[MichaelMurano]

Was sitting at a stop at a traffic light with my wife in my 5 month old MO with only 5k miles when wham!! - a 16 year old girl not paying attention rear-ended another guy who then rear ended me - or maybe he was slowing down and the push of both of their vehicles hit us. She had a Ford Explorer. He was in a Pontiac sedan. The Murano held up well. I'll need a new bumper - or the cover - the estimate for damages was $700. We were quite sore. Missed a couple of days of work with headaches and soreness but are ok now. The Pontiac's hood was buckled with headlights out and fenders dented.

This is the second time in a year that a 16 year old has caused me to have an accident. I was driving my Toyota Avalon through a neighborhood at about 35 mph with no stop sign. A 16 year old girl was at a stop sign on the side. She thought I had a stop sign which I didn't and so she pulled out in front of me. Lucky for her I saw it happening and slammed on the brakes. Instead of her driving through it she freakin' stopped like you'd expect from an inexperienced 16 year old driver who shouldn't be driving without a parent or adult of some kind. Lucky for her, and me, neither of us was hurt.

I tell you, I'm getting tired of all these kids driving around unsupervised with no driving experience making dangerous moves, talking on cell phones, yucking it up with friends. There needs to be stricter laws in place. The governor of Maryland just passed a few if they're actually enforced. It's tough I know. I went to college and worked part-time to pay for it starting at 17 and I needed a car. And a lot of kids are responsible. But a lot aren't and there needs to be some changes so we don't have to miss time from work, take time to put our MO's in the shop (and hope they do good body work), and so we don't have to be in pain. :3:

 

[dalsox]

What age did you start driving? I bet you didn't feel that way back then. It could be alot worse, at least your still alive. And I'm sure you've been a perfect driver your whole life, right?


:roadtrip:

 

[MichaelMurano]

Dalsox -
If you read my message you'd know I started driving at 17. And yes, for the record I am a perfect driver. I've had technically 6 accidents, none my fault. It's easy to see you're an idiot !!! Take a hike buddy.

 

[Murano_driver]

Sorry to hear about yor MO. Great that everybodys are ok. I hope that the body work for your MO will be as good as new.:2:

 

[MichaelMurano]

Thanks Murano_driver

Thanks Murano_driver.

 

[jaak]

I agree, graduated licensing seems to be the way to go. It's true that young drivers need to be coached initially. Not all, but many.

I can see a bit of frustration as well, over it. Can't say I blame you, but you guys shouldn't take it out on each other...

Not having been there, I can't really comment on what happened. But inexperience can be just as dangerous as too much experience.

One extreme doesn't know better, the other figures they know it all! I have to watch for the latter, as it's all too easy to take things for granted.

Along with the graduated licensing to bring new drivers on to the road safely, I'd like to retesting for the rest of us, every 5 years. Just to make sure we're up to date on the rules of the road and haven't developed bad habits.

I had a few driver training courses, including skid school (which is a lot of fun!) and I've discovered something about my skills in every one.

We all hate it when an accident happens. You really want to have fun, drive a motorcycle. You have to assume no one in a car can see you, because there's enough there, that don't...

 

[Eric L.]

Dalsox -
If you read my message you'd know I started driving at 17. And yes, for the record I am a perfect driver. I've had technically 6 accidents, none my fault. It's easy to see you're an idiot !!! Take a hike buddy.

Glad to hear you were not hurt in the accident. I know its in sarcasm but there was a complaint about the "idiot" comment, so lets all be nice here.

 

[Gonzo]

Glad that everyone is OK... I had an accident after about 12 months. On highway sudden stoppage... the MO stopped fine would have just made but the car behind me didn't and pushed me into the car in front. Same thing with me rear bumper cover and front bumper cover. The only good thing was that since it was in the body shop for the rear I had them install rear backup sensors and I paid for it separately.

 

[SGT]

Sorry to hear about your Murano. In New Jersey you don't get a full blown license until you are 18. You get your permit at 16 with a whole bunch of restrictions and once you turn 17 you get your probationary license where you can only drive with certain people (like family members) during certain hours, etc. I got my license at 17 before the whole restrictions occured, but when I was 16 I got my permit for doing 6 hours of driving school.... let me tell you... I drove for about 45 minutes and did some parallel parking for 30 minutes and then my driving instructor told me I was good to go and handed me my permit saying I completed 6 hours of driving school on the road. At the time I was young and dumb so I said hell yeah. I regret it though cuz I wish I had more experience... I ended up totalling my '93 Camry on a guardrail going down the mountains. Even though I am only 21 I have matured a lot and try to become more of a defensive driver.

As for your rear end... at least nobody got seriously injured. Could have been a lot worse but thank God it wasn't.