e60oholic

Well as the title says I had my first accident in the 545 last Saturday. Driving the girl friend home had a 18 wheeler blow a rear tire right next to me. The tread came flying off slammed into the front bumper and went ripping under the car. Ended up smashing the front front bumper, breaking the fog lights, ripping off the paneling under the engine, bending both front wheels, breaking both sway links, throwing off the alignment, and oh on its way out smacking the rear bumper so hard it knocked the PDC sensors out. I was doing about 75-80 and it was freaking loud no one was hurt but the insurance agent said I'm lucky I didn't loose control of the car. So far the insurance claim is at about 3800 bucks and just going up as the dealer finds more stuff. Driving around the 2011 Chevy Malibu I got as a rental is really making me miss my car. Grrr 4 cyl

rctmthouse

Glad no one was hurt. Couple months ago, my similar thing happened to my wife. She was driving on the local highway, I-580 for those who lives in the Bay Area, a tire blew from a big 18. She was driving in the next lane, slightly behind it. The blown tire hit the front end of her car, damaged the front bumper and the under carriage. Of course leave it to my wife to assume that she was able to avoid the impact and thought that she drove over the blown tire. She didn't know there was damages to the car, at least not until when she got home. Ended having to file a claim with the insurance and paid the deductible out of our pocket.

I did try to contact CHP to see if it had happened to anyone within the area around that time frame just in case a report was taken. No luck!!!

bmwgroup

Sorry to hear about your accident. Glad that you and anyone in the vehicle is okay. Good luck with everything.

MisterMike

My other BMW is a two-wheeler, so this sort of thing always concerns me. I've seen a truck trailer tire disintegrate and speed and it's a frightening sight. I don't know that there's any winning strategy for avoiding this sort of thing--it kind of falls in the category of "**** happens"--but when I'm on my moto, I stay as far away from the 18-wheelers as possible and try to pass them quickly. Glad to hear that no one was injured.

BTW, I was visiting my son in NC over this past weekend and had a brand-new Malibu rental. It's actually a decent car, understanding, of course, that it's in a bit different market and performance niche. However, it's definitely not a 5-series!

poleposition

Sorry for you. Could have ended up a lot worse than that.

luigi524td

YIKES - that musta been super scary and you're very lucky to have maintained control with so little (relative to what could have happened)! And above all - no personal injury

Good luck getting all sorted out and be sure not to settle for anything less than a 100% return to pre-accident condition!

Gilgorm

Glad to hear you are OK. Most of your damage is cosmetic except for the wheels and links. Make sure you use an approved BMW shop and only OEM parts.
Following my accident I had a Hyundai Sonata (old body style) rental so count yourself lucky with the Malibu. After two weeks waiting for my car, I actually sighed as I settled into my E60 seat.

MTV

Glad to know you and your girlfriend are OK and nothing worse happened.

Kaizen

Good to hear that nobody was injured. I hope it all gets worked out soon.

or_550i

I *hate* semi-trucks. I was in a wreck last year where we were clipped on the freeway. Ended up getting pushed, sideways, down the road at 60+ mph before spinning out. I stay the fuck away from trucks now and when I pass them I do it as fast as the 550 will go.

Glad you're ok the rest of the crap can be fixed.