORE surgery.

Lets keep things straight here.

 

[bigroccrek]

An unconscious man - crashes into 2 poles - unharmed - And questions the safety of the car?

I don't get it.

One pole. It broke because it was old and rotted. I do not question the safety of the car, I merely want to review the data, to confirm what actually occurred.....

 

[wcorey]

His surgery wasn't due to the accident or the Model 3. Its quite possible that if he wasn't in a Model 3...he would have needed MORE surgery.

Lets keep things straight here.

OK, last time...We don't actually 'know' it wasn't due to the surgery. I, also, assume it wasn't, but I don't 'know' it wasn't. We are talking about why Tesla corporately might feel they have skin in this game...so to speak.

 

[Garlan Garner]

One pole. It broke because it was old and rotted. I do not question the safety of the car, I merely want to review the data, to confirm what actually occurred.....

Of course.... however the data is simple. An unconscious man - crashes into 2 poles - and is unharmed .

The condition of the pole is irrelevant. I'm not sure who brought that up.

 

[Garlan Garner]

OK, last time...We don't actually 'know' it wasn't due to the surgery. I, also, assume it wasn't, but I don't 'know' it wasn't. We are talking about why Tesla corporately might feel they have skin in this game...so to speak.

Well, lets go with what we know.

Here it is. Last time.

A man goes unconscious. His car crashes into a pole. He is unharmed. Then opens a thread questioning the safety of the car. There is nothing else.

 

[bigroccrek]

Of course.... however the data is simple. An unconscious man - crashes into 2 poles - and is unharmed

As an Engineer, I do not believe it is that "simple". There are a lot of things in play here and I would just like the opportunity to review and analyze the data. As I stated before, I am an aerospace engineer and have been involved in the review of aircraft mishaps and when you dig into the data sometimes you find things that weren't obvious.

 

[Garlan Garner]

As an Engineer, I do not believe it is that "simple". There are a lot of things in play here and I would just like the opportunity to review and analyze the data. As I stated before, I am an aerospace engineer and have been involved in the review of aircraft mishaps and when you dig into the data sometimes you find things that weren't obvious.

What other data do you have? What other data did the OP present? If you have NOTHING else then you can't discuss anything else.

This thread is exactly how FUD starts and its unwarranted.

If your career causes you to look for things that aren't there then....( I'll reserve my comments ), however we have NOTHING else. What more data can the OP give us? He was "unconscious".
An unconscious man can't tell you much about what happened after he was unconscious. He posted pictures of what happened. What else can he provide?

Come on now. Lets not feed the opportunity for the presence of FUD with the absence of facts.

 

[bigroccrek]

What other data do you have? What other data did the OP present? If you have NOTHING else then you can't discuss anything else.

This thread is exactly how FUD starts and its unwarranted.

If your career causes you to look for things that aren't there then....ok, however we have NOTHING else. What more data can the OP give us? He was "unconscious".
An unconscious man can't tell you much about what happened after he was unconscious. He posted pictures of what happened. What else can he provide?

Come on now. Lets not feed the opportunity for the presence of FUD with the absence of facts.

I am the OP. I am interested in being able to download the data from the car and do an examination for myself. That is all.

 

[wcorey]

As an Engineer, I do not believe it is that "simple". There are a lot of things in play here and I would just like the opportunity to review and analyze the data. As I stated before, I am an aerospace engineer and have been involved in the review of aircraft mishaps and when you dig into the data sometimes you find things that weren't obvious.

Here is where you are acting against your self-interest. This forum cannot help you analyze the data or even capture it. I'd call Tesla support and make sure you talk to a technical support person, not a customer support person. Get a Tesla Mobile Service guy out to collect the data. He won't be analyzing it either. My guess you may not actually know what the data says so stomping your foot over it may also be counter productive. So, yes, talk to Tesla about it but be aware you'll need to be specific with whoever answers the phone the degree of technical assistance you want. My experience talking to Tesla is I've gotten people who caused my eyes to roll so much they started to hurt.

 

[Garlan Garner]

I am the OP. I am interested in being able to download the data from the car and do an examination for myself. That is all.

What else do you need to know? What are you investigating?

I guess we don't understand what your question is.

 

[mongo]

As an Engineer, I do not believe it is that "simple". There are a lot of things in play here and I would just like the opportunity to review and analyze the data. As I stated before, I am an aerospace engineer and have been involved in the review of aircraft mishaps and when you dig into the data sometimes you find things that weren't obvious.

To what end? If you have an interest in airbag systems in general, there are easier ways to collect data that trying to get information on one specific event after the fact. If you have a scientific (engineering) reason to think the car should have deployed airbags, what are you basing that on?

You now say the pole was rotted, that is even further from the solid collision event air bags are designed for.

 

[bigroccrek]

What else do you need to know?

Velocity at time of impact (TOI), Acceleration/deceleration at TOI, G-Forces applied, braking status (regen?) at TOI, etc. Just a few examples, there are many pieces of data that I would like to review/plot/compare. There are probably other pertinent data but I have no idea what is "recorded".

 

[bigroccrek]

To what end? If you have an interest in airbag systems in general, there are easier ways to collect data that trying to get information on one specific event after the fact. If you have a scientific (engineering) reason to think the car should have deployed airbags, what are you basing that on?

You now say the pole was rotted, that is even further from the solid collision event air bags are designed for.

Maybe it is just the Engineer in me wanting to know why, what, etc.

 

[Garlan Garner]

Velocity at time of impact (TOI), Acceleration/deceleration at TOI, G-Forces applied, braking status (regen?) at TOI, etc. Just a few examples, there are many pieces of data that I would like to review/plot/compare. There are probably other pertinent data but I have no idea what is "recorded".

First of all...the title of this thread did not lead me to believe that you are looking for data/info. However that's water under the bridge now.

If you weren't in a Tesla....would you be interested in the info?

Lets say you had a Chevy or something else. You couldn't even ask the question about getting data.

I don't think Tesla's practice is to provide the information you are looking for simply to satisfy curiosity. AND there is absolutely NO ONE in this forum that can get you that info.


Now concerning the title to this thread....Yes!!! Absolutely!!!

AND its also safe in a crash.

 

[bigroccrek]

Let me clear this up:
1. After further review I believe the car is safe, maybe the safest on the road (forgive me for insinuating otherwise)
2. The car did not cause the accident, my immediate medical condition did, it came on suddenly as I stated
3. The car is in the shop now and I will continue to drive it when it is repaired;
4. As an Engineer, I am interested in what did/did not happen...right or wrong;
5. I bought the car in the first place because as an Engineer I am intrigued by the overall technology, I just have questions.
6. and for those of you who say "he made poor/bad decisions", keep in mind this went from mild pain to debilitating pain in a flash, the last thing I remember before blacking out is thinking I need to pull over and call my wife to pick me up. I attempted to pull off the roadway when the blackout occurred.

 

[wcorey]

Velocity at time of impact (TOI), Acceleration/deceleration at TOI, G-Forces applied, braking status (regen?) at TOI, etc. Just a few examples, there are many pieces of data that I would like to review/plot/compare. There are probably other pertinent data but I have no idea what is "recorded".

It was probably in Full Emergency Braking mode. Pg 87 in owners manual. Whatever was your last known speed, it was less than that on impact. My guess..around 15mph. So, a question you could ask the technical rep is what is the design distance to initiate emergency braking. It knows to the inch how far away the car was so I believe that'll be a knowable.

 

[wcorey]

Velocity at time of impact (TOI), Acceleration/deceleration at TOI, G-Forces applied, braking status (regen?) at TOI, etc. Just a few examples, there are many pieces of data that I would like to review/plot/compare. There are probably other pertinent data but I have no idea what is "recorded".

The other interesting thing is, upon looking closely at the provided pictures. I think that section of pole that snapped did the most damage to your car as it looked like it severed the bumper from the car. If it had come through the glass roof it could have been a bad day for your family.

 

[bigroccrek]

The other interesting thing is, upon looking closely at the provided pictures. I think that section of pole that snapped did the most damage to your car as it looked like it severed the bumper from the car. If it had come through the glass roof it could have been a bad day for your family.

Not really, It actually did fall and land squarely on the glass roof breaking the glass but did not penetrate. The roof held up very well to the impact.