LifeAfterRx8

iTrader: (17)

Well first let me say, I'm glad you're okay.

I know all states are different but in Florida the driver's handbook states:
"When traffic permits, move out of the right-hand lane of a multi-lane highway to allow vehicles to enter from the on-ramps."

If the truck saw you on the ramp he should have moved over to the middle lane or slowed down since he saw you coming.

My father was a captain in the airforce, police officer, and undercover police officer in nyc for 22 years and he always used to tell me it's usually in favor of the victim who was rear ended. Though, it is not always the case but you should still fight it, I doubt your insurance will go up as it's only minor damage and you weren't at fault (not that they can prove anyway.) You should still get the car checked for frame damage as sometimes you can get rear ended and there will be minimum cosmetic damage but it still managed to throw off the frame a bit... I mean it's an 18 wheeler, not an average SUV or something.

WhiteDealershipRice

That's why I normally will keep accelerating long afer I merge into the interstate 7 try to pass several cars before settling into the "flow of the road"

A. it ensures I've put enough speed to match the other freeway cars (normally doing 8-20MPH above the posted limit)

B. it ensures I've put at least one car between me & anybody I might have "offended" by merging into their lane, ensuring they don't drive up my rear

C. its fun! you get to use the acceleration/merging lane as your own little personal dragstrip... Nothing like merging into the freeway to the rev limiter beep while running at least two gears all the way to the top!

8 Maniac

iTrader: (1)

I agree with most of the insurance stuff you said, though I don't think the default should be claiming neck pain (insurance fraud) and threatening with a law suit. I'm not sure why people started to believe that someone threatening a law suit would make the insurance company suddenly cater to your every need, but that's not really how it works.

Most truck driver has some degree of road rage? I'm guessing you've done a scientific study on this and have the evidence to back it up. I hope you aren't making such generalized statements based on personal experience because that would be all to easy to critique.

How fast were you going? Assuming you weren't below any sort of minimum speed limit, he would still be at fault based off of this description. That said, I'd say you're stupid if you saw him coming and had room in front of you to avoid it. Unless he was extremely close already, I'd have a hard time believing you couldn't accelerate fast enough to avoid being hit.

MS Addict

iTrader: (1)

Yeah, if I've got an open on ramp, I do have a nice spirited acceleration up to speed myself, it's fun.

Being someone who drives a truck myself, I think he was probably looking elsewhere than your 8. I know for a fact, my truck couldn't even dream of catching up to anyone, especially at highway speeds. It'd take me approaching a mile to climb from 70 to 75, assuming I had nice level ground..

Personally, I think you should just look into getting some replacement body panels say, off of an 8 being parted out on the forums. It's probably the cheapest way to go, and doesn't involve the insurance companies or anything.

I would definitely give his employer a call and let them know about it if they don't know already. While we all do mess up from time to time, hitting someone else, especially in any form of company vehicle, well, that's just uncalled for.

Also, about the road rage thing?

I don't have it. Sure, some people tick me off when they decide to test to see how quick I can stop, but I just take a deep breath, and deal with it. I mean, the way I see it, if you slow me down, you're just adding to my travel time.

8 Maniac

iTrader: (1)

Exactly. It's an erroneous attribution created from limited and biased experiences/memories. I could say that everyone in NY has road rage based on what I've seen and remember from media sources.

max_stuermer

iTrader: (1)

Wow this has turned into one interesting thread! Thanks for all of the advice guys! In the end, the insurance company will make the final call unfortunately. Now that I have cooled off from the incident, I'm not NEARLY as emotionally involved as I was previously. So whatever happens, happens. Just hope it turns out in my favor! I'll keep you updated.

Wingznut

iTrader: (1)

Looks like the damage is only on the left side of your bumper. Did the truck's right front hit your left rear?

blazenblue63

You got what you deserved. ******** like you passing a truck on the on ramp just because you can't wait and tuck in behind like you're supposed to, instead of cutting a trucker off. We (trucker myself) have the right of way on the interstate. IF we can, we'll move over a lane but we DON'T have to slow down! You do as a merger. I'm glad you're okay but learn from it. Don't drive like an idiot.

RIWWP

iTrader: (2)

^ that isn't exactly helping anything, or even educating this guy or getting your point across, and will just make the discussion even less productive. You don't even know that he actually passed the truck on the ramp.

On one hand, I'm inclined to agree with you. I yield EVERYTHING to trucks. I can maneuver and change my state quickly and easily, they can't, and they WILL win any collision contest. The normal rule of "the trailing vehicle is at fault" is usually superceded when the trailing vehicle is a truck and the vehicle ahead doesn't give them plenty of room. The OP should have been easily exceeding the truck's speed during the merge, with room to spare. The simple fact that the accident occurred shows that his claims of "It was safe" is inaccurate. I don't believe the truck suddenly accelerated forward, I believe his judgement of the closing speed was wrong. I will not condemn him for it however, it's something everyone has to learn and he was still on the fortunate side of the balance where there were no injuries or even serious damage.

We also don't have the information about the ramp speed, the merge lane distance, presence of any signage, his speed, the truck's speed, or anything else that we could use to actually place blame. So I don't place blame on either, though I suspect the OP was actually the one responsible for avoiding the collision, simply because he has the performance to avoid such an accident, the truck does not.

In the end, if a collision is avoided, it is avoided, even if you were the one "right" in the circumstance. Doing what is "right" doesn't really help much if there is a collision anyway.

The OP can state his collision avoidance judgement and determinations all he wants, there was still the end result of a collision. That trucker has no interest in losing his job and career just to dent your rear end. I would even say that the trucker's anger arrived AFTER the collision, not before, because rear-ending another car puts his job and license in jeopardy.

blazenblue63

Also, you were in his blind spot. You hit him right front and we can't see a car there. Which is evidence you ran out of room on the onramp, or you would have waited to move. 95% of American trucks are governed at 65 or less. What company wads it from? Your story is filled with holes and just judging by the damage alone you are at fault. You moved into a lane already occupied by another vehicle therefore you hit him, you're at fault, case closed.

MS Addict

iTrader: (1)

^Yeah. Again, as someone who drives a truck, I usually am much more polite behind the wheel of it. If I have the room to maneuver, be it lane changes or slowing down, I do. Whereas if there's a center lane open, I always ride in it just to avoid the problem. I don't always slow down if that's my only option, simply because if someone's going too slow, it'd take me far too long to get back up to speed. Such as say, 20+mph less.

Not knocking you, just saying, two completely different driver styles. Even though some people say I need to drive my truck more aggressively, I refuse to, simply because I know it can't perform like that. Besides, as RIWWP said, an accident can in fact cost us our job, and I'm not game for that.

Plenty of people drive like ********, but there's also one thing, there are so many people driving out there, there's always bound to be one person to get in your way, at any given time. Yeah, even if I'm the one in the right, and they're in the wrong, I just forget about it, because the exact same thing could happen a mile down the road, and then you'd be twice as mad, or just forget about it.

Ultimately, I hope the situation works out for you well, and I hope the insurance company doesn't decide to jack your rates up like crazy. Been there, done that, $200 for a 1988 because someone ran into my car when it was parked, backed it into another car, they ran off, and I got put a fault because "There wasn't enough evidence that the first car hit mine."

It's a long story, and off topic, but just shows how they love to take advantage of younger drivers for higher rates.

Edit since I took a while to post:

I wouldn't say that's a blind spot big enough for a car. I've had people merge there, even on motorcycles, and I can see them just fine. Sure, I might not see the entire car, but that's not a blind spot. If a car's there, I know a car is there.

Now, if a car is directly behind me, I can't see that, or in that sweet spot directly to the left or right a bit behind the cab, that's a blind spot.

Also, assuming he would have been changing lanes, he would've been a lane over on the right, and still visible, not directly in front of the truck yet.

I still say the trucker wasn't paying attention, because I've NEVER had a vehicle in front of me go into any blind spot, until they start falling behind me.


Second Edit, because:

I'm not blaming the trucker, I'm not placing blame anywhere, we can't. I'm just saying, several things went wrong, obviously, for a collision.

blazenblue63

Very well put. Better than me lol. Onramps have/should have yield signs telling the merging vehicle to yield. It's also common sense. And it wasn't a rear end collision but a side one. In a rear end collision the car would have had significantly more damage.

Side note: it is retarded how many people are willing to risk their and their passengers lives to gain 10 seconds. Unbelievable.

paimon.soror

iTrader: (15)

Because of the idea behind this "rule", trucks are generally prohibited from right-most lanes on most CT roads/routes and highways

RIWWP

iTrader: (2)

No to quibble, but I see rear damage, not side damage. The left rear fender lines are still smooth, where as the rear bumper and trunk are all dented. All the damage is on the left side of the rear, but it is still all on the rear. I'd guess off-set rear collision, less than ~5mph speed difference. (Again, guessing)

Tamas

iTrader: (1)

I hope you're not serious suggesting that the freeway traffic should yield to someone who is merging. It is the other way around - the merging vehicle is supposed to slow down. Unfortunately, drivers in the US think they have the goddamn right to merge immediately, even if it means that the freeway traffic has to step on the brakes or change lane to let them in. This pisses me off. Those same folks would be simply annihilated in Europe if they did the same thing. Try to do this on the German Autobahn and see what you get for it.
With that said, it's hard to decide what exactly is the case here... if the OP was going slower than the truck and simply merged in front of it, then it's clearly his fault. If the truck deliberately hit him because the driver was angry that he merged and sped up to teach him a lesson, then it is the trucker's fault, without a doubt. The question is: which one was it?

MS Addict

iTrader: (1)

^Here, they're prohibited from the left, because if they're prohibited from the right, it can make for a hard time to get over to the right lane sometimes in heavy traffic to get off at an exit, since you don't have the luxury of just getting over like, 5 miles early or something.

Edit:

Omg, people are lighting this topic up. Three posts at the same time, ftl.

blazenblue63

While I respect MS addict's style, Defensive driving is certainly good in a truck, I am doing a job hauling 40 tons of steel down the road. I need to make my appointments within my 11/14 hour laws. You don't have to respect me but respect the damage my vehicle can do to you. Don't drive next to a truck at the same speed, don't cut a truck off. We WILL win in a collision. I'll walk away 99/100 times. You won't.

fuztupnz

iTrader: (4)

OP: i was kinda with you until this post.

Mathematically. You would have to be going ~20mph faster than the truck to put 30 feet on him in 1 second. At that speed, there is no way he could have accelerated to hit you unless you slowed drastically after putting the 30 ft. distance on him since his truck would take way more time to accelerate to make up the distance.

Since you claim he was even with your back bumper towards the bottom of the ramp and you were hit a half to a full second after being on the highway, it sounds like you misjudged his speed vs. your speed and the distance needed to safely merge. The fact that his front right hit your left rear tells me you weren't totally on the highway when hit.

Granted this isn't exactly scientific since i only have the your estimates from you posts to go on.

I wish you the best, but you're probably not going to get anywhere with it.

trying to merge in front of a truck that's already at your rear bumper at the bottom of the ramp is careless and dangerous IMHO. The speed you'd need to be at to put a safe distance between you two could be considered reckless by the law.

MS Addict

iTrader: (1)

And I respect your driving style too, as I said, just two different driving styles. While I'm forgiving, I do wish people realized what that much weight can, and will do.

I know I have that luxury, where I'm driving day to day, I rarely have to worry about time. And I have the luxury of coming back the next day. I mean, it's not like I can just take my time, but they never press us for time to jeopardize safety in the slightest, and I love that. It makes life so much nicer.



I missed the OP's post about that. Makes me wonder if the area behind the truck was clear.

Again, nothing's in our hands, so..

blazenblue63

Well tamas there's no truck that can accelerate faster than an RX-8 and if I wanted to ram a car in my truck it wouldn't have scrapes and bruises. It be annihilated.

Bigbacon

iTrader: (4)

no one has to move over or slow down for merging traffic, those one the highway always have the right of way but should try to accommodate those merging.

I say you misjudged the distance and speed you were going and got hit. Both you probably to blame in some way.

blazenblue63

MS addict I'm aware of my surroundings too all the time. But depending on the model truck it is a definite blind spot. Big nose Pete's or kenworth's can't see a low car like an RX-8 there. But Columbia/century or Volvo's can. I've had 1.5 million safe miles (knock on wood) so far thanks to spotting and avoiding accidents with dumbasses like OP.

RIWWP

iTrader: (2)

Just pointing out that we don't know what model of truck hit him, so claiming that there was or was not a blind spot is premature


(Just trying to keep things civil)

MS Addict

iTrader: (1)

Ah, I drive a KW with a smaller nose(To hide my really under-powered engine). Then again, my entire truck's different, but I've been able to even see motorcycles right there. Then again, they typically are about 200 yards ahead in an instant merging in front of a truck, so they never stay there long.

Good job on the mileage though.

blazenblue63

Lol I hear ya but no matter what model truck it is, it's an obstructed view. Partly or completely.

To me it's simple. Op wanted in a lane occupied by the truck. Instead of waiting he tried to cut the truck off resulting in the collision. If he would have yielded to the truck like he should have, no accident, no increased rates and no banged up car.

Patience is a virtue