Ever been in an accident in a Beetle?

[GB2S]

Wrecked my parents 1970 bug, while they were on vacation and I was waiting for the insurance to kick in on the 69 fastback I just bought.

It was a real interesting conversation. Hi Dad, I just bought a car. By the way I wrecked yours.

[Max Welton]

For all you guys thinking about roll cages, here is something else to think about.

Roll cages are made of steel pipe. In a roll-over, your head is likely to contact that steel pipe with some force. It's a bit like being hit in the head with a baseball bat.

In fact, in a serious impact from any direction your head is moving around a lot and striking nearby objects.

Roll cages are meant for racing. In racing we wear helmets and serious restraint systems.

Max
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1967 Type-3 Fastback
Under the Knife https://shoptalkforums.com/viewtopic.php?f=24&t=151582
Home Stretch https://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=767836

[Paintedbus]

... a bit of a grave digger post here.
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Champagne Edition Roadtrip monster "Juakali"

~"Paintedbus" Ken~
The Mobile Muralist
WWW.PAINTEDBUSART.COM

[Paintedbus]

i just got my first beetle (64) at the end of the summer and have only driven it a handful of times due to the onset of winter here in massachusetts. The last time i drove it was back in november during a mild early winter snow storm. I was driving it to its winter resting spot at a friend house about an hour away. (I only have street parking here.) Well, no snow had accumulated on the roads yet, but I could tell it was slippery out and the car was still new to me so I was taking it slow.

Before I got onto the interstate I was stuck in traffic and had a black passat sitting right on my a$$ trying to pass me. Maybe he couldn't see the line of stopped traffic in front of my very low beetle, but if that was the case he shouldn't have been on the road in the first place... Regardless of that, I slowly made my way onto the on ramp and was accelerating onto the interstate when the passat whipped around me and cut me off. Not 2 seconds later he slammed on his brakes because (duh) there was a line of backed up traffic on the road. I slammed on my brakes only to find out that my new-to-me 64 utilized a single circuit master cylinder and that they dont like to be stomped on. I popped a line somewhere and did not stop so I pulled my e-brake and deftly maneuvered my beetle about 50 feet past the stopped passat, fishtailing down the shoulder.

My wife who had been watching the entire incident from the comfort of her subaru almost had a heart attack. Luckily my tires were brand new and I had stupid fast eye hand coordination from years of cello playing and an unjustified air hockey obsession. I didn't wreck but I came very close... If I hadn't been so far back from the guy in front of me I would have plowed into him going around 50 mph. Then again, If I had been a little closer the jack a$$ passat probably wouldn't have felt the need to cut me off in the first place...

Now since the bug is in winter storage (drove the rest of the way using only my e-brake) I have been stocking up on safety equipment. 3-point seat belts and a dual circuit MC conversion are on the top of my list.

Maybe I should think about a roll cage too...

Be careful out there guys.
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Champagne Edition Roadtrip monster "Juakali"

~"Paintedbus" Ken~
The Mobile Muralist
WWW.PAINTEDBUSART.COM

[joe13]

my first bug, r.i.p was sitting at a red light at 2 am on a saterday night, only a few cars around, saw a car coming up from behind me, before i knew it, it was very close,(10 sec time period) and not slowing, i relized what was going to happen and got out of the car, i managed to get about 4 feet away and Smash!!!!!!,bug ended up about 60 feet away in someone front yard,caddy ended up in a parked , what i think was a ford suv that smashed inot 5 other cars in front of it drunk driver fell asleep ,police said he had to be doin 75, or more in a 77 caddy convertabe(front wheel drive boats), im very lucky, only axident so far, the trannys nose cone was where my e breke handel should of been, the main pully was bent inword all around and the, im sure u get the point, got my my 59 rag thow.
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VW sickness

[Aussie Greg]

Years ago I completed a defensive driving course for the Ambulance Service.
I was taught the following

1. Drive your vehicle within the capacity at which you can safely control it and drive accordingly to the roads conditions.

2. Keep brakes and tyres in top condition.

3. Wear a seatbelt and make sure your passengers belt up as well.

4. Drive pro-actively or in a defensive manner... In other words, be able to anticipate what another motorist is going to do before they do it. This obviously comes with experience.

5. Keep safe distances from other vehicles ahead
(a must if your early bug has 4 wheel drum brakes)

6. You roll up to a red light it and it has just changed green... Make sure before you move into the intersection that another idiot is not running the red light!

7. In rain, fog, smoke or poor light use your vehicles headlights... They're not just there for night time use.

8. Make sure you are seen before overtaking etc or moving into traffic flow.

9. Most of all have patience

If you use these tips you have a very good chance of avoiding an accident in the first place.
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If it's not in a Volkswagen I'm not going!

My email - [email protected]

1963 Beetle
1965 Beetle
1982 Type 25 Transporter/Vanagon
1985 Type 25 Caravelle/Vanagon
2001 Golf

[bugninva]

[Mike J. Goode]

One other thing, air bags are not meant to replace seatbelts. They are SRS-Supplemental Restraint Systems-meaning you still gotta wear your seat belts. It is no longer uncool to wear your seatbelt, and they are no longer right at your neck like those 80s GM cars. So PLEASE buckle up. Adding side door beams like new cars is also not a bad idea

[Mike J. Goode]

I do not mean to sound like a parent or whatever, I am only 31, buy I have been reading the posts here and I have to ask, what is with all you people not wearing seatbelts? A number of people here have been ejected, or have crushed the steering wheel with their chest, broken bones on the dash, etc. Almost all of that is avoidable by wearing a seatbelt. First thing I have always done-even when I was 16-was to install modern seatbelts in my air cooled cars. I have had the following accidents:
64 sunroof bug-t boned by a Chevy Caprice
71 Super-t boned by a 94 Camry, then slammed head on into a light pole.
73 Bus-head on with a Nissan Altima
65 Bug-rear ended by a Honda Accord. Later t boned by a Plymouth Acclaim.
64 Bug-rollover (rolled over two times)
T boned a 78 Chrysler New Yorker in my 66 Vert

In these accidents, my 64 sunroof and 71 Super were totalled. My bus recieved minor damage but totalled the Altima. My 65 recieved heavy damage but was repaired. My 64 had major damage but stood up pretty well. I drove it home. While some of these were at a high rate of speed (20-30mph is a high speed in an accident by the way) the passenger compartments were remarkably intact. The only time I did not have a belt on was in my 64 sunroof and I got banged up a bit. But every other accident, I had my belt on and walked away every time.

[jumpmaster]

Well...whatever you do, don't let his insurance company try to total it out for some insignificant amount of money. Once, this idiot slammed the living HELL out of my '68 Mustang...(hit and run...fortunately, the vehicle was parked and I was in the house). The cops found her two days later...

Her insurance tried to tell me it was only worth $800. I had to prove to them otherwise to get them to pay to fix the damage...she did $1500 worth to it. It took a few weeks to convince them to pay instead of totalling it out.

Good luck...

[Low65Sedan]

[img]http://thesamba.com/vw/forum/album_page.php?pic_id=214326[/img] this happened right after i polled out of the veedub shop to get seat belts, they didnt have them so i was on my to another one. I was goin east and he pulled out planning on going west i saw it coming so i swerved other wise he would have T- Boned me. It came so close to smashing my 1/4 panel which probably woulda totaled it, insurence wise. I go to his inusrence tomorow to have it looked. i got a qoute from a body shop for $837, and i have all the parts to fix it jus sitting around so im trying to get some money from this dude.
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**Formerly known as low67sqaure**
*64 bug(stock)
*65 bug(throws sparks, not bagged!)
*67 bug(dumped)
*67 sqaureback(slammed)
*80 rabbit(hammered)
*86 Golf(LOW)

[brookester]

Probably Watt and Fair Oaks Blvd to be exact.

[bugninva]

[KantDriveFast]

I'll guess "A"...someones been driving in Sacramento???

[Claire]

Only 2 seconds to react and stop a vehicle going 65 mph?!!!!!! Not to be snotty, but man... they should turn that into a word problem for the SAT's!!

John is traveling westbound at 65 miles per hour in his rusted-out '72 Super Beetle, 2 seconds behind Lisa in her 2-ton SUV who is also going 65 mph. Suddenly, Lisa drops the mascara brush she was using to apply her make-up in the rear-view mirror and slams on the brakes, throwing her SUV into a tailspin on the freeway. Is John
A) Lucky to be alive & swearing at Lisa for being a dumb... well you know
B) Unaware that anything unusual has taken place
C) Being greeted by St. Peter at the Pearly Gates
D) None of the above
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Custom cars need love too!!

[bugninva]

[Claire]

I like to do that old fashioned safety check they taught us in drivers ed way back when-

Pick a stationary object like a road sign. As the vehicle in front of you passes it, count the seconds out until you pass it like this:

1-one thousand, 2-one thousand, 3-one thousand etc. until you pass it.

You should have 1 second for each 10 mph of speed. For example, at 65 mph it should take you six and a half seconds to cross the mark after the vehicle in front of you.

VERY few people leave that much space and you'll find yourself really having to work to try to maintain that kind of distance. But it does give you lots of room to stop.

And as it seems that so many people here have had accidents in bugs by rolling them over when making a sudden manuever, it seems like a very smart thing to keep a good distance between you and the drivers ahead whenever possible.
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Custom cars need love too!!

[brookester]

Riding a sport bike has really helped me become more aware of potential hazards on public roads. You can make eye contact with another driver and they will occasionally STILL pull out in front of you. I always leave myself an out [escape route] while in traffic. Never let yourself get boxed in etc...There's a million of 'em.

It think that if you use the 3 second rule in you regular car, you should extend that distance substantially in your vw.

Go to a parking lot and test your brakes to see how long it takes to stop.
I think if more people in cages really enjoyed driving [like we do] they would be much better drivers.

[bugninva]

[nicdiva]

No doubt on expect the unexpected.

Last year I got my driver's liscence, and had been driving my 72 super for about five months before I rolled it. It was a blind corner on a 45 mph highway, I was slowing down, braking into the corner when it suddenly got much tighter so I turned the wheel more and hit the brakes a little more. That was enough to brake loose the 165/15's in the back (doing ~35mph at this point) and I fishtailed it a couple times before the rear overtook the front and I flopped the car on it's roof.

I was wearing my seatbelt, which had a shoulder and lap belt. I had a very slight cut on my middle finger (large papercut style), I have no idea how , that was it. Might have saved it if I took my foot off the brake, but it was already there and I had been awake for about half an hour, so I kinda panicked.

My super is allright, it's easiest to just cut the roof off and put a new one on there (wanted a sunroof anyway).
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Trashed 69' Beetle