Another one bites the dust!!!!

[wiseasp]

Well Friday the 13th came and bit me in the ass. I think I totaled my 06 VCA Coupe. First accident I ever had. I was going down the road, looked down to mess with the ipod, I looked up and 2 deer are right in front of me. I swerved out of the way and swerved back. I then hit the brakes and the car took off like a freaking rocket. I lost control and spun around hit the curb went airborne hit a wire holding the telephone pole, spun around again hit a fire hydrant, threw that about 40 yards. At this point I was STANDING on the brakes and the damn car kept going faster. I was in third gear and was bouncing off the rev limiter. I then missed another pole and got back on the road. The car is still bouncing off the rev limiter. I put it in neutral and then just shut the car down and used the e brake to stop. I jumped out of the car and could not believe what just happened. I looked at why the car kept going. The damn gas pedal broke and got stuck UNDER the brake pedal!!!! So every time I stood on the brakes I was just doing a hell of a power brake. Geico is looking at the car Monday or Tuesday. The hood is banged up as well as the front, rear, all 4 wheels, the frame, both side sills, drivers front fender, the trans will not go into 6th gear, the engine will not start and the whole bottom of the floor pan looks like waves in the ocean. The only thing that happened to me was that I banged my right shin and I said every cuss word I knew....

 

[PaViper]

WOW, I am so sorry to hear that, I am glad you are OK. That realy *****.

 

[RavenFan_94]

Wow what a freak occurence. Glad you are ok.

 

[RevHeat]

I am baffled at how the acclerator got stuck behind the brake. I wonder how that happen........ Sorry this happen to you.

Rev

 

[ViperJohn]

Really sorry to hear what happened. Glad you are okay.

 

[PaViper]

What are you planning to do to replace it, are you going to get an 08 or 09, or are you going to replace it with another 06 since you have the supercharger and other good stuff for it. I know it might be a little early to be thinking about it, but I was just curious.

 

[wiseasp]

I have no idea yet. I am just glad I came out OK. It could have been A LOT worse. The car only had 2800 miles.

 

[CCBrian]

Ya know, I would think that Dodge would like to see what failed. This is the first time I heard of this happening, but not real cool if it just broke...could be a recall item for these cars.

 

[Bobpantax]

Hi Wiseasp. Sorry about your snake. Good thinking on your part to take the car out of gear, etc. A very odd incident to say the least. You might want to look back through your records to see who worked on the interior of your car and when they did so. I have never seen a post or heard of any one else who had this problem. Since your miles are fairly low, it is hard to imagine how the gas pedal did what it did without either a maintainence screw up or someone intentionally tampering with it. Good luck!

 

[Bobpantax]

One more observation. Your gas pedal looks much newer ( has far less visible wear) than your brake and clutch pedals. Was it by any chance replaced? If so, when and by whom?

 

[wiseasp]

Woodhouse worked on the car and Factory reps worked on the car. The only thing I can think of is when I jumped to swerve out of the way i might have pulled the pedal over too. I looked under there and it looks like some pins came loose and fell out. We will see what the insurance company says... The pedal is original. They must use different metals for the clutch and brake vs. the gas and foot rest.

 

[Bobpantax]

What did the factory reps do?

 

[wiseasp]

What did the factory reps do?

The windshield cracked at 104 miles. They came out to replace the windshield and update some stuff on the car.

 

[VENUM INJECTION]

Man I am really sorry, I'm sure you are sick about it. I'm glad you came out of it alive, because it sounds like it could have been much worse. Keep us posted on what happens and when the time comes if you choose another year. Goodluck!!

 

[Shadowman]

Glad that you are alright

Takes care

Shadowman

 

[FastZilla]

 

[Paul Hawker]

Glad you are OK.

Must have been a wild ride.

Gotta be extra careful on Friday the 13ths. Believe we will have 3 of them this year. More than usual.

 

[J&R3xV10]

no offense and please don't take this wrong but just that you pointed it out. You looked down at your IPOD while driving a viper and had an accedent. Then people wonder why Dodge didn't have a ipod adapter built into the Viper??!?!?! Well here it is. AN Ipod has no business in a Viper.

Sorry for you loss but lets hope a lesson is learned from this.

I only say this because the same thing happened to me a few years back. I looked down to change songs on my ipod and a car swerved infront of me and I swerved into a wall. I totaled my car but it was only a Mazda 3si. That was the last time I put an ipod in my car and the last accedent I had.

 

[Warfang]

no offense and please don't take this wrong but just that you pointed it out. You looked down at your IPOD while driving a viper and had an accedent. Then people wonder why Dodge didn't have a ipod adapter built into the Viper??!?!?! Well here it is. AN Ipod has no business in a Viper.

Sorry for you loss but lets hope a lesson is learned from this.

I only say this because the same thing happened to me a few years back. I looked down to change songs on my ipod and a car swerved infront of me and I swerved into a wall. I totaled my car but it was only a Mazda 3si. That was the last time I put an ipod in my car and the last accedent I had.

It's not the ipod... it's the momentary lapse in attention while doing something else. Same thing would have happened changing CD's talking on the phone, eating, etc.

 

[HI-NOS-Viper]

Oh man that really *****. Bummer what happened to the Viper, but it is replaceable. Glad that you are ok. I am sure that it will all work out. It could of been worse.

 

[1994viper]

I am sad about your loss. And you were probably better off by not hitting the deer, but I do agree with some of the members in the case that the car requires absolute attention while being driven. Lets not tell the insurance company about the Ipod

 

[J&R3xV10]

It's not the ipod... it's the momentary lapse in attention while doing something else. Same thing would have happened changing CD's talking on the phone, eating, etc.

True, any added distractions are dangerous and none of these things should be done while driving.Changing Cd's is best done at a stop light or before you leave, talking on a phone while driving a manual is not bright, and EATING in a Viper!?!??!!?

Please don't forget how I started my first post. "no offense and please don't take this wrong" I am not saying that the Ipod is to blame but when we are out driving our Vipers or any car for that matter its more important to focus on the road than on other distractions. It is safer to drive blindfolded on a race track than to take your eyes off the road for a second on public roads. This should serve as a reminder to all of us that no matter how good of a driver we may be (or think we are), there is always some unforeseen thing that can occur and we need to be careful.

 

[wiseasp]

True, any added distractions are dangerous and none of these things should be done while driving.Changing Cd's is best done at a stop light or before you leave, talking on a phone while driving a manual is not bright, and EATING in a Viper!?!??!!?

Please don't forget how I started my first post. "no offense and please don't take this wrong" I am not saying that the Ipod is to blame but when we are out driving our Vipers or any car for that matter its more important to focus on the road than on other distractions. It is safer to drive blindfolded on a race track than to take your eyes off the road for a second on public roads. This should serve as a reminder to all of us that no matter how good of a driver we may be (or think we are), there is always some unforeseen thing that can occur and we need to be careful.

SO you are telling me that as soon as you get into your Viper you NEVER take your eyes off the road? Give me a F'n break. You have to look to change stations on the radio, change the climate control, turn up the volume, etc... This has nothing to do with the ipod. I looked down for maybe 1 second. The ipod was hooked up tp the radio and I needed to find the button on th radio to switch it to ipod. The play lists were already programmed.

 

[voi9]

Sorry about your loss. When you get your insurance money, just go out and buy another Viper. Talk to Jon B. at PartsRack as I hear that he can help out tremendously with the insurance claims.
BTW, if you get another 06' Viper, make sure that the first thing that you do is to GET THE RUNFLATS OFF!! I hate those tires and they certainly did not help with the sudden loss of control of your Viper and the difficulty trying to recover. I lost it in another sports car that had runflats on it and I remember the feeling of how I felt like I was suddenly driving on ICE!! Scary feeling! I will never put runflats on any of my vehicles. I don't care if it is my SUV, economy cruiser, or sports car. When I first picked up my 06", the first thing I did after break in period was put the PS2's on. I just carry a tire plug kit and a plug in air compressor. Hope all works out for you. You will be back in the saddle soon.

 

[Sittingbull101]

no offense and please don't take this wrong but just that you pointed it out. You looked down at your IPOD while driving a viper and had an accedent. Then people wonder why Dodge didn't have a ipod adapter built into the Viper??!?!?! Well here it is. AN Ipod has no business in a Viper.

Sorry for you loss but lets hope a lesson is learned from this.

I only say this because the same thing happened to me a few years back. I looked down to change songs on my ipod and a car swerved infront of me and I swerved into a wall. I totaled my car but it was only a Mazda 3si. That was the last time I put an ipod in my car and the last accedent I had.

So I guy has a brush with death and all you have to say is : "Don't fiddle with your Ipod while driving?"

 

[Kala]

Wiseasp, glad you are OK...

talking on a phone while driving a manual is not bright, and EATING in a Viper!?!??!!?

Hey Robert, I do this stuff all the time in my Viper... knock on SMS panels... seriously though... I'm sure you meant well with your post, it just didn't come off that way.

 

[Sellshomesdrivesviper]

My good friend, I am glad you are okay, the car is secondary. Steve

 

[Blue Pilot]

I am willing to bet by the looks of the floor pan and bell housing tunnel on the inside of the car, that when he went airborne and hit the fire hydrant, that the engine and transmission shifted hard to the left, pushing the floor around the bell housing of the car into the gas pedal which caused it to bend to the left under the brake pedal. Very freaky result of the accident indeed.
Glad you are ok.

Tim

I am baffled at how the acclerator got stuck behind the brake. I wonder how that happen........ Sorry this happen to you.

Rev

 

[Canyon707]

I remember when I bought my Viper. I was told by the dealer that most Viper accidents occour in the first couple thousand miles. I drove it home with white knuckles. You really can't take your hands off the wheel. As you know now..... I bought a Pioneer receiver with mpe I pod hookup and an option was a remote that attaches to the steering wheel. It's very easy to manage the ipod right from it. Glad your ok. Cars are easier to fix then bones.

 

[Alexarz]

This could have happened to anybody but the point Jeffrey is making is that we have to strive to prioritize driving the car and resist the temptation to become too relaxed by doing other things, such as answering a cell phone, ipod, changing cd's, etc. All it takes is a split second. Your accident sounds like it was a nightmare, with the brake pedal feeding the accelerator. The odd thing is, this happens to me even though mine is not broken. It never happens in my GTS but the SRT pedals are too close to each other.