Fuel Economy, Hypermiling, EcoModding News and Forum - EcoModder.com - View Single Post - Insurance, legality and your modifications

aardvarcus · 09-23-2016, 09:05 AM

I think I am going to have to stop posting in this thread, it must be bad karma as I almost got hit on the highway yesterday.

I was traveling the speed limit of 55 with my cruise on in the slow lane of a four lane highway. Conditions were very sparse traffic nobody even near me. As I approached a green traffic light, there is a car in the turn lane opposite me waiting to turn left. That car would have had a green as well, so he was to yield to oncoming traffic (me). Just as I am about to enter into the intersection, I see the car in the turn lane start to come forward. For a split second I thought he was just inching up to turn right after me, but as the car gained speed I quickly realized he intended to complete his turn right into my driver’s side door. I immediately swerved hard to the right into the shoulder area, but after going over about 10’ or so had to quickly correct back to straight so that I didn’t clip the front bumpers off of the cars waiting at the light on the cross road. All this was done in what felt like fractions of a second. I managed to miss both the impatient turner and the cars on the cross road but it was close.

I am not aware of any “crash avoiding” vehicle out there that would have handled that situation. If I or the car had simply hit the brakes I would have definitely been in a collision. If the car had attempted to hit the brakes on me while I was trying to swerve, I would have been in a collision.

As I cut my vehicle hard at speed I could feel the vehicle wanting to lift up and lose traction, but it didn’t. It was close though. I am glad to be running my front air dam, which noticeably increases down force and improves handling. I do not think that my truck would have made those two quick hard turning corrections without that airdam. There is little doubt in my mind that it have lost traction on the front steering axle and skidded during at least one of those turns. If I didn't execute both turns, I was going to hit or be hit by something.

So heres to ecomodder, yesterday the things I learned and implemented from this site most likely kept me out of a collision.

With that, I am signing out of this thread, as I no longer want to be a guinea pig for this topic. You guys have fun arguing the rest of the issues out. I think I and my menace to the world non-self-driving vehicles need to find something more productive to focus our energy on. I should probably start a thread on my 1994 Turbo Diesel Suburban project.

09-23-2016, 09:05 AM	#28 (permalink)
aardvarcus Master EcoModder Join Date: Apr 2012 Location: Evensville, TN Posts: 676 Deep Blue - '94 GMC Suburban K2500 SLE 90 day: 23.75 mpg (US) Griffin (T4R) - '99 Toyota 4Runner SR5 90 day: 25.43 mpg (US) Thanks: 237 Thanked 580 Times in 322 Posts	I think I am going to have to stop posting in this thread, it must be bad karma as I almost got hit on the highway yesterday. I was traveling the speed limit of 55 with my cruise on in the slow lane of a four lane highway. Conditions were very sparse traffic nobody even near me. As I approached a green traffic light, there is a car in the turn lane opposite me waiting to turn left. That car would have had a green as well, so he was to yield to oncoming traffic (me). Just as I am about to enter into the intersection, I see the car in the turn lane start to come forward. For a split second I thought he was just inching up to turn right after me, but as the car gained speed I quickly realized he intended to complete his turn right into my driver’s side door. I immediately swerved hard to the right into the shoulder area, but after going over about 10’ or so had to quickly correct back to straight so that I didn’t clip the front bumpers off of the cars waiting at the light on the cross road. All this was done in what felt like fractions of a second. I managed to miss both the impatient turner and the cars on the cross road but it was close. I am not aware of any “crash avoiding” vehicle out there that would have handled that situation. If I or the car had simply hit the brakes I would have definitely been in a collision. If the car had attempted to hit the brakes on me while I was trying to swerve, I would have been in a collision. As I cut my vehicle hard at speed I could feel the vehicle wanting to lift up and lose traction, but it didn’t. It was close though. I am glad to be running my front air dam, which noticeably increases down force and improves handling. I do not think that my truck would have made those two quick hard turning corrections without that airdam. There is little doubt in my mind that it have lost traction on the front steering axle and skidded during at least one of those turns. If I didn't execute both turns, I was going to hit or be hit by something. So heres to ecomodder, yesterday the things I learned and implemented from this site most likely kept me out of a collision. With that, I am signing out of this thread, as I no longer want to be a guinea pig for this topic. You guys have fun arguing the rest of the issues out. I think I and my menace to the world non-self-driving vehicles need to find something more productive to focus our energy on. I should probably start a thread on my 1994 Turbo Diesel Suburban project.