Yesterday morning I was on my way to work in my TR8, just like any other morning. I had just merged into traffic and was comfortably staring at the back of a Century Link truck that was in front of me when I felt a hard hit to my left and behind me and I was instantly in a spin and punted from the roadway. The car that was in the lane next to me, and had just moved into my blind spot, had started swerving back and forth in its lane (this was on a four lane highway with a center turn lane, we were both travelling the same direction, it was in the left hand lane, I was in the right), had crossed into the center turn lane and then suddenly turned hard right all the way across its lane and into mine, striking the left rear of my TR8 almost squarely on the rear tire. Without knowing it, the driver had just committed the perfect "Pitt Maneuver" on me. I actually did not see any of this coming she was in my blind spot and I didn't even see her start swerving. I was practically "punted" from the side of the road. This information would all be told to me afterwards thanks to an eyewitness that stopped after what she saw.
I was halfway through my second 360 degree spin when my front wheel struck the curb and instantly reversed my direction slamming my left rear wheel into the curb even harder. The curb was broken where my rear tire hit it and my car ended up going up and over the curb as the broken curb tore the tire from the rim. At this point I was travelling backwards. I would estimate my speed to still have been about 45-50mph when I hit the curb. As the car went up and over the curb, the flat left rear tire started to drag and dig into the soft earth and grass and the front end of the car started to swing around into the direction of travel. A small tree, about 2-1/2 inches in diameter tried, and failed to drain the momentum from my early morning not so thrill ride. My TR8 cut the tree off clean about 3-1/'2 inches from the ground. I slid for about another 20 feet and encountered the sidewalk where the side ways drag of what I would discover to be two flat tires on the drivers side, along with two broken wheels finally halted my off road excursion.
Once I stopped, I noticed that the engine was still running, I had shifted into neutral and my foot was hard on the brake. Although the lack of any sort of skid marks before I hit the curb would indicate just how much help brakes are when you are in a violent spin. I have never felt so helpless behind the wheel of a car. I switched the engine off and reached for the door handle. The door swung open easily, no issues there at all. I undid my seat belt and stood up out of the car and found myself standing in a tree that was also wedged under my car. I reached into my pocket and pulled out my cell phone so I could dial 911. My hands were shaking horribly from adrenalin and I struggled to unlock the phone, I noticed that a white sedan had pulled over to the shoulder and immediately thought that must be who hit me. As I dialed 911, a young woman exited the white sedan and approached telling me that she had seen the whole thing and that the car that had hit just kept driving. I confirmed with her that she had not hit me right as the 911 operator answered my call. I reported the accident and with the help of the young woman witness gave a detailed description of the car that had hit me and fled the scene. As I was giving a description, a BOLO (Be On The Lookout) for the offending car was going out to city police in two different cities, the county Sheriff's department and the Colorado State Highway Patrol.
Fifteen minutes later and a local police officer arrived at the scene. The eyewitness gave a detailed (shockingly detailed which I thought was really nice) report to the police officer and he let her go on her way. I was very grateful that she had stayed to explain what happened because I was still trying to figure it out. While the Police officer was filling out his report I contacted my insurance agency, AAA to get a tow truck on the way, my wife and then my work. The officer told me that they had not yet found the car and that if they did, chances are that they would not find it. If they did, no one could identify the driver so no one would receive a ticket. If they found the car and it was insured, then the current insurance would still have to cover the collision.
The police officer left after he finished his report and had taken his own pictures (with his radar gun believe it or not). It took about another ten minutes for the tow truck to arrive and I was alone with my thoughts and increasingly sore and aching body. The tow truck did arrive and we got the car loaded and off to a shop of my choice. Here is a link to some photos. The password is "Punted" (without the quotation marks).
http://photobucket.com/1980TR8accident_04_09_2012
As it sits now, the drivers side rear trailing arm is bent, both drivers side wheels and tires are destroyed. I have a bent steering arm and some pretty good sheet metal damage. I'm having a hard time getting a really clear idea of value for the adjuster and I know some of you track TR8 sales much more than I do. If any of you can help me with some research on recent TR8 sales I would really appreciate it. Coupe sales would be great but I know they are much fewer than roadster sales. There may be more damage revealed as it gets dug into a bit more.
Thanks in advance for any help you can offer. I do have access to a TR7 with right hand side body damage but perfect sheet metal on the drivers side. I also have access to most of the other parts that could be needed as well. Moral support is always appreciated as well.
Oh, the accident was at @ 7:30 am. Around 4:00pm, I received a call from the police officer that handled my accident. They had found the person who hit me. She actually turned herself in. She had called the police station and said "I think I was in a car accident this morning but I am not sure..." Her car matched the description given by the eyewitness, there was corresponding damage to the front right corner of her vehicle and she admitted to being on the same road at around the same time as the accident. She was ticketed for Hit & Run and Careless Driving. I haven't seen it yet, but was told that she did have current insurance.
<b><i>Shawn</i></b>
