wrecked 03 ADV

[Cageless]

Two kind of riders- those that have gone down and those that will go down.

Well I just became one of the latter. First time in 28 years. I also qualified for the top catagory for accident type involvng another vehical. The dreaded cage turning left into your path. It even elicited the top response from the other driver- "I did'nt see him officer"! DID'NT SEE ME- PIAA 520's AND HIGH BEAM!!! She was turning into a pizza place, so I guess she was overwhelmed by hunger!

Anyway, she was written for careless driving and two witnesses reported to police that I had no hope!

If I was on anything but an ABS, servo assited, partially linked braking system I probably would'nt be writing this right now. I nearly cleared her but just caught the rear bumper of her car broad-side. Ripped the entire thing off including the underlying structural support.

With an impact speed of about 10-15 MPH the ADV flipped onto it's right side and threw me about 20'. All my gear did it's job in protecting me from injury. Nolan flip helmet impacted at right rear, Motoport Kevlar abraided thru at right rear shoulder and right hip, boots wore thru buckle, glove wore thru at right palm.

Unfortunatly my ADV was injured. Bent forks, bent telelever, windshield, beak, fender, crash bars valve cover, right box and rack, rear rack, handlebars, front brake assembly, etc, etc. Dealer says it's repairable. Waiting on the estimate.

One thing the dealer said to me after looking at some of the accesorries on the bike was that the hyper-lites I have wired in at the brake lite should not be there. Something about the low voltage utilized in the rear brakes electrical system and it's interaction with the ABS brain. He said another customer had to spend $1600 on a new ABS brain because he wired in an Autocomm system to the brakes power system and fried something. I can't imagine the low current draw of the Hyper-lites LED's would be a problem But what do I know- BMW has spoken!

Also was wondering what the imact of a crashed bike is on resale value! I guess that difference just becomes a loss since there's no way to claim that thru the insurance. In some respects I wish the bike was totaled. I'm not sure if I will have the same attitude about the bike after it's fixed ( as would any other buyer).

[RJK]

Damn, sorry mang.

Glad you're OK and your gear did it's job. Always less painless to fix the bike then you. It's always amazing to hear how such a low speed crash can cause so much damage to gear.

I'd be interested to hear more abt he hyper-lites. I just ordered some, and don't want to create any problems. I am a moron when it comes to electrics. Ji

[Hacksaw]

[dragoon]

28 years.........Sure am glad your OK Cageless

[Ricardo Kuhn]

Said Cageless:
Two kind of riders- those that have gone down and those that will go down.

Well I just became one of the latter. First time in 28 years. I also qualified for the top catagory for accident type involvng another vehical. The dreaded cage turning left into your path. It even elicited the top response from the other driver- "I did'nt see him officer"! DID'NT SEE ME- PIAA 520's AND HIGH BEAM!!! She was turning into a pizza place, so I guess she was overwhelmed by hunger!

Anyway, she was written for careless driving and two witnesses reported to police that I had no hope!

If I was on anything but an ABS, servo assited, partially linked braking system I probably would'nt be writing this right now. I nearly cleared her but just caught the rear bumper of her car broad-side. Ripped the entire thing off including the underlying structural support.

With an impact speed of about 10-15 MPH the ADV flipped onto it's right side and threw me about 20'. All my gear did it's job in protecting me from injury. Nolan flip helmet impacted at right rear, Motoport Kevlar abraided thru at right rear shoulder and right hip, boots wore thru buckle, glove wore thru at right palm.

Unfortunatly my ADV was injured. Bent forks, bent telelever, windshield, beak, fender, crash bars valve cover, right box and rack, rear rack, handlebars, front brake assembly, etc, etc. Dealer says it's repairable. Waiting on the estimate.



Also was wondering what the imact of a crashed bike is on resale value! I guess that difference just becomes a loss since there's no way to claim that thru the insurance. In some respects I wish the bike was totaled. I'm not sure if I will have the same attitude about the bike after it's fixed ( as would any other buyer).

sound like you have more than suffient damage to "Total " the bike...and you can always ask your dealer to do soo..

specially if the others persons insurance is going to pay,,you just tell them,,you want a new bike,,that you don't trust this one any more...

what to do with the "Crash Bike" you have a few options....

you can buy it back from the insurance(you have first bets on it)and "fix it"as a rider(on the cheap) not as a Looker(that is how they call them)and use it for "dirt biking" or something

you can sell it UN-FIX to somebody,,after you get it but you will not get much for it.

you can fix it and sell it ,,but provably you will losee money that way.

you can sell the parts ,,and maybe that way you make the most money,,but then you need a lot of time and efford,,UPS the parts"oh that part those no fit" responses all day long...

another thing you can do,,is you can get the money from the insurance and fix it your self with use parts,and use the rest to upgrade the suspension among other things,,,the shop will replace parts only with OEM parts.

[FatChance]

I'm with Ricky. Don't accept repair after an accident like that. Demand they total it. If they don't, insist on the best bike frame repair place in the region and watch over every aspect of the repair process and insist on it coming out like a new bike. Maybe they could repair that bike, but I wouldn't buy it when you're ready to sell.

Glad you're OK

[bpeterson]

Cageless - man, sorry to hear about the accident - it always amazes me that people pay so little attention when they're driving

Glad that you're not seriously hurt, and can get the bike fixed.

I asked about the Hyperlites from cycelgadgets and they said they'd be fine. Of course they're not the dealer either...

Is your dealer Cross Country?

[FUBAR]

Cageless -
Sorry to hear about the wreak - Glade to hear you came out of it okay!!!! - Curious though.... did the collision occur during the day or night?

[RubberDown]

sorry to hear about your accident

I agree with Ricky too. That bike sounds like it's definetly totaled. I would use your ability to buy the bike back from the insurance company (after it's totaled) and use it as either a parts bike or make it into a project bike.

The most important thing is you weren't hurt! Here's to another 28 years of accident free miles

[Ostrich]

Sorry to hear about the get off. The important thing is that you are still with us and only your wallet is damaged.

I would try for a new bike, but it might not be worth the trouble to buy back the old one. I would just go for the new bike FWIW.

[Cageless]

I don't think the bike is totaled. My insurance says that damages have to be in excess of 60-65% of the Kelly blue book value. Unfortunately since it's an 03, KBB list the value at $15,200. That mean damages would need to exceed $9000.

If I want to attempt to get a replacement instead of repair I'd have to argue the $15,200 KBB since the bike was bought in 02/03 and it has 6k on the clock. So there's some depreciation there and also the diminishuation or reduction in resale value due to the crash. I not sure how to come up with that figure.

As to time of day- it was 6:30PM bright, sunny and dry. Come to think of it I was headed east and she was westbound, maybe the setting sun factored into this in some way. Although she did'nt say her vision was obstructed by glare.

I was going to have my insurance represent me. I thought that might get the bike on the road faster. But if this thing goes beyond my policies coverage I'll make the claim direct to her insurance.

[Ricardo Kuhn]

Said Cageless:
I don't think the bike is totaled. My insurance says that damages have to be in excess of 60-65% of the Kelly blue book value. Unfortunately since it's an 03, KBB list the value at $15,200. That mean damages would need to exceed $9000.

If I want to attempt to get a replacement instead of repair I'd have to argue the $15,200 KBB since the bike was bought in 02/03 and it has 6k on the clock. So there's some depreciation there and also the diminishuation or reduction in resale value due to the crash. I not sure how to come up with that figure.

As to time of day- it was 6:30PM bright, sunny and dry. Come to think of it I was headed east and she was westbound, maybe the setting sun factored into this in some way. Although she did'nt say her vision was obstructed by glare.

I was going to have my insurance represent me. I thought that might get the bike on the road faster. But if this thing goes beyond my policies coverage I'll make the claim direct to her insurance.

Legal stuff I don't Know...

Bike stuff i know some....

MURPHIES LAW I know it all....
those crashes always end up costing and compromising more things than the "basic"(look Over)stimate will cover...

make sure you have a "open tab"account with the insurance(and make sure every Bolt and washer is mension and acount into the stimate) just in case they discover something more complicated and deeper(always haapend,,belive me,,it ).

Just ask ANdrew for his experince when he crash his bike(i look for the tread i did not find it)his bike got repair at least two times,,and he was never totally and complelly satisfied,and then is always the impression that something is not right,,(specially if compromise forks ,frames and suspension components....)
examine the engine mounting points for cracks,,stress rissers,,ask CrAsH(Ray) and his Ovalize A-arm mounting Pivot,rendering the whole bike useless(to use on a A-arm type bike,,at least)

try your best to get a new bike,,if is necesary take the bike somewere else so they can do a "deeper" more comprensive stimate..

[wxwax]

Cageless, 28 years is a pretty darn good run. I'm sorry to hear about the bike damage, but really glad to hear that you're OK. And your story is a good cautionary tale for me... I've found that the 520s really get people's attention. But what happened to you is a good reminder that some people will turn in front of a truck, let alone a bike.

Thanks for posting your story, and I hope you get the bike situation squared away to your satisfaction.

[pushrod]

Don't let the cager's insurance company repair that bike. In many states, you would be entitled to compensation for loss of use, which the the cost of renting a replacement vehicle for the time yours is necessarily out of service for repairs. That should amount to about $150 per day, as that is what GSs rent for. You are also entitled to diminution in value, or depreciation. That is the amount of value that you will have lost after the bike is repaired. A used buyer would not pay the same price for your bike as he would for an identical unit that had not been seriously wrecked. The difference is your loss.

If you convince the insurance company that you are entitled to these two categories of damages in addition to the cost of repairs, the total damages may exceed the market value of the bike before the accident and it should be totaled.

The laws in your state may not allow these elements of damages, but you should look into it, as getting a new bike tomorrow is a lot better than waiting two months to get your repaired bike back and worrying about whether some damage that could affect safety was overlooked. Check the law and then demand that the cager's insurance company pay all that is due. And in considering your options, remember that the goal of the insurance company is to beat you out of a fair resolution of the claim.

Tom

[redseca2]

Glad to here you are okay and can still compose a good report. Maybe if you installed a dildo on the beak she would have seen you.

I do not know anything about hyper-lites but I have learned a little about brake lights and ABS and their mysterious co-dependencies.

On a recent roadtrip, the ABS status lights on my '03 GS suddenly came on. One light flashed and the other was on continuously. This concerned me because I was 750 miles into a 7500 mile trip and heading away from all known repair shops into the tundra at a good pace. A call to my home dealer informed me that this meant that just one, only one, of the brake light filaments was broken and that as a result, a reduced current was redirected to the rear turn signal lights to cover for this grievous failure.

He was right. One cheap bulb and the flashing red light show on the dash immediately came to an end.

These are the same crazies that designed the all-mechanical fuel injection on my '63 Mercedes.

I won't touch the 50-zillion tubes, cams and rods on that fuel injection and I'm not messing with the GS's brake light either.