Truck Rollover... Lessons Learned

[BadIntel]

Well, this last Saturday, I learned a few valuable lessons.

1. During rainy weather, drive slow. During heavy rains, if you think you're driving slow enough, drive slower.



2. If you drive a truck, it may behoove you to weigh down the bed for some better traction during bad weather.



3. Don't drive on a spare tire (if you can help it). Especially if it's a rear tire and not full size. Especially if it's rainy.



I was driving to my parents' house (luckily my wife was already there and neither of my dogs were with me). As I merged onto the freeway, I hit a really slick patch and my rear tires started to fishtail to the left. I automatically attempted to correct it, but overcompensated, turning it into a counter-clockwise spin. Luckily I didn't spin into a busy portion of traffic and a majority of oncoming cars (except one) stopped in time. The one struck my truck on the rear right corner, and right after the impact, the truck started to roll over. I don't know how many times it rolled, but it was at least once, and I ended up on the left side, nose facing the divider and top of the cab facing traffic.

At this point, I did a quick check of myself, unbuckled, slowly stood, and grabbed my phone (had been sitting on the chair next to me, but was saved by the charging cable tethering it inside the vehicle) and my keys. The windshield was shattered, but I couldn't kick/push it out, so I unlocked the passenger door and opened it. Thankfully, many drivers had stopped, blocked traffic, and came to help me, so they held the door up while (against all odds and to their surprise) I climbed out of the wreck and walked to the shoulder all on my own.

Called the wife, called 911,talked to PD and firefighters (who were trying to talk me into an ambulance ride, but what can I say, I'm stubborn and didn't feel I needed that), and ended up getting driven to the ER by my and my wife's family anyway.

In the end, I checked out fine, with minor aches and pains, a headache, shattered glass all through my hair, possibly a very mild concussion (brain was acting pretty dumb till the next day, lol), and a few new life/driving lessons. Think I need to buy my guardian angel a beer or something

[TacAir]

And I suspect you were wearing your seat belt as well.

I put a PU into the median upside down a few years back - quite the experience ain't it? In my case it was snow & ice, the snow was a good energy absorber.

Glad to hear you got out ok.

[Phoenix David]

You should be able to buff that out.

Glad your OK.

[zombie_dog]

I'm in 4wheel drive any time traction is a concern... it's just safer.

but then, I deal with much "slicker" conditions than rain (well freezing rain counts right? )

sounds like you're alright, that's good! good thing you had a belt on, bouncing around (or out of) your truck would have really ruined this story

[BadIntel]

Yeah, I was wearing my seatbelt, so thankfully I stayed put, and most of the motion was spinning (other than the roll), so no whiplash or other more serious injuries. Definitely gonna have stuff on standby to weigh down the bed of my next truck during wet weather. I would've used 4 wheel drive, but my rear tires were slightly smaller than the front (the weird previous owner chose to do that), and the rear right tire was a little smaller than the rear left because it was a spare (and I couldn't afford to replace it). It's my understanding that different sized tires, especially when it's left/right size difference, can mess up the differential or something, so I didn't use it.

Oh well, I've survived to learn some lessons to apply to the next truck



Also, basically my thoughts when I heard the ER resident say they didn't need to cut my shirt off

[Dawgboy]

Glad you alright. Looks like you are in the market for a new truck too.

[duodecima]

Yeah, I was wearing my seatbelt, so thankfully I stayed put,

Preparedness has multiple levels - that's why you walked away.

Glad you're OK!

[BadIntel]

Yup, been browsing what's out there. Gotta wait to see what the insurance company is gonna cash out for this one, but there are lots of trucks available right now

[Mrbeefy]

Sucks about your truck, glad you walked away. Lessons learned man. Life goes on. Now turn that Taco into a Zombie buggy !!

[Boromokot]

good to hear you came out of that alright. I guess this explains why the previous owner of my Ranger had a several hundred lb hunk of metal in the flatbed. I didnt understand it's purpose but noticed it made acceleration and stopping at least a fraction of a second slower; so i removed it.
Any thoughts on getting some sort of rescue tool? got one handy?

[SneakyG]

Glad to hear you're okay. I just hit the ditch an hour ago. Freezing rain and wind just took me completely off the road. Im driving a truck with camper and i was sure it was going to tip. Luckily it didn't and there was only a few inches of snow in the ditch and i was able to just drive right out. Scary thing is i was only travelling about 50mph and people were passing me going 65-70. Just goes to show you can never drive slow enough in poor conditions.

[EmbraceTheHate]

Next time dont correct with the steering wheel let out of the throttle. Glad your ok, hope you have good insurance.

sent from my galaxy tab 2

[Happy Go Lucky]

I once heard from an aquaintance his "lesson learned" when he rolled a vehicle. Quote, "The brakes don't work at all when the car is sliding on its roof."

[DarkandShiny]

I've been told numerous times (in traffic school ) that stopping distances triple when the roads are wet. 4 wheel drive is great but everybody has 4 wheel stopping.

Glad you are okay - and thanks for sharing.

That should buff out

[BadIntel]

Been awhile since I checked back in here (lots of stuff changed at work rapidly, lol).

So, thanks to my insurance, I actually got paid out more than the truck cost me. With that I ended up getting a 4runner (98, I think), 4wd and 5 speed. Loving it so far, and it's a lot nicer for transporting our dogs (good sized trunk + a pet barrier gives them a nice place to chill without being able to jump up front on long drives). It's also nice to have the second row of seats that can fold down, so you get a choice between more seating or more storage space, unlike the truck.

You can be sure I'm MUCH more cautious in any kind of rain now

[BadIntel]

good to hear you came out of that alright. I guess this explains why the previous owner of my Ranger had a several hundred lb hunk of metal in the flatbed. I didnt understand it's purpose but noticed it made acceleration and stopping at least a fraction of a second slower; so i removed it.
Any thoughts on getting some sort of rescue tool? got one handy?

My sister-in-law and mother-in-law both put a bunch of sandbags in their truck beds during rainy weather, and it seems to help (though both my father-and-mother-in-law fell in love with my 4runner and got their own now, lol). I also had a co-worker who showed me some giant water bladder thing designed to lay flat in the bed of your truck and add a lot of weight to prevent loss of traction, and he claims those are good as well.

[Caenus]

Glad you are ok...and silver lining is (provided you have coverage) uncle insurance will get those new tires for you...and a windshield, and a new cab...