Stupid accident today, completely my fault.

[CarJunkie]

Grrrrrr!

I have been driving manuals for over 20 years and have never done something so stupid.

I got in the car and it wouldn't start. I realized I had left the key in the house, so I got out to go get it. Apparently, I had taken the car out of gear, and didn't realize it. I also left the drivers door open, which turns out to bee a good thing, I think.

As I got to the door into the house, I heard a noise. By the time I realized the car was rolling, it was too late. The drivers door stopped the car from going out of the garage. It would have backed into a rocky embankment if it had gone out, so it is good that the door stopped it but the door panel is warped and the door doesn't close right. Now I get to make a trip to the body shop with only 2400 miles on the car.

Have you ever wished you could just go back in time by 10 seconds to erase a moment of stupidity?

[///M1]

Oh man, sorry to hear of this misfortune, so what I usually do in these moments is think of "how much worse it could've been". Had the door been closed, you may be looking at a nasty rear end repair. So just think that you got away meeting with the 'small devil'.

[ethanh8791]

I'm not even going to share my story here...it happened on the way home from PCD....no damage but it could have been REALLY bad.

It can be fixed man...don't fret about it or you'll just drive yourself crazy.

[HeyMoe53]

Yeah, it does stink, but it could have been way worse. You'll be fine in no time.

[CarJunkie]

To this day, I don't understand why a garage floor would slant outward rather than be flat. In the summer, all of the neighborhood kids play in out cul de sac.

When I back out, need to turn slightly left to avoid a steep embankment thait reinforced with boulders to prevent erosion. That would have mad a huge mess of the side of the car, and may have directed it int the street. Driveway is moderately steep, so who knows where it would have stopped.

It definitely could have been worse!

[Artemis]

Don't feel sorry for it. We're only human. Your 1M will soon be in pristine condition again.

I almost damaged my exhaust and tips a couple of weeks ago. My mistake. Got away without damage but it was a close call: http://www.1addicts.com/forums/showthread.php?t=609647

We always remember incidents/accidents, but tend to forget most near misses, the scary hair-raising moments without unhappy end. And for sure, we all already escaped some hardship situations without ever realizing these.

Nobody's perfect. Here are two near misses experienced and posted by Advevo, one of the best drivers of this forum:

[Powerbeast]

SOrry to hear man glad it wasn't any worse.

[Papethova]

Originally Posted by CarJunkie

To this day, I don't understand why a garage floor would slant outward rather than be flat.

I think its for drainage so you can hose down the floor.

Sorry to hear, but I kid you not we had the same thing happen today to us. Not me in the 1M but my cousins car went like 100ft down the street jumped a curb between 2 trees and then was stopped by a brick wall. Still could have been much worse.

[135iUSN]

Well, we are two peas in a pod...

I did this to my Tacoma 4x4 years ago - I had just pulled out of my 1 car garage, paused to remember I forgot something. I ran up stairs via the basement and heard a thump to the house. Well, it had rolled backward and hit the corner of the garage/foundation with a nice thud. It was still running and in neutral. I felt like such an idiot.

Luckily it didn’t roll forward as it would have gone down a small hill (about 40ft drop) into the back of the house below.

All will be good. No one was hurt except the dear M and this can be fixed.

[hybris4u]

Originally Posted by CarJunkie

To this day, I don't understand why a garage floor would slant outward rather than be flat. In the summer, all of the neighborhood kids play in out cul de sac.

When I back out, need to turn slightly left to avoid a steep embankment thait reinforced with boulders to prevent erosion. That would have mad a huge mess of the side of the car, and may have directed it int the street. Driveway is moderately steep, so who knows where it would have stopped.

It definitely could have been worse!

The reason is usually for water to run out of the garage. Water from snowy cars that melt etc.

[david.orr]

Originally Posted by CarJunkie

Grrrrrr!

I have been driving manuals for over 20 years and have never done something so stupid.

I got in the car and it wouldn't start. I realized I had left the key in the house, so I got out to go get it. Apparently, I had taken the car out of gear, and didn't realize it. I also left the drivers door open, which turns out to bee a good thing, I think.

As I got to the door into the house, I heard a noise. By the time I realized the car was rolling, it was too late. The drivers door stopped the car from going out of the garage. It would have backed into a rocky embankment if it had gone out, so it is good that the door stopped it but the door panel is warped and the door doesn't close right. Now I get to make a trip to the body shop with only 2400 miles on the car.

Have you ever wished you could just go back in time by 10 seconds to erase a moment of stupidity?

You're not the only one! Sometime back, I put mine in R in DCT mode, realised my boot wasn't closed properly. Opened door, stepped out and car started back. I couldn't stepped back quickly enough, so my door left a hugh long dent on my missus' car, warped my door and I hurt my right foot. Somehow I thought I could stop the car with my right foot

Hope you get your M fixed real soon.

[HKDaytona]

I "almost" had a stupid accident as well and it was still a shock to me now.

My car is stored in a tiny parking lot in Manhattan. The manager there helped park my car and he put it in 1st gear and shut down the car.

The next day I went there myself to turn up the car. Pressed the clutch and hit the engine button and I forgot that it was in 1st gear. When I released the clutch the car just move forward quickly and almost hit a pole. Luckily my family members were not in front of the car too.

It was very stupid and I am still in a bit of shock now.

[Dan Parker]

After thinking about it for 5 minutes I've come to an opinion. It couldn't be any worse! Just my .02. ;(

[Pig Farmer]

Dan - Sure it could. It could have happened to your car. BTW, nice driving at Sebring. The 1M looked real strong through Bishops.

[CarJunkie]

Thinking back, the comfort access is actually the reason it happened. My whole process of approaching and getting in the car has changed. I would have noticed I was missing the key before even getting in if I had a traditional key. With comfort access, I was in the car and trying to start it before I had any way to know I forgot the key.

[Pig Farmer]

Good point CJ. I'm not a big fan of comfort access for multiple reasons. Good luck with the repair!

[doug_999]

Nobody got hurt, that's a win. The car will be fixed and back to normal in no time, plus you have a great story to tell. And no, it was not CA's fault

[b33g33]

Ouch. Sorry to hear man. Still, you didn't try to stop the car with your foot or with your dog.

It will get fixed and you won't do it again.

Good cautionary tale for all of us with comfort access.

One of the other things I sometimes worry about it trying to use the gear lever to make iDrive selections. Anyone else worry about this?

:P

[uberschnell]

Hey, be grateful no one one got hurt. We all make stupid mistakes and most of us learn to laugh about it later on.

[mangledlftthumb]

Last November, I had the car (the 128i) in the garage to do the summer to winter tire change-over. The car was in neutral without the emergency brake on but, with the wheels blocked. After finishing the last wheel, I walked around the car to remove the blocks. I took the last block off of the front driver's side and walked to the other side of the garage to pile the block with the rest of them. Out of the corner of my eye, I see my car rolling out the garage. My driveway has a decent slope to the street & on the opposite side of the street, is my neighbour's van. So, I run after the car and I'll I could think of to do was grab at the hood. The car keep going, nudging the curb of the driveway and as I held on, the tire ran over the side of my foot. The car reaches the street with yours truly pulling on the hood. The street is higher in the middle & I guess the run in with the curb on my driveway & my pulling slowed the car so that it didn't have enough inertia to make it across the street. The car rolled back towards my house and the whole thing was over. No damage to the car. Sore foot for me & chuckle at my stupid luck.

[-cj-]

Another positive is that you got your first real ding out of the way early. Now you can enjoy the car without worrying. =) Could have been much worse!

[NC]

Originally Posted by doug_999

Nobody got hurt, that's a win. The car will be fixed and back to normal in no time, plus you have a great story to tell. And no, it was not CA's fault

Exactly. No one got hurt. With neighborhood kids routinely playing in the cul-de-sac its a good thing the door stopped the car from rolling into the street. Sorry to hear about your car but as others have said it could have been worse.