My first wreck, ever.
 

Life can be a scary thing sometimes. I was going to go visit my girlfriends parents yesterday afternoon when this happened. It was raining pretty hard and there was standing water on the road that I took. Long story short, I hit a deep puddle of water, the car got sideways then I hit a curb and into some trees and a fence. I'm just happy enough to be able to walk away from this.

http://i1225.photobucket.com/albums/...psef38d7dc.jpg

Cars can be replaced, life cannot. Be safe out there guys.

I'm not sure if the car is totaled, I'm kind of hoping it is. The damage is pretty bad. The whole passenger side door is caved in from where it hit the tree. The insurance adjuster will be coming to take a look at it sometime this week. I'll keep everyone updated.

Did the car hydroplane, or did you lose traction taking a turn too fast?

Just curious, because the FR-S would be my first RWD drive car ever.

Glad you are safe. Can you believe some people still don't wear seat belts?

:( Glad to hear you came out of that alright. Sorry about the car!

Sorry bud glad your ok. I'm sure the car is fixable. I bet that was really scary. :( dang

So, if it is totaled, will you be getting another FR-S or moving on?

First, glad you are alright. You are right, the cars can be replaced.

Just so we don't end up with you getting flamed, you may want to give some more details so that other members that like to flame don't get started without reason. Did you have the nannies on? Were you driving aggressively for any reason? What speed were you at, and did you have a chance to avoid the puddle? Was that a side street or a country road?

Honestly, people don't realize how light this car is and how easily it can hydroplane. I am a bit suspicious, to be honest, since you managed to hydroplane during a time when you said "it was raining pretty hard..." I, for one, slow way down if it is raining cats and dogs.

Again, glad you are ok. Wishing you the best.

I upgraded from my 1990 240sx to an FR-S and can honestly say driving the FR-S at the limit is much less eventful. I might even say it feels safe. You REALLY have to be pushing it to fuck up.

That being said, I have noticed that the stock tires are prone to hydroplaning.

I obviously can't see the damage, but I don't think it'll be totaled. (sorry, I know you were hoping it might be)

When I was 16 I got T-boned by a girl who ran a stop sign and I was in a brand new Altima. I was sure it'd be totaled.

The driver door, front and rear quarter panels and the wheels were all significantly damaged and the side airbag deployed they STILL repaired it (much to my dismay).

During the repair process they actually determined that they should've declared it totaled because the repairs exceeded half the value of the car, but at that point it was "too late", so I got my car back like 3 months later with extensive repairs.

Either way, sorry to hear man, I know the feeling and it's not a fun one.

On the plus side, when you get your car back, you don't have to worry about it very much anymore since the worst has already happened more or less.

Keep your head up!

Glad you're ok. That is the most important thing as you said.

Stay safe out there guys, especially when there's precipitation on the ground.

Traction control was on, the warning light actually came on as soon as it started to fishtail. I did not see the puddle until I was RIGHT there. I was coming around a corner of a road I don't travel too often, especially when it rains. The speed limit on that road is 25MPH, I was going about 30MPH (only because I was heading down hill and didn't know there would be a puddle of water at the bottom.) Basically, it was down a hill, hit a turn, car starts going sideways on me, and as quick as it happened, I was between two trees. My car is lowered 2 inches all around (not sure if that makes a difference?).

Thanks everyone for your concerns, I really do appreciate it.

-2" on stock struts?

Nope, aftermarket.

To be honest, I'm not sure. I was looking at other cars before I bought this. I was about to buy the Genesis Coupe 2.0T. The FR-S really caught my eye as being a new platform. I wanted to experience that.

Logical, glad you could walk away. Hope you weren't injured but might be time to get a medical check.

What make/model/size tires are you running? Most OEM tire reviews here say the Michelin Primacy with it's Eco compound loses grip quickly in the wet. That's actually why I'm replacing them on delivery day with RE-11A's.

It doesn't look like any of the airbags deployed so they might repair it but yeah, I'd want it totaled, too, and then get a 10 Series.

Sounds like you pretty much got caught in a "wrong place, wrong time" situation, those suck. Feeling your pain, man.

Good luck, hope to see you come back to the twins family.

Glad your OK that's all that matters...

I hate driving in hard rain but when I do I take some air off my tires and just drive slow..

That must've been traumatic. Glad you're okay buddy.

It is a good thing you are safe. But as how many accidents happened to the FT86 on wet road or low traction conditions. I am starting to Doubt the Safety of these car.

I mean as in seeing you have own a Silvia for a while in your Avatar, I am sure you know how to handle these car. You still wreck it, and you are not the only one wrecking it with experiences.

Glad to hear you're alright man. I was on my way home yesterday when it was raining and I went through a few good size puddles on 485 and thought I was a done for but luckily the car regained control. The area around us floods so easy so I can't say I'm surprised. Where in Charlotte did this happen?

You doubt everything about these cars....

For the record, we have had nearly record rain here where I live this year and I have had no issues with traction on stock tires. You just have to slow down. The OP was going over the speed limit on a bad part of a road. I don't care what car you are in, if you hit a bad spot in the road and are not prepared for the slide, you are most likely going to do some damage.

Well I just sold a 2013 Genesis Coupe for my BRZ. So I would be happy to share my thoughts with you via PM if you are considering that platform again. I promise I will be honest :)

And I am really glad you are okay. Stuff happens.. It is just a car.

Me personally when it rains I take this care VERY seriously. Traction control is always on and I'm paying non stop attention to my speed and surroundings.

Honestly I questioned getting this car because of past experience in my teens with a Mustang. I was 19 and headed to work on the highway after a long night of partying. Luckily it was at around 5 am and no one was around. I lost control of the car and spun in a complete 360 from one lane to the other on the highway. I was going entirely too fast in the rain and I still to this day am so glad no one was on the road.

Now that said, I'm 33 and tend not to make bonehead decisions. Although I can from time to time it will not be me speeding in the rain in this car.

I had a similar experience when I was 18 in my RX-7. Rear wheel drive, tires that had worn tread, no nannies back then, and I was going too fast in the rain in Florida after a rain storm onto the interstate and did a 360. Nobody hurt and my buddy was behind me in his car and was alert enough not to hit me, but it scared the beejezzus out of me. Got new tires and slowed down.

I was actually in Belmont when this happened. 485 is horrible when it rains. Stay safe!

OTOH, many of the world's best rally, sports car and open wheel drivers come from snow countries and learned to drive on low grip surfaces.

Although nothing much will help when aquaplaning, and I've nearly had to change my shorts once after doing something similar spinning down the Interstate after encountering black ice, maybe some seat time at a skid car school and autocross could help car control skills.

Oh, that black ice encounter happened on a bridge. I did a couple 720's, didn't hit anything and miraculously met dry pavement with wheels straight ahead or the Land Cruiser would've rolled.

Sorry hear of your misfortune. I'm glad you were able to walk away. My second wreck was in Skyline (not my fault, BTW) I feel your pain.

That to me was a higher powers first and final warning to back off. :lol:

Back the OP though and I should have added this before (my apologies) I'm glad you're okay. :thumbsup:

Scary stuff, glad you're ok! Man, such a low speed accident!

Going 30 mph in a 25 ain't nothing to be ashamed of, we've all been there. Very eye opening.

My first quarter of college I was going around a downhill slight lefthand turn during the first rain of the year. Got about 3/4 of the way through the turn and went to give the car a bit of gas, broke traction and understeered right into a curb. Fortunately it only did suspension/wheel damage but it was eye opening to see just how easy it is to over do it on a wet, oily road.

glad you're safe man

Thanks again everyone. I have a little update. Insurance adjuster came out today and determined the car is not totaled. The repair estimate she gave me was around $7200 but said it will go up more once they find the damages she couldn't see. Another thing she told me was it might be a while for it to get fixed, depending on how the shop can come across the parts. Hopefully they are readily available through Toyota. The shop has my car now, they are the best shop around with plenty of prestigious awards.

For now I'm driving around in a 2013 Nissan Altima (insurance covers free rental so why not take advantage of that?).

Good luck, and be prepared to be driving the rental for a while. I would find out where the parts warehouse for your region is (you are in the southeast region, FYI) just in case there is a hangup in parts--you can always call them and get the information directly from the source.

The good news is, the twins have been around long enough now that there are parts available at no longer than a day's wait, as they keep them in their regional warehouses.

I would take the opportunity to look at any aftermarket body parts you may have wanted to put on the car. Even though I think the rocket bunny kit is seen quite a bit, if my car had massive damage in the front or rear I would consider it before I started having them repair the stock fenders if possible.

Thanks for sharing and I am glad you are safe. One more reason to ditch the crappy OEM Michelin tires.

I thought about that actually. To be honest though, I'm just going to get all my bumpers and fenders OEM. If I have any left over money I may look for some new wheels though. We will just see how everything goes.

IMO I think the rocket bunny kit is overused. Don't get me wrong, I like it, it's just not for me.

what shop are you using? when I was rear-ended I used Body Works Plus, and while they did an amazing job (can't tell I was hit by an SUV, or even hit at all) they did have the car for more than a month, due to how long it took to get the parts.

How's the unibody?

Where in Belmont exactly? I drive through there all the time, it would be nice to know where to avoid when its raining.

Yeah I feel the same way. I like it a lot but it seems like it is the shops "go to" kit if they are building a show car. Doesn't seem to be as much variety or thinking outside of the box.

WOW;;; I think there is a chance that you will have to wait for parts forever;;; one of my friend got wrecked too, and he waited 2 months to get his parts;;; lol