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Prepare for a really sad sight at the end of this post.
This was my beloved late 2002 4.2 xkr which I have assiduously maintained since purchase in 2011. Since then, she has been lpg converted (and I completed about 100k miles) and pretty well everything done: suspension, brake disks, gearbox oil change, steering rack refurb, new water pump, new aircon pump, 6-monthly oil change and service and on and on. At the garage, where they wrote it off as an uneconomical repair, they said it was in very good condition (which hasn't stopped the insurance company offering peanuts).
There are many roundabouts in the UK, and they work brilliantly. However, a car waiting to enter the roundabout (which was empty at the time) was slow to get away - and I simply ran into the back of it; nobody else to blame, however hard I try!
No personal injury whatever, and fellow Jag owners will I think be interested to hear of the quality of safety features. This is what happened to the car:
front stoved in, right back to the engine
two front chassis members bent in a little
bonnet popped up
dashboard airbags deployed
one of the seatbelts 'fired', tightening the belt against the occupant
Extensive damage, but at the end of the day the occupants are more important, and it is good to know that the safety systems are so well designed. It is only a bit of tin and plastic......or so I assure myself!
I do have one small crumb of comfort. I have, in my own little way, provided a tiny increase in value of all other XK8s and XKRs in the world.
I'm really sorry to hear of your accident - but very glad no one was hurt. It is very easy to accelerate at a roundabout especially when traffic is busy so I completely understand. Take care and hopefully you will find a good replacement. kind regards
That is sad, you have my condolences. I'm glad you are not hurt. Keep on with the insurance company, print out some ads, get proof of what yours is worth and don't take the first offer.
We have a new phenomenon in our lovely new roundabout, people stopping to let others enter. I almost rear ended a polite young lady when she stopped completely then waved a car in. I laid on the horn and shouted "stop trying to live up to the F*ing brochure" proving once again I'm only half Canadian.
We have a new phenomenon in our lovely new roundabout, people stopping to let others enter. I almost rear ended a polite young lady when she stopped completely then waved a car in. I laid on the horn and shouted "stop trying to live up to the F*ing brochure" proving once again I'm only half Canadian.
We have a similar problem here. Since roundabouts here are so rare, seems that half the drivers don't know who has right of way. Chaos ensues.
as far as crash damage goes, its only light, not a difficult repair at all. If you were deft with a mig torch ,body jacks, and a spray gun 1-1.5K repair depending on how lucky you are with used parts and how much engine damage there is
Last edited by phanc60844; May 30, 2017 at 11:48 AM.
I remember the first time I visited England and drove. After pretty quickly getting used to the "wrong side" the next challenging thing were the roundabouts. Although once I got the hang of it I thought these were a brilliant idea. Oddly I recently went on a short trip to Arizona (Sedona) and was surprised to see that city (and some others in the vicinity) recently altered their main streets and highways to include roundabouts. Never saw these anywhere else in the States and the drivers were totally confused.
That is a sad sight indeed. I know it is an heart breaking feeling even if nobody got hurt as I've also crashed mine 4 years ago but less severely. Ended up doing a contract repair using used parts.
Thanks, guys. Repair costs were estimated at in excess of £14k. Apparently if the dashboard airbag deploys is can twist the frame, and there is no guarantee that the chassis was not twisted. Here in the UK insurers keep the wreck, though it is possible to buy it back; I am not set up for keeping the car (I did briefly contemplate it), partly because we are selling the house, and a scrapyard in the drive might not help with the sale. So it is no longer mine, and is now being readied as an organ donor!
Coincidentally, the only accident I've ever been responsible for was the same scenario: ran into a car that'd started entering the roundabout but which then stopped (for no obvious reason), so lesson learnt - the hard way!
Don't give in by accepting the pay-out if you don't feel it's a fair amount, insurance companies rely on people doing that.
I remember the first time I visited England and drove. After pretty quickly getting used to the "wrong side" the next challenging thing were the roundabouts. Although once I got the hang of it I thought these were a brilliant idea. Oddly I recently went on a short trip to Arizona (Sedona) and was surprised to see that city (and some others in the vicinity) recently altered their main streets and highways to include roundabouts. Never saw these anywhere else in the States and the drivers were totally confused.
Doug
We have them all over dallas/forworth and the kids think they are "driftcircles" Usually entered at or above the roads speed limit. I can't believe the 19" rims on my 5.0 my teenager drives are still unscuffed.
Diddion,
I'm sorry to see such a fine example lost, but I'm glad you're OK. Good luck in your search, sometimes that's half the fun, finding a new car!
Seismicguy,
Re Roundabouts, I get to visit Sedona annually as I have relatives who live in Oak Creek Village, (The Village) which is actually where the roundabouts are. I hope you took time to visit the airport in Sedona. Fantastic views from on top of the Mesa, and a great little cafe up there too. IIRC Cottonwood Az, also has a couple of roundabouts too.
Minnesota has also caught the roundabout bug, many have gone in over last few years, and its always fun watching those who have not encountered one before work out which way to go around, and who has the right of way.
For those readers who have yet to meet a roundabout, the car on the roundabout has right of way, you must wait until it is clear before you may join. Once on the roundabout all others must give way to you.
(But there are always those who don't know, don't care, or want to play chicken, so don't take anything for granted!)
Regards,
Last edited by White Bear; May 30, 2017 at 04:27 PM.
Actually, how to use a roundabout can be quite complex - especially when you consider where you need to be on the roundabout. I have transposed this left to right, to account for driving on the right (=wrong!) side of the road. This all assumes, of course, that you haven't, er, smashed into a car waiting to get onto the roundabout!
If you are turning right (left, in the UK) you enter the roundabout on the right hand side, and stay on the outside.
If you are going straight on - 2nd exit - you still normally also stay on the ouside.
However, if you are taking the third or later exit, you normally enter the roundabout from the left hand lane, and you go to the inner lane of the roundabout. You move to the outside lane once you have passed the exit before the one you want.
Indicating also has its rules. Here are a couple of them.
Only if you are taking the first exit would you indicate right - starting that indication before you enter the roundabout.
Other than this, you only indicate right as you pass the exit before the one you want.
Diddion,
Condolences on the car, but also glad to hear nobody injured. Sad to see them end this way.
I must admit to doing that some years back, but that only resulted in a dented overrider, and my daughter took out the radiator and plastic front on her little A-Class in March in the same way, so you're not alone on this one.
Diddion - it hurts my eye's to see Your car in this way - but glad nobody got hurt, that's the most important.
the exact same thing happened to me with my Porsche928s and it was completely my fault. I sold her as I had no garage at the time to work in. I also argued a lot with the insurance company that did take no consideration at all of the amount of money I invested in the car, they only looked in their tables and compensated per default for car, model, year, and miles.
Actually, how to use a roundabout can be quite complex - especially when you consider where you need to be on the roundabout. I have transposed this left to right, to account for driving on the right (=wrong!) side of the road. This all assumes, of course, that you haven't, er, smashed into a car waiting to get onto the roundabout!
If you are turning right (left, in the UK) you enter the roundabout on the right hand side, and stay on the outside.
If you are going straight on - 2nd exit - you still normally also stay on the ouside.
However, if you are taking the third or later exit, you normally enter the roundabout from the left hand lane, and you go to the inner lane of the roundabout. You move to the outside lane once you have passed the exit before the one you want.
Indicating also has its rules. Here are a couple of them.
Only if you are taking the first exit would you indicate right - starting that indication before you enter the roundabout.
Other than this, you only indicate right as you pass the exit before the one you want.
That's a very good explanation but way too complex for those of us in the colonies. We're still trying to master the yield to the left and not the right concept.
My crashed XKR, and the safety features
ouch!!!!! Glad occupants are ok - car can be replaced
At least nobody was hurt.
